..Blood Trust: Dex and Sara Romweber After the War
by Gretchen LaBudde
Stomp and Stammer March '09

Part snake handler, part rock n' roll shaman, Dex Romweber has channeled spirits from the stage for over 20 years. Having fought with demons and fucked ghosts, the mythology around the man has grown beyond what a mere mortal can ever attain. He's credited with showy flips off stage, a stunt he confesses he could never pull off, and is rumored to have been kept in a cage and fed like a cat from a bowl, a fib that made his mom cringe. There's that sex with ghosts thing, too. But a two year old partnership with his sister Sara on drums has grounded the man and his music, culminating in the dark and rather sophisticated Bloodshot CD called Ruins of Berlin.

"But the truth is I did have sex with ghosts!" said Dex. "That is pretty neat…" He laughs and maybe winks. Hard to tell considering the guy built a reputation for cultivating weirdness. So when he burst in off the porch, clad in a full length black coat and a pointy leather cap similar to those worn by old Italian men, one might expect the cap hides horns or that he eats spiders, but like anyone else, he stamps snow off his feet and wanders into his mother's kitchen hunting up a warm cuppa joe.

Although the union with Sara started more out of convenience, calling on sis for a quick fill in gig, he scored the finest drummer to emerge from the 80s jangle pop scene. She's best known for her work with Let's Active and Snatches of Pink, but has also pursued serious study in percussion, mainly frame drumming. When the two played together, their sound melded in that instinctive way that only family can master, and the Dex Romweber Duo was born. Ever mindful of her role in support of her younger brother's music, she has wielded an influence unique to a trusted sibling, insisting on a professional support team which in turn secured a two record deal on Bloodshot and opened up touring opportunities abroad. For the first time since the abrupt 1998 split with Duo Jets drummer Crow, the planets appear to align themselves for Dex.      

On that snowy day in January, three to four inches of the white stuff had fallen on North Carolina shutting down everything from the Triangle to the Outer Banks. The previous night was punctuated with a giddy trip to the grocery store for snow bound essentials like cupcakes and malbec, and a morning of rollicking gab with Sara. The visit had felt more like a hen party with your BFF than a rock n' roll interview. In contrast to his sister's easy calm, Dex appeared a tad fidgety and manic. The regard between brother and sister was evident, very intuitive of what the other's thinking. They tended to finish each other's thoughts. An old hand at being interviewed, Dex liked to direct the conversation. He chirped so often, "You should write this down," or "put this in your story," that this coulda been the makings of a very boozy drinking game.

As pretty and warm as is his mom's home, it's much easier to imagine him squatting in that old backyard mausoleum where he was filmed for a bit on MTV's The Cutting Edge. It ran in '86. The Duo Jets had jonly a cassette release, In Stereo. In an odd aside, the couple who shot that piece, Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, would go onto to direct Little Miss Sunshine.

Indeed through the 80s and into the early 90s, Dex cultivated a weirdo gothy persona that supplemented his wild ass rep from scorching performances with the Flat Duo Jets. Similar to how Jack White cites FDJ as his principle influence, Dex cites the Cramps as his. He used to want to be the late Lux Interior until he realized that Lux was perfect as he was. "The world didn't need two."

"It can't be over estimated the influence the Cramps have had over American bands," Dex said. "I don't think you can calculate it, it's so massive." The pioneering shock rockers dovetailed with his interest in all things campy horror from Lon Cheney flicks to the Addams Family and the Munsters.

"It [the mausoleum] was like when you're a kid, and you turn your room into a horror room." Once an art studio for a watercolorist, Dex also transformed it into a teenaged monument to spooky things and American rock n' roll, sleeping under what he called "the rock of ages" which was a board where he'd tacked up pictures of Elvis, Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly, Gene Vincent, and Little Richard. The crib became the neighborhood hideout where he'd lie on the floor, baked to the gills, listening to atmospheric music, and seeking other dimensions. "At the time that was what I was really all about."

The "maus" (sounds like "mahz") burnt down in '88. During a big crazy acid trip, a candle set the cheap holder on fire, and spread. Dex returned from a walk to find the hut fully engaged.

"I was sleeping on that porch," Sara recalled. "I woke up, and it was engulfed in flames. I thought Dex as in it! It was terrifying!" In turn Dex thought his friend was inside, but everyone escaped unscathed.

About his old way of dressing in big black clothes, white makeup, black eyeliner, "Ya know, there was a time when I'd be really embarrassed looking back like that, but I'm proud of myself," he said. "Although I was on drugs and stuff, it was a very artistic way to live. It was like the 20s actors or painters, the weird surrealists, how freaky these guys looked, how freaky they were. I was doing that in high school."  

This was during the Pine St. days when the Romwebers lived in a rambling home where all the neighborhood kids would gather. Lots of drugs, lots of rock n' roll. Their crowd was the "tough and fringy kids," according to Sara. They bonded over Yardbirds records, Led Zep, Rolling Stones, and backtracked from there devouring more music.

"Everyone came over to our house play music," said Sara. "Our mom was at work, so no parental supervision. Everyone could turn it up as loud as they wanted. Sometimes there were a couple bands practicing at once.

"There's a whole era of music that started with 12 year old kids," she added. Kids from their Pine St. neighborhood went on to form the Bad Checks, UV Prom, Let's Active, Flat Duo Jets, Snatches of Pink, and the Wygals. Sara and Dex played their first ever gig together. She was 13, he was 11, and she played drums on shoeboxes and suitcases for his very first band, Crash Landon and the Kamikazes.

