THE DANDY WARHOLS ­ Young Americans at large
The Irish News
by David Roy
May 30, 2002

THE Dandys are coming, the Dandys are coming! Tension is mounting in Ireland right now as the Dandy Warhols prepare to make their second ever musical sortie here.

Actually, it’s more of a lightning strike than a sortie, because their appearance at the Witnness Festival on July 14 will probably be your only chance to get a dose of special Dandy goodness on home ground this year.

When I spoke to guitar genius Dandy, Pete Holmstrom, the band were hard at it in their Portland home studio, trying to knock a set-list into shape. According to Pete, things got off to a somewhat cautious start initially.

``It’s been a long time since we’ve been out on the road together, and practice is badly needed,’’ he laughs. ``It’s always a shaky start when we first get going, but it always somehow miraculously pulls itself together.’’

Part of the problem this time around is that the band have several spanking new Dandy numbers to get worked out, from their forthcoming album which, in lieu of an actual title, we shall refer to simply as The Dandy Warhols: Episode IV.

``There will be some songs off that,’’ said Pete. ``At the moment there’s going to be two, because that’s how many we’ve learned! The set-list is kind of up in the air right now, but hopefully there’ll be a few more to come.’’

It’s been just over a year since the Dandy Warhols released their last masterpiece, 13 Tales From Urban Bohemia. A mix of classic songwriting, zeitgeist and big noise, the record was almost universally applauded as the Portland quartet’s most accomplished work yet.

At the moment, the Dandy’s are receiving a lot of attention not just because they’re a great band, but also because lots of famous people are very publicly digging them. In particular, they have caught the imagination of David Bowie, who has been bigging them up to anyone with a pulse and a publication for absolutely ages.

It came as no surprise then, when Mr Bowie announced that his favourite young Americans would be appearing alongside him on the final night of his Meltdown Festival in London. Couple this to Duran Duran’s endorsement of his band, and Pete is now having to pinch himself occasionally just to check that he isn’t dreaming.

``It’s amazing,’’ he says, genuinely in awe. ``I couldn’t imagine anything better, really. It’s like, I remember listening to Bowie and Duran in high school, and the fact that they’re now helping us… that’s just messed up! It’s really strange.’’

The appreciation is mutual, and Pete describes the new Bowie material he’s heard as `phenomenal.’ As for the rumours that the band will perform a number with Bowie on vocals, Pete doesn’t want to tempt fate.

``I’ve heard rumours that we’re going to do a song with him, but I don’t know if I necessarily believe those rumours? I’ll believe it when I’m actually onstage playing with him!’’ he laughs. ``We’re playing the same night as David, and that’s almost enough. If we actually got to play a song with him, I think I’d just lose it!’’

Despite this nervous excitement, it’s actually the Duran Duran connection which will have a particular impact on Episode IV. Nick Rhodes has been working as producer on a few Dandy songs at Duran’s Air Studios in London. Pete explains what the band has been up to recording wise this time around.

He says: ``We spent eight months in our own studio learning how to use it and recording a whole bunch of stuff really badly. Then we had a guy come in for about a month to clean up everything and try to make some sense of it. Then, we met Nick when we were in over in London doing TV shows a little while ago, and that’s how he became involved.’’

Once again, the Dandy rumour mill has been in overdrive, and there have been many whispers pertaining to a track possibly featuring a certain Simon LeBon on lead vocals. This track is possibly known as either Downtown or Plan A. Perhaps Pete could shed some light on the subject?

``I haven’t heard that!’’ he protests. ``I can’t confirm or deny that one actually. I didn’t go to England [Courtney and Brent went on their own] so I’m not exactly sure what happened. I don’t know anything about a song called Downtown either, but Plan A is a certainly a possibility.’’

Damn that rumour mill. However, Pete does reveal that another one of the new songs is called Wonderful You, and that Courtney is quite proud of a song called Suffered and Sound.

``I think Courtney’s lyrics are getting better all the time,’’ he said. ``Definitely. I love some of the lyrics on the first album, and then the lyrics on the second album I didn’t pay much attention to and still don’t really know. Actually, I don’t pay much attention to the lyrics of anybody’s songs. I’m a guitar player, so I’m focused on the music.’’

