The Murder City Devils is an American garage rock band formed in 1996.

History

The band's original lineup, consisting of

Spencer Moody Spencer Moody is the American vocalist for Seattle-based noise rock group Triumph of Lethargy Skinned Alive to Death. He was the lead vocalist for the Murder City Devils until their breakup in 2001, and returned to the band when they reformed in ...

Dann Gallucci Dann Gallucci (born March 31, 1975) is an American songwriter, producer, musician and audio engineer best known for his work with Modest Mouse, The Murder City Devils, and Cold War Kids. Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Gallucci met M ...

, Derek Fudesco, Coady Willis, and Nate Manny, formed in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...

, in 1996.

Gabe Kerbrat Gabe may refer to: *A diminutive for Gabriel **Gabe Carimi, All American and NFL football left tackle ** Gabe Cramer, American baseball pitcher ** Gabe Kaplan, American actor and comedian **Gabe Kapler, American major league baseball outfielder and ...

was their permanent roadie, and was considered a member. Within a year, the band had released two singles, ''Three Natural Sixes'' (Hopscotch Records #5) and ''Dance Hall Music'' (Empty Records MTR-354), and signed with the Die Young Stay Pretty label, a subsidiary of Sub Pop. Their self-titled debut album was released in 1997. In 1998, the band released ''

Empty Bottles, Broken Hearts ''Empty Bottles, Broken Hearts'' is the second studio album by punk rock band Murder City Devils. It was recorded, mixed and produced by Jack Endino, and released in 1998 on Sub Pop. On the cover art, the album title appears as ''Empty Bottles, ...

,'' its second full-length album. This release saw a greatly increased use of electric organ, and in the same year they recruited

Leslie Hardy Leslie may refer to: * Leslie (name), a name and list of people with the given name or surname, including fictional characters Families * Clan Leslie, a Scottish clan with the motto "grip fast" * Leslie (Russian nobility), a Russian noble family ...

as their full-time keyboard player. Hardy had previously played bass guitar for several Seattle bands, including several months in

Hole A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in many fields of en ...

. The Murder City Devils then embarked on a year-long tour of North America to support the record. During that tour, they played with

At the Drive-In At the Drive-In was an American post-hardcore band from El Paso, Texas, formed in 1994. The band's most recent line-up consisted of Cedric Bixler-Zavala (vocals), Omar Rodríguez-López (guitar, vocals), Paul Hinojos (bass), Tony Hajjar (dru ...

, Pearl Jam,

The Black Halos The Black Halos are a Vancouver, British Columbia-based punk rock band. Their music also includes some glam rock. History The band was founded in 1993 by lead singer Billy Hopeless and guitarist Rich Jones, and at first, was called The Black M ...

, Modest Mouse (for whom Dann Gallucci also played guitar), and Built to Spill. After a short break, the band released '' In Name and Blood'' in 2000, with photos in the liner notes depicting every member as a murder victim. They also appeared as both individual actors as well as a band in

David Larson David Erwin Larson (born June 25, 1959) is an American former competition swimmer who is an Olympic gold medalist and former world record-holder. Larson is a Georgia native who became an All-American college swimmer for the University of Flori ...

's independent film ''The Edge of Quarrel''. The band released the '' Thelema EP'' in 2001. Mid-tour, keyboardist Leslie Hardy left the band. Later that year the band broke up due to circumstances surrounding Hardy's departure. (''The Stranger'' Sept 27 – Oct 3, 2001 issue, ''It's My Party'' column by Kathleen Wilson). Hardy was replaced by

Nick Dewitt Pretty Girls Make Graves was a post-punk band formed in Seattle in 2001, named after The Smiths' song of the same name (which itself was named after a quote from Jack Kerouac's ''The Dharma Bums''). Andrea Zollo and Derek Fudesco had played t ...

for their final concerts. Bassist Derek Fudesco agreed to leave the band in September 2001 to focus on his own new band, ''

Pretty Girls Make Graves Pretty Girls Make Graves was a post-punk band formed in Seattle in 2001, named after The Smiths' song of the same name (which itself was named after a quote from Jack Kerouac's ''The Dharma Bums''). Andrea Zollo and Derek Fudesco had played t ...

''. The band's farewell concert on Halloween 2001 (October 31) at Seattle's Showbox Theater was recorded and released by Sub Pop in 2003, titled '' ''R.I.P.'''' and included two previously unrecorded songs. It was also released on DVD in 2005.

Return

In 2006 the band announced they were playing a July show in Seattle with all original members. The band performed on July 29 at the

Capitol Hill Block Party The Capitol Hill Block Party is an annual three-day music festival and block party held each July in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. Performance genres include pop, R&B, indie rock, punk, EDM, and many more ...

closing the two-day music festival on Saturday night. The day following the Block Party performance the band played a show with The Blood Brothers at The Showbox in downtown Seattle, the same venue where "R.I.P." was recorded. The show was not announced until the end of their set at the Block Party. The next show was Saturday, November 3rd at Mowhawk in Austin, Texas with The Peabodys and Hex Dispensers while in town for Fun Fun Fun Fest, on November 3–4, 2007 in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

. The band played a handful of shows throughout 2008 and launched a brief West Coast tour on February 11, 2009 at Seattle's The Showbox."The Murder City Devils 2009 Tour Dates."
LineOut (''The Stranger''). December 10, 2008. Murder City Devils' week-long tour culminated in Los Angeles with two performances at the Henry Fonda Theater on February 17 and 18, 2009.

