The Afghan Whigs at Shepherd's Bush Empire

The Afghan Whigs

Ed Harcourt

Shepherd's Bush Empire, 24 September 2026

It's been far too long since I last saw the Afghan Whigs live but with the release of a new album (Soft Control) and, like The Jayhawks, celebrating their 40th anniversary this year, I knew I had to see Greg Dulli and the boys on this tour, and I'm so glad I did because this was an absolute blast of a show.

After having such a positive experience and a fantastic spot at the Rilo Kiley show at the same venue a couple of months ago, I was determined to get an equally good spot for the Whigs, so I turned up early and surprisingly there were only a few people ahead of me in the queue. 

The only worry was the fact that this time around the Whigs were selling super-expensive (well to me anyway) VIP packages for this tour where you got a Q&A with Dulli and early entry to the show (and some had the opportunity to view the actual gig from the side of the stage as well as seeing the band soundcheck). 

I personally find the cash grab of these VIP tickets a bit distasteful and a little disappointing: I don't think I would ever pay money to meet anyone no matter how much their music means to me and I also feel like I've already supported the band by buying a ticket to the show so I don't think I should have to pay even more to get early access. The side stage thing and soundcheck are kind of novel though, but I actually saw the band soundcheck for free years ago on the Black Love tour so nothing will ever beat that. Plus I've met Dulli for a couple of times and it didn't cost a thing.

However I do realise the band is getting older now and I can't imagine are super rich so I suppose if people are willing to pay hundreds for these things and feel it's worth it, I shouldn't knock it. I did wonder how many would be in the VIP queue and in the end I would say there was about 15 or so who paid for this experience (including one super dedicated lady wearing a special Afghan Whigs dress in white) and they did indeed get to enter about five minutes before us ordinary, poor folk.

Despite this I was surprised that I easily managed to get the exact same spot I had at the Rilo Kiley show, just off centre and pretty close to where Dulli would be standing.