The Dirtbombs were formed by Mick Collins (of the influential garage punk band The Gories) as a side project and started recording songs by 1995.
For a brief time in 2002, the band featured back-up singers Deanne Iovan (also formerly of the Come Ons) and future bass player Ko, in addition to five musicians.
Collins decided that if the band were to record a full-length album they would treat it like a giant single, centering on one musical idea or genre.
The songs "I Can't Stop Thinking About It", "Granny's Little Chicken", and "Shake Shivaree" remain live staples.
The Dirtbombs enjoyed a boost in recognition after the release of their second album, Ultraglide in Black, in 2001, a collection of nearly all soul, R&B, and Motown covers, with one original track - "Your Love Belongs Under A Rock".
[5] The album featured a re-recorded version of their contribution to the Sympathetic Sounds compilation, "I'm Through with White Girls" written and sung by Jim Diamond.
The single "Motor City Baby" was featured on Little Steven's Underground Garage as the "Coolest Song in the World".
Mick took the filmmakers on a tour of the Detroit music scene, and drummed for the White Stripes while they sang Loretta Lynn's "Rated X".
A new split with the Love Supremes was issued, and the band also appeared on a Gun Club tribute record that year.
In May 2007 The Dirtbombs were invited by director Julian Schnabel to play at the Cannes Film Festival in honor of their song "Chains of Love", from the Ultraglide LP, being featured in his award-winning The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.
The length of time since the band's last full-length, 2003's Dangerous Magical Noise, led to the decision to finish it as an LP, once again postponing the bubblegum record.
The song "Leopard Man at C & A" features lyrics taken from comic book writer Alan Moore's poem of the same name, (described by Collins as "a fabulous take on urban paranoia").
A sequel of sorts to Ultraglide In Black, Party Store features rock covers of early Detroit techno and house music.