I hoped to meet both Brian and Amanda for my interview, but Amanda is not available.
I insist for just one single question to a woman who does not bother with shaving her legs and armpits, but designs her eyebrows with eyeliner. The promoter seems to be moved and promises me to do her best.
In the meantime I'm very glad to speak to Brian: he smiles a lot, makes me laugh, does funny faces, speaks fluently and likes my dress.
Besides being terribly handsome, Brian is probably the thinnest man I've ever met and "if you think you have seen a pair of eyes more green - Then you sure didn't seen them 'round" him.

"Yes, Virginia…", your latest album, is very different from your previous one. There are so many differences that I think it's better if we analyze the record tearing it into pieces. Let's start from the title: "Yes, Virginia…". What weight do you give to the letter written by Virginia O'Hanlon?
I think it basically sums up the attitude of the band, the way we feel. It's like a philosophical feeling: many of these songs are about these great challenges and conflicts and confusing situations - which everyone has in their lives - and the title is a historical reference to a kind of hope that we feel, that prevails. In life that's what keep the human race going, otherwise we will be fucking lemons. There's obviously something that brings us through goodness in life, but very often I feel, in these modern times, people get very cynical, over-bored and confused.
Music is one of those things that brings great joy to people, singing is a sort of unifier of people, no matter what political place or original place you come from.
We are a lot more alike than we are different and it's important to remember that.
Mmmhhh… I think "Yes, Virginia…" has something cynical…
That's true, but it's important to not succumb to that.
But there's no doubt it's a political album.
We knew it would be watching the Paradise dvd and the cover for the album was some kind of confirm.
I think it's important for people to be able to think for themselves and not just flock mentality like: "Yes, leader; yes, band; yes, celebrity; yes, entertainer, whatever you say, I'll do." Whether we play a song like "War Pigs" and say: "Think, the next time you go out and vote, about really what this means to you." or a song like "Delilah", which is a sort of an emotion-based song about a girl in a bad situation of her friend. Whether it's directly political or not, the place from which you make political or emotional decisions affects all much greater than just having a pointing political message like: "Are you this party or this party?"
Have you ever thought of moving from the States?
Oh yeah, definitively! Sure! (laughs) It's really discouraging to feel less and less empowered as American citizens with each situation that affects the Nation as a whole. As it goes by I feel more and more laughed out by your own government, whether it's like a political-law action where obviously George Bush cheated and got elected and no-one did a fucking thing about it.
Or the WTO riots in Seattle where people when to the streets and demonstrated and they all got beat down and gassed so now, everyone, in every demonstration you to in the United States, is intimidated, no-one has any real fight.
Or the flooding that happened in New Orleans: it was a poor, black populated area that basically got ignored. Thousands of people died who normally would have been helped, all because of the direct disassociation from our President and Government to take action to help its own citizens. It's fucked up, it makes you feel completely… alone.
… I don't think that's singular to the United States: it all can happen all over the world. You think things are better in Europe or in Australia and it's all bullshit.

You re-recorded "Mrs. O" (where "O" is for Holocaust. Originally contained in the "A Is for Accident" live record), why? I think it's a very dangerous decision for an album, like "Yes, Virginia…", that already contains plenty of taboos, like sex, alcohol, envy…
"A Is for Accident" was an album that we put together while our debut record was been finished and everybody was saying: "Where is your record? Where is your record?!" That's why "A Is for Accident" came to existence: we had to release something over the next eight months while the next record has been put out, so that was basically just some songs that we knew like "Bank of Boston Beauty Queen" and "Christopher Lydon" and songs that we knew and we had fun playing, we didn't want to focus on them, we just wanted to give those a form and when we came time, we were still playing "Mrs. O" in live sets and felt like it was a very strong song and we re-recorded it to give a strong representation.

Your debut album was released in 2004…
We released it independently, in the United States, in October 2003 and 6 months later it got re-release on Roadrunner internationally.
So, that's why it took almost two years to receive a huge response.
I guess. It really took us to play a lot of concerts to show people what we were about.

Your remark is "Punk-cabaret is freedom", but in a line of the "Sing" song is: "Life is no cabaret".
(smiles) Well, … … the spirit of punk-cabaret is that you fell that you can truly be all of who you are. It's just a play on words: Kurt Cobain used to say: "Punk is freedom" and Amanda stole that line from him as sort of a joke and became: "Punk-cabaret is freedom", just a sort of continuation of that.
In a sense, the spirit of what we do is that you do what you feel and when you feel it and not feel you have to be something you're not: you have to be honest to yourself.

