The Afghan Whigs and Mercury Rev

Rising from the ashes of his former band The Black Republicans, Greg Dulli (vocals, guitar) came together with John Curley (bass) and Steve Earle (drums) to form The Afghan Whigs in 1986. The trio bonded through their mutual love for good old R&B and the first song they rehearsed as a collective was a cover of The Temptations track “Psychedelic Shack”.

In 1988 the band released their debut self-titled album on their own label, Ultrasuede. The following year they signed to Sub Pop where they would record their second album “Up In It” (1990) recorded by Nirvana producer Jack Endino. The album served favourably on college radio stations with the track “Retarded” while critics praised its brutal honesty complimented by the powerfully dramatic rhythms. Despite not achieving chart success, the album paved the way for The Afghan Whigs as they were slowly evolving into the monumentally inspiring band they would later become. To support the album release, the band embarked on a package tour across North America with the masters of grunge Mudhoney and Bullet Volta.

Their 1992 album “Congregation” saw the band incorporate elements of psychedelic punk into their already punchy rock tones, finally solidifying their distinctive sound. Tracks “Conjure Me” and “Turn on the Water” featured heavily on MTV as they picked out The Afghan Whigs as the ones to watch.

The increasing popularity extending from the MTV exposure led to the band signing a lucrative deal with Elektra Records in 1993. Locking themselves away at Ardent Studio (who accommodated Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin to name a few) the band worked on their major label debut and produced the album “Gentlemen” later that year. The album featured the top 20 track “Debonair” and “Fountain and Fairfax”. As The Afghan Whigs became ever more present in the public eye, the band appeared on several film soundtracks.

In 1996 the band released their fifth studio album “Black Love” which revealed a much darker insight into Dulli’s psyche discussing themes of paranoia and murder with tracks like “Blame Etc” and “Crime Scene Part One”. The album peaked at number 79 on the Billboard charts and during the promotion cycle the band opened for Neil Young. A combination of the label’s unhappiness at the lack of chart success and the unveiling of several shady dealings led to the label parting ways with The Afghan Whigs in 1998.

In no time at all, the band signed with Columbia Records to produce the 1998 album “1965” which saw The Afghan Whigs further diversify their sound as they blended soul and rock with tracks “Somethin’ Hot”, “Uptown Again” and “Crazy”. The band went onto to support Aerosmith and whilst on the album promotion tour Dulli was seriously attacked outside a show resulting in him slipping into a two month coma. Once he had recovered, The Afghan Whigs went straight back on tour.

In 2001 the band went on a five year hiatus and returned briefly in 2006 to release their greatest hits album “Unbreakable: A Retrospective 1990-2006”. Five years later The Afghan Whigs announced their permanent return in 2011 with a string of festival appearances at: Lollapalooza, Primavera and SXSW.

For the first time in 16 years, the band had produced new material in the form of “Do The Beast” in 2014 which peaked at number 34 in the US charts. With an extensive career spanning over twenty years, The Afghan Whigs have become an instrumental band in the evolution of the alternative rock genre, inspiring generations to come.

Originally comprised of vocalist David Baker, vocalist/guitarist Jonathan Donahue, guitarist/clarinetist Sean Mackowiak, flutist Suzanne Thorpe, bassist Dave Fridmann, and drummer Jimy Chambers, the group's lineup experienced personal conflicts from the get-go. Initially formed as a vehicle for creating the soundtracks to their experimental student films, the band’s members infrequently communicated with each until signing with Rough Trade Records. Whilst working as a concert promoter Donahue put a Mercury Rev show on with support from Oklahoma’s Flaming Lips and along with Fridmann became long-term collaborators with the group.

In 1991 Mercury Rev issued their debut full-length album “Yerself Is Steam” to widespread critical acclaim. Led by the epic experimental tracks “Chasing a Bee”, “Coney Island Cyclone”, and “Frittering”, the album lacked promotion and distribution due to U.S. Rough Trade filling for bankruptcy shortly after the release. Despite this the record earned the band a significant cult following and was supported by a tumultuous UK tour that ended with Donahue attempting to gouge out Mackowiak’s eye with a spoon. The group’s second critically acclaimed album “BOCES” arrived in 1993 following which Mercury Rev were kicked off the year’s Lollapalooza tour for making too much noise, and lead vocalist Baker was kicked out the band.

Taking leave of Baker’s darker and more experimental excursions, Mercury Rev’s third full-length, 1995’s “See You on the Other Side”, proved their most emotionally compelling to date. The same year the band issued the album “Paralyzed Mind of the Archangel”, before making their debut on the UK Albums Chart with the full-length “Deserter’s Songs” in 1998. Mercury Rev’s subsequent album “All Is Dream” arrived in 2011, rose to No. 11 on the UK Albums Chart, and landed on a number of the year’s best-of lists. The albums “The Secret Migration” and “Snowflake Midnight” appeared in 2005 and 2008, respectively, followed by “The Light in You” in September 2015.