The Dandy Warhols | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Combining psych-rock, shoegaze, power pop, synth pop and more with the cheeky detachment of their pop-art namesake, the Dandy Warhols are equally skilled at heady reveries and satirical pop. Early on, they scored hits with "Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth" (from their 1997 major label debut, The Dandy Warhols Come Down) and "Bohemian Like You" (from 2001s Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia), both of which skewered hipster culture with a wit that suggested they were Americas answer to Brit-pop. Later in the 2000s, they dabbled in synth-pop on 2003s Welcome to the Monkey House and indulged their excesses on 2005s sprawling Odditorium or Warlords of Mars. Though more restrained efforts such as 2016s Distortland suggested the Dandy Warhols might be mellowing out in their third decade, 2019s freewheeling Why You So Crazy proved they were committed to keeping their listeners guessing. Vocalist/guitarist Courtney Taylor, keyboardist Zia McCabe, guitarist Peter Holmström, and drummer Eric Hedford formed the Dandy Warhols in Portland, Oregon in 1994. The band signed a deal with the local label Tim/Kerr Records after their first show, and their debut album Dandys Rule OK? appeared in 1995. Featuring songs such as as "Lou Weed" and "Ride," it openly acknowledged the influence of the Velvet Underground and Ride on the bands music. Capitol Records signed the group the same year, but after the label rejected their first attempt at a second album, the band reunited with Dandys Rule OK? producer Tony Lash to make 1997s Dandy Warhols Come Down. A more polished-sounding set than their debut, the album earned the Dandy Warhols more critical acclaim and more substantial commercial success. This was especially true in the U.K., where the album was certified gold and its three singles entered the Top 40. In the U.S., the single "Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth" hit number 31 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart. In 1998, Hedford left the band, with Taylors cousin Brent DeBoer replacing him as drummer. The Dandy Warhols returned in 2000 with their third album Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia, which downplayed their psych leanings in favor of sharp-edged pop such as the single "Bohemian Like You." One of the bands definitive songs, it peaked at number 28 on Billboards Alternative Songs chart in the U.S. and reached number five on the U.K. Singles Chart in 2001. In November of that year, the Dandy Warhols opened the Odditorium, a recording studio in northwest Portland that also functions as art and event space. In 2002, Holmström married his longtime girlfriend and took her maiden name of Loew. Taylor also changed his name, opting to go by Courtney Taylor-Taylor after an interviewer misinterpreted the pronunciation. To make their fourth album Welcome to the Monkey House, the Dandy Warhols worked with with Nile Rodgers, Duran Durans Nick Rhodes, and Evan Dando. After Capitol turned down the original mix by Grammy-winning soul music engineer Russell Elevado, the final version of the album featured a synth-pop and new wave-influenced mix by Rhodes. Upon its release in 2003, it went to number 118 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart and spawned another hit for the band, the synth-disco jam "We Used to Be Friends." Following live shows that included supporting David Bowie on a leg of his 2003 A Reality tour, the band remained prominent in 2004 thanks to Ondi Timoners documentary Dig!, which chronicled the love-hate relationship between the Dandy Warhols and the Brian Jonestown Massacre and won the Documentary Grand Jury Prize at that years Sundance Film Festival. Also in 2004, the band released The Black Album -- their name for their rejected Capitol debut -- and the compilation Come on Feel the Dandy Warhols as a double-album set via their own label Beat the World Records. The Dandy Warhols returned with new music in 2005. Odditorium or Warlords of Mars, an expansive return to the bands psych-rock roots, appeared that September, peaking at number 89 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart. Soon after, the band contributed a cover of the Everly Brothers "All I Have to Do Is Dream" to the soundtrack of the video game Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse (the song also appeared on Stubbs the Zombie: The Soundtrack). A couple of other stand-alone tracks also arrived, including the 2006 single "Have a Kick Ass Summer (Me and My Friends)" and the theme song to the 2007 film Good Luck Chuck. The bands sixth album, and first for Beat the World, 2008s Earth to the Dandy Warhols, featured collaborations with Mark Knopfler and the Heartbreakers Mike Campbell; the album reached number 128 on Billboards 200 Albums chart and spawned two remix EPs. Over the next few years, the Dandy Warhols output included contributions to the Cure tribute album Perfect as Cats and the Love and Rockets tribute album New Tales to Tell: A Tribute to Love and Rockets. They also issued archival releases: Dandy Warhols Are Sound, which presented Russell Elevados original mix of Welcome to the Monkey House, arrived in 2009, while the following years greatest-hits collection The Capitol Years 1995–2007 included the previously unreleased "This Is the Tide," the first Dandy Warhols song with DeBoer on vocals. During this time, the bands members focused on other projects, ranging from Taylor-Taylors 2009 graphic novel One Model Nation to DeBoers 2010 solo debut, The Farmer. Loews other band, Pete International Airport, also issued their self-titled debut in 2010, while McCabes country band Brush Prairie released the EP Carry Yourself Back to Me in 2011. That year, the Dandy Warhols recorded an alternate version of the MythBusters theme song that the TV show used until the end of its 2014 season. In 2012, the Dandy Warhols resurfaced with their eighth album This Machine, a more subdued set of songs that hit number 88 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart, a career high for the band. The album, which featured a collaboration with David J, also appeared on the Top Rock Albums and Alternative Albums charts, reaching number 29 and 21 respectively. The following year, they rang in the 13th anniversary of Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia with a deluxe version of the album and a tour that resulted in the bands first-ever live album, 2014s Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia Live at the Wonder. A second live recording, Live at the X-Ray Cafe, was released by Voodoo Doughnut for Record Store Day in 2016; the EP captured their eighth gig ever from 1994. That year, the Dandy Warhols released the patient and pastoral album Distortland. Upon its release that April, the album reached number 43 on Billboards Rock Albums chart. In 2017, the band issued the single "Thick Girls Knock Me Out (Richard Starkey)," while Pete International Airport released its second album, Safer with the Wolves... The Dandy Warhols tenth album, the eclectic Why You So Crazy, arrived in January 2019 and commemorated their 25th anniversary. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 15 Title: Dandys Rule OK Released: 1995-04-06 Tracks: 16 Duration: 1:14:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Introduction by Young Tom (00:26) 2 The Dandy Warhols’ T.V. Theme Song (02:50) 3 Ride (04:10) 4 Best Friend (03:27) 5 Not Your Bottle (04:00) 6 (Tony, This Song is Called) Lou Weed (04:17) 7 Nothin’ to Do (02:23) 8 The Coffee and Tea Wrecks (04:06) 9 Genius (06:08) 10 Dick (08:07) 11 Just Try (04:41) 12 Nothing (Lifestyle of a Tortured Artist for Sale) (03:52) 13 Grunge Betty (03:32) 14 Prelude: It’s a Fast‐Driving Rave‐Up With The Dandy Warhols Sixteen Minutes (00:51) 15 It’s a Fast‐Driving Rave‐Up With The Dandy Warhols Sixteen Minutes (16:04) 16 Finale: It’s a Fast‐Driving Rave‐Up With The Dandy Warhols Sixteen Minutes (04:58) |
| Dandys Rule OK : Allmusic album Review : The Dandy Warhols seem like they should be a great band -- they bring together shoegazing, Brit-pop, lazy grunge, and Velvet Underground-style grittiness, all with a wicked sense of humor. Despite all this -- and despite the fact that Dandys Rule OK? is fairly well written -- their songs tend to slip by unnoticed, never really leaving an impression. The band seems to be at its best when it parodies other bands: "Lou Weed," "Ride," and "The Coffee and Tea Wrecks" are all affectionate pastiches of their namesakes, and "The Dandy Warhols T.V. Theme Song" is a fine bit of bouncy pop. Unfortunately, none of the albums more clever segments stand out, buried as they are in a murky mess of forgettable material. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 15 Title: …The Dandy Warhols Come Down Released: 1997-07-15 Tracks: 14 Duration: 1:06:17 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Be‐In (06:59) 2 Boys Better (04:32) 3 Minnesoter (03:03) 4 Orange (05:42) 5 I Love You (04:12) 6 Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth (03:12) 7 Every Day Should Be a Holiday (04:02) 8 Good Morning (05:00) 9 Whipping Tree (03:49) 10 Green (03:10) 11 Cool as Kim Deal (03:02) 12 Hard On for Jesus (04:36) 13 Pete International Airport (05:57) 14 The Creep Out (08:57) |
