Over the course of eight studio albums, the career of Portland indie-rockers The Dandy Warhols’ has been marked by equal parts successful, catchy tracks and disappointingly mediocre fops. The band’s latest album, “This Machine,” falls unfortunately into the second of those categories. Fans craving new material with the same gritty charm of the band’s more successful endeavors will be disappointed with this dark, droning compilation of quasi-whispered vocals, sluggish bass and whining synths. The band sounds tired, and the album transfers this fatigue to anyone within earshot. The low-fi effects on the faster-paced tracks is grating on the nerves, and clever lyrics from better days have been usurped by moody sentiments. Fans of The Warhols’ long-winded musical vocation may not be impressed with this latest effort, but maybe a ninth album will bring them back from the dark side.
Grade: D
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Contact Morgan Searles at [email protected]