In Dig!, the hilarious and sometimes painful documentary that won the 2004 Sundance Grand Jury Prize, the Dandy Warhols matter-of-factly describe themselves the most well-adjusted band in America. While its true that in co... more »ntrast to the remarkable chaos that surrounds rivals the Brian Jonestown Massacre, the Portland, Oregon group's propensity for onstage nudity and offstage decadence does seem somewhat tame, listening to its fifth album, Odditorium or Warlords of Mars, suggests they are still rock 'n' roll animals at heart: Thrusting through the sexy riffs of "Smoke It;" Reveling in the sheer horniness of ready-for-Vegas single, "All The Money or the Simple Life Honey;" Or simply floating above the ground with a clutch of space-rock jams that flashback to 1995's trippy Dandy's Rule OK? --Aidin Vaziri« less
In Dig!, the hilarious and sometimes painful documentary that won the 2004 Sundance Grand Jury Prize, the Dandy Warhols matter-of-factly describe themselves the most well-adjusted band in America. While its true that in contrast to the remarkable chaos that surrounds rivals the Brian Jonestown Massacre, the Portland, Oregon group's propensity for onstage nudity and offstage decadence does seem somewhat tame, listening to its fifth album, Odditorium or Warlords of Mars, suggests they are still rock 'n' roll animals at heart: Thrusting through the sexy riffs of "Smoke It;" Reveling in the sheer horniness of ready-for-Vegas single, "All The Money or the Simple Life Honey;" Or simply floating above the ground with a clutch of space-rock jams that flashback to 1995's trippy Dandy's Rule OK? --Aidin Vaziri
William Merrill | San Antonio, TX United States | 09/13/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I don't buy the whole pre- and post-Dig argument, that the Dandy Warhols are a different band after the documentary just because of the exposure they received. I still hear them making generally the same kind of groovy, loose music they were making in the late '90s. Sure they continue to try out new ideas, but we wouldn't want or expect them to put out the same exact CD ten times, would we? I particularly enjoyed the new songs "Everyone Is Totally Insane" and "Down Like Disco." This may not be their best work ever, but the Odditorium is still worth a visit. (However, it is not a 5-star album... For those who rate every CD they like as 5 stars, how do you distinguish between the good, the excellent, and the truly awesome? If all are 5 stars, what's the difference between them? Five stars should be reserved for enduring classics.)"
Those Looking For A Pop Album Need Not Apply
J Jonah Jameson | Sacramento, CA USA | 10/02/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"A great, classic neo-psychedelic Dandy Warhol's album. This is music that take somewhere and asks for something in return. Do you really think Courtney Taylor thinks that your average casual pop music listener is into 7-9 minute long space-out/jazz/noise jams? Or the semi-retarded, affected/effected vocal style of A Loan Tonight? No? Obviously this album is not meant for you unless you're willing to pull out of your comfort zone, shut your pie-hole and listen.
This albums sounds fresh and loose..like it was recorded in the band's practice space when they weren't paying attention...oh yeah, it kind of was.
Its too bad that this type of music will not be popular...they're going to lose a lot of fans on this one...but you know what? They never really got it anyway."
Knock, knock... who's there?... Best album you could ever li
Joannie Banana | somewhere under the rainbow | 09/21/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Let's face it, the state of the music is pretty bad, the last best selling bands were crap (Creed, Bizkit so on). Since R.E.M. got popular (and then unpopular at least in the US) and since alternative got to the radio through Nirvana (in the way creating some crappy "alternative bands" that undertook "serious" subjects with a stupid approach) the mainstream has been full of formulistic, unimaginative and unchallenging songs. As bands got better taste and more creative (such as Pearl Jam, Radiohead) they lost popularity. The only recent relieve we've had is the incursions into mainstream of "vintage" sound bands (Strokes, Interpol, Hives, White Stripes, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club) and of some indie bands (Modest Mouse, Flaming Lips and to some extent the Dandy Warhols themselves and their friends/rivals Brian Jonestown Massacre) (And these are already generating some crappy copycats lacking original message).
If you expect to judge this album (or any good one) by this standards you'll think it is too long, too derivative, too hard to listen, too unfocused. Hell, by those standards only Creed or Puddle of Mud would be acceptable... And that dear sirs would be the end of Rock & Roll. Rock & Roll is not supposed to be safe and monotonous, it is supposed to be challenging and different... Its not supposed to tell you the same thing all the time, it is supposed to show you new things, take different perspectives, help you realize the world is bigger than you thought. And at the same time it is supposed to be fun, it is ridiculous to take yourself too seriously you won't be able to change if you do. Hey this record lives up to these other standards and is awesome.
Enjoy it!
"
Because I listen to it.
Tankery | New Orleans | 10/12/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Throw away the opening Bill Curtis talk garbage and for 10 songs you have as good as this band gets. The last two droning tracks sound like the best of Xymox and that's not good for this band.
I don't understand why this band works so hard at being clever but then I don't understand a lot of things. The strongest cuts for me are Love Is The New Feel Awful (21st Century shoe gazer riff in my little mind) All The Money Or The Simple Life Honey (nicely clever) and Down like disco (as good as the strongest stuff from Welcome to the Monkey House).
Like I said the first 10 tracks make it a worthy successor to Welcome to the Monkey House-One of my favorite all time albums- the last two tracks take the droning noise way too seriously and drag it down for me.
Oh, and ef rolling stone. One star? They have the worst website in America anyway. Annoying Pop-ups all over the place, commercial only music, their reviews are dumber than mine."
This IS The Dandy Warhols
A. Klimas | Manahawkin, NJ | 01/07/2006
(3 out of 5 stars)
"The Dandy Warhols are bred from a rare seed in today's music scene. One where you put your artistic integrity and fans over the quick sale and the glitz and glamour of MTV. To be perfectly honest, to see The Dandys in anything larger than a club would be a contradiction in terms. They are the essence of a fan's band and this is evident during their live shows when they play for 3 hours and take several audience requests (let's see Coldplay do that). With this in mind you have to see "Odditorium or Warlords of Mars" as the next logical step in their evolution. Those of us that were with them from the beginning remember the 8 minute dronings of "Dick" off The Dandy's debut LP or the nearly 30 minute 3 part drug rave "It's A Fast Driving Rave Up With The Dandy Warhols", so for us the new tunes with their excessive length and spaced out chords are no suprise. However the new generation Dandy fans could find themselves at a loss for words. 2003's "Welcome To The Monkey House" presented a whole new Dandy Warhols to the nation, one that was into creating catchy little pop hooks and making colorful tv friendly videos. That was not the band you thought you knew. "Odditorium" IS The Dandy Warhols.
As for the album itself it is a difficult listen at first and the song lengths could make you yearn for the skip button on your cd player, however upon repeated listens you will find whole new depths to the music that seem to grow with each listen. "Love Is The New Feel Awful" and "Everyone Is Totally Insane" are up there with "BE IN" and "Bohemian Like You" as some of the best stuff they've ever done. Yes, the album does drag and lack in parts "A Loan Tonight" is not a very good song and "The New Country" although cute and humorous would have been better served as a B-Side. But even with these short comings this album does not deserve the bad rep it is getting from the reviewers. All the major magazines lambasted this record as a faliure but we Dandy fans know different. Give this album a shot and you won't be disappointed The Dandy Warhols are a dying breed so let's support them and the artistic prowess or else all we'll be left with is "Fall Out Boy" and "Three Doors Down". Personally I'd rather be deaf.
Spotlight Tracks - Love Is The New Feel Awful, Everyone Is Totally Insane, All The Money Or The Simple Life Honey
Disappointing Tracks - A Loan Tonight, The New Country, Colder Than The Coldest Winter Was Cold"