Black Love passes through you like an ether, a ghost, the unformed someone who has you in their thrall, who you can never see in your mind’s eye, the person you love. The songs are a mysterious raga of bad feeling, love & power thwarted, only the desire for revenge burning in our hearts. The record is punctuated mid-course by Honky's Ladder—a reference to the mystery of Jacob's ladder, God's covert intervention in our lives—angels that traverse between His Realm & our world, are they interceding for our benefit or are they thieves in the night? It is also a fuck you raga—satan whispers in your ear, come hither, be true, set the fire. Black Love is the most obsessively realized of the Whig records, the dark horse of the family, the one that does not compromise, from the crime scene photos to the ones of beauty, the band dressed as Italian hoodlums. It reminds me of Led Zeppelin’s Presence which I also hold in reverence for many of the same reasons. It is the record that continues to unfold after the hundredth listening. The photo includes my original SubPop copy, the Elecktra press release with promotional photo, the EPs of B-sides and period posters. I saw the band play the album live in its entirety during the Dave Rosser benefit concert on December 10th. Being in that audience made me feel like a member of a tribe. I have the reissue too but this is my true love. #theafghanwhigs #afghanwhigs #inspades #gregdulli #johncurley #daverosser #blacklove #showmeyours #blacklove25thaniversary #sorryaboutthelatepostbutigotsick (at The Saenger Theatre)
