The Gutter Twins is the latest project of Greg Dulli, formerly of the Afghan Whigs and also the Twilight Singers, and Mark Lanegan, formerly of Screaming Trees, Queens of the Stone Age, and occasionally the Twilight Singers.

Gutter Twins have a great album out called Saturnalia and are currently touring. I caught them at the Avalon, which is a Hollywood venue I hadn’t been to before. I’m generally shy of LA venues, they can be rather lame, but the Avalon was nice. They didn’t even search my bag for a camera. Cameras were allowed! Holy cow. The venue holds about 1200, so it’s one of the medium-sized venues in town. The floor is standing only, and there’s a balcony with seating, but I didn’t go up there, so I don’t know if it’s open to anyone or if they only allow people who order drinks up there.

Their set seemed rather short. Only about 13 songs, most of them straight off the album. There were a few unexpected treats sprinkled in. They started with “The Stations,” “God’s Children,” and “All Misery/Flowers,” which also happen to be the first three songs on the album. Then they did a Massive Attack cover called “Live With Me,” which was great. Then some more from the album—”Seven Stories Underground,” “Idle Hands,” and “Bete Noir.” It’s funny because I want to say that “Bete Noir” is my favorite off the album, but the truth is, I want to say that about almost all the songs on the album. My favorites are the ones Mark Lanegan sings lead on, though. They trade off singing lead from song to song, and sometimes trade off within a song, too. Their voices are both very raspy, but Mark’s is incredibly low and warm. I love to hear them harmonize.

Next up was a Jose Gonzalez cover called “Down the Line.” Fantastic song, makes me want to check out Jose even more. Then came “I Was In Love With You,” from Saturnalia, which Greg started out by singing a few lines from Zep’s “When the Levee Breaks.” That was cool. Then they did an old traditional folk/blues song called “St. James Infirmary Blues,” with Mark singing lead—perfect showcase for his voice. It was excellent. Then another cover, this time “Belles,” originally by a band called Vetiver. Another band I now want to check out.

They closed with “Each to Each” and then “Front Street,” which are also the closing two tracks on their album. “Front Street” was a great one to end with, but I couldn’t believe it when they left the stage and a roadie signalled the house to turn the lights on and put music on the PA. The rest of the crowd couldn’t believe it either, and most of us hung around, cheering and waiting for an encore. I didn’t leave until I noticed the security guy next to me talking on his radio and then confirming it was over, the band wasn’t coming back out. No encore?!

The band seems in good shape, although Greg mentioned the bassist was there straight from the hospital. Greg got the crowd clapping along a couple times and seemed in a good mood. Mark was his typical self—every time I’ve seen him live, he plants his feet, grasps the microphone, and doesn’t budge an inch. But his voice is enough for me, I don’t need him doing anything but singing. If you’re not familiar with their sound, it’s basically Afghan Whigs or Twilight Singers, with Mark Lanegan participating on lead vocals. Lots of swirling sounds going on—two guitarists, two keyboards, bass, drums, and then two singers—it’s a lot to take in. I’m glad I got to see it all live, it cements the music more in my mind and I can enjoy the album even more now. I’ll post “Idle Hands” to the radio.blog.