| …The Dandy Warhols Come Down : Allmusic album Review : Power pop bands are often caught in a quandary. Their core audience praises them for their classicist approach, but if they ever want to break out into a larger audience, they have to modernize their sound, which makes their cult angry. The problem is especially difficult for bands that came of age in the early 90s, since they were weaned on not just the Beatles and Beach Boys, but also the Pixies and Sonic Youth. As a result, bands like the Dandy Warhols are restless, anxious to make catchy pop songs while keeping indie cred, and thats why their major-label debut, The Dandy Warhols Come Down, is so uneven. The band has talent for not just punchy hooks, but for layered sonics as well, but they dont know how to meld the two together. As a result, the most immediate moments on the record are awash in a sea of feedback, which cant be trance-inducing since its spell is punctured by pop hooks. And while those pop songs are good, they arent enough to prevent Come Down from being a frustrating listen. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 15 Title: Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia Released: 2000-06-12 Tracks: 13 Duration: 56:13 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Godless (05:20) 2 Mohammed (05:20) 3 Nietzsche (05:41) 4 Country Leaver (03:23) 5 Solid (03:08) 6 Horse Pills (03:25) 7 Get Off (03:11) 8 Sleep (05:58) 9 Cool Scene (04:09) 10 Bohemian Like You (03:31) 11 Shakin’ (03:57) 12 Big Indian (03:33) 13 The Gospel (05:33) |
| Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia : Allmusic album Review : Though they still tend towards pastiche, the Dandy Warhols third full-length, Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia, presents a bakers dozen of their most focused and cohesive songs. Where their earlier albums were eclectic to the point of being scattershot, this release manages to limit the bands style-switching to dreamy, sweeping epics like "Godless" and "Nietzsche," sussed, sleazy power pop like "Horse Pills" and "Cool Scene," and country and gospel ventures like "Country Leaver" and "The Gospel." The groups increasingly strong songwriting makes most of these experiments successful and distinctive, though the Dandys fall into their old habit of appropriating sounds they like wholesale with "Shakin," a "tribute" to Elasticas uptight yet sexy riffs and rhythms. Not surprisingly, the most successful songs on Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia are the least derivative ones, such as anxious pop songs like "Solid," "Get Off," and the delicate, lovelorn ballad "Sleep." On those tracks, as well as the satirical single "Bohemian Like You" -- this years model of their hit "Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth" -- the Dandys reveal themselves as a savvy pop band with a voice of their own. Though theyre not all the way there yet, Tales From Urban Bohemia is a worthwhile step in their developing creativity. | ||
 | Album: 4 of 15 Title: Welcome to the Monkey House Released: 2003-05-19 Tracks: 13 Duration: 48:29 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Welcome to the Monkey House (01:03) 2 We Used to Be Friends (03:20) 3 Plan A (04:01) 4 The Dope (Wonderful You) (04:37) 5 I Am a Scientist (03:13) 6 I Am Over It (03:50) 7 The Dandy Warhols Love Almost Everyone (01:54) 8 Insincere Because I (03:49) 9 You Were the Last High (04:46) 10 Heavenly (03:36) 11 I Am Sound (03:59) 12 Hit Rock Bottom (02:53) 13 You Come in Burned (07:22) |
| Welcome to the Monkey House : Allmusic album Review : Over the course of their career, the Dandy Warhols alternated between slick, smart, slightly smirky pop singles like "Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth" and "Bohemian Like You" and the ambitious yet somehow empty-sounding tracks that made up the rest of their albums. With their fifth album, Welcome to the Monkey House, the band capitalizes on their pop sensibilities and even manages to turn their prior weaknesses into strengths, resulting in a collection of gloriously blank, cleverly stupid neo-new wave songs. Its true that, once again, the Dandy Warhols look to other peoples music for direction, but this time around, the new wave and synth-pop revivals that inform the album sound so natural that its hard to imagine the band in any other