The Divine Comedy

Comprised of vocalist and guitarist Hannon, bassist John McCullagh, and drummer Kevin Traynor, the earliest carnation of The Divine Comedy was a guitar led indie rock group in a similar vein to R.E.M. The band’s debut EP “Fanfare for the Comic Muse” was released in 1990 and was supported by a modest tour, including an opening slot for My Bloody Valentine. With the addition of vocalist John Allen in 1991, which led to the release of a couple EPs “Timewatch” and “Europop”, the band moved to London, England, where they would commonly be the support act for Suede at club gigs.

Subsequent to the commercial flop of “Europop” the band split up, however Hannon decided to move back to Londonderry and continue The Divine Comedy name as a solo act. Hannon’s debut album “Liberation” was distinctively British, and undeniably art pop, and features strong influences by F. Scott Fitzgerald, playwright Anton Chekhov and William Wordsworth. The album earned positive critical response, making a number of year-end lists, despite the lack of commercial sales.

The Divine Comedy’s sophomore album “Promenade”, released in 1994, highlighted a development of Hannon’s songwriting and musical compositon, heavily influenced by Michael Nyman's classical style. The concept album about a day of two lovers made the indie rock genre more acceptable in the UK, alongside the likes of Oasis and Pulp, however chart and commercial success proved ever elusive.

This trend seemed to be withering out with the release of the Divine Comedy’s third studio album “Casanova” released in early 1996. Again earning warm words from the musical press, the album led to the swelling of Hannon’s fan base with the entrance into mainstream media with an appearance on Chris Evans’ TFI Friday television show. The song he performed on the show “Something for the Weekend” later entered the charts at No. 14, followed by “Becoming More Like Alfie” which peaked at No. 27.

Hannon is also known for his soundtrack work, having written and performed the theme music for the sitcom “Father Ted”, the BBC technology show “Tomorrow’s World” and the comedy series “The IT Crowd”. “A Short Album About Love”, released to coincide with Valentine’s Day 1997, had the strongest initial sales success of any previous album and again featured a strong string presence. To celebrate 10 years of existence the album “A Secret History” was released as Hannon made contributions to Tom Jones’ “Reload” and Ute Lemper’s “Punishing Kiss”.

At the wake of the new millennium, Hannon, along with his seven strong band, signed a record deal with Parlophone and released the album “Regeneration”. In a wish to play down their tongue-in-cheek and suave image, Hannon ditched his notable suit and the band hired famous producer Nigel Godrich. Like The Divine Comedy’s early albums “Regeneration” became respected and revered by music critics but again lacked significant commercial response. The band soon split up, however after only a year, Hannon was back on the road touring the U.S., the UK and Ireland, with The Divine Comedy and Ben Folds.

In 2004, The Divine Comedy, again a solo project of Hannon’s, released the album “Absent Friends”, which again became critically acclaimed. Subsequently The Divine Comedy released their ninth studio album “Victory for the Comic Muse” in 2006, featuring 28 other musicians, and “Bang Goes the Knighthood” in 2010.