Album Review: The Dandy Warhols – Why You So Crazy (Dine Alone)

It’s been a long, strange trip leading up to The Dandy Warhols’ 10^th album. With Why You So Crazy, the band takes us on a wayward musical journey that goes everywhere and nowhere.

A decade on from splitting with major label Capitol, Courtney Taylor-Taylor and his crew seem content to spend their time at the Odditorium, their Seattle-based studio, releasing albums that miss more often than they hit.

That’s certainly the case with Why You So Crazy.

The band is all over the musical map, beginning with the :41 opening track, Fred n Ginger, a slight, 1920s-style ode to Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers featuring a crooning Taylor in glorious lo-fi.

From there is on to Terraform, a more contemporary-sounding track beginning with a throbbing synth bass and developing a neat groove and not much else.

Then keyboard player Zia McCabe takes the mic to sing the country-kitchy Highlife. Its fine for what it is, but sounds out of place on a Dandy Warhols album save for the distorted guitar solo at the end.

Drummer Brent DeBoer contributes two songs and co-writes a couple more with Taylor. The first, Be Alright, chugs along nicely with an overdriven guitar and what sounds like a toy piano, while To The Church features more wonky electronica, sounding like something coming down a bad phone line.

Courtney Taylor-Taylor tries out his own alt.country drawl on Sins Are Forgiven and Motor City Steel. The former is a simple country tune that may or may not be tongue in cheek, while the latter is probably the most entertaining song on the album, beginning with the couplet, “Oh my lord, you could drive a Ford or you could drive a Chevy or a Jimmy if you really like”.

And that’s about as good as it gets.

Anyone checking this album out in hopes of hearing anything like Bohemian Like You from the band’s glory days, some 20 years ago , will be sorely disappointed.

There are a few interesting moments among the 12 tracks that comprise Why You So Crazy, but sadly, very few complete songs.

Marty Duda