Biography
Evan Dando, who serves as the Lemonheads' vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, and occasional drummer, ranked among alternative rock's most visible figures in the early 1990s until substance problems interrupted his trajectory and brought him near death. Born March 4, 1967 and raised in Boston's Massachusetts suburbs, he drew inspiration from such pivotal 1980s punk acts as Hüsker Dü and the Replacements, prompting the Lemonheads' formation by the middle of that decade. The band's initial configuration featured Dando alongside Ben Deily on vocals, guitar, and drums plus Jesse Peretz on bass, and this lineup appeared on the self-released 1986 EP Laughing All the Way to the Cleaners. After full-time drummer Doug Trachten came aboard, the Lemonheads inked a deal with Taang! and delivered further recordings including 1987's Hate Your Friends, 1988's Creator, and 1989's Lick; the last of these offered a gritty take on Suzanne Vega's "Luka" that gained modest traction via MTV and college radio. Internal tensions mounted across successive releases until Dando remained the sole original member by the start of the 1990s, at which point he kept the Lemonheads name and moved to Atlantic.
The group's major-label bow, Lovey, revealed that the formerly direct punk outfit had evolved toward an alt-pop approach, with Dando additionally exploring previously untouched textures such as jangle pop and country-rock. Concurrently he contributed to the Blake Babies' second album, Earwig, and put out the little-noticed solo EP Favorite Spanish Dishes, which included another unexpected cover—this time the New Kids on the Block's "Step by Step." Once Nirvana had opened doors for other alt-rock acts by 1992, Dando and the Lemonheads released what many regard as their finest album, It's a Shame About Ray, at an opportune moment. With the press labeling Dando a sex symbol at the time, widespread magazine-cover exposure generated mounting excitement around the band. Only after a cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson" was inserted into a subsequent pressing did the Lemonheads achieve commercial breakthrough, allowing It's a Shame About Ray to attain gold certification.
The next release, 1993's Come on Feel the Lemonheads, likewise succeeded and earned gold status, yet reports of Dando's heavy drug use were later verified, precipitating the group's decline. A backlash against the earlier "Mrs. Robinson" media saturation, combined with a lengthy gap before 1996's unfocused and largely overlooked Car Button Cloth, culminated in the Lemonheads' dissolution. Dando subsequently vanished from view, apparently having dropped out of sight entirely. By 2000, however, he had recovered sufficiently to reemerge—quipping that he had spent the intervening years "doing monitors for Enya"—and joined former Blake Babies associates for several solo acoustic performances.
In 2001 Dando undertook a broader solo acoustic tour and issued his debut solo album, the live recording Live at the Brattle Theatre/Griffith Sunset, which blended originals and covers in equal measure. Around that period he also formed the Virgins with former Smashing Pumpkins members James Iha and Melissa Auf Der Maur, and Ryan Adams was reportedly involved as well. Dando simultaneously began preparations for his first solo studio album. He surfaced in 2003 with the warmly melodic Baby I'm Bored, whose guest contributions from Ben Lee, ex-Spacehog singer Royston Langdon, and producer Jon Brion enhanced the effort. That same year he reassembled the Lemonheads for a self-titled album; three years afterward the band returned with the Gibby Haynes-produced covers collection Varshons.
Over the years Dando has taken on occasional acting roles, including small parts in Reality Bites and Heavy, and has appeared on other artists' releases such as Juliana Hatfield's Hey Babe and Forever Baby, Godstar's Sleeper and Bad Bad Implications, Kirsty MacColl's Galore, Mike Watt's Ball-Hog or Tugboat?, and Mary Lorson's Tricks for Dawn. During the mid-1990s he co-wrote "Purple Parallelagram" with Oasis members, intending it for Car Button Cloth until Oasis requested its removal.
Dando launched the Sandwich Police in 2016 with Willy Mason and Marciana Jones as a tribute to acts on New Zealand's Flying Nun label; the project issued a three-song single that spring and toured briefly in support of Courtney Barnett. Baby I'm Bored received a deluxe reissue in 2017.
The group's major-label bow, Lovey, revealed that the formerly direct punk outfit had evolved toward an alt-pop approach, with Dando additionally exploring previously untouched textures such as jangle pop and country-rock. Concurrently he contributed to the Blake Babies' second album, Earwig, and put out the little-noticed solo EP Favorite Spanish Dishes, which included another unexpected cover—this time the New Kids on the Block's "Step by Step." Once Nirvana had opened doors for other alt-rock acts by 1992, Dando and the Lemonheads released what many regard as their finest album, It's a Shame About Ray, at an opportune moment. With the press labeling Dando a sex symbol at the time, widespread magazine-cover exposure generated mounting excitement around the band. Only after a cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson" was inserted into a subsequent pressing did the Lemonheads achieve commercial breakthrough, allowing It's a Shame About Ray to attain gold certification.
The next release, 1993's Come on Feel the Lemonheads, likewise succeeded and earned gold status, yet reports of Dando's heavy drug use were later verified, precipitating the group's decline. A backlash against the earlier "Mrs. Robinson" media saturation, combined with a lengthy gap before 1996's unfocused and largely overlooked Car Button Cloth, culminated in the Lemonheads' dissolution. Dando subsequently vanished from view, apparently having dropped out of sight entirely. By 2000, however, he had recovered sufficiently to reemerge—quipping that he had spent the intervening years "doing monitors for Enya"—and joined former Blake Babies associates for several solo acoustic performances.
In 2001 Dando undertook a broader solo acoustic tour and issued his debut solo album, the live recording Live at the Brattle Theatre/Griffith Sunset, which blended originals and covers in equal measure. Around that period he also formed the Virgins with former Smashing Pumpkins members James Iha and Melissa Auf Der Maur, and Ryan Adams was reportedly involved as well. Dando simultaneously began preparations for his first solo studio album. He surfaced in 2003 with the warmly melodic Baby I'm Bored, whose guest contributions from Ben Lee, ex-Spacehog singer Royston Langdon, and producer Jon Brion enhanced the effort. That same year he reassembled the Lemonheads for a self-titled album; three years afterward the band returned with the Gibby Haynes-produced covers collection Varshons.
Over the years Dando has taken on occasional acting roles, including small parts in Reality Bites and Heavy, and has appeared on other artists' releases such as Juliana Hatfield's Hey Babe and Forever Baby, Godstar's Sleeper and Bad Bad Implications, Kirsty MacColl's Galore, Mike Watt's Ball-Hog or Tugboat?, and Mary Lorson's Tricks for Dawn. During the mid-1990s he co-wrote "Purple Parallelagram" with Oasis members, intending it for Car Button Cloth until Oasis requested its removal.
Dando launched the Sandwich Police in 2016 with Willy Mason and Marciana Jones as a tribute to acts on New Zealand's Flying Nun label; the project issued a three-song single that spring and toured briefly in support of Courtney Barnett. Baby I'm Bored received a deluxe reissue in 2017.
Albums
Singles
