Gutter Twins

Greg Dulli, of Afghan Whigs fame, seems to be in a nostalgic mood lately. Last year, his old band was the subject of a retrospective, and to mark the occasion, the Whigs reconvened to record two new tracks for inclusion on the album. This year, Dulli has returned to the label that launched his former band's career, rejoining the Sub Pop stable as one half of the Gutter Twins. The group features not one but two '90s alt-rock luminaries, the other being former Screaming Tree and current serial collaborator Mark Lanegan. The duo's debut record, Saturnalia, delivers the dark, smoldering torch songs you would expect, albeit perhaps not in the way you would expect. Guitars are replaced by foreboding string arrangements that prove quite the complement to Dulli and Lanegan's whiskey-soaked, back-alley tales. This is certainly familiar terrain for Dulli, but fortunately, nostalgia and novelty are not mutually exclusive. With Great Northern. 18+.
Sat., March 8, 6 p.m., 2008