While they may have found most of their fame in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s due to their mega hits “Under the Milky Way,” “Metropolis,” and “Reptile,” The Church proved they are incredible in this decade when they dropped “The Hypnogogue” in 2023 (its companion album, “Eros Zeta and the Perfumed Guitars” was released this year).
The supporting North American tour allowed US audiences to experience the atmospheric, psychedelic concept album from the Australian band, plus front-man Steve Kilbey’s incredible storytelling.
The Church are headed back to our shores this summer, this time for a co-headlining tour with Afghan Whigs. The tour kicks off June 18th and makes three stops in SoCal in July. The magnetic storyteller himself, Mr. Steve Kilbey shared details of the tour ahead.
Traci: How are you, sir? Where are you?! That looks sketchy!
Steve: I’m good. I’m in a garage in Santa Barbara. Help.
Traci: (laughing) I will come rescue you after this hopefully painless interview.
Steve: I hope it is not painless or I’ll have a fit in a tantrum.
Traci: Ok then, I’ll bring out the Dark Web questions! I am so excited to talk to you because last year I was incredibly fortunate to see you close out your tour in the cave in Tennessee.
Steve: Wow. What a gift.
Traci: That was amazing.
Steve: The night was so full of significance. It was just unbelievable. It was too much. It was a mind-blowing gig for us as well, and to play there and be part of that. What a venue. Yes, indeed. Unforgettable. Unforgettable. One of the most unusual and wonderful gigs I’ve ever done.
Traci: “The Hypnogogue,” in a cave, with your storytelling was just an incredible experience, and I’m so glad I got to be a part of.
Steve: That really makes me happy. Playing wonderful music, a bit of some stories around it and wonderful venue. What more could you want? That’s what it’s all about. And people came away from there so happy. And then I just go, “Wow, made all those people happy.” It’s a good feeling. Yeah, but that was a very special night, definitely.
Traci: Even without a cave, you are such a dynamic storyteller. You could do it in the garage there in Santa Barbara.
Steve: Well, I probably will end up doing it in the garage eventually, I’m sure!
Traci: All of your stories were amazing about the album, plus songs from past albums. Are you ready to do it again and go out on the road this summer with Afghan Whigs?
Steve: Yeah. It’s hard to know. Bands touring together, it’s good on paper when it happens and when it works. It looks really good, but sometimes it’s just not right. The music isn’t right. However, I believe although the Afghan Whigs, the music and Greg (Dulli) is very different as a singer and a front-man and lyrics, I really believe there’s something about them and something about us that their fans will enjoy us and our fans will enjoy them. There might be a few disgruntled on either end going, “That’s not the thing I like,” but I think in our different ways, we can appeal to the same people with no contradiction.
He continued, I think their music, it’s nothing like ours, but it adheres to certain things. The lyrics are complex and they are ambiguous. I love the way Greg, his songs – there’s layer upon layer of his characters. They’re never one dimensional. The characters in his songs are complex and the problems they’re having are complex. The music is never just the obvious usual thing. There’s always some changes in it. Although they’re using this, I think they have the same stand as The Church has. Within the realm of classic rock, what rock and roll is, we try and push that envelope a bit. I think touring with them should be on paper a really good idea. Of course, it could all go wrong. And the Afghan Whigs fans may hate The fucking Church, and every night be pelted with tomatoes. And next time you say, “Hey, you got that one wrong, didn’t you, Kilbey?”
Traci: How did it come about for you guys to tour together? Are you guys friends?
Steve: Yes. Okay. The story of Steve and Greg in one quick word. Well, let a sentence. A guy made a mix playlist for me on a CD when people used to burn CDs. Remember when you could buy a laptop and you could burn a CD of your songs, songs you like, and give them to people? Back in those days, someone gave me a burnt CD and it had all these different things on it. Every now and then, the Afghan Whigs would come on, or Greg Dulli and The Twilight Singers, or just Greg, his solo album as well. I started thinking, “Oh, I really I love this.”
He went on, I found out about it, started actually sitting down and listening to it all and figuring out what it all was. Around that time, we met up and Greg liked The Church. He came to Australia and we were going to do some stuff together. We wrote a couple of good songs. We didn’t write as much as we could have, but we did write a couple of good songs. That was it. I recorded one of those songs on one of my solo albums, and that’s really it. Every now and then I see Greg. I came to L.A. and San Francisco, and we did a couple of solo shows together where we did some of my songs, some of his songs. I would say Greg and I are friends, definitely.
Traci: Then you guys should have fun together on the road.
Steve: Well, you’d hope so, wouldn’t you?
Traci: Although traveling with someone you never know, huh?
