all photos: Joel Didriksen
When I first heard of the existence of the Gutter Twins, the pairing of two longtime favorites of mine, Greg Dulli (of the Afghan Whigs and Twilight Singers) and Mark Lanegan (of Screaming Trees, QOTSA and numerous solo albums), I was beyond excited. When the first single, “Idle Hands” hit the internet, it was better than anything I ever could have imagined, and I thought Saturnalia would quickly become one of my favorite albums of 2008. Unfortunately, the album came up a bit short, and my intense desire to see them live started to wane in the weeks immediately preceding this show. After seeing them at the 930 Club last Thursday, I came away thinking that it was an alright show, but not everything it could’ve been given the pedigree of the two men involved.
Openers Great Northern were mid-set when I first arrived. They seemed like some fashionable folks who played decent, but not very memorable, indie pop. Singers Solon Bixler (who I later discovered was once in 30 Seconds to Mars) and Rachel Stolte traded vocals over synth-heavy tunes that reminded me a lot of Metric, but slightly darker. The most interesting part of their set was their live vocal looping, which created some interesting noises when run through their synthesizers.
After a short break, the club went completely dark and some strange, eerie music started playing through the speakers as the band walked on stage, followed a minute later by Dulli and Lanegan. The lights remained mostly off as the band launched into Saturnalia’s opening track, “The Stations.” Greg Dulli seemed happy and excited to be there, but Mark Lanegan looked like a zombie who was clinging to his mic stand for dear life. He remained in this position for the entire show.
The main portion of the set was made up mostly of songs from the Gutter Twins’ debut album, and frankly got a little boring after a while. I found myself more impressed by the intricate light show and little details I was noticing, like Dulli’s incredible ability to play guitar with a lit cigarette in his hand, than with the music itself. After closing the regular set with album closer, “Front Street,” the band returned to play a much more diverse selection of songs in the encore.
The biggest problem with the Gutter Twins’ songs is that they all start to sound the same after a while, so when the band started into the Twilight Singers’ “Papillon” after the break, it sounded incredibly fresh and vibrant. They continued on, playing other Twilight Singers’ tunes, as well as at least one Lanegan solo song, “Methamphetamine Blues.” Unfortunately, these older songs only reminded me of the incredible talent there was before me on stage and how that talent didn’t gel like I’d hoped when they became the Gutter Twins.
Previously in Live DC:
- 5/22: LiveDC: Spirit Animal @ Red Palace
- 5/22: LiveDC: Astra Via @ Black Cat
- 5/22: LiveDC: Father John Misty @ Rock & Roll Hotel
- 5/22: LiveDC: Drive-By Truckers and Lucinda Williams @ Merriweather
- 5/22: Photos: Summer Camp takes the "Ladies of Town" Drag Show
- 5/22: LiveDC: Penguin Prison & Class Actress @ RNR Hotel
- 5/21: LiveDC: James Morrison @ 930 Club
- 5/21: Photos: Que Sera L'Anniversaire @ Napoleon
- 5/21: LiveDC: La Sera/ Beach Week @ Red Palace
- 5/21: LiveDC: The Black Keys & Arctic Monkeys @ Merriweather Post Pavilion
God loves a cheerful giver.
Greg Dulli has a big ass head.