Here’s a clip of indie darlings the Dandy Warhols with their single “Godless” as taken from their smash record Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia released in 2000.

Before this album, the Dandies were a band I knew by reputation only.  But by the time it came along, they were everywhere, particularly with their hit singles “Bohemian Like You” and “Gett Off”, both used on TV shows, and on the radio.

But, I prefer “Godless”, a languid, sleepy, and kind of atmospheric track which seems to borrow from various sources to make something of a unique stew.  The opening guitar strum is not unlike the one that opens George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord”.  And the trumpet suggests late 60s Burt Bacharach.

The band have been accused of erring prominently on the side of pastiche.  I suppose it’s kind of hard to argue with, since the flavours of their influences are pretty hard to miss.  And maybe that’s what I like about this song.  Even though I myself can identify where a lot of the influences have come from, there is something unique here, a feel that comes from having mixed a bunch of ingredients together to come up with something new.  And this of course is how pop music has always evolved.

This song certainly suggests evolution, if not for pop music than certainly for the band.  There is something epic about this track, like there is a bigger, longer, and uncut version of itself crammed inside there somewhere.  Yet, the promise of it is more compelling than if they’d done it for real.  What’s left for me is one of the most atmospheric and compelling tracks to kick off the decade, simply put.

For more information and more music, check out the Dandy Warhols site.

Enjoy!