Search And Destroy: Afghan Whigs

Destroy: Greg Dulli's face fungus. Okay, fine, it's not *musical*, Tom, but as you've argued yourself, image is just as much a part of the situation, is it not? ;-)

Destroy: 1965. Just 'cos.

Anyway. Search: The first side of '1965' - the sleekest rock they ever made but somehow the sexiest too.

Destroy - the second side of '1965' - a sudden descent into Primal Scream style Southern kitsch.

Destroy: All of 1965 *except* "Omerta/Vampire Lanois."

Search: Bootleg copy of a CONGREGATION-era show I saw where Greg Dulli returns to the stage during Teenage Fanclub's set to put the lead vocals on TFC's "Everything Flows". Or was it "The Concept"...? I was in such bliss maybe I blacked out...

Destroy: A lot of BLACK LOVE. A few great songs but...

Destroy: Most of Up in it & Congregation; second side of 1965 (but only because the album would be absolutely perfect without it; as it is, it's still pretty good); fat, drunken, bar-fighting Greg Dulli

'Gentlemen' - dire and tuneless - Destroy. 'Black Love' - little better. '1965' - the best of a bad lot. Search for "Uptown Again"

Yeah, I know there's other, earlier stuff that I haven't heard. Yeah, I know there's an EP of, no surely not, SOUL COVERS! Who cares.

destroy: i really didn't like that twilight singers record all that much, with the exception of the first track. can that count?

(hey, you want the blues brothers, by the way, you should listen to the first track off the delta 72's '000.')

Only because after giving it some time, and many listens, I realize 1965 is a brilliant record. It's hard to get passed the production, which is so sleek it cuts them off, but I love the songs, and the guitar work and vocals are amazing.

Destroy: Black Love. A meandering, hookless soup of despair.

It's many things, Black Love is -- but "hookless" isn't one of them.

Definitely, see their "Lost In the Supermarket", too.

-Colin

destroy: that horrific remix of "Milez Is Ded" called "Rebirth Of The Cool" on Uptown, the songs on Congregation I didn't search (ESPECIALLY "The Temple"), the second Twilight Singers album (though a stray great track might reveal itself to me later), and if we could bleep out the bullshit references to the devil from all tracks that'd be great.

I haven't heard anything before Congregation.

Oh, no! It's the Strokes argument all over again!

Dulli sounded great, his band sounded great--and not unlike the Whigs at all. There's something about when he's playing (and I use that term loosely, because while he had a guitar strapped on, I'm not convinced that it was actually plugged in) that no matter what he quotes or plays (a Kate Bush song, A Love Supreme, etc.) it seems like music was absolutely meant to sound exactly this way and no other.

On the other hand, he rambled more than I remember--no one to rein him in, I guess. And he made a long, convoluted (I guess) tribute to Elliott Smith which was frankly awful. If he was your friend, fine, play a song and shut the fuck up--it's not something I want to hear him use in his Mr Superlove shtick.

So same old, I guess--way over the top, not someone I wanna be friends with, fucking sounded great. But not as good as the Whigs.

Also, did you stay for the second encore?

Last night Dulli praised The Darkness. And I so wished I had my cigarette lighter when they played "Faded."

Destroy: my current financial state which means I have no idea when I can get hold of the new Twilight Singers album.

I think it's an act, the whole asshole thing. I think he's a nice er gentleman.

Yeah, I was there, but had to leave early (i.e. 1:15) due to some, er, relationship issues. So I missed the encores. :(

See, the problem with these late shows is that it gives you way too much time to drink beforehand...

there's a crappy mp3 floating around on soulseek.

Among the reasons the Whigs never had a big crossover hit: most of their best songs wound up as import CD single b-sides.

http://www.summerskiss.com/category/news/

Search: everything between their first and last albums.
Destroy: their first and last albums.

The tracklisting for Unbreakable/A Retrospective out May 1 on Rhino Records

1- Retarded
2- Crazy
3- Turn On The Water
4- Debonair
5- I'm A Soldier
6- 66
7- Be Sweet
8- Come See About Me
9- Uptown Again
10- What Jail Is Like
11- Magazine
12- I'm Her Slave
13- Going To Town
14- Gentlemen
15- Let Me Lie To You
16- John the Baptist
17- Crime Scene Part One
18- Faded

Not chronological, very incomplete, but it's something, I suppose. :-/

Search: pretty much everything not on here
Destroy: the people who decided not to rerelease/remaster the whole catalog (maybe they will, though, someday, who knows?)

One disc is always going to be incomplete, isn't it?

