A look back at 'Slash Your Face' by The Dogs

The Dogs may have formed in the late ’60s, at the height of the electrifying Detroit rock scene that birthed The Stooges, MC5 and Bob Seger, but the band of Lansing natives are best known for its 1978 punk-rock classic: “Slash Your Face.” 

The menacing song certainly echoes back to Iggy Pop and Wayne Kramer-style rock ’n roll, but it’s amped up with something extra. The track has an added burning vigor that nods to their Motor City inspirations, while simultaneously going off the rails in a totally new direction. 

Over the years, aside from periodic hiatuses, the long-running Dogs have stayed quite active playing gigs across the map. But also, having tracks included on notable bootleg compilations, like “Killed by Death: Rare Punk 77-82” and “Bloodstains Across California,” have only bolstered the Lansing trio’s cult following. As for proper releases, in 2001, Dionysus Records released the comprehensive “Fed Up” LP compilation. In 2019, Almost Ready Records pressed up yet another reissue of the still-beloved “Slash Your Face” EP.

Loren Molinare, guitarist and vocalist of The Dogs, wrote the notorious title track in late 1977, at age 25, after the trio, which also comprised bassist Mary Kay with drummer Ron Wood, relocated from Michigan to Hollywood. It was at High Time Studio, the band’s headquarters where “Slash Your Face” first took shape and Molinare hashed out the commanding riff and bold lyrics.

“The song was inspired by the evolving punk scene in 1976/77 and the alienation we were feeling in a few ways,” Molinare said. “For me, I was sensing the pressure of elitist social political racist thinking, of anyone or anybody thinking they are better than his brother or sister. Also, as a band, we started to be shunned by the punk rock scenesters for being too mainstream a la Journey or REO Speedwagon — which is funny since we were so influenced by the MC5 and The Stooges.”

The band’s earliest days date back to mid-1968, so The Dogs had been around for a solid decade prior to the release of the signature song on the “Slash Your Face” EP, which also includes the anthemic “Fed Up” and a loud-an-snotty cover of “Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?” By October 1978, the record was pressed up and ready to sell. 

“It was pretty exciting times being in The Dogs,” Molinare recalled about that era of his long career.  “We had been playing great shows in LA, opening for AC/DC, The Ramones and Van Halen. Then, we had the opportunity to tour the UK in 1978 and ’79, and we needed a record to promote on the UK tour. So we put together the ‘Slash Your Face’ EP, which was recorded live on the Record Plant mobile truck in San Francisco at a punk club called the Mabuhay Gardens. In a classic punk rock move, our producer Jimmy Robinson stole the master mix tapes of the songs from our manager at the time and gave them to us to put out on our own label, Detroit Records, for the tour.”

As for the The Dog’s mission at the time, Molinare said each band member shared the same goals in life.

“Life was totally dedicated to the music and the band,” he said. “Our whole team believed that rock ’n roll was a vehicle to help make the world a better place through four Marshall stacks … with a lot of passion and weed.”

Today, Molinare lives in California, as does drummer Tony Matteucci. Kay, the other founding member, resides in Las Vegas. Still, the band’s Lansing roots live on through classic stories of pounding amplifiers and encounters with the law. They left behind a list of favorite shows they played over the years. However, one hazy day in 1972 sticks out the most.

“I think for Mary and myself, it was the day The Dogs were asked to play the Lansing Mall for a candidate running for Lansing City Counsel,” he recalled. “Well, four Marshall stacks got us kicked out of the mall for being too loud. Then a local hippie named ‘Mouse,’ from Baker Street in Lansing, suggested we could come and set up in their front yard and play. We did play, but got arrested before we really even hit a note.

“It was a classic day in the life of The Dogs,” he added. “Get kicked out of one place, go somewhere to play rock and roll, and get arrested. Someone has to make a statement for rock ’n roll and it was always The Dogs.” 

As for the future, The Dogs are busier than ever. While they were all “taking the pandemic seriously,” in 2020 the trio signed to Chicanery Chick Records, a branch of Die Laughing Records. So far, the imprint has issued two newly cut singles: the timely “Welcome to The Revolution” and “Under the Coast.” Give the new tunes a listen. Decades later, and the band hasn’t lost a drop of its raw, punk potency. The new vinyl single is coming out in the fall of 2021. 

In his free time, Molinare produced and plays in a new Los Angles band, The Slamdinstas. He also recorded tracks for The Cruzados new LP, out later this year.

Beyond that, Almost Ready Records is also prepping a 2021 reissue of The Dogs’ debut single, “John Rock” (a nod to John Sinclair) to mark its 45th anniversary. Keep listening, the Dogs are still barking louder than ever.