The Gutter Twins Are for Lovers, Sort Of

Considering Greg Dulli made his name venting about failed relationships with the Afghan Whigs, you’d think only the most jilted singles would attend his new band’s Valentine’s Day show. Not so! Against all odds, many of the mid-nineties nostalgists who packed into Bowery Ballroom last night for the first stop on Dulli’s tour with the Gutter Twins — his new collaboration with ex–Screaming Tree Mark Lanegan — brought actual dates.

At least Dulli and Lanegan had each other. For much of the set, Lanegan just stood stoically; Dulli, meanwhile, exhibited a bit more bravado, sneering through his cigarettes and buckling his knees under the weight of echoing guitar squall. The duo charged through the haunting slow-burners off upcoming debut Saturnalia and performed two covers: José González’s “Down the Line” and Massive Attack’s “Live With Me,” which Dulli recorded for the Twilight Singers’ covers album, She Loves You. Fans wanting to hear tunes from their earlier bands had to wait till the end. Dulli and Lanegan loaded the encore with sadomasochistic favorites like the Twilight Singers’ “King Only,” making it seem unlikely that either had a date lined up after the show. —Julia Simon