The Divine Comedy is the alias for Neil Hannon, a British pop singer/songwriter with aspirations of becoming a New Wave fusion of Scott Walker, Morrissey and Electric Light Orchestra. During the early ’90s, he built up a strong cult following with a pair of idiosyncratic, critically-acclaimed records before his third album, Casanova, became a mainstream success in the wake of Brit-pop and Pulp’s popularity. “Becoming More Like Alfie” and “Something for the Weekend,” both pulled from Casanova, became hits after receiving significant airplay from Radio One DJ Chris Evans, and the Divine Comedy moved from British indie-rock favorites, to a minor mainstream cult in their own right.
Originally, the Divine Comedy was an R.E.M.-influenced guitar-driven trio, formed in Londonderry, Ireland by Neil Hannon (vocals, guitar; born in Londonderry, Ireland. November 7, 1970), George McCullagh (bass) and Kevin Traynor (drums). Inspired by R.E.M., the trio released an EP, Fanfare for the Comic Muse, in the spring of 1990 and supported the record with a few concerts, including a supporting slot for My Bloody Valentine. In 1991, John Allen joined the band as lead vocalist, and the group released the EP Timewatch, which was recorded when Hannon was still vocalist, that fall. The following year, they relocated to London, where they regularly supported Suede on club gigs. Produced by Edwyn Collins, the Europop EP was released later in 1992. It was the last recording the original line-up would release.
Following Europop, the Divine Comedy fell apart, and Hannon went back to Londonderry, where he began to write songs again. In 1993, he was signed to Setanta as the Divine Comedy and released Liberation to positive reviews. Promenade followed in 1994, again to positive reviews throughout the UK music press; it appeared on year-end lists from NME, Melody Maker, and Q, among others. Following the release of Promenade, Blur, Oasis and Pulp made British indie-rock acceptable for the pop mainstream, and the Divine Comedy benefitted from their progress. Released early in 1996, Casanova was greeted with enthusiastic reviews and it slowly began to build an audience. “Something for the Weekend” became a staple on Chris Evans’ radio show, and he had the Divine Comedy on his TFI Friday television show, making it the first TV appearance for Hannon. When it was released as a single a month later, “Something for the Weekend” entered the chats at 14. Soon, Hannon was appearing not only on the cover of Melody Maker, but there were articles about him throughout mainstream press, from The Guardian to Just Seventeen. “Becoming More Like Alfie” was released in August, and while it peaked at 27, it was nevertheless expanded the band’s auadience, as did “The Frog Princess,” which reached 15 in November. The Divine Comedy supported the final single with a tour with a 30-piece orchestra, culminating with a concert at Lond Shepherds Bush Empire, which provided the basis for the band’s next album, A Short Album About Love. Released to coincide with Valentine’s Day 1997, A Short Album About Love was greeted with positive reviews and the strongest initial sales of any Divine Comedy record to date.
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