Select Magazines ...The Dandy Warhols Come Down review (3 out of 5 stars)

Select Magazine
...The Dandy Warhols Come Down
by Steve Lowe
June 1998

Second album from Portland, Oregon four-piece. London rumour mill alleges mutual interest between bass/keyboard-player Zia and Damon Albarn.

With some bands, the music is clearly meant to take second billing behind a mish-mash of lifestyle baggage: drugs, celeb-related rumour-mongering and unfeasibly tight trousers.

At first glance, The Dandy Warhols look like a case in point, their art rock-leaning trash-pop coming on like a distillation of the American underground gene pool from the Velvets to The Breeders - only this time played half for laughs.

Their exaggerated features include singer Courtney Taylor's cheekbones, a 'sassy' female member, and a fondness for old skool lowlife. Add songs about junkies and Jesus and you have a stereotype of cartoon-like proportions. That said, it's a dimension that actually does them a few favours on the garage-band goonery of 'Every Day Should Be A Holiday,' 'Not If You Were The Last Junkie On Earth' and 'Be-In' - unavoidably infectious songs that almost compensate for weaker, introspective offferings where the level of artistry is surpassed by their antecedents.

A pretty superfluous musical development, then, but one not wholly overshadowed by eyeliner and rolled-up $100 bills.