Fun fun fun
Okay.
So they get their single-name-for-all-members shtick from the Ramones. So they get endlessly compared to Joan Jett’s early band, the Runaways. So members of the band sport Ratt t-shirts in the CD booklet photos.
The Donnas bring rock ‘n’ roll back to its roots. The Donnas take the chuga-chuga sturm und drang of post-1980s youth — channel Square Pegs for a moment or two — and channel the spirit of the 1950s, id est teen rebellion.
This band is all about the microcosmic world of the bored, suburban teen, and it’s not lofty nor artistic nor spiritually enriching. It’s big, dumb testosterone fun comandeered by a bunch of girls.
Until Stephin Merritt came along and compared pretty girls to violent crimes, the Donnas sported the catchiest couplets of 1999.
I tried to buy you a Hostess cupcake
Baby you’re so sweet I got a toothache
— “Skintight”
Am I not old enough am I too young?
You think I don’t know how to eat dim sum
— “You Don’t Wanna Call”
In other words, this group is fun.