Jump to content

The Kooks

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by The Mad Hatter (talk | contribs) at 23:32, 29 September 2009 (Reverting vandalism). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For other uses, see Kooks (disambiguation).
The Kooks

The Kooks are an English rock and indie pop band formed in Brighton, East Sussex in 2004.[1] Formed by Luke Pritchard (vocals/guitar), Hugh Harris (lead guitar), Paul Garred (drums) and Max Rafferty (bass guitar) the lineup of the band remained constant until 2008 with the departure of Rafferty. Dan Logan was drafted in as a temporary replacement until Peter Denton joined the band on a permanent basis in October 2008.

Taking their name from the David Bowie song "Kooks", the band recorded a demo of their work and sent it out in search of gigs. Instead they received several offers from managers and record companies. The Kooks signed to Virgin Records after just three months of performing locally around Brighton. Having been allowed time to develop by the label, the band entered London's Konk Studios to record their debut album Inside In/Inside Out. Their first single, "Eddie's Gun", achieved chart success reaching number 35 on the UK Singles Chart. The album was released in early 2006 and although starting slowly, it eventually peaked at number two on the UK Albums Chart. It produced six singles that entered the top 40 in the UK, including two top 10 hits; "Naïve" and "She Moves in Her Own Way". The Kooks found themselves entering into mainstream media attention, with the band winning the award for Best UK & Ireland Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2006 and picking up a nomination at The Brit Awards for the single "She Moves in Her Own Way".[2][3] Their first effort ultimately gave them success in the UK; in the form of a four times platinum certification, and also overseas; becoming platinum in Australia and two times platinum in Ireland.

The band's second album Konk (2008) debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and sold over 65,000 copies in its first week.[4] In the United States, it reached number 41 on the Billboard 200 and the album's first single, "Always Where I Need to Be", peaked at number 22 on the Alternative Songs chart. The album was certified gold in both the UK and Ireland. The Kooks are currently working on their third studio album.

History

Formation and early years (2004-2005)

The original members of The Kooks all met as students at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music in 2003.[5] The inspiration to form a band came to Pritchard as he and Garred were out shopping for clothes one day. Speaking to MTV Garred said, “we had this vision on how we wanted the band to look and stuff — so we bought some clothes and these hats”.[6] Sharing a love of The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, The Police and David Bowie Pritchard got Harris and Rafferty involved under the guise of a school music project.[5] Pritchard himself claimed "We got together just on a whim, really”.[7] With no demo of their material Garred and Pritchard went in search of a gig, and according to Garred in an interview with MTV were able to book their first show simply because the manager liked their hats. “So we went in to get a gig, we don't have a demo, and this guy told us, 'Well, you can't get a gig if you don't have a demo, but I like your hats, so I'm going to give you a gig,'” said Garred. However the band was unable to make the performance as they were making their demo at the time.[6]

Taking their name from the David Bowie song “Kooks” they began rehearsing, Pritchard revealed the first song they ever played as a group was a cover version of The Strokes' song "Reptilia".[8] The Kooks recorded an EP demo, sending it out in search of gigs, they instead received offers from managers and record companies.[7] The band had only been together as a group for three months when they signed with Virgin Records,[7] after being spotted by the label at the Brighton Free Butt Festival in 2005.[9] In an interview with musicomh.com, Pritchard revealed "It was really quick how it all happened, we did a demo with a mate of ours in London, which we sent off to one guy to get some gigs, and he turned out to be a manager. He rung us up and it kind of went from there."[8] The members of the band have since revealed that they felt they weren’t ready at the time, "We were way too early to sign a record deal [...] We were really young, we'd been together like two or three months, so we really didn't want to sign. But then we thought it's a really good opportunity and Virgin seemed like really cool people - they just seemed to really understand where we were coming from.,"[8] said Pritchard, who has also complimented the space the record label allowed for the band to grow, "They were patient with us and let us develop our style, whatever it is."[7]

Inside In/Inside Out (2006-2007)

