“My Curse” in Clerks II Playlist
The Clerks II playlist in the iTunes Music Store features “My Curse” by the Afghan Whigs as the first track.
Jeff Anderson (Randal) chose the song, saying: “This is one of my favorite albums of all time. Marcy May [sic], who sings on this track, put the angst in music long before Alanis Morissette swallowed her jagged little pill.”
Thx Kevin
I’m Ready - Manchester Music
Manchester Music
By Simon Brown
“Powder Burns” pointed the way for Greg Dulli’s return and “I’m Ready“ is another example of his more firebrand sounding rock . Burning along with the grim rattle of shaking guitars and the former Whig’s browbeaten lounge room vocals, it looks as though the Twilight Singers continue to invigorate with their incendiary reinventions. Better still is the Lo Fidelity Allstars Remix, which extracts the twangy guitar and Dulli’s rough sawn soul fuelled vocal lines, themselves assisted by Joseph Arthur. A splintered delight, mixing gravity defying melodies and quickfire guitars, “I’m Ready” most probably gives us a Robert Palmer for the 21st Century – only much cooler - and of course not dead.
MMM
I’m Ready - Single Review
Drowned in Sound
Nick Cowen
8/10
According to the rumour mill, the lead-off single from the new Twilight Singers’ platter was supposed to be ‘Bonnie Brae’. It’s probably better not to speculate on why this didn’t happen; besides, if you’ve heard said song, and you know the geography around MacArthur Park in Los Angeles, you can draw your own conclusions.
It doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things: there are no dull moments on Powder Burns and this two-tracker stacks up real nice. With its intro cut off, ‘I’m Ready’ crashes out of the speakers like it has a point to prove, jagged guitars scraping and tearing at the seductive bass line that snakes and undulates throughout the song. Greg Dulli’s vocals stay just about on the right side of seedy, so the come-hither sentiments sound like they just might be working.
This is funk in the haunted house that indie-rock built. The bass is front and centre, and while there’s the odd keyboard effect and a hint of white-boy angst, it’s all done in the service of an undeniably mac-daddy groove. It’s superb; a fantastic introduction for the uninitiated, and enough to tide over the converted until the Singers come to town this month.
Walkmen = Dulli-esque
Pitchfork Fest, Chicago Tribune
The Walkmen’s Hamilton Leithauser vents on every song, a howl that recalls Greg Dulli in his going-down-slow heyday with the Afghan Whigs.
The Walkmen is another band I haven’t gotten around to seeking out. How’s this comparison?
Powder Burns - Capeweek.com
capeweek.com
3 stars
”Bonnie Brae,” the strongest track on this CD, was recently featured on the FX network show ”Rescue Me.” Twilight Singers leader Greg Dulli made work that singed the soul with his previous group, the Afghan Whigs. The slower-burning angst of his present group is a perfect fit for the TV show about a crew of confused and tormented firefighters.
Dulli always made heavy-sounding albums, but the destruction of New Orleans, his adopted hometown, explains why this is his most somber record yet.
Powder Burns - Winnipegsun.com
winnipegsun.com
4 stars
When Greg Dulli says, “I’m alive — It kinda took me by surprise,” you know he’s not kidding. Or the only one surprised. One of rock’s most notorious and unrepentant users, the former Afghan Whigs frontman now says he’s finally cleaned up his act (though we still wouldn’t trust him with our house keys). Whatever the truth, it’s hard not to hear Powder Burns, the fourth album from his post-Whigs band The Twilight Singers, as a chronicle of his battle with addiction. From the itching temptation of the title track to the drug-copping tale of Forty Dollars to the morning-after sickness of There’s Been an Accident, Dulli immerses us in a seedy, pitch-black netherworld of dealers, users, paranoia and betrayal. And as always, he sets it against a backdrop of darkly decadent rock built from reverb-drenched guitars, graced with lush melodies and harmonies, and topped with his soaring, swooping, raggedly soulful vocals. In other words, it’s another seductive, harrowing, intoxicating and just plain magnificent disc from one of the most overlooked talents in rock. Of course, if you’ve heard Dulli before, that won’t take you by surprise.
Readexpress.com Interview
LIKE SOME KIND of rock ‘n’ roll St. Augustine, Greg Dulli’s lyrics always seems to cry out, “Lord, give me chastity and temperance — but not yet.” The mastermind of the Twilight Singers knows whereof he sings. His larger-than-life persona is built on 20 years of rock hedonism — including 15 as leader of alt-rock darlings the Afghan Whigs. Greg DulliAnd on his ownership of two hip L.A. bars. So temperance might threaten the bottom line.
But before he began recording the Twilight Singers’ latest, “Powder Burns” Dulli got clean from years of substance abuse. “I enjoyed being present for the entire making of the record,” said Dulli, “from writing the songs to being there. I sing better, though I play about the same. I can look back and say I played some crazy good stuff when I was [messed] up.”
