The Wildhearts

New guitarist Jef Streatfield came onboard in October 1995, but the increasingly unstable Ginger continued his very public spiral out of control, squabbling with EastWest and threatening to split up the Wildhearts unless they were released from their contract. A nervous truce was finally struck when the band was offered the opening slot on AC/DC's 1996 tour of Europe; but plans to carry on with the second leg in America were squashed at the last minute when the label's U.S. division pulled their tour support. This proved to be the last straw, and they were finally dropped by EastWest, which re-released Fishing for Luckies later that year, along with a Best of the Wildhearts collection. The band stubbornly carried on, releasing two independent singles before signing with tiny Mushroom Records and issuing 1997's Endless, Nameless (a strange experiment in white noise which made them no friends). The band quickly disintegrated a short time later, and another collection of B-sides and leftovers entitled Landmines & Pantomines seemed to close the book on the Wildhearts' career. Though he tried to start from scratch a few years later with new group Silver Ginger 5, Ginger eventually reunited the "classic" Wildhearts lineup once again in early 2001; the reassembled band even released an album in the United States, Riff After Riff, in 2004. The following year, Ginger dissolved the band, citing a mixture of personal issues and a lack of commitment from within the group. He briefly joined Brides of Destruction as a guitarist before embarking on a solo career. As early as 2006, the Wildhearts were re-formed in order to play a show in Wolverhampton; they were joined by new bassist Scott Sorry (Amen). After the show, Sorry was made a permanent member, even appearing on their 2007 eponymous album, which was recorded in Tutbury Castle. They went on to record an album of covers, 2008's Stop Us If You've Heard This One Before, Vol. 1, which included renditions of Helmet, Fugazi, and the Distillers. Another studio album arrived in 2009, Chutzpah, accompanied by a mini-album, Chutzpah, Jr., the latter of which featured unused studio sessions and B-sides from the Japanese release of the former. Sorry left the band in 2009 and, combined with Battersby's retirement due to injury, effectively put the band back on hiatus; Ginger joined Michael Monroe's band as a guitarist and appeared on his 2011 album Sensory Overdrive. Wildhearts re-formed in 2012, bringing in John Poole to replace Sorry. Earth vs. the Wildhearts turned 20 in 2013, leading to a string of shows where they performed the album in full, followed by select hits; the gig at Nottingham Rock City was recorded for a live album, 2014's Rock City vs. the Wildhearts. The following year saw the 20th anniversary of P.H.U.Q., and they once again embarked to tour the album. They toured again in 2018 when Earth vs. the Wildhearts reached its 25th anniversary. After a 12-year wait, they released their ninth studio album, 2019's Renaissance Men, which saw Battersby come out of retirement to write and perform on the record. The Diagnosis EP was released in August of the same year, while late 2020 saw the release of a double-live album, 30 Year Itch, capturing the band on their 2019 tour. Ginger and co. returned in 2021 with their tenth studio album, 21st Century Love Songs. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia & Liam Martin

From 🇬🇧 United Kingdom