Cliks Revamp Lineup With Dresden Dolls Drummer

The Cliks have unveiled their new lineup after bassist Jen Benton and drummer Morgan Doctor left the band in mid-September.

"I welcome you with pride and joy to our new official line up for THE CLIKS," singer/guitarist Lucas Silveira wrote on the band's MySpace page over the weekend. "Thank you for all your support through this transition."

The Clicks will now feature Silveira alongside Dresden Dolls drummer Brian Viglione and bassist Tobi Parks (formerly of The Star Death and Bambi).

There's no word on whether Viglione will be forced to decide between The Cliks or Dresden Dolls should Dresden Dolls start work on a new album. Dresden Dolls frontwoman Amanda Palmer is still touring behind her 2008 solo debut, Who Killed Amanda Palmer.

"To have Brian on is beyond amazing," Silveira told the Penetration Inc. website. "The thing about Brian is that he's the kind of person that when he's in a project, he's in it 110%. He not only gives his all on stage, he does it off stage as well. He has this positive energy that's extremely difficult to shake. I've never been around the guy when he's not always looking at the up side of things and that's the attitude I need around me. It makes me feel in so many ways that I don't need to worry about anything.

"The best thing about Brian is that I feel like he's going to take the level of our performance through the roof. He's not just a drummer back there beating on the drums, he's a showman and when he gets going, I have a feeling I'm going to start getting jealous of the audience who can watch him while my back is turned to him. I think there will be a lot of turning around in my performances now."

Silveira also said he sees the change as a positive.

"When a songwriter grows, the music grows," he said. "I once again have that great sense of freedom that comes with songwriting. Only good can come from there."

A Sept. 16 message on the band's website said both Doctor and Burton left the band to "pursue their own ambitions," but Silveira revealed a bit more in an interview with Bearotic.com.

He says Doctor told him she was leaving through a text message via iPhone. Silveira says he and Burton also had a conversation which Silveira described as "emotional and difficult."

He also says the previous lineup had been having problems for about two years.

"I just didn't understand why Jen and Morgan kept hanging on, so I left in their hands," Silveira says. "The last night of our New York Dolls tour (in Denver) was what really sealed it.

"Yes, there was a drunken brawl in a hotel room and I asked Morgan the question, 'If you're so unhappy, why don't you just leave?' Morgan's answer was 'I quit!' She didn't mean it then, but she meant it later, via iPhone."

The Cliks released their last album, Dirty King earlier this year.

You can see the new Cliks here at Brooklyn, N.Y.'s Knitting Factory on Dec. 11 and at Cambridge, Mass.'s The Middle East Restaurant & Nightclub the next day.