(hell, just click on "whigsbitch" and check out all the other stuff this guy/girl has uploaded on youtube)

was really going ham on "black love" a week or so ago, listening to basically nothing else. some pretty amazing moments but all in all it's a really frustrating record. the magic of "gentleman" is missing somehow, greg dulli's singing struck me as really lazy, out-of-tune for no good reason. the worst is the mixing, it must be dulli's rhythm guitar that's pushed up so far, why? he just grinds away on like two notes. isn't this supposed to be funky? let the bass lead. rick mccollum is some kind of rough genius tho. and the drumming is really good; i read in an interview years and years ago that dulli booted a drummer for basically being a druggy raver? was that this guy?

songs like "night by candlelight", i don't get why the strings don't even seem like they're arranged. there are these big crescendos, but the bass and the chords aren't even the same, everyone is sawing away with emotion. yeah yeah i get the stonesy shambolic thing but this is a big unfocused mess.

hmm...interesting i've always liked it more than gentlemen...not really scrutinized the mix though.

but honestly i loved this album at a point in my life when i was very young, very depressed, and very drunk and it was so perfect for that i can't really judge it from a distance.

ha i feel the same way about gentlemen!

the "hard bitten lifer dude at the bar telling you kids crazy stories" steez about dulli that made a HUGE impression on me as a kid. hard relationships, drugs, booze, bad decisions, leather jackets, old records, sexy ladies with crazy problems, getting your shoes shined, bailing out your friend who got caught at a cockfight, bad shit going town to-ni-ee-ight, all that. i dunno if i'm just OLD now but it doesn't wear very well anymore. half the time i just want to say, greg, come on, your life isn't really like this. relax.

a friend of mine worked on a whigs video shoot a looong time ago and said that dulli showed up way way late, drinking a bottle of whiskey and walking with a pimp cane

gentlemen was the last one with the original drummer, then black love had a new drummer, then 1965 had another new drummer iirc

yeah dulli is totally over the top with the shtick, but somehow it seemed to usually work. dude is v. good at playing rock star.

Their version of Come See About Me is still probably my favourite cover of all time.

^^^ YES

like their Creep and Can't Get Enough Of better, I think

still can't figure out what the hell honkey's ladder is about. Is this song about race and class? or is it just about some crime movie that I haven't seen?

oh also, after 3 years, I just found my copy of black love.

Love Black Love, especially Night by Candlelight.

Anyone know the origin of the song title Vampire Lanois? Dulli get mad at Daniel Lanois or something?

It's not a dis. iirc they were New Orleans pals back then and its a nod to his fashion sense

Ah. That's neat-o.

Gentleman is a quite a good record. It has aged very well.

it has about three or four very good songs. and the rest is a mess. i can't work out whether it's an appealing mess or not.

REVIVE FOR RETURN OF WHIGS (i think the revive thread was on the sandbox)

http://www.zooborns.com/.a/6a010535647bf3970b011571a1f52b970b-800wi
Hyssop...in my perfume?

is it just coachella or a full tour?

...OR A TOUR AND ALBUM HUSH

they're not doing Coachella.

So far they're doing our shows in London and Asbury Park plus Primavera in Barcelona and Porto.

Cannot WAIT.

Supported by Archers Of Loaf!

it's an ATP in London in May, then Dulli curating one in New Jersey in September

oops xpost

sorry, mixed up huge-festivals-i'd-never-do

no separate tour tho?

Haven't heard about one yet.
I wouldn't say we're huge though.

ATP = approx 5000 people. Coachella = 90,000.

I wonder if they'll play a Faith No More and barely play the U.S.

weren't FNM always bigger in europe anyway? I'm not too surprised that they mainly only played biggish european shows.

they have too many fans in the US to not tour here too

http://www.boweryballroom.com/event/120623

Curley!

"It will be nice to experience the Whigs again as a grown-up," jokes Curley. "In my mind, the Whigs were a live band above anything else. Playing shows always was our favorite part about being in the band, and the times when we felt the most freedom and release. I missed playing at that level; I missed playing the songs that we wrote, that meant so much to people - and to us."

i really hope they tour

I do too but I'm grouchy about Lollapalooza and their stupid 100 mi clause (or w/e it was called) because that means I am going to have to travel to see them because I sure don't want to go to gross Lollapalooza.

I told myself I'd buy a Lolla ticket for the day if they were on the same day as Black Sabbath. They are, so I go tone. Also Black Keys, Black Angels and Tame Impala.

Wow, yeah Sabbath + Whigs is mighty tempting, but the vibe there is so overwhelmingly AWFUL that I don't know if I can stomach it!

I told myself I'd buy a Lolla ticket for the day if they were on the same day as Black Sabbath.

Same, though haven't done it yet. Of course, Friday is sold out...

Whigs live were one of the best live bands I've ever seen. I'm worried they'll pull a Faith No More and play Lolla then nothing else in America.

wait is it Whigs + Eagles Of Death Metal or Whigs + Joseph Arthur (whose bio is posted under the Whigs')? Far more interested in the former, though I'm guessing these tickets will go in five seconds.

