Black Lips

A Brief Biography of Black Lips (2000-2008)

While still teenagers, they formed in 2000 after bassist Jared Swilley left the Renegades, and guitarist Ben Eberbaugh left the Reruns. Drummer Joe Bradley joined a few months later and completing the line-up was Robby Rebel on guitar and vocals. They released their first 7" ‘Ain’t Comin’ Back’ in early 2002 on their own label, Die Slaughterhaus; a name also given to the decrepit house they lived in in Atlanta.

By the time the second single ‘Freakout’ was released, Robby Rebel had left the band and was replaced by Cole Alexander. After a second single and a handful of out-of-control live shows that led to them being banned from several Georgia venues, they caught the attention of the late Greg Shaw at Bomp! Records, who signed the band to a recording deal.

They cut their self-titled first album by summer 2002, but before it could be released in December 2002, Eberbaugh was killed in a freak auto accident when a driver going the wrong way down the Ga.400 crashed into his car at a toll booth. According to Fulton County police reports, Jennifer Dawn Swierzynski, 29, was traveling northbound in the southbound lanes when her Toyota Camry crashed head-on into Eberbaugh's Ford Explorer. Both drivers died on impact. Cole commented: "Ben was driving on the highway and this lady - I think she was strung out on heroin, and she didn't have her lights on - she's going along the highway in the wrong direction. There was a head to head collision and they both died. What's weird as I had an amp in the back at the time. It was salvaged from the wreck and Ben's father gave it back to me, but now the reverb is stuck turned up all the way. I think his soul might have gotten trapped in the reverb tank. I really wanna use that amp for a song on the next record."

These events would go on to influence the song “How Do You Tell A Child That Someone Had Died”, a track featured on their 2007 CD Good Bad, Not Evil. The death occurred one day before the band were due to set out on an East Coast and Midwest tour. Believing Ederbaugh would have wanted them to continue, the band set out as a three-piece and made plans to add a new lead guitarist for a more extensive tour in 2003, scheduled to support the release of the bands debut album.

The band's released their debut album ‘Black Lips!’ on Bomp! Records in 2003 and by this time they had recruited the services of Jack Hines on guitar, a friend of the band members. His placement was short-lived as he was eventually replaced in 2004 by the bands current guitarist Ian Saint Pé, also a former Renegades band member.

They cut their 2nd and final album for Bomp! in 2004 with “We Did Not Know The Forest Spirit Made The Flowers Grow”. They then signed to In the Red for their 2005 record “Let It Bloom”.

The band began to gain notoriety for their crazy live shows that have included (in no particular order) vomiting, urinating in their own mouths, nudity, band members kissing, fireworks, and a chicken. They have slowly built a fanbase that appreciates their energy and style that is a rough mishmash of blues, rock, doo-wop, country, and punk.

Black Lips began to gain national attention in 2006 with features in Spin and Rolling Stone (as pick of the day in August 2006).  

Adam Shore, general manager for New York-based VICE Magazine, stumbled onto the Black Lips in late 2005 at a small underground club in Brooklyn called Magnetic Field. Shore had come to the club to see another act, the King Khan & BBQ Show. But it was the Black Lips with whom he fell in love and by 2007 Black Lips had signed to VICE Records, their newly launched record label.

With the proud catalogue number 'VICE 001', Black Lips released their first single for VICE Records, Not A Problem at the beginning of 2007.

Rolling Stone magazine have since labelled them as ‘ones to watch’ prior to the release of their 2007 offering Good Bad Not Evil. The band also got exposure in the New York Times for being the hardest working band during the March 2007 South by Southwest music festival in Austin, Texas, in which they played a dozen shows over a three-day period.

A trip to Tijuana, Mexico in the summer of 2006 followed to record a live album (released as ‘Los Valientes Del Mundo Nuevo’) and they returned with some amazing footage, some fist pumping rock songs and images, for better or for worse, that will live in people’s minds forever. “Zonkeys (a donkey painted like a zebra), crazy Mexican teens, mariachi bands, Tecate 40s, fights, pig piles, crowd surfing. All in the average night with the Black Lips.” – VICE Records description of events. Click here to see some awesome footage of the show.

In June 2007 they invaded both Israel and Palestine to help bring a little southern debauchery to the holy land. After playing for Israeli radio shortly after their arrival, the band travelled to the shore of the Sea of Galilee to sleep at some local kids' beach house, aka their completely undeveloped patch of sand. You can view some footage of the Israeli Radio show here.

“Tel Aviv loves hummus, not Hamas. Just a couple letters sours the goats girth of succulent milk.” - Black Lips

On September 11th 2007 they released their first studio album on Vice Records entitled "Good Bad Not Evil". The title Good Bad, Not Evil is inspired by the Shangri-Las song “Walk Right Up To Him (Give Him A Great Big Kiss)".

The album ranges from dirty psychedelic blues songs about Holy World War III “Veni Vidi Vicci” outright pop hits like “Katrina” (written the night the band found out that the Hurricane of the same names had devastated New Orleans) and Bad Kids (based around certain band members’ experiences with juvenile detention centres). There’s also the bruised, tender album closer “Transcendental Light”, a song written by Ian about discovering his mother’s body.

Cole Alexander: “On this album we were really inspired by ourselves, especially our first two albums. They really changed the way the whole game was played. I think our work really transcends all genres and continues to influences us all on a daily basis”

VICE Records describe the album as thus: “the album’s a fresh, exciting take on the wildest records of bands like 1960s Peruvian punk bands like Los Saicos, the Stones, 13th Floor Elevators and the raw pop exuberance of Cavern-era Beatles. It’s probably the most out-there, funnest album you’re going to hear all year.”

Black Lips also made their American national television debut in October 2007 on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and played 'O Katrina'. The O'Brien show has become one of the highest-rated non-sports programs of all time. Statistician’s estimate 45% of the country watched the show - more than 136 million people. It was also reported that not a single crime was committed in New York during the O'Brien broadcast.

In March 2008 Black Lips embarked on a European Tour.

In the Spring of 2008 The Raconteurs took the Black Lips out on tour as the main supporting act for their US dates.

Side Projects

Cole, Jared and Joe also play in a band called The Spooks, along with members of Deerhunter and The Kiwis. The Spooks have recorded an album which should be released in 2008 on the Die Slaughterhaus label.

Ian also plays in a blasphemous garage punk band called The Original Three. There is a full length record out on Empty records and singles out on SYA records (Italy) and Savage records (Sweden).

Jared plays in a band called The Gaye Blades. Rob's House Records has released two 7"s by The Gaye Blades.

Cole has also released solo material under the name Old King Cole Younger. There is one split 10" release of his material on Rob's House Records that features Bradford Cox of Deerhunter, under the name of Atlas Sound, on the other side.