Evan Dando Baby I'm Bored CD

Solo Debut Fr.Former Frontman Of Lemonheads.

Personnel: Evan Dando (vocals, guitar, piano, Hammond B-3 organ, bass, drums, tambourine); Jon Brion (vocals, various instruments); Chris Brokaw (guitar, Hammond B-3 organ, drums, percussion); Howe Gelb (guitar, keyboards); Royston Langdon (piano, bass, background vocals); Joe Burns (bass, background vocals); John Convertino, Sim Cain (drums).
Recorded at Sage & Sound, Los Angeles, California; Trout Studio, Brooklyn, New York; Wavelab, Tucson, Arizona.
Personnel: Howe Gelb (vocals, guitar, electric guitar); Royston Langdon (vocals, guitar, piano, bass guitar); Joey Burns (vocals, double bass); Jon Brion (vocals); Brokaw (guitar); Bryce Goggin (piano); John Covertino, A.J. Johnson, Sim Cain (drums).
Audio Mixer: Bryce Goggin.
Recording information: Sage And Sound, Los Angeles, CA; Wavelab, Tuscon, AZ.
Photographer: Elizabeth Moses.
It's no coincidence that the cover art for BABY I'M BORED mimics that of the Lemonheads' punky debut, HATE YOUR FRIENDS. Coming after several years in the wilderness, Evan Dando's first album under his own name, and his first release of any kind since 1996's wildly uneven CAR BUTTON CLOTH, finds him looking for a new beginning. Dando doesn't, and maybe can't, duplicte the heart-on-sleeve, recreational drug charm of his 1992 classic, IT'S A SHAME ABOUT RAY, but BABY I'M BORED marks a return to the acoustic feel and cohesiveness of that album. For his fans, older and wiser like he is, it's a treat.
After the Lemonheads' Car Button Cloth, Evan Dando disbanded the group and took a long, long break, sobering up and marrying, slowly resurfacing after over five years of inactivity. First, he played some gigs, commemorated on the U.K.-only live album Live at the Brattle Theatre, before he finally released his first official solo album, Baby I'm Bored, in the spring of 2003, a full seven years after the last Lemonheads album. It's unmistakably a Dando album -- lots of low-key, three-chord songs, sang in his achingly lovely voice, and lasting not a second more than need be -- not much different than a Lemonheads album, apart from the lack of fast songs, loud electric guitars, and a general sense of maturity that permeates the album. So, there are no surprises, but that's a comfort, really, because Dando sounds comfortable and relaxed, lending Baby I'm Bored a cohesion unheard on his records since It's a Shame About Ray. While the schizophrenia, marked by unexpected noise detours, aren't missed, this cohesion does mean that he doesn't hit dazzling heights, so there isn't anything as immediately indelible as "If I Could Talk I'd Tell You" or even "The Outdoor Life." That said, there is something to be said for consistency. Even if it seems unassuming and underwhelming upon its first listen, Baby I'm Bored with each spin reveals the uniform strength of the songs and the sweet, understated charms of Dando as a performer, since he makes the covers -- several of which are written by Ben Lee -- sound of piece with his own work. Make no mistake, this is a laid-back affair and it's a grower, which may lead some listeners to dismiss it out of hand, but anybody that has longed for Dando to finally return to music will surely find much to enjoy here. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Spin (5/03, p.116) - "...Compelling....Dando wraps his stoner drawl around 12 frank folk-rock songs..."
Uncut (01/04, pp.84-7) - Ranked #42 in Uncut's "Albums Of The Year 2003" - "[A]n affecting and humane collection of songs."
CMJ (04/28/03, p.9) - "...Leave[s] behind all glimpses of the grunge and punk rock trappings that salted past Lemonheads releases, leaning mostly instead on mid-tempo acousti-pop and ballads..."
Mojo (Publisher) (01/01/04, p.59) - Ranked #9 in Mojo's "The Best of 2003" - "[An] endearingly ramshackle album of guileless love songs..."