EoDM site is promoting the show, so maybe Arthur backed out?

never mind, I'm an idiot. With Arthur in May, with EoDM in October.

Whigs live were one of the best live bands I've ever seen. I'm worried they'll pull a Faith No More and play Lolla then nothing else in America.

They already have other gigs booked in America - one of the first two announced in the reunion was American. I'm sure they'll play a proper NA tour once they've run out of festivals around the world.

I do too but I'm grouchy about Lollapalooza and their stupid 100 mi clause (or w/e it was called) because that means I am going to have to travel to see them because I sure don't want to go to gross Lollapalooza.

They're playing one of their only club shows on the tour so far a whopping 12 minutes walk from my bedroom, such a pain in the balls that'll be :D

(they've never come to this country before though so)

your balls must hurt really badly :-/
(congratulations btw, you will enjoy the show guaranteed)

Review and set list here:
http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/music/backstage-pass-1.811987/afghan-whigs-amazing-reunion-at-bowery-ballroom-1.3738193

live now! http://www.youtube.com/user/PrimaveraSoundTV

YES

http://cdn.newsday.com/polopoly_fs/1.1254904.1246636461!/image/1697571897.JPG_gen/derivatives/preview_115/1697571897.JPG

lol i always thought the opening to fountain and fairfax was "angel, i'm so AFRAID"

how old is greg?? looks pretty fucking good

they all do even curley

WWHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

greg pulled a 'nigga' to people still care?

who's hot who's not

C'MON LIL' RABBIT

why are there two rick mccollums

Dave Rosser from TS/GT/AEWGDAML on 3rd gtr (drummer is from Cursive and Okkervil River but also played in GT and on last Twilight record)

haha thx. i only saw 'miles iz ded' and they pretty much showed only dulli and the drummer.

oh man so glad they've finally started announcing non-fest/non-ny/non-euro dates. dc in septemberrrrr

this was great, so great.

how've i never sat there and gawked over mccollum before?

kid on drums seemed SO HYPED to be there, good times

saw them twice this year and they're probably two of the best shows i've seen. a real joy to witness a band this tight.

sweet jesus christ -- i saw them in chicago on saturday and i am still thinking about it. my only regret is not bringing/wearing my rabbit mask.

http://www.thefader.com/category/faderfort

live now

Thanks!

lol climax

w/usher even

I WISH THEY WOULD HAVE DONE SAME GIRL BUT THAT RULED

http://pitchfork.com/news/53721-the-afghan-whigs-return-to-sub-pop-for-first-album-in-16-years-do-to-the-beast

I thought it was titled "Do the Beast," which is better, because it sounds both sexual and like some obscure dance.

awwwww yeah
they were pretty beastly on this last tour iirc
i'm optimistic!

Is there supposed to be a cover connection?

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8492/8319910269_e5dc5d4663_z.jpg http://cdn3.pitchfork.com/news/53721/dfba5fb0.jpg

Uh....no Rick McCollum? Seems some personal issues there.

Anyway, I'm out. Too much a vital part of the original band's sound. Now it's just the Twilight Singers with Curley.

kinda feelin algiers? a little more pep than that recent dulli but tbh expectations are not really sky high

truly bewildering to me that as many rode and, since the announcement of this new record, are willing to ride for dulli and co.…AW was supposed to be a alt-band that employed R&B aspects in a potent way? UGGGHH… then again, I heard "gentlemen" and thought the rhythm section sucked ass…some years later heard 1965 and again was flabbergasted the band was held up as soulful or funky what have you…

i've always really appreciated their rhythm section but to each his/her own

They never had a rhythm section last more than a couple of years tbf (Dulli went through drummers pretty fast in the Twilight Singers' touring years too)

Bought tickets for the Glasgow show because I've never seen them (kicking myself I missed the reunion tour but the closest they came was London) but I'm preparing myself for it being the Twilight Singers with Curley. "Algiers" doing little to dissuade me of that.

There's a Dulli interview in the latest issue of Uncut that hints more strongly at McCollum's personal problems and also states that Curley plays on some tracks on the album - I'd thought he'd be on it all!

i saw one of their reunion shows with rick and even then with so many backing musicians including a workmanlike third guitarist the sound was really watered down on the congregation/gentlemen stuff - really wished they'd done some numbers as a four piece. while i get why rick isn't involved, there's no reason for this to be called an afghan whigs album except $.

and if "algiers" is what they hear as a single...yeesh

truly bewildering to me that as many rode and, since the announcement of this new record, are willing to ride for dulli and co.…AW was supposed to be a alt-band that employed R&B aspects in a potent way? UGGGHH… then again, I heard "gentlemen" and thought the rhythm section sucked ass…some years later heard 1965 and again was flabbergasted the band was held up as soulful or funky what have you…

― veronica moser, Friday, February 28, 2014 1:59 PM (Yesterday)

Rick McCollum (lead guitar) played in R&B/jazz bands, while the rest came from punk/rock bands, maybe that's why you didn't hear the R&B flavor in the rhythm section? Also, original drummer Steve was a pretty accomplished drummer, I remember reading an article 20 years ago featuring the comments of many more famous drummers applauding his work.

