Soul Coughing Kicks Off 1st Tour In 25 Years With Career-Spanning Set Near San Diego

Soul Coughing launched their first tour since disbanding in 2000 at Belly Up Solana Beach near San Diego on Tuesday. The eclectic alt-rockers dipped fairly evenly from their three 1990s studio albums.

Formed in 1992, Soul Coughing — frontman/guitarist Mike Doughty, keyboardist/sampler Mark Degli Antoni, bassist Sebastian Steinberg and drummer Yuval Gabay — got their start at the storied Knitting Factory in New York City. The quartet went on to release three albums: Ruby Vroom, Irresistible Bliss and El Oso.

The reunited band kicked off their first tour in 25 years at Belly Up Solana Beach with “Is Chicago, Is Not Chicago,” from their 1994 debut album, Ruby Vroom. Soul Coughing leaned heavily on Ruby Vroom, performing nine of the LP’s 14 tracks including “Casiotone Nation,” “Sugar Free Jazz,” “​​Bus to Beelzebub,” “Screenwriter’s Blues” and more. Click below to watch a clip of “Screenwriter’s Blues”:

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The band also dipped frequently from their 1996 record, Irresistible Bliss. Soul Coughing offered seven of the album’s 12 tracks including “The Idiot Kings,” “Collapse,” “Lazybones” and “Soft Serve” among others. Additionally, Soul Coughing touched on their final studio album, 1998’s El Oso, performing “Rolling,” “Down To This,” “St. Louise Is Listening” and more.

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The 19-song main set was followed by a two-song encore of El Oso’s “Circles” and Irresistible Bliss cut “Super Bon Bon.” Soul Coughing returns to Belly Up Solana Beach tonight. Scroll down for the band’s itinerary and ticket info.