The Kooks at Irving Plaza 11th May 2007

After they had signed to Virgin Records The Kooks were reluctant to record an album straight away, stating a desire to focus more on their live performances and songwriting. The band has said embarking on their first live tour instead of recording an album initially helped them develop their style and sound. As Pritchard claimed, "We didn’t sit down with a blueprint. We just naturally developed and we didn’t try to shape or mould ourselves to anything."[10] As a result, they went into the studio with hundreds of songs from a variety of genres, and it took an "incredible amount of patience" from producer Tony Hoffer to shape the content into what would become the record.[7]

Following their first tour supporting The Thrills,[11] The Kooks recorded their debut album, Inside In/Inside Out, at Konk studios in London in 2005.[12] Though media attention was dominated by the release of the Arctic Monkeys debut album Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not on the same day, Inside In/Inside Out recorded first week sales of 19,098. Later speaking to NME Pritchard would thank the Arctic Monkeys for “shielding” The Kooks from the press’ scrutiny. "God bless the Arctic Monkeys because if it wasn't for them we wouldn't have been so shielded. We were so overshadowed by the success it (their album) because it was so monster and we crept in behind everybody's back.”[13] Entering the UK Album charts at number nine, it would eventually peak at number two for two weeks. Singles “Eddie’s Gun”, “Sofa Song”, “You Don’t Love Me”, “Naïve”, “She Moves in Her Own Way” and “Ooh La” achieved chart success in the UK, while "Naïve" and "She Moves in Her Own Way" put The Kooks in the top ten for the first time.[14][15]

The album received generally positive reviews from critics, generating a total score of 73% on review aggregator Metacritic.[16] Allmusic saw their debut as excellent. Reviewer Tim Sendra noted the band’s direction was "heavily indebted to classic rock", in particular Thin Lizzy and the Dexys, ultimately though Sendra felt "the band sounds like the Kooks and no one else". Kev Kharas in his review for Drowned in Sound viewed The Kooks as “a less irreverent and more melodic Art Brut, swapping that band’s caustic wit for a far nicer type of honesty.”[17] Kharas also noted traces of “emo” in the band’s style.[17] NME also rated it favourably, saying it was "An eclectic but thoroughly satisfying record."[18] Individual songs were singled out and commented on, "Jackie Big Tit’s" was described as "a delightful love song"[19], "Ooh La" as "Catchy as hell".[20] and "Sofa Song" as "a great pop single".[20]

Brian Belardi of Prefix gave a positive review, describing Inside In/Inside Out as “An almost-perfect blend of '60s-style Britpop, '90s-style Britpop, and the post-punk of the new millennium”.[21] Belardi however felt that it “isn't the most original album ever recorded, and maybe the influences are a little too front and center”, drawing comparisons to The Kinks and The Libertines throughout. The use of both acoustic and electric guitars in contrast within their songs was also commented on by Belardi, quoting "Sofa Song" as "the closest to summing up the Kooks' sound in one song".[21]
Calling The Kooks “an important reminder that there are just as many mediocre bands in the U.K. as there are here in the States” reviewer Jenny Eliscu of Rolling Stone claimed the album was “utterly forgettable, shoddily produced retro rock that at its worst sounds like a Brighton-accented version of the Spin Doctors”.[22] Anna Britten of Yahoo music concluded that the album was entirely focused on Pritchard’s former relationship with Katie Melua stating that Inside In/Inside Out is "essentially, a Britpop album all about splitting up with Katie Melua."[23]

The album went on to be certified quadruple platinum in the UK by the BPI[24] within a year and certified platinum across Europe by the IFPI.[25][26] The success of their debut album brought the band into mainstream media attention, winning the award for best UK and Ireland act at the MTV Awards in 2006 and picking up a Brit Awards nomination for "She Moves in Her Own Way", in 2007.[2][3]

Konk (2008)

