Virgin Prunes

I’ve never been a great fan of the stadium rock stylings of U2, who have selected the tracks on this months Mojo magazine CD, but I don’t mind their taste in music.

Members of the Virgin Prunes and U2 grew up in Dublin together. As teenagers, they formed a society called the Lypton Village - a group of like-minded people united in their unease at the conventions of contemporary suburban life. Members were given Village names - Gavin Friday, Guggi, Pod, Bono Vox, The Edge - to represent their “true” character. Around 1977 two bands emerged from the general vibe of the Lypton Village, U2 and the Virgin Prunes.

Once described as “an infernal roller coaster through Throbbing Gristle’s most malevolent moments with heavy doses of dissonant Stooges-style string-tension testing”, Virgin Prunes feature The Edge’s brother Dik on guitar. Formed in Dublin in 1977, the Prunes and U2 have been described as the flip side of the same coin. Bono and Prunes frontman Gavin Friday also collaborated on the soundtrack to In The Name Of The Father in 1994.

Virgin Prunes - Pagan Lovesong