Greg Dulli Q&A: Afghan Whigs Frontman Talks ATP, Frank Ocean & Biggie

Posted on Sep 20th 2012 3:00PM by Theo Bark
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Gary Wolstenholme, Redferns

After '90's rockers the Afghan Whigs announced their reunion as part of New York's upcoming ATP festival back in December, the band slowly unrolled a string of international dates, celebrating their 25th anniversary by tearing down New York's Bowery Ballroom on May 23, and subsequently kicking ass from Athens to Tel Aviv.

Touring a set which spans their recorded output from 1992 to 1998, frontman Greg Dulli and founding members Rick McCollum and John Curley returned to the stage with the fervor of a band on its first headlining tour, playing as hard and tight as ever in their career, and adding several unexpected touches.

Known for covering both classic and contemporary R&B songs, the Ohio band pulled out a surprising rendition of Frank Ocean's 2011 song "Love Crimes," and added an interpolation of rapper Drake's mournful "Over My Dead Body" chorus as an outro to their 1993 song "When We Two Parted."

With the Dulli-curated ATP happening Sept. 21-23 in New York, Spinner spoke with him about the festival, the Whigs' reunion and his favorite rapper of all time.

How did things come together for you guys to start playing together again?

We got asked to play the All Tomorrow's Parties festival, after turning that down over the years. John Curley and I had done some shows together two years ago, and based on that experience we decided to get together and see what it sounded like. It sounded great. We did two rehearsals in New Orleans right after Thanksgiving last year, by the end of the second rehearsal, we could've played a show that night. It sounded great, felt good, so then we said "yes," and began six months of, like, "what the fuck," you know? But as soon as we played that first song in New York last May, it was like riding a bike.

Are you writing music for a new release?

I write music all the time. What it ends up being for, I still don't know yet. My plans as of right now are to play shows until Nov. 10 and then go to Hawaii. That is my current plan in life. Anything past that, I have no clear answer on.

Is L.A. a good place for you to write?

Yeah. I have lived in Los Angeles on and off for 25 years. I've written many of my songs here over the years, in every guise I've performed under. Love the state of California, really.

In the past you've not really enjoyed touring. How is it going now?

It's going good. I mean, I've played, it's gotta be cruising up around 2,000 gigs now. Anything you do that much has good and bad things about it, but the month on, month off kinda thing we've been employing this time has kept it kinda fresh. It's been like three weeks on, five weeks off. I can get with that.

What's been a highlight since you've reunited to tour?

There's been so many moments for me. Off the top of my head I would say the first show -- the Bowery show. Then the show we did in Athens, Greece ... both Primavera Festivals were amazing. The Chicago Metro show we did after Lollapalooza was amazing. The run we just did was one of my favorite runs, the last three shows we played, Prague, [Belgian festival] Pukkelpop and London were all amazing shows. They've all been great shows, but the ones I've named were those kind of transcendent, leave-your-body moments. You can't get those every night. That'd be weird.

I saw the show in Barcelona and I noticed that you played part of a Drake song at the end of "When We Two Parted."

Yes.

Amazing, but how did you even think of that?

Ha! I do mash-ups in my head all the time. That last Drake album was great, and that Chantal [Kreviazuk] hook that's in that song, I remember thinking when I heard it, "Oh, I know exactly where I can mash that song." So, some people got it, some people didn't get it. If you don't listen to Drake, you don't know what the fuck I'm going on about.

It fit so well.

It fit like it was meant to be there. And lyrically it fit the moment. I think it gives the song a second lift off. It's a favorite moment of the show for me.

Watch the Afghan Whigs' Video for 'Somethin' Hot'

You seem to really like rap music.

I do. I love rap music.

What do you love about it?

I mean, I love MCs, you know? I love to hear people flow and rhyme. My earliest memories of hearing it was probably "Rapper's Delight" or Kurtis Blow ... to listening to Killer Mike yesterday. I love that record. It's reports from the street. It's reports from streets that I don't always see. And it's like somebody telling me something that's going on that's not in my neighborhood, listening to the music become more sophisticated over the years, you know? Or not be sophisticated. Whether it's like the Bomb Squad or Public Enemy to relatively stripped-down style, like Mannie Fresh, or something like that. I think it's one of the most exciting music styles that has emerged in the last 40 years or so.

Is Nas your favorite artist?

I love Nas, and he's absolutely consistent but as far as like, frozen in time, I had to pick one guy I would pick Biggie.

Wow.

If I had a gun to my head, and, hopefully not his, I would pick Biggie.

Let's talk a little bit about ATP, I noticed Frank Ocean was added to the lineup.

Yes.

Obviously that was your doing.

It was.

And you've met Frank Ocean now.

I have.

Can you talk a little about why you chose to cover his song "Love Crimes," and what you like about him?

I was at a party, over a year ago ... time blurs for me. He came on, it was the song "Strawberry Swing." That was the first song that I heard, and I just was like "What the hell is that?" We kept listening and I was like "I've gotta have that." You know? She was like "Ah, I'll rip it for you." So she ripped it for me and I loved every song on the record, but I kept circling "Love Crimes" like blood in the water. I really loved, it was like a little movie, a little story that I could follow, with the greatest hook. That "murder, murder, murder" hook just stuck in my brain, and when we got back together to play, I was just goofing around and playing, and all of a sudden I was like "Oh, we're gonna cover Frank Ocean, wow." It just kinda happens that way. It was innocent, just kinda jamming it, and it turned into what it turned into.

Is that the way a lot of covers that you guys have done over the years have come about?

Yeah. They're rarely calculated. It's something to play that's -- I love to interpret. I like to share what I'm listening to with other people, whether it's an old song or a new song. We did one of each for this, and a couple others that we haven't let go of yet. I'm always gonna do it. I've done it since I was a teenager. I can't imagine I'm going to stop now.

You have this cult following and people are crazy about you as a frontman, but you obviously have a very private life, where you're a baseball fan and a music fan, is it hard to juggle?

No. I keep my private life private, and my public life is, you know ... All you gotta do is buy a ticket. Come and watch.

The Afghan Whigs Play ATP in New York on Saturday (Sept. 22). Buy a ticket.