Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Holmes]

Okay, I know I haven't been here a while but this should be interesting.

I'm doing a piece of University work on the Dresden Dolls/AFP community. Ha, easy i though cause I am a member of said community, but so such luck!
My task is to find out whatever possible about the kind of people who make up the community (in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, income level etc.) and what it is that's important to them about the music that unites them. For example, do they tend to care more about the image/music/lyrics etc.
I mean, I know what's important to me about the Dolls/AFP, but I'd like some other opinions too =]

As you could have guessed, there are some stellar examples within the Dolls/AFP community that show our dedication to the cause e.g. The Rebellyon, Shadowbox books of art etc., but the task is proving harder than once thought!

I'd be really grateful for your views/ideas on the matter.

Cheers,
Holmes

[Indja]

Chellew, Holmesy - how's things? You have been gone Too Long and we miss you xxx

Anyway. How do you want us to tell you? Like a questionaire?? Or just rant about it here?

[Holmes]

Indja I know, it's been far too long but fear not, once this work is done I"ll be back with a vengance!

Yeah basically just rant about it here, about what it is that draws you personally to the Dolls etc.

[Indja]

Okie dokie then!

For me, the Dresden Dolls are an important way for me to remember that I'm not actually insane - other people think like me too xD I hear things like "you're mental" and "you don't think right" sort of every day, and it does get a bit grind-you-down-y because after 17 years of being called weird, you do start wondering if there's actually something significantly wrong with the way you see the world. But the Dolls sort of express what I feel like's going on in my head, obviously through the lyrics but through the music too. I dunno, it's kind of hard to explain. I guess what appeals is that they feel familiar and sort of... right?

This sucks, sorry! Not sure you can do much with it xD

EDIT - sorry, forgot you wanted like facts and figures and stuff. I'm 17, got into the Dolls.... gah, I dunno, the year "Yes, Virginia" came out, I'm middle class but poor as fuck - like really poor - and politically strongly left-wing. I'm a Quaker - helps?

[Matty]

I just get this strong sense of realness and love from Amanda. I feel like I have a real connection with her. I know her so well, through her blogs and on here, on twitter, through pictures taken in bad light with her mac in her bedroom. I feel as though I'm listening to a friends music when listening to Amanda. Hell, I constantly refer to her by her first name. And the whole AFP/DD community extends that love and welcomeness and realness from a friendship to a huge fucking family. Of course, the really important thing is that the music is fucking incredible. In simpler terms I would say that I came for the music, and stayed for the attitude; for the sense of belonging. If you want stats, I'm 20 (fell in love with the dolls when I was 14 or 15) white, live in New Hampshire, income? Um, less than whatever the hell it is.
 

[heartstringz]

Well in my case the style of music and lyrics drew me in - I first heard Girl A and just thought it was a great song with good lyrics.  As I dug deeper into the Dolls music I discovered that the lyrics are not just good, they are awesome.  They are cryptic yet expressive, they make you think and yet they help you escape, but most importantly to me - I can relate to them and they make me feel better about my life.  Any time anything is upsetting me or getting me down all I have to do is listen to Amanda/The Dolls and the music makes it all ok again.  They lyrics make me feel like Amanda really understands what I'm going through in my life. 

Indja actually said it well before:

But the Dolls sort of express what I feel like's going on in my head, obviously through the lyrics but through the music too. I dunno, it's kind of hard to explain. I guess what appeals is that they feel familiar and sort of... right?

I can relate to that.  I think a lot of people here can.

Also, before I started listening to Amanda/The Dolls I listened to other bands who didn't seem to care about their fans.  I went to gigs where the bands left straight afterwards, or where they got angry if you took photos/wanted to meet them - security quickly ushered them away.  I never understood that - of course people would want to meet the person who's music changed their life.  Amanda/The Dolls were the first people I discovered who were actually interested in involving their fans.  It is nice to be able to tell the artist to their face exactly what their music means to me - cause it means a great deal and Amanda/The Dolls have impacted and changed my life in so many ways.

I have some self-esteem now, I like how I look, my belly (go the Rebellyon), my body in general.  Amanda has inspired me to feel good about who I am and to never ever be ashamed of that or let people tell me that I need to change.  I am who I am and thanks to Amanda I finally realised that!  So I guess what I'm trying to say here is that for me it's also about the image that Amanda puts out there - that can help people in ways that music can't.