Harris and Pritchard at Summercase 2008 in Barcelona

The Kooks released their second album, Konk, in April 2008. The record was named after the studio where it was recorded and produced by Tony Hoffer, who worked on the band's debut album, Inside In/Inside Out.[27] Prior to releasing the album, in an interview with NME, lead singer Luke Pritchard had claimed to have 80-90 songs written for the album, stating, "I want this album to be big……I've got an ego, I want the album to do well. I want our singles to come on the radio and for people to literally have their heads blown off by them".[28] Recorded over a total of seven weeks in London and Los Angeles Pritchard told NME the band had wanted more input into their second album. "Tony's a genius, but this time we wanted more involvement in the production," said Pritchard.[27]

Konk went on to debut on the UK Albums Chart at number one with first week sales of 65,901 units.[29] The album also spawned three top 50 hits including their highest chart performer to date, "Always Where I Need to Be", which peaked at number three. A second limited edition two disc version of Konk entitled RAK was also released. The name was taken from the London studio where The Kooks recorded seven new live tracks along with the Arctic Monkeys and Mike Crossey, producer for the Zutons.[30] RAK also included an alternate version of "See the Sun" and a home demo entitled "Brooklyn" performed by Luke Pritchard.[31]

Critical response to Konk was mixed, generating a score of 65% from a total of 22 reviews on Metacritic.[32] Betty Clarke in her review for The Guardian felt that “the Kooks have found their feet.” Clarke described their music as “a determined pop sound that dips into hard-edged rock.”[33] In particular noting the “Rolling Stones-like cockiness” on songs like “Do You Wanna”.[33] Andrew Winistorfer of Prefix magazine also agreed that “Konk is most obviously a pop album”,[34] however Winistorfer ended his review on the note that Konk has “no soul, and no unique personality to speak of”, awarding it 4 out of 10.[34] Contrasting their debut Inside In/Inside Out with Konk Allmusic claimed Konk “wipes the floor with it.” Jo-Ann Greene of Allmusic stated it “explores pop and rock in all their glory, with every number set apart from its neighbour in sound and feel.”[35] Remarking on Pritchard’s singing style Greene saw “Phil Lynott, Steve Marriott, Brett Anderson, David Bowie, even Van Morrison” as influences but “he rarely channels any of them directly, capturing instead their spirit and soul.” Awarding it four and half stars out of five Greene felt that “Everything about this album shouts masterpiece”.[35]

Many reviewers focused on the album’s similarities to their debut. Reviewer Kate Sharp of BBC Music described their sophomore album as having “succumbed to the curse which has plagued so many musicians. […] Yes folks, it may be a cliche, but the Kooks have fallen foul of second album syndrome.”[36] Commenting on their complacency Sharp felt “The album seems, on the whole, a little contrived with the recycling of old guitar lines and intros”.[36] MusicOMH selected several songs that reviewer John Murphy felt were lacking in new direction. “Stormy Weather is a near replica of You Don't Love Me, while Gap even tries to replicate that catchy opening guitar riff of Naive, but with much less success.”[37] However Murphy remarked “that on the occasions where the band forget about trying to replicate their debut […] they sound relaxed and enthused.”[37] Leonie Cooper of NME suggested the departure of Max Rafferty affected Konk's production, stating “Konk is the sound of a band in disarray, unsuccessfully attempting to hold things together.”[38] Finishing on the comment that “What’s clear is that they’ve lost the songwriterly knack they originally wielded with abandon…”.[38]

Rafferty's departure and third studio album (2008–present)

Rafferty left the band on 31 January 2008, after a series of absences due to illness and long-standing rumours about his place in the band; drug addiction was also quoted as one of the reasons for his departure.[39] Dan Logan, bassist with a local Brighton band Cat the Dog, was drafted in as a temporary replacement for Rafferty.[40] After the departure of Rafferty, the band had considered splitting up. Singer Luke Pritchard had told the The Sun's Something for the Weekend that "Splitting does go through your mind. It's hard to let go of something you care about so much. We have fans to think of." Pritchard also discussed the possibility of Dan Logan joining the band as their new bassist, "It's been really strange for us but it's something that had to happen. Dan hasn’t joined the band properly yet. We're trying him out, but I love playing with him."[41] In the end, Logan did not join the band on a permanent basis, instead in October 2008, Peter Denton was drafted into the band and has become the permanent bassist.[42]

