While the band are touring Europe in support of their latest album, they have a long-standing connection with Estonia, having appeared at the second ever Rock Summer festival back in June 1989, held at the Song Festival Grounds (Tallinna lauluväljak).

Brothers Jim and William Reid, the group's founders, said they were stunned at the size of the crowd back then; an estimated 100,000 people had come to see them play. "I've never seen such a large crowd in my life," singer Jim declared.

Being from central Scotland and playing in Tallinn at a time when Estonia was still nominally under Soviet occupation, reports of an apparent culture clash emerged, though these seem to have been overblown.

At that gig and accompanied by chainsaw-like guitar noise and speaker feedback, the band supposedly trashed some of the stage equipment, incurring damages to the organizers in the realm of thousands of Finnish marks – the currency used at the time, given it was an international festival.

Their actions reportedly upset several local luminaries; for instance famous Estonian singer Ivo Linna remarked at the time that a band with sound issues like that should not have been permitted on the main stage.

However, the reports later turned out to be somewhat hyped, and in reality, a broken mic stand was the sole casualty from the band's set.

Formed in East Kilbride in 1983 and relocating to London the following year, there is more than one origin story on the band's enigmatic name, including that it derived from an offer which appeared on a cereal box at the time. Jim Reid was reportedly elected singer after losing, or winning, a coin toss.

The Jesus and Mary Chain disbanded in 1998, but reformed to start actively touring again a decade later A documentary and autobiography are also awaited.

Their eighth studio album, "Glasgow Eyes," was released in March this year, kicking off a European tour that will bring them to Estonia for the first time since the 1989 gig, and in fact is the only Baltic states' date for them.

The band is also marking the 40th anniversary of release of their debut single, "Upside Down."

The Jesus and Mary Chain appear at the Alexela Concert Hall in Tallinn on August 21.

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