The Dollyrots

by Katherine Fulton
What started as a hobby for New College of Florida students (and childhood friends) Kelly Ogden (bass/vocals) and Luis Cabeza (guitar) became a full-time career when Ogden and Cabeza decided to make their band, the Dollyrots, a full-time gig in 2000. The duo set off on a road trip to find a new home for the group and settled in Los Angeles in 2002; once there, the pair set about honing a sound inspired by the Ramones, the Pixies, the Sex Pistols, and Green Day. Two years later, the band (which now included drummer Amy Wood) signed with Lookout!/Panic Button Records and released Eat My Heart Out. While performing on the Vans Warped Tour in 2006, the bandmembers met Joan Jett, who was so taken by the Dollyrots that she offered them a spot on her Blackheart Records label roster. The Dollyrots agreed to the deal, but there would be a lineup change on their follow-up album -- Wood parted ways with the group and was replaced by Chris Black. Produced by Jacques Wait and John Fields, Because I'm Awesome debuted on Blackheart in March 2007.