Miracle Legion
| Miracle Legion | |
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| Origin | New Haven, Connecticut, United States |
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| Years active | 1983–1996; 2016–present |
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| Website | Mezzotint.com |
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Miracle Legion is an American college rock band formed in 1983 in New Haven, Connecticut. They earned modest renown, especially in their native New England region, but also in the UK, where they were feted by music media such as NME and Melody Maker.
The original lineup consisted of singer/guitarist Mark Mulcahy, lead guitarist Ray Neal, drummer Jeff Wiederschall, and bassist Joel Potocsky. In their early stages they received frequent comparisons to R.E.M., more for their presence and overall sound than for their lyrical content. Other than a few similar-sounding songs, the respective bands' sounds were largely dissimilar lyrically and musically, and as time passed, the comparisons became less valid. Their first EP, The Backyard, was financed by Brad Morrison and released on the Bridgeport, Connecticut co-op label Incas Records in 1984 and became a college radio hit. Their first full-length album, Surprise Surprise Surprise, was released in 1987 on Rough Trade Records, by which time Potocsky had been replaced by bassist Steven West. In 1988, Glad came out, consisting of new songs and live tracks (which included a guest appearance by Pere Ubu). The same year, Miracle Legion's rhythm section departed, leaving only Mulcahy and Neal in the band.
With the departure of drummer Wiederschall and bassist West in 1988, Mulcahy and Neal continued Miracle Legion as a duo, touring as the opening act for The Sugarcubes. Their 1989 release of Me and Mr. Ray, recorded at Prince's Paisley Park Studios, reflected the band's new direction with its stripped-down instrumentation. The album yielded a single, "You're the Ōne-Lee", the video for which received modest rotation on MTV's 120 Minutes alternative music show. That year, the band found a new rhythm section, drummer Scott Boutier and bassist Dave McCaffrey, and signed with the now-defunct label Morgan Creek Records, which funded their 1992 album Drenched produced by John Porter (of Roxy Music and The Smiths fame). The band had a national if limited tour that year in support of the new album, mostly playing clubs and other small venues. The song "So Good" off of Drenched was featured in the 1993 film The Crush.
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