As you'd expect from a band featuring musicians who pretty much invented the punk (and grunge) sound, Dark Carnival are hard, fast and explosive. One review described them as Sonic Youth meets Black Sabbath, which is fairly accurate, but to paraphrase a well-known saying - you can take the guitarist out of the Stooges, but you can't take the Stooges out of the guitarist!
Their first release was the live recording 'Welcome To Show Business', which was recorded at a benefit concert in 1987 to enable Stiv Bators family to give him a decent burial. The gig featured Ron and Scott Asheton as well as Cheetah Chrome from the Dead Boys, and the performance was a mix of Dark Carnival originals and Stooges/Dead Boys songs. Next, the band toured Australia, selling out venues across the country.
Following this, things seemed to go quiet for a long period, as Niagara pursued her artistic career to the detriment of her musical commitments. Ron was involved in various projects and a Stooges re-union was even rumoured in the late '90's, but Iggy had bad mouthed his fellow Stooges in the press for years which made this an unlikely prospect.
Eventually, 'THE LAST GREAT RIDE' was released on Sympathy For The Record Industry Label in 1997, and more live dates followed. A recording of a Halloween show in New York from later that year appears to be the last known release, which is available only via Niagara's own website at www.niagaradetroit.com.
IF YOU LIKE THESE, YOU'LL LIKE DARK CARNIVAL: Iggy & the Stooges, Dead Boys, Destroy All Monsters, New York Dolls, Hanoi Rocks, The Damned, Stiv Bators, MC5, The Hives, The Datsuns.