incarnation. Welcome to the Monkey Houses glossy mix of synths, guitars, and drum machines -- aided and abetted by co-producer Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran -- are the perfect complement to Courtney Taylors knowing, flip outlook. The album gets off to a strong start with sharply crafted songs like "We Used to Be Friends" -- which feels a little bit like a follow-up to Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemias "Bohemian Like You" -- and "I Am Over It," a slice of electronic pop thats delivered in appropriately blasé, mechanical fashion. Not surprisingly, most of the albums best songs revolve around emptiness, drugs, and narcissism, such as "The Dope," an electro-inspired number that could give Fischerspooner a run for its money when it comes to jittery, vocodered trendiness. "I Am a Scientist" is the albums trashy zenith; a hybrid of sleazy beats, breathy samples and a rather nihilistic celebration of sciences lack of emotion (not to mention its contributions to recreational chemistry). "You Were the Last High," however, confuses drugs and girls in an unusually bittersweet way. Some shades of paranoia and existential crisis creep into the album from time to time, more playfully on "Plan A" and more seriously on the brooding "Insincere Because I," giving a what-goes-up-must-come-down balance to party-hard odes such as "The Dandy Warhols Love Almost Everyone" and "Hit Rock Bottom." Like any party, things start to fall flat toward the end of Welcome to the Monkey House; "Heavenly," "I Am Sound" -- an "Ashes to Ashes" homage -- and "You Come in Burned" provide a sluggish comedown to the rest of the albums go-go pace, although theyre not as distinctive as what came before them. Ultimately, in general and on this album, the Dandy Warhols work best when they dont try to inject weighty matters like meaning and substance into their jaded pop confectionery. Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia might still be the bands most accomplished album, but by embracing their emptiness and stylishness on Welcome to the Monkey House, theyve crafted an album that is no less enjoyable because of its disposability. | ||
 | Album: 5 of 15 Title: The Black Album Released: 2004-04-20 Tracks: 29 Duration: 1:59:50 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Arpeggio Adaggio (04:16) 2 Crack Cocaine Rager (03:07) 3 Good Morning (03:44) 4 Head (03:11) 5 White Gold (04:04) 6 Boys (04:10) 7 Shiny Leather Boots (04:25) 8 Earth To The Dandy Warhols (03:03) 9 Minnesoter (03:31) 10 Twist (04:27) 11 The Wreck (09:08) 1 Not If You Were the Last Junkie in Tonys Basement (03:12) 2 Retarded (02:45) 3 Free for All (02:13) 4 Dub Song (06:31) 5 Call Me (03:31) 6 Relax (03:49) 7 Head (03:17) 8 Thanks for the Show (02:55) 9 Lance (02:50) 10 Ohio (04:39) 11 One Saved Message (03:55) 12 Hells Bells (05:58) 13 The Jean Genie (02:14) 14 Stars (04:26) 15 Dick (05:11) 16 One (Ultra Lame White Boy) (03:11) 17 We Love You Dick (07:02) 18 The Wreck of Edmund Fitzgerald (04:56) |
 | Album: 6 of 15 Title: Odditorium or Warlords of Mars Released: 2005-09-13 Tracks: 12 Duration: 1:02:14 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Colder Than the Coldest Winter Was Cold (01:02) 2 Love Is the New Feel Awful (09:36) 3 Easy (07:32) 4 All the Money or the Simple Life Honey (04:29) 5 The New Country (02:10) 6 Holding Me Up (07:15) 7 Did You Make a Song With Otis (00:55) 8 Everyone Is Totally Insane (03:41) 9 Smoke It (04:06) 10 Down Like Disco (04:54) 11 There Is Only This Time (04:40) 12 A Loan Tonight (11:49) |
| Odditorium or Warlords of Mars : Allmusic album Review : Although Dig! covered the symbiotic, love-hate relationship between the Dandy Warhols and the Brian Jonestown Massacre more than thoroughly enough, more proof that the Dandies still want to be taken as seriously as the Massacres misunderstood genius Anton Newcombe arrives with Odditorium or Warlords of Mars, an album thats half-inspired, half-embarrassing, and completely self-indulgent. As if the title werent enough warning, Odditoriums opening track, "Colder Than the Coldest Winter Was Cold" -- in which A&E; announcer/journalist Bill Kurtis explains how the Dandy Warhols invented rock & roll "after the great war" -- gets things off to a strange start. Unfortunately, in this case strange doesnt mean interesting or good. Odditorium is bookended by two of the most meandering, pointless tracks the band has ever recorded. "Love Is the New Feel Awful" is merely a song that couldve been good if it werent bloated with several minutes worth of