Oh I forgot stats: well, I'm female, 25 years old, from Australia.  I discovered the Dolls when I was about 20, through a friend at university.  I guess I was on a low income cause I was studying.  I'm still on a low income now cause I'm job hunting and working casually.

[Mark!]

i have too much to say, every time i try to write something i end up getting confused. 

[heartstringz]

Oh yeh, and i just wanted to add:

Amanda is an artist who is actually concerned about keeping her ticket prices as low as possible so that even if her fans are on low incomes we can usually afford to go.

Last time she played in Brisbane, Australia we met her before the show and she actually apologised to us for the price of the tickets (like that's her fault - she had no control over it).  She said she had only found out that day how much they had cost and she was so upset and embarrased and she said would never play at that venue again. 

Then she brought cold bottles of water outside to us - it was really hot that day and we were there REALLY early.  How many other artists would do that?

[Mandaz087]

the first time i ever heard any dolls music was at one of their concerts. i was SO blown away by the whole night that i went home and spent the entire next month listening to every single dresden dolls song that i could, covers and all, and read up on every blog i could get my hands onto. i guess i love everything about afp and the dolls...i adore the lyrics and just the way that the music makes me feel...i love the fact that the songs put into words exactly how i feel inside...and i love how accessible amanda is. i could gush on and on, but i will stop there... oh and my stats: 22 yrs old, female, white from florida

[MelKilledAFP]

I got into the dolls in 2006 when my brother gave me a mix tape of theirs and said that when he'd felt like a freak they'd helped him out alot.  We are VASTLY different musical tastes wise but the dolls have been one of the rare points of similarity for the two of us. (i did sneak him into an 18+ gig and remind him of it often)

for me personally I do feel like Amanda seems to play and sing what i'm thinking, and convey what I feel but don't have the confidence to say.
In January I went through break up from hell heart squished on the floor type stuff and listening to her music really got me through a LOT!  the lyrics and style of playing and general yeahmm.well. FUCK YOU is what i love the most.
She also has been one of the very few artists I know of who stay true to what they set out to do - music.. the rebellyon stuff of a little while back showed that to me. 

i am 26 and a social worker, politically to the left - envirogreenieactivist etc.

[The Angel Raliel]

38 year old artist living in  London....
the appeal has always been the theatricality and the immersion of her fans into a creative force (brigading, postwar trade...general art and creative stuff) there has always been a lack of barriers between Amandas world and that of her fans which is almost unique in a major recording artist.

[nottheonethatscrazy]

I am a 17 year old white lesbian living in Indiana. My mother works at CVS, my dad is dead, and we are poor. Haha.
I first heard of The Dresden Dolls when a friend of mine played Girl Anachronism and Coin-Operated Boy on Yahoo!Music. She played them, and I was into them, but not so much that I would look them again later. I think I said something about her eyebrows. Then, during the summer before 9th grade, I sort of discovered them again. I started listening to a lot of Yes, Virginia... and I got hooked. I don't know why I didn't latch on the first time I heard The Dresden Dolls, but the second time I was just floored and I couldn't stop listening to them.  I wanted to know every word to every song, I wanted to read every blog. I idolized Amanda and Brian, and I wanted to meet them so terribly. I felt like I couldn't get enough of them. I was looking for every bit of music they played. I was looking for stories behind songs. It was obsession.
Her lyrics really speak to me.
This is a good way to describe it:

.......I do feel like Amanda seems to play and sing what i'm thinking, and convey what I feel but don't have the confidence to say.

