Iconic ‘90s rockers coming to Alabama, celebrating 25th anniversary of hit album
Get ready to be happy, if you love ‘90s rock. Everclear is going on tour this fall, and the band’s founder and prime mover, Art Alexakis, is promising a set list filled with hits.
Two Alabama dates are on the agenda: Oct. 24 at the WorkPlay soundstage in Birmingham, and Oct. 25 at The Plant in Dothan. Tickets for both shows go on sale Friday, April 26, via the venue websites. Prices for general admission tickets are TBA, but pre-sales are underway for VIP tickets and meet-and-greet packages at WorkPlay ($125 and $225, plus service charges) and The Plant ($149.51 and $267.06, fees included).
Everclear has announced 31 dates for its fall tour, Sept. 13 through Nov. 2, on a bill with Marcy Playground (who gave us “Sex and Candy”) and Jimmie’s Chicken Shack (MTV favorites with “High”). The tour is meant to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Everclear’s “Songs from an American Movie Vol. One: Learning How to Smile.”
The platinum-selling album, which peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard 200 chart, was released in 2000. If Alexakis is slightly ahead of schedule for the record’s silver jubilee, there’s a reason for that. “Songs from an American Movie Vol. One” was in the works in 1999, as Alexakis noted in a press release, and he’s pointing to that with the tour. Also, Everclear plans to release a vinyl edition of the album later this year on Intervention Records, date TBA.
READ: Art Alexakis, A ‘90s alternative-rock survivor, tells all
“This will be a great time to celebrate our album ‘Songs From An American Movie Vol. One,’ which was created 25 years ago,” Alexakis said in the release. “A lot of these songs we haven’t played in a while or, in some cases, we’ve never played live before. We’ll of course be playing the hits and fan favorites too. It’s going to be a fun show for both old school and new fans alike.”
See the full list of Everclear tour dates here.
Everclear, formed in the early ‘90s, produced a slate of dynamic music throughout the decade and beyond. The band came to fame with albums such as 1995′s “Sparkle and Fade” and 1997′s “So Much for the Afterglow,” and produced hit singles such as “Everything to Everyone,” “Santa Monica,” “Heroin Girl,” “I Will Buy You a New Life” and “Wonderful.”
“Songs From An American Movie” actually has two volumes, both released in 2000 and spearheaded by Alexakis. The first volume, “Learning How to Smile,” is said to be heavily influenced by 1970s pop music. (It includes the hit single “Wonderful” and a cover of Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl.”) The second volume, subtitled “Good Time for a Bad Attitude,” has a darker hard rock emphasis, and was not as successful as its predecessor.
In an interview with eonmusic, a British website, Alexakis revealed that he initially intended to combine the two records into a double album, but the band’s management pushed for two separate releases. Alexakis said he reluctantly agreed, but later regretted the decision. He evidently prefers the first volume, hence his emphasis on that record on the fall tour.
“In retrospect, I would have … taken all those songs and like gotten rid of six songs — including ‘Unemployed Boyfriend’ — and it makes a pretty good record, of just eighteen to twenty songs,” Alexakis told eonmusic. “It would have been a great double record, and it would have been double platinum, all that stuff. But, you know, it was an idea at the time, and we did something bold and different, and there are really good songs on both of them. But I think the first record is pretty great.”
Everclear has a significant history of concerts in the Birmingham area, including shows at the BJCC Arena, Oak Mountain Amphitheatre, WorkPlay theater, Jubilee Joe’s Crawfish Boil, the Schaeffer Eye Center Crawfish Boil and more. The band also has played at Gadsden Riverfest, Alabaster CityFest, the National Shrimp Festival in Gulf Shores, Mars Music Hall in Huntsville and more.
Alexakis, 61, has performed in Alabama as a solo artist, as well. He’s long been the face of Everclear, as the band’s founder, frontman and primary songwriter. Along with Alexakis, Everclear’s current lineup features guitarist Davey French, bassist Freddy Herrera and drummer Brian Nolan.