3 out of 5

Producer: Courtney Taylor

Label: Beat the World

I think there’s always a bit of mind-numbing that goes on when you listen to a Dandy’s album.  13 Tales was the breakout because it brings the smooth stoner rock right up front, putting you in the proper state of mind for what follows.  Welcome to the Monkey House was, to me, a fun shift in direction, electrifying the Dandy’s sound and making pop the unifying element, only to be wafted away on a huge wave of boring weed smoke with Odditorirum, a too little too late album that suffers from sequencing.  So it makes sense to inject “Earth” – their first album on their own label – with a bit of rock again, reminding people where they started but, at the same time, who the Dandy’s are – snobby sorta jerks who enjoy playing fun music that rocks and drones.

So “Earth” hits you right up front with some great momentum.  And keeps it going.  Until some noodling toward the end of the album, this is the most consistently loud Dandy’s album, over-bearing enough that once you’re done nodding your head to the first few track’s beats, it start to wash together.  It works to refresh, but hits a little too bluntly to be something you cue up for a listen frequently.