DOGSTAR

Dogstar is a Los Angeles alt-rock combo who rose to global attention in the mid-'90s, thanks in part to the band's celebrity bassist, actor Keanu Reeves. The group toured frequently, playing their mix of post-grunge and melodic alt-pop to sold-out crowds in Asia, Europe, and North America. During their initial run, they released two albums, 1996's Our Little Visionary and 2000's Happy Ending, before disbanding in 2002. Dogstar re-formed two decades later and released a third album, 2023's Somewhere Between the Power Lines and Palm Trees. In 1991, Reeves was already a Hollywood star just coming off movies like Point Break and the second installment in the Bill & Ted series. He met fellow actor/musician Robert Mailhouse (drums) at a local supermarket, where they bonded over a shared love of hockey, and the two soon began playing music together. Gregg Miller, another actor, joined on lead vocals and guitar, and after a year or two of woodshedding material, Dogstar began gigging live around Los Angeles. While critics were wary of band's grungy alt-pop, their celebrity preceded them and they played almost uniformly to sold-out crowds, eventually earning a record contract from BMG's Zoo Entertainment label. Dogstar's debut album, Our Little Visionary, was produced by Ed Stasium (Ramones, Living Colour) and released in 1996 with most of its distribution in Japan. By this point, the band had already toured heavily, opened for major stars like David Bowie and Bon Jovi, and established an overseas fan base. They had also changed membership, with singer/guitarist Bret Domrose taking over from Miller. Over the next few years, Dogstar toured internationally, but the group remained a part-time affair for its members, especially Reeves, whose stardom was entering its peak with the Matrix movies. In 2000, they released their sophomore album, Happy Ending, which featured a cover of the Carpenters hit "Superstar." Dogstar made it two more years before disbanding in 2002. Over the next two decades, the trio remained friends and got together occasionally to jam at Mailhouse's home in Silver Lake. Activity picked up during the global pandemic in 2020, and before long they had written an album's worth of new songs. The re-formed Dogstar enlisted the help of producer Dave Trumfio and played their first reunion gig in May 2023. Their third album, Somewhere Between the Power Lines and Palm Trees, was released that October.
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