After a five-year break from making new material together, Cincinnati rockers The Afghan Whigs return with its ninth studio album, How Do You Burn? The band’s third album since reuniting in 2012 was recorded at a distance during COVID lockdown, but it still sounds cohesive.
Sonically, How Do You Burn? is closely related to the other post-breakup releases. The Afghan Whigs has always blended hard rock with R&B into a distinct alternative flavor that is as much about grooves as riffs. On this album, the band leans into the R&B side, adds dashes of influences from a myriad of other genres, and goes a bit light on the rock.
That’s not to say there aren’t any standout rock tracks. Album-opener “I’ll Make You See God” packs a punch. Frontman Greg Dulli sings abstractly about lust over crunching guitars. “Come kiss the night awake,” he howls, his drone carrying over a heavy guitar riff that is hypnotic in its jerky rhythm and repetition. “You make the body wake; you make the body ache,” he sings in the chorus.
The opener is the only aggressive rock song on the album, though. For the rest, rock elements are infused into R&B and pop and play more of a supporting role. Such is the case with “A Line of Shots,” a mid-tempo pop rock song that pairs Dulli’s tremolo-drenched rhythm guitar with Jon Skibic’s jangling lead licks. “You hurt so long; here comes the dark moment,” Dulli sings in the densely layered chorus.
Dulli’s vocals have always fit the band’s unique sound perfectly — a captivating blend of power and sensuality. However, because there isn’t much heaviness on How Do You Burn?, Dulli’s raspy voice seldom goes into a fiery bellow, instead spending most of the runtime in a sultry croon.
The album reaches its peak at track four with the infectiously creepy “Jyja.” John Curley’s thudding bassline, a swirling synthesizer, and a piano lick straight out of a horror movie create an ominous atmosphere. “Look for the evidence; forget the etiquette. I like to know where I’m going,” Dulli sings. The low, gravely voice of the late Mark Lanegan fleshes out the choruses and adds to the gothic vibe.
Lanegan also provides background vocals on another standout track, the vibrant, gospel-tinged “Take Me There.” For other songs, the band brought back frequent guest vocalists to add more heft. Susan Marshall, who sang on several songs on 1965, adds backing vocals to “Catch a Colt,” while Marcy Mays sings a duet with Dulli on “Domino and Jimmy.”
The latter is a late-album piano ballad where Dulli and Mays share opposing views on a failed relationship, with each taking the lead for one verse before coming together for the chorus, singing “you were lost inside my head” together in commiserating solidarity.
Album-closer “In Flames” is a soulful ballad based on Wurlitzer and strings that slowly builds in intensity. Dulli’s voice boils from soulful swagger to a raspy howl as the guitars crash into the mix, bringing the song to a violent crescendo, and then everything disappears but a single ringing violin note.
Aside from the opening track, How Do You Burn? lacks the raw intensity frequently found on early Afghan Whigs releases. But what it lacks in power, the album makes up for in intricate arrangements, dense compositions drawing upon the band’s unique alchemy of influences, and infectious beats. It’s an album that invites you to lean in, take in the musical layers, and appreciate a band that is still writing songs at a high level.
