For the occasion of the release of their compilation The Capitol Year 1995-2007, the Dandy Warhols, that legendary American rock band from Portland, performed last Tuesday night at Rams Head. The album covers their early years with the label Capitol Records, so I headed into the show expecting them to play their famous songs such as “We Used To Be Friends” or “Bohemian Like You”, and maybe some new stuff too.
When the Dandy Warhols started playing at 9, the concert hall was pretty uncrowded, making me wonder if the band might be getting kind of old. Most people in the public were in their 30s or 40s, and many of them were with their families. Does this mean that the Dandy Warhols don’t belong to our generation? It’s hard to tell, but there was definitely a nostalgic atmosphere in the air.
Lead Courtney Taylor-Taylor and company played two hours of non-stop classics and tracks such as “Get Off” and “We Used To Be Friends.” They also performed some psychedelic 1970s-inspired tunes that sounded a bit has-been to me, but some guys in the public looked like they were heading into some sort of a trance.
Despite the fact that the Dandy Warhols are considered a great rock band, it seemed that they missed the opportunity to be innovative on Tuesday. The whole show sounded a bit unfashionable, not to mention that sometimes they seemed to be a pale copy of the Rolling Stones or the Velvet Underground, rather than the authentic rock band they used to be.
That being said, the show’s vintage quality was fairly appreciable, especially in light of the overblown stage shows that are so common today. There was no artifice, just the band interacting and enjoying being out there with their fans. Taylor-Taylor is charismatic and funny, and the band’s sole female member, Zia McCabe, made me laugh a lot too. Not only was she unsteadily dancing onstage, but she made some very dirty, hilarious jokes throughout the set.
Musically speaking, the amazing voice of Taylor-Taylor, guitarist and lead singer of the group, saved the show. He is incredibly talented, and he has the ability to pitch his voice from low to high on command. It’s amazing, and a talent that only few rock singers have. It’s a shame that the Dandy Warhols played it safe on Tuesday — not to say that the show seemed lazy, just bland — because they used to make some epic songs in their heyday in the late ‘90s and the early 2000s.
The technical production was also kind of neglected, or perhaps the band kept the show low-tech on purpose to maintain an oldies vibe, but it is always cool to see lights effects and stage arrangements, especially in a big-ish venue like Rams Head. Also, it is unfortunate that they did not come out for an encore, though they did play for two long hours.
So, are the Dandy Warhols out of date? Well, the show wasn’t too bad, and their old hits are always great to listen to. However, they should definitely modernize their beats, because music, such as success, evolves.
