“My Alcoholic Friends” by The Dresden Dolls
The Dresden Dolls’ “MY Alcoholic Friends” can be classified as an ode to alcoholism. But the vocalist is not celebrating such a lifestyle in a comedic or nonchalant kind of way per se. Rather, how the song plays out is as ultimately revealing itself as one of those types of songs where the act of constantly getting boozed is rationalized as, shall we say an anti-depressant measure.
There is a reason why the vocalist and by inference her homies also enjoy being perpetually boozed. This is because doing so, in part, blocks out the less-than-ideal realities of everyday life.
So it isn’t like Amanda Palmer is actually espousing alcoholism. Rather, let’s say that she and her ilk are countercultural figures. And one of the main ways in which their lack of congruence with the system is manifested is via, for lack of a better word, alcohol abuse, presumably in part because doing so numbs the crew to the world around them.
So again, it’s not like the vocalist is presenting being drunk as some type of idyllic modus operandi in and of itself. But what she does do is depict a life of constant partying as being preferable to the rat race, as well as a natural inability to conform to the latter.
So it’s like to Amanda and her friends the alternative to pursuing the American Dream, as they’re supposed to be doing if you will, is rather living life loose and drunk.
The Dresden Dolls
The Dresden Dolls is a pair of musicians from Boston. The duo is made up of the following:
- lead vocalist Amanda Palmer
- primary instrumentalist Brian Viglione
They dropped an EP and a couple of studio albums during the aughts and by the looks of things haven’t been terribly active since.
“My Alcoholic Friends”
This track is from Dresden Dolls’ second and most-recent studio album to date – “Yes, Virginia…”.
Roadrunner Records made public “Yes, Virginia…” on 18 April 2006. To note, “My Alcoholic Friends” was not amongst the singles issued from the project.
Who wrote “My Alcoholic Friends”?
Amanda Palmer is the only composer of this song. She actually solely composed all the original tracks on “Yes, Virginia…”.
Best analysis of this song I’ve seen. It helps me understand the ambiguity the whole song’s infused with.
x2
Is it just me who noticed this? When Amanda says: “If they find the body in the basement, “In the very house that she was raised in.” This might have been obvious but it sounds like a JonBenet Ramsey reference.
Nice PhD 😉 (If you know what that means in slang) But also good song it makes my heart beat once again
My interpretation of the “body in the basement” line is that it’s referring to falling drunkenly down the stairs and accidentally dying. The embarrassment and tragedy would be two fold if it occurred in the family home you were raised in.
Though odes do “describe nature intellectually as well as emotionally” (as does Alcoholic Friends), they generally are meant to praise and/or glorify, and this song does neither.
This song is as matter of fact as you can get. This being the Dresden Dolls however, its lyricism is also quite kaleidoscopic.
That said, “counting back the steps” to being back on the wagon means simply trying to remember getting drunk in the first place, as well as what happened since.
Furthermore, considering the distance she’s drank, it would take a whole lot of imagination to find her body in the house that she was raised in.
Someone said 6 & 8 & 3 refer to alcohol levels – .03 being relatively sober, .08 being blotto and .06 being boringly drunk. I’ll agree (for now anyway).
A of course is the Scarlet Letter affixed to every Alcoholic.
BTW: Dresden Dolls’ Amanda Palmer stays active – either recording & touring solo or as one half of the Dolls. Not sure how the above thought otherwise. Happy Listening!
I always thought the 6 was referring to The beast of revelations, and its number being 666
I think its kind of a double meaning thing
I think the lyrics “I’ll be on my best behavior, taking shots for Mother Nature” is a reference to the Tears for Fears song “Everybody wants to rule the world”