New material

At the end of their set, on December 30, 2009, at The Showbox in Seattle, Washington, Hardy thanked the audience for coming and confirmed that the band was working on new material. No additional information was given. After the set finished, the band returned to the stage and performed a cover of The Birthday Party's song, "Several Sins." On July 17, 2010, a live performance of an untitled new song was uploaded to YouTube. It was filmed at their July 15, 2010, performance at The Note, in West Chester, Pennsylvania (a venue that has since closed). On October 17, 2010, a live performance of another untitled new song was uploaded to YouTube. It was filmed at their October 16, 2010, performance at The Showbox in Seattle. In January 2012, the band released a 7-inch with two new songs, recorded in

San Pedro, California San Pedro ( ; Spanish: "St. Peter") is a neighborhood within the City of Los Angeles, California. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los Angeles in 1909. The Port of Los Angeles, a major international seaport, is partially located wi ...

. The new songs were "Every Day I Rise" and "Ball Busters in the Peanut Gallery". On August 5, 2014, the band released their first album in 11 years, '' The White Ghost Has Blood on Its Hands Again'', which includes eight songs. On September 26, 2021, the band performed at Punk Rock Bowling & Music Festival in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Members

- vocals (1996-2001, 2006-present) *

- guitar (1996-2001, 2006-present) *

Derek Fudesco Pretty Girls Make Graves was a post-punk band formed in Seattle in 2001, named after The Smiths' song of the same name (which itself was named after a quote from Jack Kerouac's ''The Dharma Bums''). Andrea Zollo and Derek Fudesco had played to ...

- bass (1996-2001, 2006-present) *

Coady Willis Coady Willis is an American drummer and a member of Big Business, High on Fire, White Shit, and the Melvins. He previously played in the bands Dead Low Tide, Broadcast Oblivion, and The Murder City Devils. Willis and Big Business bandmate J ...

- drums (1996-2001, 2006-present) *

Nate Manny Nate or NATE may refer to: People and fictional characters *Nate (given name) *A nickname for Nathanael *A nickname for Nathaniel Organizations *National Association for the Teaching of English, the UK subject teacher association for all aspects ...

- guitar, bass (1996-2001, 2006-present) *

- keyboard (1998-2001, 2006-2010) *

- keyboard (2001)

Discography

Studio albums

* '' The Murder City Devils'' (1997) * ''

'' (1998) * '' In Name and Blood'' (2000) * '' The White Ghost Has Blood on Its Hands Again'' (2014)

Extended play

* ''

Thelema Thelema () is a Western esoteric and occult social or spiritual philosophy and new religious movement founded in the early 1900s by Aleister Crowley (1875–1947), an English writer, mystic, occultist, and ceremonial magician. The word ' ...

'' (2001)

Live album

* '' R.I.P.'' (Live album of last show at The Showbox in Seattle, October 31, 2001) (2003)

Compilation album

* ''Feather Bed Whiskey Blanket'' (Boxed Set of all 4 albums & ''Thelema'') (2009)

Singles

* "Three Natural Sixes" (1997) * "Dance Hall Music" (1997) * "Dancin Shoes" (1998) * "Christmas Bonus Single" (1998) * "Murder City Devils / Botch Split" (Sound track to the movie ''The Edge of Quarrel'') (1999) * "Murder City Devils / Glucifer Split" (1999) * "Murder City Devils / At The Drive-In Split" (2000) * "Every Day I Rise" / "Ball Busters in the Peanut Gallery" (2011)

Music videos

* 18 Wheels (1998) * Idle Hands (2000)

Compilation inclusions

* ''Technology (Remix of "Dance Hall Music" by DJ Ropstyle)'' (2000) * ''

Free the West Memphis 3 ''Free the West Memphis 3'' is a compilation album released in October 2000 by Koch Records as a benefit for the legal defense of the West Memphis Three, three men who, while teenagers in 1994, were tried and convicted of the 1993 murders of three ...

(Cover of "She" by The Misfits)'' (2000) * '' Give The People What We Want: Songs of The Kinks (Cover of "Alcohol" by

The Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhyt ...

)'' (2001) * ''Buddyhead Suicide Sampler CD (Remix of "Press Gang" by the Latch Brothers)'' (2004)

Video

* ''The Edge of Quarrel (VHS)'' (2000) * ''Rock & Roll Won't Wait (VHS)'' (2001) * ''Rock & Roll Won't Wait (DVD)'' (2004) * ''The End (DVD)'' (2005) * ''The Edge of Quarrel (DVD)'' (2007)

References

External links

Official Band Website
* Allmusic Murder City Devils article* ''

Crawdaddy! ''Crawdaddy'' was an American rock music magazine launched in 1966. It was created by Paul Williams, a Swarthmore College student at the time, in response to the increasing sophistication and cultural influence of popular music. The magazine w ...

'' article o
Murder City Devils and Dead Low Tide, "Ride the Dead Low Tide,"
March 26, 2008
Sub Pop Murder City Devils page

MTV Murder City Devils page

Murder City Devils collection
at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

's live music archive
''The Edge of Quarrel'' at Excursion Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murder City Devils Garage rock groups from Washington (state) Musical groups established in 1996 Garage punk groups Horror punk groups Sub Pop artists