fruitless noodling. Its the closer, "A Loan Tonight," with its irritating, oddly strangled vocals, clunky keyboards, and listless guitars that go on and on for nearly 12 minutes, that is so infuriatingly bad you wish you could somehow un-hear it, and maybe the rest of the album while youre at it. Which is a shame, because the middle stretch of Odditorium has more than a few tracks that rank with the bands best work. "Down Like Disco" and "All the Money or Is It the Simple Honey" show off their skills as a smart, satirical pop group, while moody, hungover ballads like "Holding Me Up" and "Everyone Is Totally Insane" make emptiness seem profound. Meanwhile, "Easy," a slinky, hypnotic track that builds on a simple groove, and "There Is Only This Time," a spacious meditation with close harmonies and brass flourishes, balance the Dandies pop and experimental leanings far better than anywhere else on the album. Taken as a whole, Odditorium is scattered and half-baked (in more ways than one), but its best moments are ripe for adding to play lists and mixtapes. Something this indulgent could only be a labor of love, but even die-hard Dandy Warhols fans might find embracing this album to be too much work. | ||
 | Album: 7 of 15 Title: Earth to the Remix EP, Volume 1 Released: 2008 Tracks: 4 Duration: 33:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 The Monster Mish (Taylor-Taylor / Jacob Portrait remix) (07:06) 2 Welcome to the Skin-Up (Fathead / Jeremy Sherrer remix) (11:17) 3 Come the Fuck On (Peter Holmström / Jeremy Sherrer remix) (08:34) 4 Dub in the Lotus (Zia McCabe / Jeremy Sherrer remix) (06:51) |
 | Album: 8 of 15 Title: …Earth to the Dandy Warhols… Released: 2008-05-19 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:09:20 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The World the People Together (Come On) (04:41) 2 Mission Control (02:16) 3 Welcome to the Third World (05:50) 4 Wasp in the Lotus (04:36) 5 And Then I Dreamt of Yes (04:42) 6 Talk Radio (05:27) 7 Love Song (03:47) 8 Now You Love Me (03:08) 9 Mis Amigos (04:31) 10 The Legend of the Last of the Outlaw Truckers a.k.a. the Ballad of Sheriff Shorty (03:43) 11 Beast of All Saints (04:47) 12 Valerie Yum (07:01) 13 Musee D’Nougat (14:46) |
| …Earth to the Dandy Warhols… : Allmusic album Review : On ...Earth to the Dandy Warhols..., Courtney Taylor and company do indeed seem to be a little more down to earth than they were on the very uneven Odditorium or the Warlords of Mars, debuting their own label with a much more consistent collection of songs. Thats "consistent" in terms of quality -- the Dandy Warhols always seem the most comfortable when theyre hopping from sound to sound, mood to mood, instead of sticking with just one approach for an entire album. If their eclecticism can be considered a signature Warhols sound, then ...Earth to the Dandy Warhols... has it; it often feels like an update on Thirteen Tales from Modern Bohemia. The band roams from driving, psychedelic rock on the opening track, "The World the People Together (Come On)" -- which, with its trippy strumming and lyrics like "The love that you give is exactly the love that you take," sounds like a 60s love-in shot into space -- to "Mission Control"s blobby synth rock to "Beast of All Saints," a massive, empty-hearted ballad that shoots past the bands own "Godless" to rival Spiritualizeds interstellar brooding. The band even does its best impression of the Rolling Stones "Miss You" on "Welcome to the Third World," although Taylors borderline-obnoxious vocals and attitude undermine some of the songs cool. Attitude also reigns on the stylishly tongue-in-cheek "Talk Radio" and more flamboyantly on "The Legend of the Last of the Outlaw Truckers aka the Ballad of Sheriff Shorty," a psychobilly-tinged rocker embellished with strings and gunfire. However, the camp factor is surprisingly low on most of ...Earth to the Dandy Warhols..., as is the number of songs about frenemies and drugs. The band focuses on love, rather than friendships, gone wrong on the deconstructed chamber pop of "And Then I Dreamt of Yes" and "Now You Love Me"s minor-key brooding and bragging. Toward the albums end, however, the bands restraint unravels, with mixed results: "Mis Amigos," which is as much about hanging out with friends as it is about pot, is a gleeful, red-eyed fiesta; "Valerie Yum" starts out as stomping pop, then falls into an aptly slowed down, spoken word section before revving up again; and the final track, "Musee d Nougat," a 15-minute trawl through French-accented vocals and formless synth drones, seems to be where the Dandy Warhols put most of their annoying ticks on this album. Before that song, though, ...Earth to the Dandy Warhols... finds the band breaking some new ground with "Love Song," a bit of futuristic Americana with intricate fingerpicked guitars and banjos buffeted by keyboards, and "Wasp in the Lotus," an electro-psych epic swathed in massive feedback squalls. The best moments of ...Earth to the Dandy Warhols... rival the Dandys finest work, and despite some weak spots, its a giant leap in the right direction. | ||
