Impure Thoughts are a rock’n’roll band, originally from glasgow, who settled in Berlin after periods in Ireland, France, the Czech Republic, and many open-ended European tours.

In Berlin, the band built up a strong fan-base through extensive touring and consistently great live shows in Berlin and around Europe, and developed a rich and varied repertoire of great original songs. The fruit of this was their second album, “Lights Ahead”, which was released on Cannery Row Records in 2006, featuring 14 songs bursting with energy, searing guitars, vocal harmonies and tunes you won’t be able to get out of your head.

“Timeless intelligent rock music” Twang Tone“
“A real rock’n’roll record. Respect the music, respect rock’n’roll, respect Impure Thoughts“ discover.de
“One of my best of 2006 choices. Alternative country in the mould of The Long Ryders. Good ‘ole fashioned rock n’ roll with a country twang” Podfather
“Perfected rock and roll”. Music News Scotland
“Impure Thoughts have the gift for the kind of gorgeous harmonies that will have you crowing along after just one listen….they rock!” (XL Music magazine, Dublin)

Impure Thoughts are Mark Mulholland, on guitar and vocals, Tony Rose on guitar and vocals, Joe Armstrong on bass and vocals, and Stephane Doucerain on drums. Mark, Tony and Joe all hail originally from Glasgow, where Tony and Joe had their first band together with Brendan O’Hare, later of Teenage Fanclub. They later met again in Edinburgh, where they formed a band, the Purple Rizla Experience, which attained cult status in the Edinburgh psychedelic underground music scene of the late 1980s. After a couple of years in Edinburgh, the band reformed in Grenoble, under the name of Les Indesirables (the name given to them by a helpful French police officer who told Tony and Mark that they were undesirable elements in town and that they should leave forthwith) For the next few years they were constantly on the move, with stints in France, Holland, Berlin, Edinburgh and Ireland.

The Rizlas eventually exploded after a violent disagreement between band members, but after a while Tony, Joe and Mark met up again in Prague, where they got together with a bunch of other transient musicians to form the Oul’ Bogwarriors from Hell, an anarchic, Pogues inspired acoustic band. In 1996 Joe and Mark formed a new band, Impure Thoughts, with another one of the Prague contingent, New York guitarist Sean Condron.

The band formed in Prague, then moved to Ireland to write material, rehearse and get a vehicle. This done, they set off on a tour which took in 10 European countries and ended up in Berlin, where the van finally gave up the ghost, and the band soon became involved in the Berlin music scene, and recorded their first album there, “Life and how to Ignore it”. Sadly, not long after the release of the album, a series of family tragedies meant that Sean had to return to the US.  Tony, in the meantime, had stayed in Prague, playing with the country/bluegrass band the Band of Jakeys, and moved to Berlin to replace Sean. The line-up was completed with the recruitment of Stephane, from Paris, whom Mark and Joe had met through collaborations with the late, lamented Nikki Sudden. Since then, the band toured extensively round Europe, both as Impure Thoughts, and as their acoustic alter ego, Two Dollar Bash, who released 4 albums.

The influences of Impure Thoughts are multiple, but a few of the bands that come to mind are: The Stooges, Television, Husker Du, The Replacements, Green on Red, the Jayhawks, Buzzcocks, Teenage Fanclub, The Band, The Undertones, The Byrds. The songs tend to be  fairly simple, catchy pop songs, but there is a punky energy in the performances, and one of the strengths of the band is the vocal harmonies. Vocal duties are split between Mark, Tony and Joe, alternating as to who is taking the lead. The songs are mostly written by Mark or Tony, while Joe often contributes melodies, and he and Stephane are very active in the arrangements of the songs. The songs are mostly autobiographical, drawing on the years of experience of travelling and playing music, with all the exhilaration, excitement, frustration and at times despair involved – all the ups and downs of a rock’n’roll lifestyle.