Dog Fashion Disco

Dog Fashion Disco
Final bow after their farewell show on January 14, 2007.
Background information
Also known as	Hug the Retard
Origin	Rockville, Maryland, United States
Genres	Avant-garde metal, alternative metal
Years active	1995–2007, 2013-present (reunions 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013)
Labels	Outerloop, Spitfire, Artemis, Rotten, Razor to Wrist
Associated acts	Polkadot Cadaver, Knives Out!, The Alter Boys, El-Creepo!, Ideamen, Phantom Communique
Website	http://www.razortowrist.com/ http://www.facebook.com/DogFashionDisco/
Members	Todd Smith Jasan Stepp Brian "Wendy" White Tim Swanson John Ensminger
Past members	Greg Combs Stephen Mears Jeff Siegel Mike "Ollie" Oliver Sennen Quigley Jason Stevens Mark Ammen Geoff Stewart Kristen Ensminger Josh Gifford Dave Sislen Ken Willard

Dog Fashion Disco is an American metal band from Rockville, Maryland, United States, that was originally active from 1995 to 2007 before disbanding. The band officially reunited on October 10, 2013.

Combining many different music styles (1970s psychedelic, jazz, piano recital, heavy metal, circus music and vocals, among others) Dog Fashion Disco was primarily considered an avant-garde metal band. The band's lyrical content is often highly esoteric and satirical, with constant tongue-in-cheek references to the occult, drug use, and mutilation. A major influence on the band's sound was the California genre-defying act, Mr. Bungle.

Dog Fashion Disco, or DFD as many fans refer to them as, was formed in 1995 by Todd Smith, Greg Combs, and John Ensminger, who all went to high school together. Originally their name was Hug The Retard, but this was changed name to Dog Fashion Disco before releasing any material, as they felt the name Hug The Retard was too offensive and might cost them fans. Their first two releases were self-released and low budget products. The first - Erotic Massage - was funded by a loan taken out by drummer John Ensminger, which his father had to co-sign on and "took nearly a year of local shows to pay off the part of the loan that was used for studio time, printing and pressing" and was released independently by the band in 1997. The second self-released album was titled Experiments In Alchemy and released in 1998. Experiments saw more heavy metal numbers, as opposed to the more ballady feel on many of Massage's songs. That same year, DFD signed with Outerloop Records and released The Embryo's in Bloom. The studio quality of the album is noticeably better than its predecessors, and the band was very pleased with the resulted sound. It was then that their management by Maryland resident Derek J. Brewer began and lasted until they disbanded. Polkadot Cadaver is now also managed by Derek J. Brewer under Outerloop Management. In late 1998, Jeff Siegel would join the band as the keyboard player, replacing Sennen Quigley. This lineup would be the longest lasting lineup and stay intact for over 4 years.

In 2000, DFD played on USA Network's FarmClub. The exposure DFD received from the show lead them to signing with Spitfire Records.