I have never heard Black Love or 1965, I got off the bus with Gentlemen. Saw them open for Teenage Fanclub ca Bandwagonesque.

Black Love is fantastic. I saw them live at t in the park 1996 headlining the king tuts tent when Black Love was out. Great gig.

Dont expect much from this album after hearing that single.

Some strange production choices on this new record. It sort of inches to Afghan Whigs, but ... yeah, it's basically Twilight Singers. But that's cool. Twilight Singers are cool.

Only ever saw them live once, and that was way back around the time of Up In It, but they were tremendous. Favourite thing by them is the Sister Brother / Hey Cuz single. Hey Cuz is especially spectacular imo, riffs cutting up all over the place and guitar lines spiralling out into the sky - the band sound really loose and jamming but also very well-drilled and tight at the same time, kind of a Hendrix-y trick to pull off.

Man, I saw them two summers ago and they were so good I would have been fine with it being my Last Concert Ever. No reason to think the songs on this new one won't work live, but then, again, Twilight Singers were great live, too.

Begs the question what we really need the Afghan Whigs for, aside from the name, if Dulli has all this other stuff going on

that Rosser guy and his prominence annoys me. You'll never be an Afghan Whig, mate

sorry but I've become v sniffy over these reunions

I just heard that Joy Division reunited with Iggy Pop as the vocalist.

uh no, it was Marion who reunited with Iggy as the vocalist

Dulli would make a pretty good Iggy sub. Subbing for Iggy in Joy Division, that is.

It's business. Dulli can tour wider and play larger rooms when billed as the Afghan Whigs. Its the same with Alice In Chains and a ton of lesser groups. I can't blame the guy, it doesn't change the records.

TBF, the last three times the A. Whigs played Chicago, they played the same place the T. Singers played (and sold out).

http://www.npr.org/2014/04/06/297714232/first-listen-the-afghan-whigs-do-to-the-beast

turns out i like this a lot, despite missing rick. fails to sound like the whigs or the twilight singers at all, really

Afghan Whigs doing a cover of The Police, "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8g7TznJLd50

new album in spades in may!!!!

new song is sexy af

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kp7ooQ_7TPg

probably the most earnestly dulli's approached soul music since 1965, hope there's a horns all over the album

this sounds a little less mastered-to-shit than the last few Dulli things which makes me very very happy

I approve. I want to say that is better than anything on the comeback record, which I can't remember.

The last two times I saw the Afghan Whigs - in 1997, maybe, and in 2012, maybe - they were so good I felt if I never saw another show it would be fine with me.

the 2012 show i saw is 100 percent the best concert i've ever seen

yep

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cx99Kecmuy8

OK, listening to "Do to the Beast" now and, yeah, weird, it's like I've never heard it before. I even thought it was called "Do the Beast." But it sounds pretty good! My bad.

"lost in the woods" is one of the best whigs songs ever so i like the last record. kinda falls apart in the second side though

And xpost Seriously, so glad there are clips of the one I saw:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THAKskSp6mQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkvXhXdFRDc

really nice to see that Into the Floor is going to be on this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OFf8p4ByaY

the highlights from the last one were easily Lost in the Woods and The Lottery (as weird as Mark McGuire's presence there is)

psyched about this! new song sounds good -- who's that little guy in the video?

har mar superstar

oh wow, i remember that guy. i didn't realize that was him!
whigs are such a familiar indulgent pleasure, can't wait til they tour again!!

I'm away from my tapings hd now, but I believe clips above are a show I taped and put up on dime. La Lechera - do ya recall if that's the Metro show I gave ya a copy of on disc a coupla years ago? Really looking forward to the new one, esp. if it's as '1965'y as mentioned above.

looking forward to this but i have to admit that 'do to the beast' made zero impression on me

YES, I'm not sure if that clip was from the same night (they played 2 nights right?) but I can't listen to that song without being on the verge of having a stroke so my judgement may be cloudy.
There's probably no rock band I would rather be in than the Whigs, if I could play those songs and not pass out.

I don't remember "Do the Beast" at all either :-/

they do go through drummers!

I'm age-appropriate too!!