 | Album: 9 of 15 Title: The Dandy Warhols Are Sound Released: 2009-07-14 Tracks: 13 Duration: 55:34 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Burned (07:01) 2 I Am a Scientist (03:13) 3 We Used to Be Friends (04:11) 4 The Last High (06:27) 5 Wonderful You (04:28) 6 Love Me Lovely (02:12) 7 I Am Over It (04:46) 8 Heavenly (03:20) 9 Plan A (05:01) 10 Hit Rock Bottom (03:02) 11 I Am Sound (03:59) 12 Insincere Because I (03:30) 13 Pete International Spaceport (04:19) |
| The Dandy Warhols Are Sound : Allmusic album Review : The Dandy Warhols opened their 2003 album, Welcome to the Monkey House, with a brief, snide dig at record industry greed and illogic that ran, in part: "When Michael Jackson dies, were covering Blackbird." The line was obviously intended as a flip reference to Jackos control of the Beatles publishing rights -- of course, "Blackbird" is a rather fitting song to record as a eulogy, though its doubtful that the Dandys considered that at the time. But fate had some amusingly ironic, if insignificant, tricks in store when, six years later, Jacksons unexpected death occurred mere weeks before the release of an alternate version of that same album -- a version whose initial release had been prevented by the Dandys own industry woes, and which featured all of the same songs except for the sadly newly relevant titular ditty. The story is that the bandmembers took the tracks (which they had co-produced with Duran Durans Nick Rhodes) to be mixed in New York by Russell Elavedo (DAngelo, Common, the Roots), but the results were rejected by Capitol Records and shelved in favor of a new version mixed (apparently without the bands involvement) by British pop engineer Peter Wheatley (Sugababes, Girls Aloud, Sophie Ellis-Bextor), which was released to mild but vaguely disappointing success and ended up as their second to last album for the label. The differences between the two versions, as fans heard once the Elavedo mix (dubbed The Dandy Warhols Are Sound) was self-released by the band in 2009, are roughly what one would expect after comparing the two engineers prior clientele rosters. Not that these mixes make the Dandys sound like a grittily organic hip-hop/soul outfit on the one hand, or a glistening chart-pop act on the other -- this is essentially a rock & roll album either way -- but Sound is notably more stripped-down and spacious, with fewer of the synthesizers and electronic underpinnings that gave several Monkey House tracks their noted (and arguably prescient) new wave/synth pop vibe. This helps to bring the songs closer to the rootsier, dirtier, and somewhat dubby approach of their previous albums, although its hardly comparable to the gloriously noisy dronefests of their first two -- even if shifting "(You Come In) Burned" up, to open the album with a slow-building epic, is a nice nod to Dandys tradition. But yes, in a word, Elavedos version is less poppy, even if in some ways it actually feels cleaner and more direct, since fewer layers of sound allow the songs to stand more fully on their own merits. (This is particularly true of easily overlooked numbers like "Heavenly" and "Rock Bottom," though its not always necessarily to their benefit.) The big pop numbers -- which are now mostly slotted in a clump at the beginning of the record -- lose almost none of their tight, hooky appeal. Listening to both mixes side by side, song for song, the differences are readily evident and fairly striking -- though there are no substantive changes to the actual songs themselves. Oddly, though, listening to either version in full makes it much harder to notice any prominent differences, perhaps because of how well the tracks are incorporated into each versions distinctive sound-world. Ultimately, the differences between the two are not all that great. Sound may have a slight edge over the originally released version of this material, if only because its truer to the bands initial intentions, and Dandy diehards will certainly find it worth checking out, but more casual fans who already own Monkey House can probably skip it unless theyre looking for an intriguing lesson in the nuances of mixing. (The "new song," "Pete Intl Spaceport," is merely four minutes of ambient effects washes, and should hardly be considered a selling point.) | ||
