Miracle Legion was an American

college rock College rock was the alternative rock music played on student-run university and college campus radio stations located in the United States and Canada in the 1980s. The stations' playlists were often created by students who avoided the mainstream ...

band formed in 1983 in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...

. They earned modest renown, especially in their native

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

region, but also in the UK, where they were feted by music media such as '' NME'' and ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...

''.

1983–88

The original lineup consisted of singer/guitarist

Mark Mulcahy Mark Mulcahy is an American musician and front-man for the New Haven, Connecticut-based band Miracle Legion. The band earned modest renown, especially in their native New England region, but disbanded after a sad turn of events with their rec ...

, lead guitarist Ray Neal, drummer Jeff Wiederschall, and bassist Joel Potocsky. In their early stages they received frequent comparisons to R.E.M., more for their presence and overall sound than for their lyrical content. Other than a few similar-sounding songs, the respective bands' sounds were largely dissimilar lyrically and musically, and as time passed, the comparisons became less valid. Their first EP, ''The Backyard'', was financed by

Brad Morrison Brad may refer to: * Brad (given name), a masculine given name Places * Brad, Hunedoara, a city in Hunedoara County, Romania * Brad, a village in Berești-Bistrița Commune, Bacău County, Romania * Brad, a village in Filipeni, Bacău, Romania * ...

and released on the

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequo ...

co-op label Incas Records in 1984 and became a

college radio Campus radio (also known as college radio, university radio or student radio) is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively created or produced ...

hit. Their first full-length album, ''Surprise Surprise Surprise'', was released in 1987 on

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. Having successfully promoted and sold records by punk rock and early post-pu ...

, by which time Potocsky had been replaced by bassist Steven West. In 1988, ''Glad'' came out, consisting of new songs and live tracks (which included a guest appearance by

Pere Ubu Pere Ubu is an American rock group formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. The band had a variety of long-term and recurring band members, with singer David Thomas being the only member staying throughout the band's lifetime. They released their ...

). The same year, Miracle Legion's rhythm section departed, leaving only Mulcahy and Neal in the band.

1989–92

With the departure of drummer Wiederschall and bassist West in 1988, Mulcahy and Neal continued Miracle Legion as a duo, touring as the opening act for

The Sugarcubes The Sugarcubes ( Icelandic: Sykurmolarnir) were an Icelandic alternative rock band from Reykjavík formed in 1986 and disbanded in 1992. For most of their career, the band consisted of Björk Guðmundsdóttir (vocals, keyboards), Einar Örn Bene ...

. Their 1989 release of ''Me and Mr. Ray'', recorded at Prince's

Paisley Park Studios Paisley may refer to: *Paisley (design), an ornamental Persian pattern or motif commonly identified with the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire, in west Scotland People * Paisley (name), including a list of people with the name * Lord Paisley, in the ...

, reflected the band's new direction with its stripped-down instrumentation. The album yielded a single, "You're the One Lee", the video for which received modest rotation on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

's ''

120 Minutes ''120 Minutes'' is a television program in the United States dedicated to the alternative music genre, that originally aired on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then aired on MTV's associate channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003. After its cancellation, MT ...

'' alternative music show. That year, the band found a new rhythm section, drummer Scott Boutier and bassist Dave McCaffrey, and signed with the now-defunct label Morgan Creek Records, which funded their 1992 album ''Drenched'' produced by John Porter (of

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry—who became the band's lead vocalist and principal songwriter—and bassist Graham Simpson. The other longtime members are Phil Manzanera (guitar), Andy Mackay (saxophone ...

and

The Smiths The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. They comprised the singer Morrissey, the guitarist Johnny Marr, the bassist Andy Rourke and the drummer Mike Joyce. They are regarded as one of the most important acts to eme ...

fame). The band had a limited national tour that year in support of the new album, mostly playing clubs and other small venues. The song "So Good" off of ''Drenched'' was featured in the 1993 film '' The Crush''.

1993–96

After ''Drenched'', legal problems with the label left the band and its name in limbo. Interest continued, however, most notably in the form of a

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

offer for the band to write music for the television show '' The Adventures of Pete & Pete'', which was created by Miracle Legion fans

Will McRobb Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi are a team of American show-creators, writers and producers of television and screenwriters. They are best known as the co-creators of the award-winning and critically acclaimed Nickelodeon television series ''The A ...

and

Chris Viscardi Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi are a team of American show-creators, writers and producers of television and screenwriters. They are best known as the co-creators of the award-winning and critically acclaimed Nickelodeon television series ''The A ...

. Neal, disillusioned with the label experience, declined the offer; but Mulcahy accepted. He decided to do the project with Boutier and McCaffery under the name

Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude th ...

, a project which lasted three years. Their track " Hey Sandy" became the show's theme song, and the band themselves appeared in at least one episode (Season 1, "Hard Day's Pete"). In 1996, after the legal issues associated with their run with Morgan Creek were resolved, the band put out their final release to date ''Portrait of a Damaged Family'' on Mulcahy's own Mezzotint Records label.

Post-breakup

Since the final Miracle Legion album, Mulcahy has released five solo albums and engaged in various other projects including film soundtrack work and a musical. Neal began playing shows again in the Northeast, both solo and with Jellyshirts. Boutier and McCaffrey have been staple members of

Frank Black and the Catholics Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV (born April 6, 1965) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He is best known as the frontman of the alternative rock band Pixies, with whom he performs under the stage name Black Francis. Fo ...

. Wiederschall has maintained an active music career, playing for The Streams, Peacock Flounders, and

Baby Huey Baby Huey is a gigantic and naïve duckling cartoon character. He was created by Martin Taras for Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios, and became a Paramount cartoon star during the 1950s. Huey first appeared in ''Quack-a-Doodle-Doo'', a ''Nov ...

, as well as contributing to Mulcahy's 2001 solo album, ''SmileSunset''. In 2009, '' Ciao My Shining Star: The Songs of Mark Mulcahy'' was released as a tribute to Mulcahy's deceased wife and featured various artists covering Miracle Legion songs, as well as songs from Polaris and Mulcahy's solo career.

Reunion

The band reunited in the summer of 2016, touring the Northeast and Midwestern U.S. as well as the UK in support of the reissue of ''Portrait of a Damaged Family''. The tour continued until the spring of 2017, during which the band released a live album, ''Annulment''.

Discography

Studio albums

* '' Surprise Surprise Surprise'' (1987) LP/Cassette/CD(Japan Only) on Rough Trade Records * '' Me and Mr. Ray'' (1989) CD/LP/CS on Rough Trade Records * '' Drenched'' (1992) CD/CS on Morgan Creek Records,LP on Polydor Records * '' Portrait of a Damaged Family'' (1996) CD on The Mezzotint Label

Extended plays

* ''A Simple Thing'' (1983) demo album * '' The Backyard'' (1984) 12"/Cassette EP on INCAS Records and Rough Trade Records * ''Glad'' (1988) 12"/Cassette EP with

on Rough Trade Records * ''You're the One Lee'' (1989) 12" with

* ''We Are All Lost'' (1992) CD-EP on Morgan Creek Records (promo)

Live album

* ''Annulment'' (2017) CD on The Mezzotint Label

Singles

* "Little Drummer Boy" (1985) 7" Single on Incas Records * "Out to Play" (1992) 12" single on Morgan Creek Records (promo)

References

{{Authority control Alternative rock groups from Connecticut Jangle pop groups