Song of the Day: The Dandy Warhols - Well They’re Gone

photo by Eliot Lee Hazel

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Every Friday, we present a song by a Northwestern artist. Today’s selection, featured on the Morning Show with John Richards, is “Well They’re Gone” by The Dandy Warhols from their 2012 album This Machine on The End Records.

Formed in 1994, Portland’s The Dandy Warhols have been producing psychedelic-tinged alternative rock for nearly two decades now, but they remain as hungry as ever with their most recent release, This Machine. More stripped down and less tongue-in-cheek than previous releases, This Machine is a far cry from the rowdy Warhols of the late 1990s. The fifth track, “Well They’re Gone”, is a slow-burning track where singer Courtney Taylor-Taylor’s whispered growl sprawls out over a haunting theramin, proclaiming “You said your weak and frail heart so many times/it belonged to someone that wasn’t strong/well they’re gone.” Chilling and sparse, “Well They’re Gone” is a fascinating look at the Dandy Warhols’ newfound intimate side.

At the moment, the band doesn’t have any Stateside dates booked, but you can keep a tab on their website to learn when they return to the Northwest. Sample another track off This Machine by watching the video for the album’s opening track “Sad Vacation” below.