Originally a six-piece band from Buffalo, New York State, USA, Mercury Rev burst onto the music scene in 1991 to unanimous critical acclaim for their enterprising mix of Pink Floyd and Dinosaur Jr dynamics. However, the sounds produced by Jonathan Donahue (b. 6 May 1966, USA; vocals/guitar, ex-Flaming Lips), Dave Fridmann (b. David Fridmann, Buffalo, New York, USA; bass), Jimy Chambers (b. James Joseph Chambers; drums), Sean "Grasshopper' Mackowiak (b. 1967; guitar), Suzanne Thorpe (flute) and David Baker (vocals/guitar) were difficult to classify. Their debut album, Yerself Is Steam, although practically ignored in their native country, created the sort of snowballing press acclaim in the UK that has rarely been accorded a debut. The Melody Maker"s comment: "Universally acclaimed by UK critics as the draughtsmen behind the first, and so far only, great rock long player of 1991", was among the more conservative of the plaudits, and with only a handful of gigs under their belt they were to be seen filling support slots for artists such as My Bloody Valentine and, incredibly, Bob Dylan.
The music press saw Mercury Rev as the next step forward from the previous wave of influential US guitar bands such as the Pixies, Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr. However, the ability to capitalize on this flying start rested, rather precariously, on their ability to remain together as a collective unit. A variety of stories filtered through concerning their self-destructive, almost psychotic behaviour. Already banned from one airline due to Donahue trying to remove Mackowiak's eye with a spoon, another minor crisis concerned Fridmann's disposal of the band's entire advance for their "Carwash Hair" single on a holiday for his mother in Bermuda, without telling anyone. However, even by Mercury Rev's standards David Baker offered an unsettled musical visage, often simply stepping off the stage during performances to fetch a drink, and enriching the surreal nature of their songs with lines like: "Tonight I'll dig tunnels to your nightmare room" in "Downs Are Feminine Balloons'. This was drawn from 1993"s Boces, another complex journey through multitudinous musical motifs and styles, producing a sonic anomaly drawing on the traditions of left-field art-rockers such as Wire, Pere Ubu and Suicide.
Baker was eventually rejected when his behaviour became intolerable in February 1994, leaving him to concentrate on his solo project, Shady. Reduced to a quintet, See You On The Other Side provided no other evidence of a reduction in the band's talents, revealing instead a more focused, though no less exciting or adventurous, sound. The key tracks "Everlasting Arm" and "Racing The Tide' revealed a depth of songwriting talent that set Mercury Rev apart from many of their contemporaries, with the notable exception of the Flaming Lips and Mark Linkous" Sparklehorse. Additional instrumentation was provided on the album, and later on tour, by Jason Russo (bass), Justin Russo (keyboards) and Adam Snyder (keyboards).
Growing disillusionment, brought on by the lack of record company support for their experimental, neo-psychedelic music, saw the band's original members reduced to a core of Mackowiak and Donahue by the time they signed to V2 Records in June 1997. Mackowiak had used the spare time to retire to a monastery and then record a solo album, The Orbit Of Eternal Grace, featuring Jason and Justin Russo. Mercury Rev returned in 1998 with Deserter's Songs, a work of ethereal majesty that exposed the paucity of imagination prevalent in the contemporary rock scene. Engineered by Fridmann, the album also featured contributions from Levon Helm and Garth Hudson of the Band. The acclaim for this superb album was matched by the follow-up All Is Dream, a work of sobering, sumptuous beauty with a noticeably darker tone than its predecessor. The album was recorded by a stripped-down line-up of Donahue, Mackowiak and new drummer Jeff Mercel (who had also featured on Deserter's Songs), with Fridmann once again on hand to produce and add musical support.
Mercury Rev spent most of 2002 touring in support of All Is Dream before returning to the studio to begin work on a new album. During this period the various members were also involved in soundtrack and production work. Recorded by Donahue, Mackowiak and Mercel, with Fridmann producing and playing bass, The Secret Migration was released at the start of 2005.
