Dirt Bike Annie

by Mark DemingFast, loud, and fun-loving, Dirt Bike Annie are a full-tilt punk-pop foursome whose love of a good hook and a catchy harmony never gets in the way of cranking the amps up as far as they will go. Dirt Bike Annie were formed in 1993 by guitarist and singer Adam Rabuck while he was a student at New York University. A fan of bands like Too Much Joy and the Lemonheads, Rabuck joined forces with fellow student and bassist Chris Moses and drummer Tim McCarthy and began playing shows in the New York area. The group splintered in 1995 due to personal differences, but six months later Rabuck was jamming with his friend Dan Paquin and they decided to put together Dirt Bike Annie 2.0, with Paquin on bass and Dennis D. on drums. In 1996, the trio recorded and released their first 7", the EP It Ain't Easy Bein' Stupid. In 1997, Dennis D. left DBA, and Heth Weinstein became the band's new timekeeper; the group also became a quartet with the addition of Jeanie Lee, a high-school friend of Rabuck's who had spent time in Severna Park, whose rhythm guitar and playful harmonies added a wealth of personality to DBA's sound. Weinstein and Lee joined the band for their next two 7" EPs, Sitcoms and Summer Camps! and Chocco-Berri Sugar Pops! both recorded in 1977. This lineup also recorded Dirt Bike Annie's first two albums, Hit the Rock and Live in New Jersey, but by 2000 Weinstein left the group, leaving the group without a drummer once again. Mike Yannich (from the Ergs), a fanatical Dirt Bike Annie fan, took over behind the skins and made his recording debut with yet another 7" EP, Superscope. With a stable lineup in place, Dirt Bike Annie has recorded and toured regularly since, releasing two collaborative records with the Popsters and the Kung-Fu Monkeys. In 2003, the group released It Ain't Easy Being Single, which collected the group's vinyl EPs along with compilation tracks and several unreleased songs.