Of course the two went on to pursue their own careers in music before zig zagging back together nearly twenty years later. Dex described their coming together like "after the war. There's only two of us standing." He laughs, a bittersweet tinge... "After all this stuff that went down, all the ups and downs, craziness, travel, and other band members - Mitch Easter, Chris "Crow" Smith, Eric Peterson, Hunter Landon, all those people - me and Sara are left standing after the war. So we turn to each other…. and then before you know it, two years goes by, and we have this record out!"

Sara added, "One thing is that both of us have had experiences with different levels of fame, almost fame, and complete and utter failure."

"My relationships with all my former bandmates have been volatile at best," said Dex. "For the record, Sara's always been really supportive of me, my music and performance. That hasn't been lost on me."

When Sara agreed to play with Dex, she set aside her studies of frame drumming under percussionist Glen Velez. He is best known from his work with the Paul Winter Consort and pioneered modern frame drumming. A frame drum looks like a tambourine either with or without the jingles, an ancient instrument wider in diameter than it is deep. Specifically, Sara studied Eastern and Middle Eastern rhythms.

"For me that was where I saw my future," she said. "This was what I was most devoted to before I got hijacked." She laughs, but still laments the loss of her muscle development for endurance and coordination during these crucial years before the body ages. 

Her other musical projects include percussion in a Nuevo Flamenco ensemble, a type of music played on classical guitar that combines traditional Spanish gypsy music with South American based rumba rhythms. She also plays drums for Contrazz, a contra dance band that performs traditional Celtic, Quebecois and American old–time music.

Despite her versatility, she worried that she'd be rusty at that first practice, "but it was never so easy!"

Of that musical affinity among kin, Dex mentioned how Johnny Cash spoke of how he felt family always sounded best together, that it was in their blood. "When I heard that, I thought about me and Sara." This affinity has freed them up to explore more instinctual way of playing.

"Dexter, when he plays is actually in the moment while he's doing it," she explained. "What's important for a musician is not to lead. He's the leader. You want to follow him, but you should never hang on his coattails. You want to be with him but slightly behind him so when he turns, and sometimes he turns on a dime, you want to be able to move wherever he's going."

Dex added, "The more Sara and I delve into our project, the more laid back it'll be. We really haven't been together that long. Maybe two years, a little bit more, which is still the early days. A lot of times I wake up, and I'm very glad to not be playing with my former band members."

True to the broad spectrum of music that interest both of the Romwebers, Ruins of Berlin displays a range of  influences yet remainstrue to Dex's darkly romantic vision. Strong songwriting and choice covers draw from distinct influences like blues, German torch songs, and klezmer. A lot different from 2004's Blues That Defy My Soul, this is a more introspective record. Most notably missing are the blazing 12 bar rockabilly tunes that made Dex famous.

"When I told my friends that there were no 12 bars on this thing, the all said, 'Good, Dex!'"

"It's very wise not to try to compete with your past," added Sara, although, "You haven't played a 12 bar until you've played it in 'Dex!'" 

Ruins includes seven originals. One of which is "Lookout" an instrumental featuring Rick Miller from Southern Culture on the Skids on guitar and summons the spirit of fellow North Carolinian Link Wray. Several of the album's covers come from pre-rockabilly era. Among them the title track, "Ruins of Berlin" is a cover of a Marlene Dietrich song from Billy Wilder's 1948 film A Foreign Affair, and "Lover's Gold" is an Ella Fitzgerald side from 1949. From the rock era, a cover of "Pictures of You" by the British Beatles era pop star Joe Brown stands out with the best hook, and "Is It Too Late" by the late Durham blues shouter Roy House tips the hat to Dex's love for digging up the local music history.    

Of the originals, "Camelia's Gone" tells a wrenching ode to a lost love as does "Oh, Lover's Gone." Broken hearts and disappointment are a major theme on this record. A lot of these songs have been performed since before Sara came aboard. Regardless of whether they are originals or not, every song sounds like Dex owns it, and his rich authoritative baritone makes that fact irrefutable. He is in the best voice ever. Each of his ballads are visceral mini-dramas about matters of the heart that one feels more than listens to, especially when performed live. Sara's support frees up Dex to unleash more spontaneous passion.

But Sara and Dex are not the only remarkable twosomes on Ruins. The album's riddled with duets with long time supporters Exene Cervenka, Neko Case, and Cat Power.  The idea sprang from the doc Two Headed Cow in which all three appeared. Both Neko and Cat Power have taken Dex and Sara out on the road with them. Exene has been a long time fan as well. The structure in the duets is a bit unorthodox, but that was because Dex "prefers to give them their space."

"Their styles are so distinct, and if they are singing with Dexter, they have to bow to his way of singing, so he let them have their own spotlight." said Sara. "I thought it was a generous way of dividing the songs, and I think it worked!"   

In March the Duo sets out for a seven week U.S. tour. As long as they agree to disagree over his love for Jerry Lee Lewis and her preference for Chuck Berry and Little Richard, the siblings should survive their self imposed transcontinental claustrophobia. All that time cooped up encourages too much idle talk and a whole lot of TMI.

"The only things I don't know about Dex are the things I should never know about him!" They both laugh.

Attention turns back to the snow outside, the setting sun, dropping temps, the inevitably freezing roads. Dex takes one last look at the new CD, the first he's seen of it, and gathers his coat. But first one last question... if he could change anything?

"There are definitely things I'd change, but you can't go back. As long as you're alive, you can change now."

Sara summed it up. "This record, There's a lot to be proud of."