The Kooks revealed to BBC's Newsbeat in April 2009, that they were working on their third studio album. Pritchard told Newsbeat, "We kind of barricaded ourselves in the countryside for a few weeks—stayed at some friend's who have a cottage in Norfolk." The band were said to be rehearsing and "writing new stuff." The band is also set to return to touring, with shows scheduled in the UK throughout the summer.[43]

Musical style and influences

It's just like an idea, like a chorus, and then we just jam on it - it happens in loads of different ways. The best songs I find always come from the subconscious, like when you don't think. Not to be pretentious about it, but usually songs just blurt out rather than thinking about it. I never write lyrics and then do a song, I find that really hard - that's like a real skill..

— Pritchard on The Kooks' song-writing [8]

Self described "musical whores" The Kooks have drawn on a number of varied sources to create their indie pop sound. Listing The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Chris de Burgh among their influences the band have gradually developed both their song writing style and musical presentation over the course of their two albums.[8]

The band’s debut album Inside In/Inside Out was touted as a typical Britpop record, owing influence to The Libertines, Thin Lizzy, The Police and containing elements of the 60’s Britpop movement.[21] Furthermore Pritchard’s lyrical style was compared to that of a "younger, less pathetic version of Pete Doherty's mush-mouth style".[21] The band themselves felt the album was not consistent in its direction." The first record was definitely genre-hopping. [...] The first album was finding its feet, it was gadabout." claimed Harris in an interview with Nadine Regan of WordPress.com.[10]

On the follow up Konk the band attempted to find a more mature and polished sound. Drawing on a much wider choice of material for the album (about 80 to 90 songs were written), the band began to incorporate more a hard-edged rock focus into their music.[33] Critics drew comparisons to the work of The Kinks throughout the album, it being recorded at the studio owned by Ray Davies.[44] Also noted were the band’s growing similarities in musical direction to The Fratellis’ and the Arctic Monkeys.[45] The band commented on the album’s style, "I think we've made a dynamic album," Pritchard said." Every song has its own character. It's a good pop album."[27]

Controversy

Since gaining mainstream media attention The Kooks have incited a number of rivalries with other bands, most notably with Razorlight and Arctic Monkeys. In an interview with NME in 2006, Razorlight's lead singer Jonny Borrell claimed that The Kooks were simply copying their style; furthermore he claimed The Kooks were creating singles simply for the purpose of gaining radio airplay. Borrell stated, "The Kooks sound like they’re rolling over and begging Radio 1 to fuck them."[46] In response, The Kooks dedicated their single "Naïve" to Borrell live onstage during their final concert at London's Astoria. However Pritchard, in an attempt to end the feud spoke with Borrell at the Q Awards in 2006, to which Borrell replied "Who are you again?".[47]

In 2008, The Kooks revealed an ongoing dispute with Arctic Monkeys. The feud arose from Pritchard kicking Alex Turner, lead singer for Arctic Monkeys, in the face whilst onstage. Pritchard claimed that Turner had been attempting to disrupt his performance. "I had to kick Alex in the face after he tried to pull the leads out of my guitar pedals while we were on stage."[48] Pritchard spoke to The Daily Mail about his efforts to apologise for the incident later on. "I saw them recently in a studio and tried to patch things up. I asked Alex if he wanted to have a bit of a jam in the studio, but he just turned his back and walked away." Pritchard went on to describe the Arctic Monkeys as "arrogant" but conceded that Turner is "a genius musician, and a really talented song writer, but now we've got this beef. But he shouldn't have touched my guitar."[49]

Personnel

Current members

Former members

Discography

Studio albums

Year Album details Peak chart positions Certifications
(sales thresholds)
UK
[4] 		AUS
[50] 		IRE
[51] 		JPN
[52] 		NLD
[53] 		NZ
[54] 		US
[55] 		US Indie
[55] 		US Heat.
[55]
2006 Inside In/Inside Out 2 — 3 74 25 24 165 17 3 AUS: Gold[56]
IRE: 2× Platinum[57]
UK: 4× Platinum[58]
2008 Konk
  • Released: April 11, 2008
  • Label: Virgin
  • Formats: LP, CD, download
 1 8 2 35 7 12 41 — — IRE: Gold[59]
UK: Gold[58]
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Singles

