Everclear / The Dandy Warhols

Everclear: Songs from an American Movie Vol One: Learning How to Smile

Herald rating:* *


The Dandy Warhols: 13 tales from Urban Bohemia

Herald Rating: ****


(both Capitol)

Review: Russell Baillie


They've rather a lot in common, these two American outfits, even before you start contemplating their musical approaches. There's history and geography for a start - both hail from Portland, Oregon, and are on the same major label, having emerged two albums ago with singles that may well have contained subtle drug references.

In Everclear's case it's Heroin Girl, for Dandy Warhols it'sNot If You Were The Last Junkie on Earth.

Also, as both prove again on their respective third efforts, they have quite a talent for musical pastiche but seem to be getting more ambitious.

In Everclear's case that makes for decidedly mixed results.

As with the previous album, So Much For The Afterglow, band main man (and producer) Alex Alexakis shows he wants to further expand his outfit's scope from their rock trio limits. So American Movie is an album which starts with a banjo and ends with a Beach Boy-like lullaby.

In between there are attempts at powerchord guitars meeting beatbox funk (as on the tribute to growing up in the early 70s AM Radio), quite a few break-up songs in the second half which end to merge into one long divorce-athon, and curious cover of Van Morrison's Brown Eyed Girl.

The trouble is that despite inspired stuff like Wonderful (written from the perspective of a kid in an about-to-be-broken home which nominates Alexakis as a sort of post-grunge John Hiatt) and the production extras, he's starting to repeat himself lyrically and, particularly, melodically. On the likes of Unemployed Boyfriend it can get downright cornball.

Things are still neatly developing in the Warhols' world.

Just when we were ready to dismiss them as one-or-two alterna-hit wonders they've pulled out an album that places them somewhere near the new American psychedelia of Mercury Rev and the like - and pop-smarts that suggest that could be the stateside Blur.

Yes, they do come with unashamed magpie tendencies, whether it's the Stonesy guitar lurch to Shakin' or the Lou Reed bark on top of Solid, or the Idiot-period Iggy-swagger to a trio of other tracks. But the space-rock throb of Mohammed and Nietzche help start this off at an impressive altitude and the final tracks contain many an Austin Powers-friendly pop moment like Cool Scene or Bohemian Like You to round things off in one neatly head-spinning time-warp.

Everclear may get more points for honesty - and lyrically Alexakis continues to wear his battered heart on his sleeve - but the Dandy Warhols deliver a heady line in inspired forgery that's all the more attractive.