 | Album: 10 of 15 Title: Best of the Capitol Years: 1995-2007 Released: 2010-07-19 Tracks: 15 Duration: 1:06:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Boys Better (04:37) 2 Every Day Should Be a Holiday (03:54) 3 Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth (03:12) 4 Good Morning (05:00) 5 Godless (05:40) 6 Get Off (03:11) 7 Bohemian Like You (03:31) 8 We Used to Be Friends (03:20) 9 Scientist (03:16) 10 The Last High (04:34) 11 Plan A (05:01) 12 Holding Me Up (07:15) 13 All the Money or the Simple Life Honey (04:29) 14 Smoke It (04:16) 15 This Is the Tide (05:02) |
| Best of the Capitol Years: 1995-2007 : Allmusic album Review : The Dandy Warhols began their career on the indie label Tim/Kerr and eventually founded their own independent imprint, Beat the World, but a big chunk of their albums were released by one of the most major of majors: Capitol Records. Best of the Capitol Years 1995-2007 does what it advertises, distilling the bands eight-year stint on the label down to its essence. Though it leaves off the Dandys sometimes confounding, often druggy experimental moments, it still captures the sarcastic and searching sides (and the tension between them) that make the band unique. "Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth," "Bohemian Like You," "We Used to Be Friends," and "All the Money or the Simple Life Honey" display Courtney Taylor-Taylor and companys dead-on eye for pop culture satire, skewering hipsters, conspicuous consumption, and frenemies with takes-one-to-know-one wit. Meanwhile, "Godless," "Holding Me Up," and "Good Morning" remain among the groups most beautiful and introspective moments, adding depth to their body of work. Interestingly, the collection switches out a couple of tracks from Welcome to the Monkey House ("Scientist" and "Plan A") with versions of those songs from the 2009 remixed version of that album, The Dandy Warhols Are Sound. Its a change that perhaps only the most devoted Dandys fans will notice, but it reflects the care that went into the compilation. Best of the Capitol Years 1995-2007 is one of those fairly rare greatest-hits sets that brings a groups work into focus instead of reducing it to just the singles. | ||
 | Album: 11 of 15 Title: This Machine Released: 2012-04-24 Tracks: 11 Duration: 43:15 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Sad Vacation (04:28) 2 The Autumn Carnival (04:00) 3 Enjoy Yourself (03:01) 4 Alternative Power to the People (02:47) 5 Well They’re Gone (04:15) 6 Rest Your Head (04:14) 7 16 Tons (02:08) 8 I Am Free (04:07) 9 SETI vs. The Wow! Signal (03:18) 10 Don’t Shoot She Cried (05:53) 11 Slide (05:01) |
| This Machine : Allmusic album Review : The Dandy Warhols searching, contemplative songs have always been a tantalizing yin to the bands brash, sarcastic yang, but it wasnt until This Machine that they devoted most of an album to their thoughtful side. Judging from how well these songs work, it was long overdue; like Earth to the Dandy Warhols, this is one of the bands most consistent sets yet. While This Machine isnt as ballad-heavy or acoustic as its still-life cover -- which nods to Woody Guthries famous "This Machine Kills Fascists"-emblazoned guitar -- suggests, it certainly is ruminative. Failure and loss loom in nearly every corner, even (perhaps especially) on the most upbeat moments. "I used to be a little snot," Courtney Taylor snarls on the Iggy Pop-esque "Enjoy Yourself," which is extra-snide even by the Dandies standards, but the target of all its vitriol and past glories is in the mirror. "SETI vs. the Wow! Signal" catalogs humanitys shortcomings over driving rock, and the unexpected and unexpectedly successful cover of Tennessee Ernie Fords "16 Tons," complete with mordant saxophone and jingling coins, adds another dimension to the sadder-but-wiser feel here. When the band does dive deep into melancholia, the results are even more powerful, particularly on "The Autumn Carnival"s gorgeous whispers, "Well Theyre Gone"s ghostly dub (which restates the case that Taylor may very well be Americas answer to Damon Albarn), and the closing lament "Slide." However, the band also makes room for redemption and acceptance, most strikingly on "I Am Free," where Taylor sings, "And when they say paybacks a bitch/Its a bitch youve got to make your peace with." Its the closest the band has come yet to something genuinely uplifting and irony-free -- no small feat for these tongue-in-cheek provocateurs, but This Machine suggests that the Dandy Warhols are actually improving with age, which is an even bigger accomplishment. | ||
 | Album: 12 of 15 Title: Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia: Live at the Wonder Released: 2013-06-20 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:00:06 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Godless (06:08) 2 Mohammed (05:51) 3 Nietzsche (06:37) 4 Country Leaver (03:26) 5 Solid (03:21) 6 Horse Pills (03:29) 7 Get Off (03:04) 8 Sleep (05:30) 9 Cool Scene (04:58) 10 Bohemian Like You (03:42) 11 Shakin (03:54) 12 Big Indian (03:36) 13 The Gospel (06:30) |
 | Album: 13 of 15 Title: Distortland Released: 2016-04-08 Tracks: 11 Duration: 34:22 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Search Party (03:42) 2 Semper Fidelis (03:25) 3 Pope Reverend Jim (03:46) 4 Catcher in the Rye (03:02) 5 STYGGO (04:18) 6 Give (02:57) 7 You Are Killing Me (03:41) 8 All the Girls in London (02:45) 9 Doves (04:14) 10 The Grow Up Song (01:38) 11 The Wizard Of Oslo (00:54) |
| Distortland : Allmusic album Review : Distortland, the ninth studio LP from Portland, Oregon quartet the Dandy Warhols, continues the bands post-Odditorium maturation, taming a bit of their edge. As singer Courtney Taylor-Taylor acknowledges on "The Grow Up Song," "Ive got to admit, Im too old for this shit." With less sleaze and more reflection, the Dandies retain their wit with a wink, but arent as sneering as on prior releases. While their most popular hits tend to veer toward the infectious pop side of the spectrum, most of their albums contain a hefty amount of trippy dreamscapes. Distortland isnt as in-your-face as the more muscular tracks on This Machine, nor is it as shiny as Welcome to the Monkey House. Without any immediate hits like "We Used to Be Friends" or "Bohemian Like You," the band seems to have left behind that commercial urge on Distortland, instead focusing on vibes and sensations. The album struts but never fully rocks out, leaning heavily on the dulcet side. There are a few moments where the Dandies allow that grit to dirty things a bit, like on the nocturnal creep of "Semper Fidelis," whose sinister crunch could fit nicely alongside Monkey Houses darker selections. The rollicking surf-boogie of "Pope Reverend Jim" sounds like a collision between "The Rockafeller Skank" and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, while the chugging power pop of single "You Are Killing Me" would make Weezer proud. Otherwise, Distortland is ready-made for wandering open roads and tripping out in grassy fields, especially on the enveloping fuzz of "Give." The psych-haze billows in on the opening "Search Party," a 60s-style acid wash that floats along on a synth cloud and hand claps, while "Catcher in the Rye" is a classic Dandies plodder with Zia McCabes elastic bass providing a mellow bounce that sounds like the sibling to 2003s "I Am Over It." Other nostalgic nods pop up elsewhere: the bongo jam "STYGGO" ("some things you gotta get over") is a toned-down "Cool Scene," and the sun-splashed epic "Doves" could fit in nicely on the back end of Earth to the Dandy Warhols. While the band remains eclectic, exploring some new concepts and expanding on past sonics, Distortland doesnt meander as much as the Dandies have on past efforts, keeping things relatively focused. Although it isnt their strongest work, Distortland is an enjoyable late-era addition to their catalog that breathes as much as it pleases. | ||
 | Album: 14 of 15 Title: Live Sonic Disruption Released: 2017-07-19 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:12:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Be-In (07:37) 2 CCR (03:20) 3 Get Off (03:56) 4 STYGGO (04:17) 5 I Love You (12:11) 6 Catcher in the Rye (03:34) 7 Plan A (03:32) 8 Holding Me Up (10:55) 9 Thick Girls Knock Me Out (03:20) 10 You Are Killing Me (03:39) 11 We Used to Be Friends (04:07) 12 Bohemian Like You (04:43) 13 Godless (07:26) |
 | Album: 15 of 15 Title: Why You So Crazy Released: 2019-01-25 Tracks: 12 Duration: 40:50 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Fred n Ginger (00:40) 2 Terraform (03:18) 3 Highlife (02:32) 4 Be Alright (03:49) 5 Thee Elegant Bum (02:28) 6 Sins Are Forgiven (02:26) 7 Next Thing I Know (04:38) 8 Small Town Girls (02:38) 9 To the Church (04:05) 10 Motor City Steel (03:07) 11 Forever (04:43) 12 Ondine (06:22) |