Dulli always had a gift for writing lyrics that look addled on paper but seem like gospel when set to soaring, soulful, hyperbolic guitar anthems. Whoring, heartbreak and wanton drug cravings never sounded so glorious. But fixing his own damage proved good practice for a bigger disaster to come. “Powder Burns” was recorded in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The studio was powered by generators. Why stick it out?
“Honestly, it was spite,” Dulli said. “I was so disgusted by how the local and federal government handled that situation that I wanted to put my thumb to the opposition. It was the worst physical damage I have ever seen in my life. The trees drowned, there were no birds, no animals. The first week I just helped people move stuff out of destroyed homes and chainsawed downed trees. It was an extremely surreal situation.”
So longtime listeners probably shouldn’t expect sobriety to produce a happy, joyful noise from Dulli. “Outside of Stevie Wonder and De La Soul … and maybe Paul McCartney — the happy song market is tight. It’s true that it’s harder to write comedy than drama. Which does not speak well for the human condition. Raffi is pretty good too, I’m sure. But you know, offstage he’s probably this mean drunk. You’re not lying to me, Raffi,” Dulli laughed, “you’re lying to yourself.”
Hollywood, CA June 21 2006 Review
Tone and Groove
The Twilight Singers/Afterhours/Jeff Klein
June 21, 2006- The Avalon, Hollywood, CA
The Twilight Singers ended their US tour with a show in Hollywood on a Wednesday night, and what a show it was. Regrettably, I got there too late to see Jeff Klein, whom I have heard good things about. Jeff is going to continue with the Twilight Singers on the European leg of their tour, and I advise you not to miss him.
The second opening band was Italy’s Afterhours, The Twilight Singers’ One Little Indian label mates and a band that is starting to achieve some deserved international recognition. A tight, fun, interesting mix of rock and traditional Italian folk, this band has had several popular albums in their own country prior to releasing thier latest, Ballads for Little Hyenas. At first I wasn’t sure what I was going to make of these guys, but they really won me over. Singing songs in both English and Italian, this talented group kept you interested not only in the songs they played, but in the varied instruments they used to play them - including the electric guitar-bass-drums standards to violin, keyboards, and (forgive my complete ignorance) a strange looking horn-like wind instrument. Their second song, “White Widow”, is a song I have actually heard on local radio and really enjoyed without even know it was them, and by the response of the audience I’d say a fair number of others had heard it too. Towards the end of their set they added a traditional song that allowed the keyboardist to come out from behind his keys and take up the aforementioned wind instrument, then stroll through the audience like a roving troubador while never missing a note.
Afterhours’ enthusiasm was apparent not only when they played their set, but when The Twilight Singers took the stage: Afterhours band members could be found moving randomly through the audience and cheering just as enthusiastically as the rest of us. Their lead singer/guitarist also assumed keyboard duties for The Twilight Singers’ set, making a long evening for him but an enjoyable one for us.
Opening the set with “I’m Ready” from their latest album, Powder Burns, The Twilight Singers came out swinging and never stopped. Greg Dulli is a completely engaging frontman, his between song quips and banter make you feel like an included confidant, in on a joke shared between friends. A pretty amazing accomplishment considering the size of the venue, which seemed crammed to capacity. The band themselves were spot-on and engaging to watch, often making audience eye-contact, and the drummer was maniacal (in a good way).
The show rolled on for a little over two hours, the majority of the setlist concentrating on songs from the last album, Blackberry Belle, (these songs were the most widely recognised by the crowd), and the best of the new album. The covers thrown into the mix were completely engaging (Dulli ‘confiding’ in us that when he was young, Aerosmith had been one of his favorite bands - then with a sly smile he admitted, “Still are, kinda”). Afghan Whigs fans were treated to two of their songs,( I’ve been told those are rarely played), and Martina Topley-Bird’s “Too Tough To Die” was an early highlight. Guest appearances by Jeff Klein on guitar and vocalist Joseph Arthur added to the fun of the evening.
Returning to the stage for the encore, Dulli asked the audience to go back to a time where there was no internet, and to pretend we didn’t already know what was coming next. With that he assumed keyboard duties for a rendition of Gnarles Barkley’s “Crazy” - a song which I’ve heard too many times lately to have any affection for, yet somehow when they played it it was completely fun. The encore came to a close with the guest appearance of singer Mark Lanegan on the last four songs, the standouts there being “Black is the Color” and “Deep Hit of Morning Sun”, though it was Lanegan’s rendition of “Where Did You Sleep Last NIght” that had most of his fans singing along.
Altogether a great night. I highly recommend seeing this band live - I’ve only seen them play once before, and that show, featuring a guest spot from Prince’s gal Apollonia Kotero, was just as enjoyable as this one. I hope I get another chance, soon.
