Soul Coughing Confirms Unlikely Reunion & Announces 1st Tour Dates In 25 Years

Soul Coughing will reunite for a tour marking the band’s first shows in 25 years. The original four members – Mike Doughty, Sebastian Steinberg, Mark degli Antoni and Yuval Gabay – will perform together this September and October.

The tour announcement follows cryptic postings on social media and a billboard that hinted at something new from Soul Coughing. Soul Coughing formed in New York City in 1992 and their debut album, Ruby Vroom, was released in 1994. The band’s second album, Irresistible Bliss arrived in 1996. A third and final Soul Coughing album, El Oso, came out in 1998.

Soul Coughing broke up in 2000. In the aftermath, Doughty spoke negatively about his experience with the band, making a reunion seem unattainable, until now.

“The end was acrimonious, but I just thought I’d give it a shot,” Doughty said of attempting a reunion. “So I just wrote an email to all three guys. It took a little convincing for some of them, but I was really gratified that everyone wanted to take part in that again — to see if we can be a great band again.”

“When he first reached out it was such a relief,” Steinberg, who performed with Doughty in 2022, stated. “We all have our part to play in any dysfunctional relationship. But it was an immediate relief. I could just say, ‘Hey, man, we did something wonderful. And I’m sorry, too. That was cool.’”

“I respect the music,” Gabay said. “I love what I did there. I love what the guys are doing — we were a good band.”

“I guess I just sort of came back to the music after lots of years of not listening to it,” Doughty added. “We were never imitated. What really struck me is just how individual all the instruments were. Mark, the sampler player, really did something playing those live samples that nobody ever did. And we just had the best rhythm section in the world.” And after all those years of practice, the band all agree they’re only going to sound better when they reunite.

“I think the music aged really, really well,” Gabay said. “The vibe is there and sounds as fresh as it did back them to my ears. I think that was part of the greatness of the band — we were not boring. If I go to see a band and they’re playing the songs just as like they do on the record, I find that boring.”

“We just decided to let bygones be bygones. You know, everybody had issues,” Doughty revealed. “Our fans are going to be shocked, man. I can’t even believe how much they’re going to be shocked.”

Soul Coughing will kick off the unexpected reunion tour on September 11 in Solana Beach (California). They will then head to Los Angeles for a show on September 13. Following that, the band will play in San Francisco on September 14 and September 15.

On September 17, they will take the stage in Portland (Oregon). The next day, September 18, they will perform in Seattle. The tour continues to Salt Lake City on September 20, and then to Denver on September 21. They will also perform in Boulder (Colorado) on September 22.

Soul Coughing will head to Minneapolis for a show on September 24, followed by a performance in Chicago on September 25. On September 27, they will play in Pittsburgh, and on September 28, they will perform in Washington, D.C. The month will conclude with a show in Boston on September 29.

In October, the band will perform in Philadelphia on October 3. The tour will then move to Brooklyn with shows on October 4 and October 5.

Soul Coughing reunion tour tickets go on sale on Friday, June 28 at 10 a.m. local time. Find links and full tour date information below: