CMJ's Welcome To The Monkey House review
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CMJ New Music Report
Welcome To The Monkey House
by Doug Levy
2003
Finding themselves longing for a different sound in the wake of their last album, Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia, the Dandy Warhols have taken their latest compositions and recast them in a brave new wave mold, bringing the synths out in force to push the old six-string sonics into the corner. For the most part, Welcome To The Monkey House is an upbeat affair, with singer Courtney Taylor-Taylor embracing a newfound love of falsetto, while the rhythm section (drummer Brent DeBoer and keyboardist Zia McCabe) offers a stronger, bouncier, and more confident contribution than ever before. Some of this might be unfamiliar territory for longtime fans, but just as you get caught off guard by a total Dandy anomaly like the lab-rap of “Scientist,” there’s a sign, like the gently eddying “Insincere,” to remind you who you’re traveling with and where you’re going. As for a hit-in-waiting, look no further than “The Last High” — undoubtedly coming soon to a station very near you.
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