by request
Artist Biography
by Mark Deming
The Murder City Devils
are a Seattle-based punk band who like their music fierce, raw, and
powerful, with a garage rock edge in the melodies and a muscular
approach that recalls old-school punk favorites
the Misfits and
the Dead Boys, but with a dark edge that shakes off any accusations of hipster nostalgia-mongering.
The Murder City Devils were formed in 1996 by vocalist
Spencer Moody, guitarist
Dann Gallucci, and bassist
Derek Fudesco;
all three had previously been members of Area 51, and when they decided
to form a new band, they turned to their friend Joshua Plague (singer
with Mukilteo Fairies and Behead the Prophet) for a name. Plague had
dreamed up the handle of the Murder City Devils for a group in Olympia,
WA with more potential than ambition, and when that band fizzled out,
the new combo borrowed it with their permission. Teaming with
Nate Manny on guitar and
Coady Willis
on drums, the Murder City Devils made their recorded debut with a
three-song 7" on Empty Records in 1997; later the same year, the Sub
Pop-affiliated indie label Die Young Stay Pretty Records issued the
band's self-titled debut album. The second
Murder City Devils album, titled
Empty Bottles, Broken Hearts, appeared in 1998, and the band was moved up to the official Sub Pop roster for the release.
Gallucci and
Fudesco
had both added keyboard parts during the recording of the album, and
when the band set out on tour in support, they added a full-time
keyboard player to the lineup,
Leslie Hardy.
(The band also cited their roadie Gabe as a full member of the group on
their record sleeves.) Extensive touring followed, though the
Devils found the time to drop 7" singles on Die Young Stay Pretty and Hopscotch before the year was out.
The Murder City Devils offered a glimpse into their diverse influences on their third full-length LP, 2000's
In Name and Blood, which in addition to 11 new originals included covers of tunes by Neil Diamond ("I'll Come Running") and
the Misfits ("Hybrid Moments"). In 2001, the band released a six-song EP,
Thelema,
which found them exploring more ambitious musical territory with more
measured tempos, a bit of added production polish, and an acoustic-based
Christmas number, "364 Days." The
Devils set out on a U.S. tour after
Thelema's
release, but when they came back to Seattle for a hometown show at
Halloween 2001, they announced it would be their final performance; the
concert was recorded and videotaped for posterity, and a live CD from
the show,
R.I.P., came out in 2003.
Fudesco and
Gallucci went on to form the short-lived combo
Death Wish Kids, while
Gallucci became a member of
Modest Mouse and
Fudesco joined
Pretty Girls Make Graves.
In 2006, the Murder City Devils reunited to play a set at the local
Seattle music festival the Capitol Hill Block Party; the show was a
success and since then, the group has played occasional one-off shows
and gone on a short 2009 tour of the West Coast, with the band
announcing that they've begun work on new material.
Tracklist
| A |
Dancing Shoes |
|
| B |
Tokyo Gold |
|
