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The Afghan Whigs are an American rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio. They were active from 1986 to 2001, reformed briefly in 2006 and again from 2011 to present.

The early core members were Greg Dulli (vocals, rhythm guitar), Rick McCollum (lead guitar), and John Curley (bass). The band rose up around the grunge movement, evolving from a garage band in the vein of the Replacements to incorporate more R&B and soul influences into their sound and image. They released their first album independently in 1988. The band then signed to the Seattle-based independent label Sub Pop. Their fourth album, Gentlemen in 1993, was their major label debut, released on Elektra Records. Pitchfork described them as "one of the few alt-bands to flourish on a major label" in the 1990s.

Dulli frequently claimed in interviews that the band would never get back together following their dissolution in 2001; however the group reunited in 2012.

Band history

Early years and Big Top Halloween (1986–1988)

Greg Dulli (vocals, rhythm guitar), Rick McCollum (lead guitar), John Curley (bass), and Steve Earle (drums) formed the band in Cincinnati late in 1986. The Afghan Whigs had evolved out of Dulli's previous band, the Black Republicans, a band that Curley later joined. Curley attended a number of Black Republicans shows and approached Dulli and "made it a point to tell the vocalist he was a better bassist than the one in the Black Republicans". Curley would introduce Dulli to McCollum, a frequent jam partner who was famed on the local Cincinnati scene for his innovative use of effects pedals. McCollum and Dulli would bond over their shared love of R&B, in fact the first song the Afghan Whigs ever rehearsed was a cover of the Temptations' "Psychedelic Shack". Dulli later described the intent behind the Afghan Whigs was to exist as "a cross between the Band, the Temptations, and Neil Young playing with Crazy Horse". The name the Afghan Whigs was coined by Curley "as a play on the Black Republicans".

In the wake of the Black Republicans' breakup Dulli had decamped to Arizona, where he composed half the material for what would become the Afghan Whigs' debut album Big Top Halloween (1988), self-released on the band's own Ultrasuede label. "We were running through what were the first songs I'd ever written to do some demos, so we were playing really loose," Dulli recalls. "And then all of a sudden, I found out John was having covers made." While only a thousand copies of Big Top Halloween would be pressed initially, one of them managed to capture the attention of Jonathan Poneman, the co-founder of influential Seattle-based indie label Sub Pop, which signed the Afghan Whigs in 1989. Initially Sub Pop planned for the Whigs to release only a one-off single, but that soon led to a full-blown record contract with the label.

Signing to Sub Pop and Up in It (1989–1990)

Upon signing to Sub Pop, the Afghan Whigs became the label’s second band to not originate in the Pacific Northwest region. In 1990, Sub Pop put out the Afghan Whigs' second album Up in It. Largely recorded by Nirvana producer Jack Endino and featuring the college-radio hit "Retarded", Up in It received a favorable reception with music critics upon release.

To support the album's release, the Afghan Whigs went on a package tour with Mudhoney and Boston underground band Bullet LaVolta. Up in It was followed by a limited edition single released by No.6 Records under the name "Ornament", which included vocals by Scrawl singer Marcy Mays (who would later contribute lead vocals to the band's song "My Curse" off the album Gentlemen).

Congregation and Uptown Avondale (1992)

With the 1992 album Congregation and covers EP, Uptown Avondale, the band developed what would become their signature sound, blending soul with psychedelic sprawl and punk abandon. Critics noted the combination of Stax and Motown influences with indie rock sonics on the band's material. Uptown Avondale featured covers of hits by soul acts such as the Supremes.

Videos for notable Congregation songs like "Conjure Me" and "Turn On the Water" would receive airplay on MTV, which began to regularly cover the Afghan Whigs as a new band to watch. The Afghan Whigs would also tour extensively during this period, including a U.S. jaunt with Scottish indie rockers Teenage Fanclub.

Signing to Elektra and Gentlemen (1993)

Building on the buzz that welcomed Congregation, the Afghan Whigs soon signed to a major label, Elektra Records, following a bidding war that resulted in a contract so lucrative, it featured a clause that allowed for the funding of a Dulli-scripted feature film that ultimately was never made. For their major label debut, the Afghan Whigs ensconced themselves in Ardent Studios in Memphis, where Big Star, Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin, and ZZ Top had recorded. The result of those sessions was the 1993 album Gentlemen.