New album is strong, with one or two clear highlights.

that's good to hear! can't wait

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99xg4DtM-V8

another good new song

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9U8jseaqxU

great, creepy song, video nsfw

like extremely nsfw

since i am at w can you tell me why it's nsfw? just curious.

every time i flipped back to it in my tabs there were breasts

Disappointing :(

(I say that as a Whigs fan with breasts)

i mean as far as i can tell it's an argento-y occult lesbian thing, which i'm here for

I mean it's fine, I've got no prob w boobs being exposed
Go for it I guess

http://www.stereogum.com/1938212/stream-the-afghan-whigs-in-spades/music/album-stream/

def dulli's weirdest opening track ever

i'm definitely enjoying this a lot more than the last one overall, even if nothing's quite as good as Lost in the Woods

yeah i think it's way more consistent than do to the beast (which imo falls apart during side two)

"light as a feather" is fucking amazing

yup this is really good, nice tidy runtime too

prob his best album since blackberry belle, i'm calling it

yeah, light as a feather feels straight out of black love. i wish that the classic dulli soaring bit in the middle was actually the chorus and showed up more than once like it feels like it should though

tbh a lot of these songs have parts that could work as traditional choruses but dulli just kinda lets them happen once and then the song is over. interesting approach

the only thing that's really lacking in terms of Classic Dulli Flavor is that the lyrics haven't really been jumping out at me at all

"so far inside you now / i am your silhouette" from "demon in profile" is one of my fav dulli lyrics of all time at the moment

Listening again, I think "Light as a Feather" must be one of the clear highlights I referenced a few weeks back.

"copernicus" has an amazing chorus/bridge/outro whatever it is

Glad to hear he's still blasting full perv in his lyrics

Kind of? Sometimes it's embarrassing.

i'll love it forever

goddamn this really is great, every song (except for the opener which is wonderful in its own way) is so densely packed with incident

Via FB:

It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to our friend, brother and inspiration.

Dave Rosser passed away peacefully last evening surrounded by love. Thank you to all who kept him in their hearts. He is forever in ours.

More details here:

http://pitchfork.com/news/the-afghan-whigs-dave-rosser-dead-at-50/

Damn that's awful. The guitarwork on both the recent albums is splendid. And the new one has only grown on me, to the extent that it's a Top 10 contender

"Light as a Feather" / "I Got Lost" / "Into the Floor" is the best closing run of any album this year imho

it was def the best part of seeing them play the whole album live a few weeks ago

"i got lost" is so crushing

arggh I'm so jealous

I totally forgot that Afghan Whigs released an album this year!

Going to do something about that right now.

Last night may have been the first time I saw them since they released both of their reunion records (and the first since the death of Dave Rosser. which apparently almost scuttled the whole tour). They were strong if not really exceptional last night, and I missed the horns and singers, who added a lot. They did, however, bring out Marcy Mays for a rare performance of "My Curse!"
Other highlight might have been the moody slow version of "Going to Town" with Dulli on keys that featured him goofing on "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover," which lead him to admit that you can sing any song over his moody chords, after which he sang a bit of "Tom Sawyer."

As I also expected, Built to Spill was such a weird pairing. I guess the bands have been swapping the headlining spot, but for the life of me I can't imagine BtS following the Whigs.

I think that's what I'm getting when I see them. :/

I honestly sometimes think Built to Spill is being boring on purpose. Tune guitar in silence, play song, stop song just when it is building up steam, tune guitar. Current drummer and bassist really passionless and dull and methodical to the point of intent. Sometimes a guitar solo. Last night they started "Broken Chairs" and then stopped, because Doug was out of tune. While he was tuning someone requested "Carry the Zero," so he says they could do that one instead, "we don't care."

after which he sang a bit of "Tom Sawyer."
lol/sob bc i missed it :(
i work thurs nights and there was no way i was cancelling my class for this

haha

the first time I saw them since they released both of their reunion records (and the first since the death of Dave Rosser.

this would mean that you last saw them before Rosser joined the band

which apparently almost scuttled the whole tour).

they toured for three months after his death last year (and two months before it, without him), with his amp onstage and illuminated in tribute. did he have a special connection with Built To Spill?

(I'm not going this time due to disinterest in both Ed Harcourt and BtS)

I can't remember if Rick was in the band both shows I saw. I guess he was? Anyway, Dulli last night said they almost didn't make it out on the road again, and implied is was due largely to the loss of Rosser. And at the end he said something like "have a good summer, maybe we'll see you next year," which implies some time off.

Regardless, I just meant it's the first time I've seen them minus Rosser, not that I ever saw them with him. I could be misremembering, but they seemed to make a bigger deal about his death than about Rick leaving, and there were a few references to Rosser from the stage.