I can listen to her music and hear her pain and her experiences in her voice. And I connect to it so much. I've laughed and cried and sometimes the music just pierces me. There are just times when what she's singing really resonates with me, and it's the most beautiful feeling. And I love to watch the live DVDs. The chemistry between Brian and Amanda is amazing. The way they feed of eachother is a very intriguing thing to watch. But there is also something wonderful about watching Amanda sit at her piano alone and sing this heartrending song. Listening to Amanda and The Dolls makes me feel so much. I love The Dresden Dolls/Amanda like I've never loved any other band or performer. Amanda is concerned about what her fans think and feel, and she's just...pretty much my idol. I think if I ever met her, I would just be speechless. Utterly speechless. I mean, what to do you say to the person that gave you a voice to relate to when you were miserable and lonely and just down? What do you say to the person whose music grabs your heart? I don't know. I think I would stammer and stutter and try to explain just how much I love everything that she does. And the fans! You guys are great and caring and silly and awesome. I don't know any of you personally and yet I feel like I would trust all of you. Amanda/The Dolls' music has a unique way of bringing people together. I love that.
I also agree with other people that have said she helped their self esteem. Being a fan and looking at her has helped me to say "Screw you" a little more easily. I've still got a lot of work to do, but being a fan has helped.

[MauraLeeBee]

I'm a sixteen year-old girl, trying to become a writer for the rest of my life.
I first got into the Dolls a few years ago, around seventh grade, when my uncle (who's about twenty-two now) was dating this girl who was about seventeen. She was an avid fan, and was looking up some of their music videos at the time, and I couldn't help but become curious. It was either that night or a couple of nights later that I went onto iTunes and bought a few songs. I think it took some time for them to really stick, and for me to become the fan I am today, but I did eventually get very much into them. Not long after, that same girl and I started to hang out again (only this time, she wasn't dating my uncle and she was out of high school with a few tattoos). This was in the middle of spring last year, and she gave me the WKAP CD.
It was as if I fell in love with the music all over again.

What makes me keep listening is the fact that I feel this weird, deep connection with the lyrics and what the Dolls/AFP stand for. I don't think I've ever gotten into a band or singer as much. I feel the emotion in every recording, every video of a concert, every interview... It makes every other bit of music I have just a figment of the past and THIS, everything, seem like it's a whole other world. Like an Oz, maybe, or a Neverland. The only difference is that it makes me feel REAL and ALIVE. It took a long time for me to feel this way, but I feel like this music and art really helped. And I find it amazing that all of these diverse people can come together and say that, perhaps, they feel the same way. We can all stand strong, and it feels as if we're all in this life, together. It's so amazing, and incredibly beautiful. Maybe I'm not making sense. Perhaps I should put my reason into simpler terms.

My answer: The Punk Cabaret is MAGIC, and REALITY, all at the same time.


And that, my friends, is what makes art, and life, absolutely magnificent. <3

[my beautiful idiot]

When it boils down to it, I must say I appreciate the theatricality of The Dresden Dolls and Amanda Palmer. That is first and foremost. I never got a chance to see them perform, but even so I still found a connection to their lyrics. There were times in my life where I felt that certain songs - if I hadn't known better -were written about my own experiences. 

I think this is mostly because the Dolls and Amanda have a universal quality to their music. It's the same as the music of Jeff Mangum or Jeff Tweedy or John Darnielle. I'm drawn to them because the way they present the song is interesting, and the subject matter is something I can feel a personal connection to.

I'll be twenty three this May, and I'm pursuing a career in theater, which is hard. However, people like Amanda make it seem like anything is possible, and aren't afraid to go bravely out there into the world and just do it.

[MauraLeeBee]

When it boils down to it, I must say I appreciate the theatricality of The Dresden Dolls and Amanda Palmer. That is first and foremost. I never got a chance to see them perform, but even so I still found a connection to their lyrics. There were times in my life where I felt that certain songs - if I hadn't known better -were written about my own experiences. 

I think this is mostly because the Dolls and Amanda have a universal quality to their music. It's the same as the music of Jeff Mangum or Jeff Tweedy or John Darnielle. I'm drawn to them because they way they present the song is interesting, and the subject matter is something I can feel a personal connection to.

I'll be twenty three this May, and I'm pursuing a career in theater, which is hard. However, people like Amanda make it seem like anything is possible, and aren't afraid to go bravely out there into the world and just do it.

I've never actually seen The Dolls or AFP either. Every time I've tried to go to a concert, something comes up or it gets sold out before I can buy tickets! > . <

Much luck to your theater career. I have quite a few friends pursuing it as well, and I know how hard it can be.

Indeed, it feels that way... It's as if the music builds a whole new confidence in all of us. :]