Fine and Dando

It's a perfect opportunity to ring up Stevenson at his Colorado studio, where the disc was recorded, to get his take on collaborating with Dando. "My initial thought was that Karl and I would be kinda implementing his will and throwing our own flair into it," Stevenson says, "but when it came down to it, it was more like he was looking for equal partners. Obviously, at the end of the day, it's Evan's band, but the whole experience was very open and definitely a three-way street."

And, Stevenson added, he was never really concerned about Dando's negative reputation. "My approach was to factor that in as a possibility, and if there was a lateness or a no-show, big deal. That's an easy thing to work around. I'm a guy who's never tried a drug in my life. Never. But I would never judge someone on whether or not they do drugs. How can you judge someone on whether they take drugs or not? That's like judging 'em on whether they fuckin' eat French fries. Who gives a fuck?"

Piper Ferguson

Has Dando really kicked his bad habit?

Piper Ferguson

Details

Thursday, February 1. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. Admission costs $18. Call 954-564-1047, or visit www.cultureroom.net.

Culture Room, 3045 N. Federal Hwy., Fort Lauderdale

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More About

• Evan Dando
• Elisabeth Moses
• Lincoln Town Car
• Karl Alvarez
• Devon Ashley

Damned near bubbly when I reach him later that afternoon, Dando almost seems high, but he's just in a particularly great mood after a fun time at Sirius. On the way home to enjoy a couple more days with his wife before he starts touring again, he says he's more content now than at any point in the past 15 years and happy to be back. "There's people who feel really sorry for me and stuff — they think I 'blew my big chance.' But I never wanted any of that. I mean, I wouldn't mind getting back to... I dunno, not that weird point where you sell a million records and it's not enough but maybe the point where it's a miracle if I sell 500,000 records. But whatever happens — it's amazing that people still give a fuck about me."