Inasmuch as the nu-Whigs.2 is just The Greg Dulli Experience, Rosser has been a much bigger part of his 21st century life and music than McCollum. and he & Curley seemed firmly relieved to move forward without Rick.

caught the Whigs/BTS in Toronto last night, first time seeing either. The Whigs set was sadly short - only 12 songs, only 2 of them pre-reunion ("John the Baptist" and "Going to Town," with a "These Eyes" interpolation). Dulli acknowledged the attack that had taken place earlier in the day which was nice. It is truly remarkable that his pipes have not aged a day. I can't imagine how awesome they must be with additional players cause they sounded massive with just guitars and keys.

as for BTS, I have to echo Josh's complaints upthread. The three-piece setup as very dull to watch. If you had told me in advance I'd be bored by this setlist I'd never have believed you.

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/built-to-spill/2018/danforth-music-hall-toronto-on-canada-23ec1cff.html

the one surprise of the Whigs set was "The Killer" which I gather got its first/only airing of the tour and was as grand as you'd expect

the whigs were the best i’ve ever seen them* at the brooklyn date. they covered david gilmour’s “there’s no way out of here” and it was one of the least whigs-ified covers i’ve ever seen them do, they played it so straight. would like to echo simon’s comments about dulli being in incredibly good voice rn

i was actually enjoying bts (nb: i was high) but the crowd demographic shifted so significantly from the relatively diverse whigs crowd to a thick wave of jam band bros. as someone who normally spends most of any given concert freaking out, the guy in front of me was freaking out at every guitar solo way too hard (i think what annoyed me was that he only seemed to care about his experience of the music without being remotely conscious of how distracting, irritating, and disrespectful of other people’s space he was being. also i was high). i left early

* without rick

I'm extremely jealous you got "Omerta"!!!

oh i also finally fucking saw “omerta” live. only og whigs tracks we got were “debonair,” the slow “going to town,” “john the baptist,” “somethin hot,” and “omerta,” but honestly the new stuff sounded so amazing and they were playing so hard that i didn’t mind at all

xp lol

i was at that brooklyn show too, sorry for freaking out at all the guitar solos brad :(

just kidding, that thankfully was not me

honestly if BTS had gotten stopped at the border and the Whigs got to play the whole night I would have died of ecstasy

anyway, i'll echo brad's sentiments that the show was a ridiculously powerful experience. greg went to the piano about halfway through for 'it kills' and once he got back up to the guitar for 'john the baptist" the show reached a level of intensity i've rarely seen at a rock show.

built to spill was very good, i thought. i saw them in 2016 at brooklyn bowl and they sounded very thin and very disinterested, but in last week's show it sounded more comfortable and like they figured out how to play as a three-piece. (that brooklyn bowl show also happened during a Mets WC playoff game, so the crowd was even more distracted than usual at that venue, which might've affected their performance. also they had to follow hop along)

greg went to the piano about halfway through for 'it kills' and once he got back up to the guitar for 'john the baptist" the show reached a level of intensity i've rarely seen at a rock show.

god for real. everything aligned during "john the baptist" that night. it sounded even better than when they played it at the first reunion show

I think BTS was extra underwhelming in context coming after that tbh, like after that maelstrom you're not at least gonna give us two guitars? c'mon man

it didn't feel weird to me that there was a profound energy difference between the whigs opening and bts closing, it felt like a really pleasant comedown after the overwhelming intensity of the whigs. also doug's solos were generous and interesting! i sorta wish they had a second guitarist myself but dude can kinda do it all himself

experience still fundamentally ruined by the dude in front of me shouting "DOUG!" in the exact same way deadheads shout "JERRY"

hahaha

it helped that the BTS setlist was ridiculously strong and Keep It Like a Secret-heavy

The jam band bro element of the Built to Spill fanbase has long perplexed me

i had a much better time watching them with a crowd full of beer nerds last year

y'all are lowering my expectations :/

Are there any good Whigs bootlegs out there? I've been enjoying the Twilight Singers' Live in New York and I'd love a similarly comprehensive Whigs set to listen to

there are millions of them, nu-Whigs & old, and they sell some soundboard recordings at the merch desk (edited to single CDs)

I only spotted merch for the openers at the show I was at :(

presumably they only run 500 max, at quick-dupe places: I saw them late last year and they only had one of the seven that buyers have catalogued here (three new releases added this week): https://www.discogs.com/artist/89572-The-Afghan-Whigs

I was expecting a new Whigs album tba soonish but I guess we'll have to settle for...the first-ever proper Dulli solo record? Out in feb

https://youtu.be/qRmop7fxrgs

oh man that song sounds great

who's in the band? is it all dulli?!!??!

it's so bouncy!

it's pretty much all Dulli apparently

I suppose there was Amber Headlights, but I guess an album previously shelved then released isn’t exactly the same (think AH was originally a Twilight Singers album)

it's pretty much all Dulli apparently
this warms my heart, greggers steppin' out by himself
and he sounds happy!

yes, Amber Headlights was an unfinished Twilight album abandoned when Ted Demme died.

