The Divine Comedy | Artist
The Divine Comedy is a UK chamber pop band formed 1989 in EnnisKillen, Northern Ireland, by frontman Neil Hannon. Hannon has been the only constant member of the group, playing, in some instances, all of the non-orchestral instrumentation except drums. Other long-serving members include Joby Talbot (piano), Bryan Mills (bass), Ivor Talbot (guitar) and Stuart "Pinkie" Bates (organ). Their debut album Fanfare For the Comic Muse (1990), which was heavily influenced by REM, was deleted due to lack of success. Undeterred, Hannon entered the studio again in March 1993, teaming up with co-producer/drummer Darren Allison to record the excellent Liberation album. With a diverse musical palette ranging from the tongue-in-cheek synth pop of "Europop", to the classical stylings of "Timewatching", it is also characterised by a plethora of literary references from the likes of F Scott Fitzgerald, Anton Chekhov and William Wordsworth. This led to a degree of critical acclaim, but commercial success still proved elusive. The band followed up with a string of consistently strong albums over the next few years: Promenade, Casanova, A Short Album About Love and Fin de Siècle. After the somewhat low key Rarities in 1999, the band came back strongly with two more superb releases with Regeneration (2001) and Absent Friends (2004). The band continues to release new work to the present day but disappointingly, despite their consistently excellent body of work, mainstream success continues to elude them. Neil Hannon has also taken part in various side projects: he recorded "Perfection As a Hipster", included in the God Help The Girl soundtrack, a musical film by Belle and Sebastian frontman Stuart Murdoch, as well as the album The Duckworth Lewis Method, together with Thomas Walsh of Pugwash. In March 2007 Neil Hannon's relationship with Parlophone came to an end and Hannon began releasing works on his own Divine Comedy record label.
Artist Website: thedivinecomedy.com
Featured Albums: The Divine Comedy
Related Artists: The Duckworth Lewis Method, Pugwash
Video Clips: To the Rescue, Norman and Norma, National Express
