Tuesday, February 13, 2007

April Dresden Dolls album release show

The Dresden Dolls, Amanda Palmer and Brian Viglione hit the stage at Virgin Megastores in Hollywood to greet a crowd that challenges that gathered for Marian Carey a few months prior, said Virgin Megastores employees.
The free show held to promote the new album “Yes, Virginia” drew a crowd of more than three hundred fans ranging in age from pre-pubescent to adulthood and offered and array of clothing styles that seemed all too appropriate for the Punk Cabaret sound that the Dresden Dolls are famous for.
Having just come off the stage across the street at the Jimmy Kimmel Show, the Dolls appeared onstage in street clothes, sans makeup and hair still drenched with sweat.
The tell-tale signs of a full out performance prior to their appearance did not hinder this band in any way and the fans were not left wanting.
“The show had great energy,” said Jonathan Reilly of Reseda, a new fan of the Dolls. “The lack of make-up and the exhaustion didn't affect the show at all. If anything- it made the crowd feel more appreciated. For people who can't get out from behind their instruments, it certainly didn't feel like it.”
The set list for the evening consisted of a mix between old favorites such as the self-love anthem, “Coin Operated Boy” and tale of the result of Generation Prozac in “Girl Anachronism” to selections from the new album ranging in themes from sex changes, alcoholic friends to the affects of mass advertising.
“The show was very interesting; buzzing with a sort of subtle yet high-power energy that I'm sure everyone could feel,” said Lisa Purviance of Santa Clarita. “The album itself seems at first very calm and subdued, for the most part. However, if one were to pay attention to the lyrics and music and melodies, they would be able to tell that there is a lot more to it than what one would initially be able to pick up on.”
After the ten-song set was complete, Amanda Palmer leaned into the microphone to announce that she and Brain intended to “sign every fucking album and shake every hand,” proving that there still is such a thing as humility in the music industry.
As the second album in the Dresden Dolls catalog, “Yes, Virginia” solidifies the Dolls’ place on the underground punk scene blending a hypnotic mixture of pulsing drum beats, dissident piano chords, and the haunting vocals of Miss Palmer creating a sound that can not be compared with any of the pop groups on the radio today.
The social commentary of “Modern Moonlight” and obvious despair of “Delilah” and “Me and the Minibar” show Palmer’s sincerity as a song writer and artist to depict her true thoughts and feelings to her audience and her passion for the written word.
Each album the Dresden Dolls release is another in window into the hearts and minds of Palmer and Viglione.

“Yes, Virginia” is available in record stores nationwide now.