I suppose there was Amber Headlights, but I guess an album previously shelved then released isn’t exactly the same (think AH was originally a Twilight Singers album)

― Master of Treacle, Tuesday, December 3, 2019 9:50 AM (eleven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

it ended up turning into blackberry belle, "follow you down" aka "cigarettes" being the only holdover iirc

glad he's still got it, this rules

was waiting for a soaring post-chorus / bridge bit that never arrived, pleased to have my expectations defied by this cool lean tune (although he does do a great soaring middle eight/whatever you call it)

can't do it every time or it won't feel special! :)

First track was the appetizer, this one's the meal

https://youtu.be/XEOKt6kyFN4

jeez... shaping up to be even better than in spades

which i listened to the other day and is still a very great record

the guitar in this new song is so "rhiannon"

goodbye motherfucker

the guitar in this new song is so "rhiannon"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yw6apMYRXo

many songwriters slacken as they age but Dulli's recent songs (incl the last Whigs record) are so lean and precise, not an ounce of fat on 'em

otm

i still can't get over what a good song "oriole" is and its replayability is largely due to how little it repeats itself and how cinematic it comes across anyway

Lots of interesting musical plugs in this longish interview

http://www.brooklynvegan.com/greg-dulli-talks-solo-album-random-desire-and-its-influences-in-bv-interview/

Great piece, made me google a bunch of stuff.

Jaimie Branch! Dulli is one of the musicians I’d most like to sit around and listen to records with. :)

Love the love for Doves, it never occurred to me but I see why they would gel with him.

Knowing Dulli digs Doves makes the universe feel a better place.

on first listen this is sounding great, "sempre" and "the tide" are absolutely classic dulli

"scorpio"! "lockless"! "black moon"! oh "slow pan" is really beautiful. yeah this rules. i'm glad between this and in spades dulli seems to have settled into a really solid groove. happy to call this one his best since blackberry belle

"Scorpio" is so fucking good. In general I slightly miss the more muscular sound on the Whigs records, but good on him for playing almost everything himself and really going for it

"lockless" is a great van morrison song

god this album is AWESOME. best since blackberry belle for sure except in spades is nearly as good too

yeah it's just slightly better than in spades

can't rock w. "better than In Spades" just yet but my god he's got to be one of the most consistently awesome and sneakily flexible singer-songwriters of the last few decades

First listen and this is really fucking good. 'Sempre' and 'Lockless' my early highlights and it might just be that recent Brooklyn Vegan interview but I can really hear a Doves thing - particularly in 'Sempre'. Damn I wish Slow Pan would've mutated into something like 'Faded'.

only one 'purple rain' rip/homage per career

I like this tons, but the lower timbre of his voice seems to have changed. Not necessarily for the worse, just different.

started checking out in spades after catching up on the new album and......it rules. every song from oriole on is this incredible mini-epic. it's like he closes the album 6 times. i wasn't a big fan of do the beast which is why i ignored in spades but i probably need to reassess that one too.

do to the beast is fine with a few real highlights like "lost in the woods" and "the lottery", though in spades is definitely a step up. at the time i was a little disappointed in it as an afghan whigs reunion album since it felt a little more removed from their classic sound than i expected, but i've come around.

skimming through it now how did i forget about "can rova", it's beautiful

My old friend/old school Whigs fan and I both watched the solo Dulli concert (recording 👎🏻) and were actually satisfied to very satisfied w our experience. Anyone else watch it?? I loooooooved hearing his songs basically in demo form. It made me more interested in the new album too.

thinking about running an afghan whigs/greg dulli poll (since there's another lull in the poll no one else is filling) starting next week, there'd be interest for it right?

i figure there's no reason not to include twilight singers, gutter twins, dulli solo in the main poll since with the whigs reunion albums the distinction between all of dulli's projects has become very little. poll categories would be tracks, albums, and covers?

yes!

I would partake

oh yeah i already have a ballot in my head

heck yeah

I'd come up with a ballot for this.

i'll go ahead with it next week then

i'm in

taking terrible pun thread title suggestions in the meantime

don't forget the afghan poll (ooh baby) (ooh baby)

I'm in.

Put on your old fur POLL it's 1973.
A lie, the truth, which one should I POLL?

will vote.

Poles iz Dead

Whoops, lol.

