Ali Handal displays a good deal of refinement and chops on her first solo release Dirty Little Secret. Fans of Ani DiFranco's jumpy, sincere folk-rock will get a charge out of this Los Angeles area musician's excellent guitar work and personal songwriting. Singer/guitarist Handal employs fellow Angelinos Peter Parada (drums) and James Werts (bass) for support, and Tim Bomba highlights all three musicians' more than competent performances with excellent production. The resulting CD is the sonic equal of any major label (read: larger budget) record of its kind. Handal is never overshadowed by her professional sidemen, as her shimmering guitar work and superb vocals prove to be Dirty Little Secret's greatest strengths. Folky quips and percussive guitar rhythms power the standout opening tracks "Slave to Ambition" and "While You're Here." Things really heat up when Handal moans her way through the sultry "Convince Me," displaying an emotional range that's rare among her more deliberate '90s girl rock contemporaries. The songstress also manages to eschew droll singalong choruses, utilizing tight song structures to keep things moving at a brisk pace. Tracks like "Distance" highlight Dirty Little Secret's sometimes clever, sometimes moralizing lyrics that occasionally echo DiFranco's nakedness-as-honesty rhetoric a bit too forcefully. Ali Handel makes up for these rare trouble spots with excellent guitar work, mature songcraft, and shining vocal performances. ~ Vincent Jeffries, All Music Guide
Tracks
Track Title
Composers
Performers
Time
Slave to Ambition
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(3:02)
While You're Here
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(3:29)
Convince Me
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(4:29)
In Your Name
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(5:10)
Distance
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(2:37)
Distance
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(:12)
Interlude
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(3:23)
Indy
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(3:05)
Tie Me Up
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(4:12)
What Are You Waiting For?
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(4:14)
Arms of a Stranger
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(3:31)
Dirty Little Secret
Ali Handal
Ali Handal
(:19)
Credits
Johnny Potoker (Mixing), Ali Handal (Vocals), David Leach (Percussion), Ali Handal (Guitar), Pete Parada (Drums), Kevin Guarnieri (Assistant Engineer), Ali Handal (Keyboards), Carina Norlund (Vocals (Background)), Ali Handal (Cello Arrangement), Alan Kuehne (Engineer), Tim Bomba (Mixing), Seth Horan (Assistant Engineer), Alan Kuehne (Bass), Cesar Ramirez (Assistant Engineer), Stefanie Fife (Cello), Tim Bomba (Engineer), Ali Handal (Programming), Ali Handal (Producer), Tim Bomba (Producer), Tom Baker (Mastering)
["I'll keep you my dirty little secret","I'll keep you my dirty little secret","(Inside)","Tell me all that you've thrown away","(Dirty little secret)","I go around a time or two","Don't tell anyone or you'll be just another regret","(Just another regret, hope that you can keep it)","Find out games you don't wanna play","I'll keep you my dirty little secret","","(Dirty little secret)","When we live such fragile lives","Who has to know?","(Just another regret, hope that you can keep it)","(Dirty little secret)","Find out games you don't wanna play","Don't tell anyone or you'll be just another regret","","And now I try to lie","Dirty little secret","My dirty little secret","","Those thoughts I can't deny","(Dirty little secret)","It's the best way we survive","Just to waste my time with you","Trace this life back","","(Just another regret)","","Dirty little secret","When I've known this all along","Who has to know?","It's eating me apart","","Just to waste my time with you","Let me know that I've done wrong","Tell me all that you've thrown away","These sleeping dogs won't lie","My dirty little secret","Who has to know?","I'll keep you my dirty little secret","You are the only one that needs to know","","(Won't lie)","Don't tell anyone or you'll be just another regret","I go around a time or two","Who has to know?","(Deny)","(Just another regret, hope that you can keep it)","My dirty little secret","You are the only one that needs to know","Don't tell anyone or you'll be just another regret","The way she feels inside","",""]
Los Angeles' Dirty Little Secret officially formed in summer 2002, though vocalist/guitarist Louis Castle and bassist James Bairian had been best friends and songwriting partners since their days in high school. Grabbing influences from a wide range of bands including the Pixies, the Dead Boys, the Psychedelic Furs, and Guns N' Roses for their dark-edged, passion-fueled rock, the guys recorded the five-song EP Long Gone in 2004, which was released in Australia on Speak n Spell in mid-2005. While the duo's music matured stylistically over time, the guys always felt something was missing. It wasn't until they hooked up with drummer Brian Monte and lead guitarist Torin Gerhart in 2005 that Dirty Little Secret finally felt complete. The quartet entered the studio together to record its first full-length offering. The resulting self-produced album, Cabin Fever, was completed over the span of six weeks and independently issued in 2006. The band continued touring nationwide and overseas, sharing gigs over the years with artists like Beck, Maxïmo Park, the Bravery, John Cale, and We Are Scientists. ~ Corey Apar, All Music Guide
"Dirty Little Secret" is the first single by the alternative rock band The All-American Rejects from their second studio album Move Along. It was released on June 6, 2005, to modern rock radio stations,[2] and later to contemporary hit radio on July 12.[3] "Dirty Little Secret" is an electric pop rock song that takes an unsparing look at the differences between our public and private selves. The song marked The All-American Rejects first chart topper, hitting #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Digital Songs chart.
"Dirty Little Secret" first charted in the United States on July 30.[10] The song was the band's first top-ten single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number nine for three weeks in January 2006. The song was originally released in the UK as a single in September 2005, when it peaked at number 96. It was re-released nine months later, in June 2006, following the chart success of the second single, "Move Along". On its second run, the single became The All-American Rejects' second UK Top 20 hit with a peak of number 18. "Dirty Little Secret" was rated #48 on Billboard Magazine's "Year-End Hot 100 singles of 2006".
The music video, filmed in Allentown, Pennsylvania, features people holding their secrets written on cards.
The music video of the song was filmed at Dorney Park and other locations in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The video is based on the PostSecret project, where people share their secrets on postcards. These cards are sent anonymously to the project, and some are posted on the PostSecret website. The video shows a montage of people holding up PostSecret postcards, which reveal a range of fears, embarrassment, love, deception, sadness and wishes. During the video, The All-American Rejects perform "Dirty Little Secret", cutting to clips of the people holding up their secrets. This video was nominated "Best International Group Video" at the MuchMusic Video Awards.
Appearances in popular culture
"Dirty Little Secret" has appeared in a few movies, such as She's the Man, John Tucker Must Die, Bring It On: All or Nothing, and in American Pie: The Naked Mile. It was also played a few times in Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo. "Dirty Little Secret" has appeared on many video games, especially games focused on music. The song was released with "Move Along" as a downloadable track for the music video game series Rock Band. It also was one of five exclusive bonus songs on the Wii version of the game. "Dirty Little Secret" is a playable track on Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades for the Nintendo DS, and is a playable song in Band Hero. It also was a playable song on Rock Revolution, another music video game. Another game it appeared on was Pro Evolution Soccer 2010. The final chorus and outro of "Dirty Little Secret" can be heard on the Smallvilleseason 5 episode "Hypnotic". It later was selected for the Smallville soundtrack Smallville: The Metropolis Mix. Also, The All-American Rejects had a photo shoot for an ad for the Got Milk? advertising campaign, where "Dirty Little Secret" is parodied. Next to the picture of the band with milk-moustaches are the words "Dairy Little Secret".