Two rumors that maybe are just urban legends:
1. You have attended a mime school.
Nop. Never. I used to watch a lot of cartoons and the Muppets Show and that's why I make the funny faces. So it was all cartoon and Jim Henson.
So this is a urban legend.
Yep.
2. You started to put make up on before the show simply because you had nothing to do.
No. No, no. Not because we didn't have anything to do: we used to wear no make up on purpose, it was about the music. We started to put make up on for fun. One night we played with the Burlesque Troupe, we thought to dress like the burlesque people and we found that it worked with the band, more than it worked against. It was obviously useful and very fun and decided to do some more.
So, another urban legend.
Yes.

Let's talk about the "Paradise" dvd, for a while.
I think the "Paradise" dvd was a really nice way to present to a lot of people where we came from, in Boston, how a normal day in the life of the Dresden Dolls is at home and on tour with things that go wrong.
Most important was the show of the fans and the community we have around. It is also a really visually beautiful way of what me and Amanda do on stage together: it's just the two of us on the stage playing.
I fell like all the main essence is shown without being too sappy or like a reality TV show.

Surfing your website, we can have an "anti-star" perception of you. I'm referring to the "Bad Press" and "Hate Mail" sections, for instance, or to the "Karaoke Veritée" (their personal video-clip for other artists' songs).
It seems you don't feel the success you're having.
...Well… I guess. Maybe.
I think we just get a laugh out of it. We thought that the "Hate Mail" was really funny and the "Bad Press", too. I mean, there is a certain element that, when you read the bad press about yourself and post it on the web-site, takes the pressure off. It can be very funny to read, but it's also fair: it's not just having a website and say: "Seen how great I am?" It's the whole spectrum of what people think about you, it's kinda of what we're about.
Brian, when you read an article about you which is not that good, do you feel upset about that?
Yeah, definitively!!! I don't read a lot of press anymore, whether it's good or bad because it's too much garbage in my head, whether it is: "The Dresden Dolls are the best fucking band ever" or "The Dresden Dolls completely suck". I just know what I like and what I want to do with the band.

Back to your website, where you even invite audience to record your shows and share the recordings afterwards.
People would do it anyway, we just say it's ok by us. We also find it helps the band, so people who don't know us will know how we sound like in concert.

So, an "anti-star" band, but you inspired Leaving Dead Dolls: the doll inspired by you are called "Jack and Jill" and are fucking expensive!
Yeah, it's kinda weird. The guy that runs our merchandise company said: "We should use them!" and in a minute he said: "NNOOOOOO!!!!!!"
Did you know they would have used you for their collections? Did they ask you beforehand?
Yes, we knew, but no (smiling), they didn't ask us.
I think our look is really common, anyway: we didn't invent the bowler hat and stripy tights, I think many people have used and will use more afterwards. So, it's not really surprising.

You're working on a theater piéce, now.
Yes.
What is it about?
Weee… don't really know. The script is been developed now. It's some kind of collaborative effort between the Dresden Dolls, the writer and the director and… it will be a hour and a half in length and feature some acting and some improvisation, musically and… with dialog between the band… … No one really knows what it's gonna be like!

Coachella, Rockskilde, Glanstonbury and Fuji Rock, just to name a few. Do you like performing in festivals?
No, not at all (smiles). When you do day after day, especially in rainy, cold European countries, it's horrifying. You're locked in this little container… We usually we play in the middle of the day with sort of bad weather and it feels like it's a bit commercial: "Get on stage and then get off".
Once in a while can be funny: Fuji Rock was amazing, but I wouldn't do it day after day after day.
I think they're good to do, but I much prefer doing actual gigs.
What about the audience?
You don't really feel like connecting with people.
I'm sure for headlining shows, the last three bands, it's different, but when we play most of the people look at the stage and say: "Who the fuck is this?"
Not as gratifying.

Do you like shooting videos?
Yep! We like shooting videos, that's fun and working with Michael Pope is exceptional.
The "Sing" video is the most amazing video experience.
All of the people who helped doing "Coin-Operated Boy" and "Girl Anachronism" and all these other new people came in over those three days… It was really a beautiful experience: we sat back for once and watched everybody else around you creating this really nice thing.

Amanda gets closer right when I put my recorder in my bag, that means I can only turn my bag inside out to find a green plastic ring: "Amanda, I know it's not precious or expensive and I've stolen it coming here, but… will you marry me?" Amanda wears my green plastic ring and looks at her hand with fingers wide open: "I like this ring, so the answer is yes!"
Wow!! Now I'm engaged!

(Milan, June 1, 2006)