Polls iz Dead

I got a dick for a brain, and my brain is gonna poll my ass to you

hey cuz, i'm polling who wants to get hiiiiiiiigh?

been a long time since i listened to any whigs btw, be interesting to see how they hold up. also i'm pretty sure there's some ugly stuff in their music that i didn't really dwell on too much the first time round and i'm not sure how i'm going to process that in 2021. i mean i just watched the video for 'sister brother' and jfc wtf, someone is going to have to unpack that one for me

ill prob be in on this

I have never listened to the pre-Congregation stuff at all

Up In It has some great songs imo! Have never heard the first album though

go to town
burn it down
turn around
and get your poll on baby

just to whet people's appetites, this was them on uk tv in '94, playing in front of boy george and a bunch of ravers. i remember watching this at the time and it totally floored me:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsGPDAvPMMM

^^such a monster of a song, Still one of my favourites by them

Every secret has its price
This one's set to poll

So the stink of your poll
Sinks into my memory

actually really excited for the covers side poll

and i'm idly wondering if the poll could be won by the one song the singer didn't sing

mention Brother Woodrow and real heads will know

"Have never heard the first album though"

Couple songs from 'Big Town Halloween' (which I think the band put out) were on 'Up In It'. I was always curious about it as the studio where their first record was recorded was just around the block from me in Broad Ripple/Indianapolis when I lived there. Paul Mahern lead singer of the Zero Boys recorded that record, which I think was one of the first he did.

Get Your POLL On, Baby: ILM Artist Poll #109 - The Afghan Whigs

unchain yr mind
become divine

BEST LIVE BAND IS TOURING!!!!!!
https://theafghanwhigs.com/tour/

aghghghghghghghghgh this is making me wave Kermit arms even though there is no Chicago date...yet

there’s also a new song……..

no mpls either but milwaukee date is on a saturday could be doable

oh wait there's a milkwaukee date!!!
yeeeeeeeeeesssss

any info about when tickets go on sale?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5r_vOBgiC8

here's the new song, it's pretty good!

would probably expect the album's going to be out in may for the tour

This official playlist updated to lead with the new tune: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4XJK1Fcl2tTdTtiHVWu5Q8

Hey
Welcome home

some hawkwind vibes in there? or some kinda 70s thug rock thing anyway

https://static.stereogum.com/uploads/2022/05/how-do-you-burn-1651501485.jpeg

new album how do you burn out 9/9

Greg Dulli’s frequent collaborator Mark Lanegan sang on two tracks, and provided the name How Do You Burn? Susan Marshall, who sang on the Whigs album 1965, guests on “Catch A Colt,” and Van Hunt (who’d previously toured with the Whigs and was on Do The Beast), appears on both “Jyja” and “Take Me There.” Marcy Mays, who sang on Gentlemen‘s “My Curse,” returns for “Domino And Jimmy” here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fblcAv6GRNU

Great news! They'll be playing in my hometown in August

This dream is not a dream
I wake with it
Inside of me
Alone, I swear

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im2fGcu7B5k

Seeing them tomorrow. Psyched.

really impressed with the new album especially the two tracks that van hunt features on ("jyja" and "take me there")

doesn't really remind me of any other whigs record in the catalog except in spades, and only in that every song does something different but there is a sustained, mean/forbidding/defeatedly gorgeous atmosphere they share. my thoughtless one-sentence review would be this is what i wanted dynamite steps to be

this is the most obnoxiously brickwalled album i've heard in a while

it's a shame because otherwise it's yet another quite good album from dulli. "jyja" is a real highlight

tentatively would put it better than do to the beast, not quite as good as in spades

Seeing them tomorrow, first headlining gig I've seen from them in a while. Last time was opening for Built to Spill on that weird bill, which I mostly remember for being loud. I'm taking a blank slate friend who I think has never even heard of them, I'm curious what he thinks.

love this record

While not quite as good as the times I saw them with the singers and horns, they killed it tonight. Dulli's voice sounds great, and the setlist leaned confidently toward their more recent material, with stuff from the first era doled out judiciously. Want to say "Line of Shots" from the new one was a highlight.

Apparently Dulli was having amp and guitar problems all night, but sounded great. Some dude already posted a few clips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUIPT4YxtBk

Listening to the album now, had a rush when Marcy Mays’ voice unexpectedly opened Domino and Jimmy. With so long between nu-Whigs albums, they should noodle out a Twilight Singers record or two between ‘em.

Should have put a spoiler alert there! Was just about to listen.

I meant to hide tag but fucked it up :(

I’m on phone but endorse anyone linking a mod request and then deleting the following posts!

oh come on

any number of places have mentioned her involvement

No worries. I didn't really care that much.

Just to spoil further, Domino & Jimmy on morning TV:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aJ3kolKb0U

I can't believe I used to go to clubs on weeknights on a regular basis. But I did have a good time; Dulli continues to never give less than 115%. I wasn't familiar with the new stuff, but it's all solid. Have they been doing that shout-out to Shawn Smith at other shows?

Just finally getting around to the new one, man that opener is like Afghan Whigs gone stoner rock, I dig it.

I was going through our kitchen cabinets and found an old jar of jam made with Afghan figs.

god they were so good live

At least two of my fave shows of all time.