The Jesus and Mary Chain on Tour
Early on, the Scottish alternative rock band Jesus and Mary Chain were known for short and feedback-heavy live shows that took cues from aggressive punk and industrial bands. Although the group eventually toned down their confrontational tendencies, they instead channeled their penchant for noise into dark and moody shows with plenty of propulsive grooves and raucous riffs.
Over the years, The Jesus and Mary Chain have appeared at Coachella, opened for Nine Inch Nails and celebrated the 30th anniversary of their album Psychocandy in 2015 with the Psychocandy Live tour.
The Jesus and Mary Chain in Concert
The Jesus and Mary Chain were originally formed by brothers Jim and William Reid in the early '80s. After releasing their debut single, "Upside Down," in 1984 on legendary label Creation Records, the group signed to Blanco y Negro to release their 1985 debut, the seminal Psychocandy. At this point, the group's lineup featured another future rock star, Primal Scream's Bobby Gillespie, on drums, and their music incorporated inspiration from acts such as The Shangri-Las, The Stooges and The Velvet Underground.
From there, The Jesus and Mary Chain streamlined their sound into something moodier and even poppier, which helped propel 1987's Darklands and 1989's Automatic to U.K. album chart success. The latter album even spawned two alternative radio hits in the U.S., as "Blues From a Gun" topped the Billboard modern rock chart, and "Head On" — soon to be covered by Pixies — peaked at No. 2. As the '90s progressed, The Jesus and Mary Chain continued to find success, including with 1994's "Sometimes Always," a duet with Mazzy Star's Hope Sandoval that peaked at No. 3 on the alternative chart.
Although the band split up in the late '90s, they reunited in 2007 and have toured regularly since then. In 2017, The Jesus and Mary Chain released a new studio album, Damage and Joy, the first album since 1998's Munki. The band has continued to enjoy notoriety and success thanks to some subtle pop culture nods: The 1985 song "Just Like Honey" was used in a pivotal scene in 2003's Lost in Translation, while Ben Gibbard namechecked the group in Death Cab for Cutie's "We Looked Like Giants."
