Ex-Afghan Whigs leader touring with new band
After enjoying considerable success with rock group the Afghan Whigs during the previous decade, the act’s frontman Greg Dulli is continuing his course as the skipper of the Twilight Singers, a fluid collective of players that adapts to the leader’s musical intentions. The band, which had begun working together prior to the amicable split of the Afghan Whigs in 2001, is currently touring and will perform two shows in Greece later this week, in Athens at the Gagarin Club on Friday, and in Thessaloniki at the Ydrogeios Club on Saturday. Best known as the gifted singer of Afghan Whigs, the group that gained considerable exposure amid the grunge scene, Dulli formed the Twilight Singers as a side project in 1997. After releasing a debut album with the new combo four years on, Dulli was planning to continue work with the Afghan Whigs but the idea was dropped amicably after the band’s co-members began settling into quieter lives away from rock’n’roll. Dulli began to write new material for the Twilight Singers project as it suddenly became his songwriting’s focal point. A second album, «Blackberry Belle,» with influences ranging from Pink Floyd, Nina Simone, Big Star, and «gangsta» rap, was released last year. It was promptly followed by an album of radically reworked covers last summer titled «She Loves You.» This was not a peculiar move when one considers the number of covers performed by the Afghan Whigs. Containing both older and more recent material, all treated with affection, «She Loves You» includes songs originally recorded by Billy Holliday, John Coltrane, Fleetwood Mac, Bjork and Hope Sandoval of Mazzy Star.
