REVIEW
REVIEW
☆ BY ALINA PAWL-CASTANON ☆
THE DRESDEN DOLLS MADE THEIR APPEARANCE AT CHICAGO’S SALT SHED OCT.29TH for their 20th year anniversary tour of Yes, Virginia… ( Tailors Version). The Boston-born duo last graced Chicagoland during their 2023 Riot Fest performance; only this time, Dresden Dolls stripped themselves down for their fans, new and old to bear witness.
Opening acts and Chicago-based queens Aurora Gozmic and Drag daughter Vanda LaRose put on a three-part performance, warming the excited crowd up with velvety, seductive sets and a flirty touch of comedic relief.
Outside, fans slowly make their way into the venue adorned in the classic Dresden Doll porcelain look; high penciled eyebrows and mime makeup paired with a red lip. Against The Salt Shed walls, two Wicker Park buskers Nico and Freya join in on the music, guitar and washerboards in hand, while decorated dolls walk past with donations to give.
As Nico Stomps the bell attached to their leather boot and Freya belted towards no one in particular, the Dresden Dolls influence could be heard through the wind by passerbys. Before Dresden Dolls, front-woman and pianist Amanda Palmer was a busker and street performer for five years in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Performing as the eight-foot bride, Palmer decorated herself in white face paint, a Victorian wedding dress and flowers in Harvard Square as a living statue. Her experience working on street corners during this time heavily inspired songs from the project's 2004 debut album, bleeding into imagery for Yes, Virginia with living statues in white gracing the music video for the single “Sing”.
The Dresden Dolls came to be after a fated Halloween show in 2000 put Palmer and Vigilione within each others orbit, and not long after formed what would be the genre-bending sound coined as ‘Brechtian Cabaret’; a mixture of raw theatrical visual angst, swelling piano paired with strong ambient sounds and dark storytelling.
In the era of bare lyricists and piano accompaniments like Fiona Apple and Tori Amos, we see the influence that the 90’s solo powerhouses had on The Dresden Dolls’ early albums; within the raw expression in Palmer's vocal and creative choices, to the swelling frantic keys.
In the exploration of intense, confrontational and perhaps uncomfortable themes these projects share, what sets the Dresden Dolls apart from the specific singer-songwriter genre is the theatrical punk- fused symphonic elements and harder rhythms created between Palmer and Viglione, paired with the tattooed eyebrows and mime-esque visual style brought on stage. Within this abstract storytelling that begs for its shock value, we explore the naked truths that are The Dresden Dolls and the legacy that follows them.
With Gozmic and LaRose getting the crowd wild for a grand entrance, Palmer and Viglione introduce the Cabaret to the stage. In flashes of white powdered cheeks and arched eyebrows, the duo takes a sweeping bow to the audience before dancing to their respective seats across the stage. Opening with songs from their debut album of the same name, songs
like “Missed Me” and “Good Day” got the crowd transfixed. Palmer slams into her keyboard with strong intensity, staring the crowd down in grey and leather while Viglione plays like an acrobatic mime; full of twists, fluid movement and raised expressions underneath a bowl hat.
Between countries, performances and hardships, Amanda Palmer has created a vast collection of solo albums; embodying the stripped lyricism and sharp piano that marks a strong continuation of the Dresden Doll’s raw resonance, while taking a step back from Cabaret. With each album we peel back and explore Palmer's complex dynamics, expanding into a harder edge with orchestral tones with 2012 album like Theatre is Evil and diving into more of a familial introspective folk with 2016 album You got me Singing featuring Palmer's father. Her most recent project, New Zealand Survival Songs is a 5 song collaboration of raw resurrection, feeling like a dive into Palmer's inner thoughts of unraveling.
Drummer Brian Viglione, who joined the Violent Femmes in 2015 and has a vast collection of collaborations with various projects over the years, never entirely departed from his roots. From building a drum kit out of metal and found objects for Nine inch Nails, to the New York Cabaret-Punk Orchestra, Viglione has made his mark as a pioneer of punk expression and a founding father of the Cabaret sound.
The duo, since their unofficial hiatus in 2008 after the release of their album No, Virginia, has re-emerged in the past decade for reunion shows; most notably in Boston and New York since their previous anniversary show in 2010.
In recent times after a series of songs from the 2006 album was brought to the spotlight by the project’s Gen Z audience, The Dresden Dolls made the bold move to re-record Yes,Virginia at Mad Oak studios in Boston, after the 20 year contract with Roadrunner Records came to an end. Taking a more refined approach to the newest recording, Palmer explains on stage the act of stepping back into the album offered up a mirror into her past.
“I had to take a hard look at my life about what these songs represented for a young person who was newly touring”, she said, before diving into a rendition of ‘first orgasm’; A song that Palmer described as a reference to her life back home after being on the road. “When you are lucky enough to become a famous band, you become really lonely, and you have nothing.” “And when you’re not a famous band, it’s even worse,” Viglione adds.
Through the multi hour set, both Palmer and Viglione take the audience through a journey of play and call-back responses between drummer and pianist. With a few missed words and changing cadence to keep the audience on their toes, the two explore the album in a new, more mature light. As the audience witnessed a creative partnership of over 20 years in the act, the understanding between them added to the theatrical feel and dancing energetic rhythms.
In between songs, Palmer takes a second to catch her breath before explaining that her voice, while naturally having more texture, had begun to betray her as the tour progresses. With songs that include playing within screaming shrills to a lower register, her voice had become strained.
Despite this, Palmer took every chance to connect with the audience. She shared personal anecdotes, sharing stories surrounding herself and the band, as well as criticisms she has faced in light of recent allegations being made against her ex husband.
After separating and traveling with their son to New Zealand, a trip turned into a multi year stay in March 2020. The front woman, taking pauses to look out at the crowd, dives into the root of her newest album New Zealand Survival songs.
In sound, its vocals are raw, its piano eerie and rich. Lyrically, we pick up notes of reflection; perhaps of shame, distrust and clarity within an unraveling marriage.
After an article from The New York explaining the alleged abuse and Palmer's alleged knowledge of its whereabouts regarding a former nanny, her world was changed and public opinion surrounding Palmer and The Dresden Dolls began to shift.
Since then, Palmer has made public statements disputing her accused involvement, and a New Zealand court case is yet to be determined after a previous case brought by the former nanny was dismissed in the States.
Diving further into the community she has cultivated around her, Palmer reveals a story regarding long time friend world-renowned Drag performer Jinkx Monsoon and her refusal to take the Dresden Doll song ‘Me and the Minibar’ off of her Carnegie Hall set. The two performers met in Portland when a teenage Monsoon snuck out of her house in drag to join the theatrical fanbase “The Brigade” and attend Dresden Dolls set.
“Overnight, because of the shit that happened to my ex, in my life everything was cancelling. Festivals, talks, shows; everything was getting cancelled.” She said, “It doesn’t matter if I never get invited to a show, a party, or go on tour again… the Drag Queens are going to still perform Dresden dolls”.