Pete is indeed a guitar player, and a very good one at that, as I’m sure he’d thank me for saying. Over the course of the Dandy’s four records, he has created some weird and wonderful sounds through his own distinctive style, which calls to mind Graham Coxon, Andy Bell and Ronnie Wood all at once.

``I have a hard time stealing stuff from other people or learning stuff from other people’’ he admits. ``I know like four other songs that aren’t Dandy Warhol's songs. Occasionally I’ll see someone do something I like and I’ll try and imitate it, but it always comes out completely different. I’ll say I got this from so-and-so, and then the others will just look at me funny and go `OK, whatever.’’’

Chances are, in the UK and Ireland just about ever schmuck with a radio or television has been exposed to Pete’s playing via the phenomenal success of the Vodaphone campaign which featured the Dandy’s hip shakin’ rocker, Bohemian Like You.

Such was the advert’s popularity that the band re-released the single. Having previously stalled at number 28 (or something) second time around the Dandy Warhols found themselves with a bona fide Top Ten Hit and on Top of the Pops. Vodaphone 1: Capitol Records, nil.

``I certainly hope that whole thing gave Capitol a kick up the ass, because it really fucking needed it,’’ says Pete. ``Part of the problem is that every record we’ve put out on Capitol, including this next one, has been under a different president. So, the first president, he liked our music but, you know, he didn’t really care. Then the second guy actively hated us, which was right when we put out 13 Tales, and that’s pretty much why nothing happened.

``Every little step we’ve made, we had to fight for it. And we did it: we got bigger, we got better, and luckily we made a very focused record for it to happen around. It would have been great to have the support right from the beginning though. We could have been where we are right now when we were actually out touring and promoting that record, and made a little bit more out of it. But, y’know, you take what you get, and I can’t complain: we’ve had fun, and we’ve had success!’’

Much is made of the Dandy’s popularity throughout Europe, while at home in America they remain an underground band, where critics routinely label their music as ‘Anglophile.’ Keyboardist Dandy Zia has already said she is fine with this, but Pete has his sights set higher ­ or at least beyond the Oregon State line.

``I’d like to be successful in the United States everywhere except Portland,’’ he laughs. ``I could go home, chill out and no one would really pay me any attention ­ except for people leaning out of the window and yelling shit at me because they don’t like our songs! I don’t want to do anything half-assed. If we’re going to have success, I want it across the board. I mean that’s what we’re doing. You’re in a band, you reach a certain level, and you don’t want to go down ­ you want to go up!’’

As for Witnness and their upcoming appearances at festivals across Europe in the summer months, Pete reminds us that festival life isn’t just hard on festivalgoers who have to suffer at the hands of overpriced food vendors and poorly maintained toilet blocks.

``It becomes an endurance test for bands too,’’ he says, ``because it’s hard enough doing a show in a club with a soundcheck and with all the conditions controlled. So, to throw a band out on a big huge stage with no soundcheck, playing to people who might not necessarily be your fans, and you have to win them over, and it’s cold and raining- and you’re supposed to get some kind of vibe going? Forget it, that’s way hard. At least we’ll get to hook up with Black Rebel again in Ireland. We’re doing Greece with them soon actually.’’

The Dandy’s first visit to Dublin last year ­ happily at a warm and dry, and firmly sold out club show - was eagerly received. Unfortunately, Pete didn’t get to fully appreciate the love in that particular room.

``I don’t have much memory of Dublin,’’ he admits ruefully. However, for once, this memory loss was not a result of rock and roll excess. ``I had a flu or something I think. We had a horrible ferry ride over, I woke up, felt horrible, went and got a bunch of medication, went back to the hotel, slept, got up did soundcheck, came back to the hotel, slept, got up played the show, went back and slept. I missed out on Ireland completely.’’

One place the Dandy Warhols have definitely been missing out on is Belfast, Although we’d love to have them, Courtney infamously once said that he had no desire to play a place ``where people kill each other for no apparent reason’’ (er, he does know he’s American, doesn’t he?)

When reminded of this, the Dandy Warhols perpetually laid back guitarist sighs in resignation.

``You know, Courtney has a big mouth, and he gets us in trouble quite often. He’s got a ridiculous understanding of political and current events. He’ll hear something third hand, some guy just mouthing off or something, and the next thing you know he’s repeating it in an interview. Personally, I want to play everywhere, because it’s a chance to go places you wouldn’t normally go. So hell yeah, bring it on!’’

Sounds good to me.