Artist Biography
by Steve Huey
An off-shoot of
Crime & the City Solution, which was itself an off-shoot of
the Birthday Party,
These Immortal Souls
gave guitarist Rowland S. Howard a chance to flex his own songwriting
chops. Bluesy and darkly atmospheric, the band often evoked the spirit
of Southern Gothic literature, both in their dramatic music and their
lyrical storytelling. The Australian-born Howard had risen to prominence
as
Nick Cave's collaborator in
the Birthday Party, after which he co-founded
Crime & the City Solution, which also included his bass-playing brother
Harry Howard and, later, drummer
Epic Soundtracks (ex-
Swell Maps and
Jacobites). In 1987,
Soundtracks and the Howard brothers split from
Crime singer
Simon Bonney to form
These Immortal Souls, which also included keyboardist
Genevieve McGuckin.
With Rowland handling lead vocals, the London-based band quickly landed
a deal with the seminal American underground label SST, and issued
their debut EP
Marry Me. By the end of 1987, their first full-length,
Get Lost (Don't Lie), had also hit record racks. When the supporting tour wrapped up in early 1988,
These Immortal Souls fell silent for several years, owing mostly to Howard's crippling case of writer's block. He worked off and on with
Lydia Lunch into the early '90s, sometimes with assistance from
McGuckin, sometimes with brother
Harry. Finally, in late 1992,
These Immortal Souls returned with the single "King of Kalifornia," now on the Mute label; it was quickly followed by their second album,
I'm Never Gonna Die Again.
Soundtracks
subsequently left to concentrate on a well-received solo career, which
produced three albums before his 1997 death; meanwhile, the remainder of
the band returned to their native Australia and occasionally worked
together as part of other projects.
Tracklist
| 1 |
The King Of Kalifornia |
|
| 2 |
Shamed |
|
| 3 |
Black Milk |
|
| 4 |
Hyperspace |
|
| 5 |
So The Story Goes |
|
| 6 |
Insomnicide |
|
| 7 |
All The Moneys Gone |
|
| 8 |
Crowned |
|
| 9 |
Bad |
|
| 10 |
My One-Eyed Daughter (Live In Las Vegas) |
|
| 11 |
Up On The Roof |
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