In late 1985 Wayne Hussey and Craig Adams left The Sisters Of Mercy and formed The Mission and in early 1986 embarked on their first European tour, supporting The Cult. They released 2 singles independently, both reaching No.1 in the UK alternative charts, before signing a worldwide record deal with Phonogram (now Universal)
Their first single for the new label, “Stay With Me”, went straight into the UK chart at No. 30 followed by their debut album “God”s Own Medicine” at No. 14. Over the next eight years the band released six more albums and had a further 12 hit singles including anthemic classics such as “Wasteland”, “Tower Of Strength”, “Beyond The Pale”, “Deliverance” and “Butterfly On A Wheel”. Total worldwide album sales to date have now well exceeded 3 million.
During this period, The Mission enhanced their reputation as one of the best and most exciting live bands in the world winning countless accolades, and inspiring both lurid media stories and a fanatical following as they toured constantly including highlights like seven sold out consecutive shows at the Astoria Theatre in London, headlining the famous Reading Festival twice, and also playing with U2, The Cure and Robert Plant.
In 1994, the band parted company with Phonogram after a number of contractual disputes and signed their label “Neverland” to Sony Dragnet in Europe. Two years and two more album releases later, the band decided to call a halt to the general craziness of their existence to seek respite and well earned solace.
In 1999, fully reinvigorated, The Mission reunited and after a few spectacularly successful early shows, embarked on a year long tour that saw the band visit places as far flung as Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Mexico, USA, South Africa, Greece (Recon 2000 tour), including memorable appearances at the Eurorock and M”era Luna Festivals and which culminated in a successful European tour in November/December 2000.
In late 2001 The Mission released what many consider to be their finest album to date in “AurA”. It marked the beginning of a contemporary and exciting new era for the band and the welcome return of all of the band”s old swagger, relevance and confidence. The album reached No. 1 in the German alternative chart and stayed there for eight weeks. The band also embarked on a German tour as special guests of ”HIM” to coincide with the release of the album, quickly followed by their own very successful six week tour of Europe in early 2002.
In April of that year, The Mission returned to South America for proposed shows in Brazil, Argentina, Chile & Peru. Unfortunetly, during the course of their time in Brazil, original member Craig Adams decided that he was homesick and wanted to go home. So he did but Wayne Hussey continued on and played the remaining shows on his own with just an acoustic guitar. As soon as the South American tour was finished, the band repaired to the UK and found a replacement bass player and seamlessly carried on throughout the summer to play further successful shows in Spain, Portugal, Hungary, Ireland, Germany, USA, and the UK.
In 2003, the band prepared to embark on their next tour (Pilgrimage) which was take them once again across Europe. The new line-up of the band (Wayne being joined by Rob Holliday on guitars, Ritchie Vernon on bass and Steve Spring on drums) brought a new energy and dynamic to the band. They continued to wow crowds and critics alike who could not deny the enegy of the band in a live show was just as big as ever.
The band continued to tour during 2003 (Pilgrimage), 2004 (Breathen and Absolution) and 2005 (Lighting the Candles) with the interim periods seeing Wayne working on several side projects including those with Italian musicians, Volita Lux and the film Mercenario, resulting in the limited edition CD Single “Breath Me In”, which reached number one in the German DAC charts.
During the 2005 “Lighting the Candles” tour, a double DVD of the same name was released, the band’s first ever DVD release, to coincide with the tour. Packed with footage from live shows, video singles, archive and biography features, and behind the scenes footage, it has been critically acclaimed as one of the most complete video releases any band has released to date and was nominated in Germany for the equivalent of a Grammy. A remarkable achievement when it’s considered this was a self financed independent release and was nominated in the same category as new DVD releases by such artists as Madonna and Bon Jovi.
Early 2006 saw Universal Records release “Anthology – The Phonogram Years” – a compilation of some of the band’s finest work plus some rare and never heard before tracks, plus “Waves Upon the Sand / Crusade” DVD – a re-release of two Phonogram period Mission videos. Later followed by re-releasing the first four Mission albums, digitally remastered with bonus tracks and sleeve notes. All sold extremely well.
The Mission released their album ‘God Is A Bullet’ on SPV in April 2007. It would’ve been easy for the band to revisit past glories but they resisted. The Mission recorded a ‘forward looking’ album that was both brave and adventurous. It’s a ‘guitar’ album full of swagger, confidence, good tunes, and, in Wayne Hussey, a songwriter that was at the top of his game.
March 2008 saw The Mission close the curtain – for the time being at least, with Wayne Hussey disbanding the group to concentrate on solo ventures – with a sold out European tour which culminated with 4 shows at the London Shepherds Bush Empire. The band released ‘The Final Chapter’ DVD, which chronicled the the tour, and charted at number 6 in the UK DVD chart later that year.
2011 – And 3/4 of the original line-up of the band – Wayne Hussey, Craig Adams, Simon Hinkler – reformed with new drummer, Mike Kelly, to play a sold out European 25th anniversary tour which ended at London’s Brixton Academy, a show that was sold out a full 6 months in advance! Encouraged by the response of fans the band extended the tour to include South & North America and then went onto record, and release in late 2013, a brand new album, “The Brightest Light”, which garnered the best press reviews the band had received in years.
The Mission announce Peter Murphy and The 69 Eyes as their special guests for their 30th Anniversary UK shows.
To celebrate their 30th anniversary The Mission set out on their most extensive and ambitious tour since they reformed in 2011 and to coincide with the tour they will release a brand new studio album.
The 30th Anniversary European leg of the tour starts in Dublin on October 1st and includes the Whitby Goth Weekend on November 5th with Pete Murphy playing the October UK shows and The 69 Eyes the November dates.
Wayne Hussey exclaims “It’s with absolute honour and delight that I am able to tell you that Peter Murphy has agreed to play these 30th anniversary UK shows as very special guest of The Mission in October. Peter’s appearance will help make these shows the special events that we always wanted and hoped they’d be. And it’ll be great to reacquaint myself with an old friend……….
Following The Mission’s invitation to play with them, Peter Murphy said “I’m not only delighted but gearing up for a unique event all around. Look out!”.
While The 69 Eyes’ singer Jyrki 69 says “I remember the first time seeing the “Wasteland” video on TV. It hit me hard, I even got the issue of Smash Hits with Wayne on the cover. “God’s Own Medicine” is still one of my favourite albums and without no doubt The 69 Eyes wouldn’t sound like we do without The Mission. Can’t wait to get back to play in the UK.”
With the original members Wayne Hussey, Craig Adams and Simon Hinkler being joined by new drummer Mike Kelly in 2011 and armed by one of the most rabid fan bases in the world The Mission have continued to excite the legions with a slew of successful shows and tours. The Mission has sold in excess of 4 million albums and singles. They have garnered headlines in the worlds music press and not always for the quality and strength of their music.
However, with a new studio album set to be released later this year and this extensive tour The Mission enter their 4th decade in the rudest of health.
