“You guys sounds like The Faces when they had a good night!”

-Pete Agnew, Nazareth.

 

“Frontman Sulo is a star, with the gaunt, gangly charisma of an eternal barfly.”
-Kerrang Magazine

 

Diamond Dogs Biography

 

You may have to visit the small town of Katrineholm, Sörmland, Sweden to fully appreciate the uniqueness of rockband Diamond Dogs. It’s a pessimistic post-industrial industry town where the steamy, good-time rock’n’roll of the Diamond Dogs is completely out of place. However, it’s the birth place of this fine rock orchestra.

 

They got out, I might add, thanks to God, luck and ambition…

The band moved to Stockholm and in 1994 they released their debut album “Honked!” produced by acclaimed Entombed/Hellacopters/Backyard Babies-producer Tomas Skogsberg. The success wasn’t exactly overwhelming but the band found an audience among friends of classic rock bands like Rolling Stones and Faces, but also contemporaries like Black Crowes, Georgia Satellites and Quireboys, and their reputation as a fine live act grew more and more solid.  Frontman Sulo and the band where subsequently seen playing mostly in Stockholm in the following years but disbanded for various reasons in 1997. After that, the members were seen in other bands and solo projects, most notably guitarist Boba transformed into a pianist and joined The Hellacopters fulltime and Sulo went punkpop in Blanceflor, releasing two albums.

 

But the music industry didn’t forget Diamond Dogs. After a three-year absence they were asked by record label Feedback Boogie to make a comeback and cut an album. It was a comeback mainly just for fun but the ep “Among the non-believers” and album “As your greens turn blue” put the band in the spotlight and in the tour bus, in Sweden but mainly in England and Spain where Diamond Dogs has since gathered a substancial and dedicated following. “As your greens turn blue” was a fast-produced, rough album containing songs like “Goodbye Miss Jill” and “Mighty, Mighty Mountain”, still Diamond Dogs showstoppers. Since then, the albums have been more ambitious. “Too much is always better than not enough” (2002), “From now on” (a compilation of old and new material, 2003) and “Black River Road” (2004) has a more slick and elegant production with soulful horn sections lifting the band to new heights.

 

The core of Diamond Dogs is still singer Sulo and keyboard player Henrik “The Duke Of Honk” Widén, the “founding fathers” if you like. Ever since the comeback in 2000 drummer Jesper Karlsson have kept the beat. Other than that, there has been some changes in the line-up. Guitarists Stevie Klasson (formerly Johnny Thunders), Mattias Hellberg (formerly Hellacopters, Hellberg/Hederos), Darrel Bath (formerly Ian Hunter Band), Fredrik Fagerholm (formerly Facer) and bass player Johan Johansson (swedish punk legend extraordinaire) have all had the time of their life rocking in the Diamond Dogs. Today Mats “Magic” Gunnarsson finally injects permanent sax into the Dogs, new guitarist Lars confirms the familiar 1973 vibe and “golden oldie” Stefan Björk (formerly Wilmer X and…yes…Diamond Dogs) provides the bass. The main songwriter is of course Sulo, but other band members has provided tunes occasionally. Sulo has also done some songwriting with Mattias Bärjed (of The Soundtrack Of Our Lives), Randy Bachman (of Bachman Turner Overdrive) and Nick Royale (of Hellacopters). The Diamond Dogs preferences are of course, like all great bands,  to headline their tours but they have also supported veteran acts like Dan Baird (of Georgia Satellites), Nazareth, Hanoi Rocks, The Damned and The Incredible Alex Harvey Band.

 

With the new line-up which has already proven to be a dynamite live experience and the latest album “Up The Rock” (autumn 2006) the sky is the limit for the Diamond Dogs. “Up The Rock” finds them back in the studio with Tomas Skogsberg and the collection of songs is probably their strongest to date. The familiar echoes of obvious ancestors like Faces and Stones are still there, as well as the less obvious Graham Parker and Southside Johnny, but there’s a new touch of glam rock in the 2007 version of Diamond Dogs, a touch of Mott The Hoople and T Rex. Which of course makes them even more 1973, but in a good way. Listen to gems like “Generation Upstart” and “The closest I’ve been to Memphis” - did 1973 really sound this good? No, probably not.

 

The Diamond Dogs is constantly evolving but stays true to their formula – blistering, cocky  rock’n’roll, blue soulful balladery, fun, entertainment and elegance. They will be around for many years to come and if they should enter a stage in your zip code you shouldn’t pass on the opportunity to see this 100% satisfaction guaranteed party machine. 

 

-Niclas Gustafsson-

 

 

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