The Dresden Dolls Experience
Photo by Nick B
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Last night I finally had the privilege of seeing The Dresden Dolls perform live at The Enmore Theatre.
I have wanted to see them since 2006 but unfortunately at that time my teenage heart lay with the band Placebo who had a show on the same night so that was not to be.
However, fate was kind and I had the fortune of finally seeing The Dresden Dolls as a complete unit rocking the effing Enmore theatre.
It is an intimate venue but during the brilliantly gifted support acts (The Jane Austen Argument & The Bedroom Philosopher) I couldn’t help but notice that when the house lights when up we were such a diverse but dedicated band of fans.
From men in rugby shirts to men in laced shirts, people with mohawks to people with magnificent moustaches. Couples, friends, family all ages, all races, all shapes and sizes. It was fucking beautiful. If any band could bring a world together I would put my money on the Dresden Dolls.
Once Brian’s drumsticks hit kit it was like gun fire.
BAM!
The race of pulses began and we were all thrown into the sharp bounding beats that rocked you from the soles of your feet till you could feel it pulse thick in your throat.
They are an incredibly dynamic and enigmatic pair. Not only does Amanda Fucking Palmer feed of Fucking Brian Viglione but they feed off their instruments and the audience’s reaction. That being said I feel that even with the audience presence removed they would continue to churn, convulse and breathe fire into their songs.
Back lit in vibrant shades of red it was akin to sci-fi sorcery. They were summoning something powerful and full of passion and then unleashing it upon us all. Yet they were in control for every single beat.
Every note.
Every tap.
Every hanging pause.
Brian Viglione worked almost balletically over his drum kit in a performance that would rival The Black Swan. Every flick of his wrist and bounce of the leg was fluid and flawless. The man was not so much a machine as liquid mercury. As far as I could see everyone was entranced either throwing themselves into the music or tapping a foot quietly into their own bubble of personal space.
Then you have Amanda Palmer. Her fingers dancing, jarring, tweaking and slamming every key on her keyboard with surgical precision. We were waiting to see what great feat she would perform next. The audience would cheer with each successful musical incision as she pulled us all together and dug down deep within herself to let out guttural cries as the music crescendoed.
Both old and new fans alike would have noticed that Brian and Amana work together like conjoined twins that are tenaciously tethered by their theatrics and endless creativity. They are in it for the pure joy of expressing themselves. They are not on that stage to sell another platinum record. They are genuinely there to share their artistry with us and that in itself is a beautiful thing.
If you do not know of this band, Google them, buy their records, a lot of albums by Amanda Palmer can be purchased at whatever price you can afford.
This is the future of music.
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