The Setlist:
I’m Ready
Esta Noche
Too Tough to Die
Bonnie Brae
66
Fountain and Fairfax
King Only
Teenage Wristband
Dream On
Love
Annie Mae
There’s Been An Accident (featuring Joseph Arthur)
Candy Cane Crawl
Let’s Get It On
Papillon (w/When We Two Parted)
Martin Eden
Forty Dollars
encore:
The Killer
Crazy
Underneath the Waves
Live With Me (featuring Mark Lanegan)
Where Did You Sleep Last Night? (feat. Mark Lanegan)
Black is the Color (featuring Mark Lanegan)
Deep Hit of Morning Sun (featuring Mark Lanegan)
London, Highbury Garage, 12th July Review
whisperinandhollerin.co.uk
‘London, Highbury Garage, 12th July 2006′
Our Rating: 9/10
Punters were in for a sweaty night at the Garage – the whole venue stank of beer and body odour, nice! Ah well, everyone was in the same boat, and by the end of the stunning opening act from JEFF KLEIN, pretty much everyone was drenched, but the general mood was gleeful and no-one seemed to mind. Needless to say, it was highly pointless for the ladies to put make-up on in a venue like that, unless they genuinely wanted to end up looking like Alice Cooper.
It’s worth taking time out to mention that Jeff Klein is an artist definitely worth checking out. Having already toured with the likes of Joseph Arthur (phwarrr), he is building quite a reputation on the alternative music circuit, with his twisted brand of Americana, meshed with some hard blues, petulant tantrums (screaming lyrics like “If you break my heart/ I’ll break every single bone in your body/ Cause I’m just as sick as you”), and general technical wizardry coupled with jagged, powerful vocals. And he has an enviable moustache. Not for this writer though. I’m a lady. Aanyway…
Greg Dulli (formerly of the Afghan Whigs) in his band, THE TWILIGHT SINGERS opened their live set with the mighty, mighty “I’m Ready” (the recording of which, incidentally, features Joseph Arthur [phwarrrr] on backing vocals), and thereby continued to pelt a load of Visceral Power Rock for the next hour or so. Dulli’s charismatic performance and stellar work from the other band members really transported the audience out of the black, stuffy and moist surroundings to somewhere just as black and moist, but considerably less stuffy – what a fab method of escapism.
The Twilight Singers new album is a dark, and highly personal affair, and Dulli didn’t hold back on his conviction during this performance, which was quite touching in parts. The evening had a genuine sense of the epic about it, Greg Dulli inspires hero-worship from his devoted fans, and its easy to see why. Utilizing the grungy hard rock from his earlier work, with years of hard life experience, and the end result is pretty darn powerful. Highlights of the set were undoubtedly “I’m Ready”, and the heart-wrenching “There’s Been An Accident”, it was so easy to get caught up in it all. These dudes really know what they’re doing. [OMG, I just wrote the word 'Dude', see what they did to me?!]
By the end of their performance, punters left The Garage sopping wet and weak at the knees. And so a marvellous night was had by all.
Powder Burns - TransformOnline
TransformOnline
By Tim Den
Wednesday. Jul 26, 12:03 AM
Over-the-top purging, even for the King of Dark Rock.
In a recent interview with The Onion, guitarist/vocalist Greg Dulli revealed that Powder Burns is the first album that he’s ever recorded stone sober. It’s unsurprising, then, that it bursts with all sorts of Technicolor, panoramic emotions and bombast: the kinds of over-the-top purging that perhaps his years of alcohol and drug abuse numbed and suppressed till now. So if you thought the clench-fisted soulfulness of Blackberry Belle was intense, just imagine what awaits you here. Every trait of Dulli’s has awoken from their substances-induced slumber, exploding and propelling themselves all over the songs, yet somehow (because Greg Dulli is never tacky, always tasteful) staying firmly within the lines of good taste (unlike immature emo boys who can gush plenty, but have no idea how to refine it).
The declaration comes early: opener “I’m Ready” pretty much says it all. When Dulli sings “I’m ready to love somebody,” it’s as if that “somebody” could be himself, the world, the unknown that is the rest of his (hopefully) sober life, everything. Accompanied by a punchy rhythm that’s as mechanically forceful as it is groovy, “I’m Ready” sets the tone for the rest of the album. From then on, the sonic palette / mood is set, as Powder Burns unfurls more cohesively than any of The Twilight Singers’ previous efforts. While this made the album less memorable at first listen – many of the songs utilize the same quiet verse / loud chorus attack – any doubts quickly vanish as every entry prove their might with repeated visits. You’d be hard pressed to find a more torturous howl than on “There’s Been an Accident” and “Underneath the Waves,” a more delicate-than-ever Dulli than on “The Conversation,” or a more gunshot-like crescendo than on closer “I Wish I Was” (guitar-left starts with crackling noise… then BAM!). That Dulli’s sense of impeccable melody leads the charge only empowers everything that much more. This is dark, forceful ROCK that reeks of nighttime’s ugly side.
Powder Burns is a bullet train of haunting demons and the man’s newfound redemption: don’t let it hit you unless you want to be dragged under the rails till the very last stop.
The Gutter Twins: Saturnalia The long awaited debut from Greg Dulli and Mark Lanegan
Order CD at Amazon.com
