Ed Harcourt
Shepherd's Bush Empire, 24 September 2026
It's been far too long since I last saw the Afghan Whigs live but with the release of a new album (Soft Control) and, like The Jayhawks, celebrating their 40th anniversary this year, I knew I had to see Greg Dulli and the boys on this tour, and I'm so glad I did because this was an absolute blast of a show.
After having such a positive experience and a fantastic spot at the Rilo Kiley show at the same venue a couple of months ago, I was determined to get an equally good spot for the Whigs, so I turned up early and surprisingly there were only a few people ahead of me in the queue.
The only worry was the fact that this time around the Whigs were selling super-expensive (well to me anyway) VIP packages for this tour where you got a Q&A with Dulli and early entry to the show (and some had the opportunity to view the actual gig from the side of the stage as well as seeing the band soundcheck).
I personally find the cash grab of these VIP tickets a bit distasteful and a little disappointing: I don't think I would ever pay money to meet anyone no matter how much their music means to me and I also feel like I've already supported the band by buying a ticket to the show so I don't think I should have to pay even more to get early access. The side stage thing and soundcheck are kind of novel though, but I actually saw the band soundcheck for free years ago on the Black Love tour so nothing will ever beat that. Plus I've met Dulli for a couple of times and it didn't cost a thing.
However I do realise the band is getting older now and I can't imagine are super rich so I suppose if people are willing to pay hundreds for these things and feel it's worth it, I shouldn't knock it. I did wonder how many would be in the VIP queue and in the end I would say there was about 15 or so who paid for this experience (including one super dedicated lady wearing a special Afghan Whigs dress in white) and they did indeed get to enter about five minutes before us ordinary, poor folk.
Despite this I was surprised that I easily managed to get the exact same spot I had at the Rilo Kiley show, just off centre and pretty close to where Dulli would be standing, so I felt pretty smug (even though I am still poor, but poor with a good view at least!).
Supporting tonight and for this whole European tour is a good friend of the band, Ed Harcourt, who tells us that this is in fact his eighth tour with Greg Dulli. I have indeed seen him opening for the Whigs before but the first time I ever saw Harcourt was back in 2001 at the ULU when his first album, Here Be Monsters came out, so I feel like I've been with Harcourt right from the beginning.
Tonight he comes out looking very dashing, with black and gold polka dotted shirt under a smart jacket, with lots of rings on his fingers, and after sitting behind the keyboards begins playing In The Embers Of A Dying Flame, a track from his new album Orphic, which sounds kind of haunting and atmospheric and showcases what an amazing pianist Harcourt really is.
I remember when Harcourt first came out, his music was still often cinematic, but felt softer and poppier, but in recent years his material seems a little darker and brooding, and that is definitely on display tonight. It makes sense that he fits in with the likes of Dulli and worked with people like Marianne Faithfull. When you hear him play you can just hear how talented he is and it's a marvel to watch his hands run over the keyboards.
After playing the title track to his 2016 album Furnaces, which really showcased his voice, he moves over to the centre of the stage and picks up an electric guitar, a telecaster, but as he is left handed it's odd to see him play it upside down. In fact even the strings are not reversed but yet he has no problem finger picking his way through a plaintive song called Shadowboxing, his voice ringing through the venue on the chorus.
He swaps the guitar for another rather eerie sounding track called A Ghost Walked Through Me, but this time he runs over to his laptop to start a backing track of drums and droning sounds, to give the song a fuller sound. Harcourt is obviously a pro playing by himself but it does make me think how good he'd sound with a full band.
He picks up a third guitar for the next song but a string breaks and he tells us he needed that string for the track, so gamely puts the guitar down and decides instead to play it on the keyboard. Incredibly he plays Loup Garou on the piano, showing just how talented he is that he could improvise and play the song on a different instrument perfectly and without a second of hesitation.
He returns to the guitar with the broken string and asks us if we want to hear a Mark Lanegan tune, which of course we very much do. But to help him he invites on Rick G Nelson, who has been playing with the Whigs, to play violin. Like at the Lanegan tribute a couple of years back, Harcourt plays a menacing but deeply beautiful version of One Way Street, made all the more atmospheric by Nelson's eerie violin playing. What a treat to hear him play it again and his voice sounded just right singing Lanegan's poetic lyrics.
For the final song, Until Tomorrow Then, Harcourt got one of those old-timey microphones, like an Elvis mic, that you hold right next to your mouth, and he jumped into the audience, initially next to me, at the barriers and was leaning over into the audience, seemingly singing right to the chap on my right. He then worked his work along the barrier until he reached the middle and was leaning right into the crowd as he sang for a proper interactive moment (those VIPers got their money's worth at that moment for sure!). Harcourt then jumped back on stage and back behind his keyboards and continued to hold the mic to his mouth and sing, as he added flourishes on the piano. It all sounded amazing and showcased what a fantastic performer he is. His opening set was a lot of fun.
More soon about the Whigs set!
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