Steve: Well, touring with someone really can put the strain on your relationship. Even with the guys in your own band and with other bands. I hope that when it’s all over, everybody’s still friends. I know when you’re doing completely your own shows, it’s your gig. You call all the shots and when you’re sharing it with another band, there’s some complex things that have to be taken into consideration. I realized that for the extra value for money people are going to get for seeing two bands of a similar thing in one show, it’s something I haven’t done for a while now. I have to work with somebody else, get around their sound checks and dressing rooms and traveling.
After a pause, he continued, I hope that all works out. I hope I don’t tread on somebody’s toes in the corridor. That’s what I’m talking about. When some little thing happens with another band and one of your roadies accidentally insults one of them, or they all ordered cashew cheese in the fridge and you guys came in the dressing room and ate all the fucking cashew cheese. We were on tour with a band from England in 1988, and the New Musical Express said, “Is this band the biggest band in England?” They were called The Mighty Lemon Drops. We had a falling out with them when we came off stage one night and they’d eaten all our chocolate.
Traci: Chocolate?
Steve: Well, we had this chocolate that our guitarist ordered every night. And when he came off stage, The Mighty Lemon Drops had eaten some – or so he alleged – and there was quite a scuffle. Quite a scuffle.
Traci: I admit I would fight over chocolate. Will you guys headline one night, then they’ll headline a night, go back and forth?
Steve: This is another hurdle. This is another hurdle to get over. I believe that apart from one gig, we are going on second every night. But that doesn’t represent anything of how I see it. I really see it as completely a co-thing. This is really equal. It’s not a lot of people I think are in the same ballpark as songwriting as I am, but Greg definitely is. Greg is a really inventive songwriter. So to me, this is real. That’s what I’m thinking of, when I was struggling for before, to maintain all equality and make sure everybody understands and knows as two bands putting their heads together and giving people a really good, I think… I don’t know.
He went on, Once upon a time, in my youth, living in Australia, it seemed to me there were all these great packages touring America and England, where I didn’t have any chance of getting to. But you would see these wonderful bands that I really loved. I read once, Genesis were touring America and Television were opening up for them. Later on, I met Tom Verlaine from Television. He said that was a dreadful double to do. But still, I would have been excited to see it when I was a kid. So theoretically, this idea of the double bill, I think people should be really happy about this one. The people who like this thing.
Traci: I think it’s more bang for your buck to see two amazing bands and true music fans enjoy various styles. I don’t think the two bands have to sound the same.
Steve: For everything that happens as people, in the band, I agree amongst ourselves. Some people in the band I think we should do more standing venues, and I think we should do more sitting venues. Actually, I like venues where people can sit and stand, where they have the option. I don’t think people want to have to only stand. But everything that happens, it’s good to tour with another band. It’s good to tour on your own. It’s good to sit. It’s good to stand. It’s good to play long sets. It’s good to play short sets. Good to play bars. Good to play theaters. It could be good to play arenas and stadiums and big festivals. With every gig that comes along, there’s a new thing to consider. I reckon it’s going to be good. People will go, “Yeah, I’m glad I went to that.”
Traci: You released “The Hypnogogue” last year, then you have the companion album, “Eros Zeta and the Perfumed Guitars” that just came out this year. A summer tour. What else is going on?
Steve: Jesus, that’s enough, isn’t it?
Traci: (laughing) Sorry! I thought I saw something else…
Steve: Okay. Let me say this. There’s “The Hypnogogue,” there’s “Eros Zeta and the Perfumed Guitars,” and then I wrote the novella, “Eros Zeta and the Hypnogogue,” which is the book about all of this. And then within that book, Eros Zeta talks about his hero who is now dead and gone, who had a band called Pandora Mod Z Art. A few months ago, I actually made an ERP of Pandora Mod Z Art, how I imagined it to be, and I put that out as well. There’s actually four things you can get of “The Hypnogogue” at the moment. That is two LPs by The Church about “The Hypnogogue,” a book about “The Hypnogogue,” a book of fiction, and now an ERP that’s like a companion piece as imagining the hero’s hero.
Traci: Are you going to do an audiobook version of it?
Steve: I should. That would be a sensible thing to do, but can you imagine sitting there? Can you imagine getting in the studio and you sit down? “It was a bright, sunny day and white clouds skitted across the azure blue sky…”
Traci: I would listen! I love your stories.
Steve: I wish it I could just go like that and it would appear. The actual reading of it, I reckon I’d get really restless and angry and probably end up donging someone who was involved. You know, whoever was there, I’d have an argument with. I’d read a page and I go, “Oh, that’s enough. Let’s go to the coffee shop and smoke a joint.”
I agree that sounds like a better choice! We do have a nice batch of media to consume from The Church, so we will not force Mr. Kilbey into a studio to narrate a book at this time.
Instead, make your plans to catch The Church when the tour kicks off June 18th. SoCal residents can aim for July 11th at The Observatory North Park in San Diego, July 12th at House of Blues Anaheim, and July 13th The United Theater on Broadway in Los Angeles.