Year Single Peak chart positions Album
UK
[4] 		IRE
[51] 		NLD
[53] 		NZ
[54] 		US Alt.
[60]
2005 "Eddie's Gun" 35 — — — — Inside In/Inside Out
"Sofa Song" 28 — — — —
2006 "You Don't Love Me" 12 — — — —
"Naïve" 5 — 82 15 22
"She Moves in Her Own Way" 7 11 55 11 39
"Ooh La" 20 38 — — —
2008 "Always Where I Need to Be" 3 15 43 40 22 Konk
"Shine On" 25 32 — — —
"Sway" 41 — — — —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Other appearances

Year Song contributed Release title
2006 "She Moves in Her Own Way" (Acoustic) The Acoustic Album
2006 "The King And I Colours Are Brighter
2007 "She Moves in Her Own Way" (Live)[61] The Saturday Sessions: The Dermot O'Leary Show
2009 "Victoria" (The Kinks cover) War Child Presents Heroes
2009 "Stormy Weather (Frank Sinatra cover) His Way, Our Way

References

  1. ^ "The Kooks - Biography". The Kooks - Official website. Retrieved 2009-06-09.
  2. ^ a b "Host Timberlake in MTV double win". BBC News. Retrieved 2009-06-09.
  3. ^ a b "Brit Nomination for She Moves in Her Own Way". NME. Retrieved 2009-06-09.
  4. ^ a b c "Chart Stats - The Kooks". Chart Stats. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  5. ^ a b "The Kooks come to the Farm". BBC. Retrieved 2009-09-26. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  6. ^ a b "The Kooks". MTV. Retrieved 2009-09-26. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  7. ^ a b c d e "The Kooks". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-09-23.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Interview with The Kooks". musicOHM.com. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
  9. ^ "The Kooks to play Swindon". BBC. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
  10. ^ a b "The Kooks - Interview". Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  11. ^ "The Kooks are Hunky Dory". Gigwise. Retrieved 2009-09-29. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  12. ^ "The Kooks Reveal New Album". NME. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
  13. ^ "The Kooks heap praise on Arctic Monkeys". NME. Retrieved 2009-09-30. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ "Chart Stats - Inside In/Inside Out". chartstats.com. Retrieved 2009-09-30.
  15. ^ "Kooks top albums chart with first week sales of 65,901". Musicweek. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  16. ^ "Review For Inside In/Inside Out On Metacritic". Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  17. ^ a b "The Kooks: Inside In/Inside Out". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 2009-09-26. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  18. ^ "Review For Inside In/Inside Out – NME". Metacritic. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
  19. ^ "The Kooks, Inside In/ Inside Out". The Guardian. Retrieved 2009-09-26. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  20. ^ a b "Inside In/Inside Out". musicomh.com. Retrieved 2009-09-27. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  21. ^ a b c d "Review For Inside In/Inside Out". Prefix. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
  22. ^ "Review For Inside In/Inside Out". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
  23. ^ "The Kooks - Inside In/Inside Out". Yahoo. Retrieved 2009-09-27. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  24. ^ "Certified awards - The Kooks". BPI. Retrieved 25 September 2009. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  25. ^ "British talent dominates IFPI European awards". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 September 2009. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  26. ^ "Radio 1 Presents....The Kooks". BBC. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  27. ^ a b c "The Kooks reveal new album details". NME. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  28. ^ "Luke Pritchard Talks About Konk". NME. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  29. ^ "Konk kicks Duffy off top slot". Musicweek. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  30. ^ "The Kooks Announce Double Album Release". MTV. Retrieved 2009-09-26. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  31. ^ "RAK – Limited Edition Version". NME. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  32. ^ "Review For Konk On Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  33. ^ a b c "Konk Review". The Guardian. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  34. ^ a b "The Kooks Konk review". Prefix. Retrieved 2009-09-28. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  35. ^ a b "Konk review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-09-28.
  36. ^ a b "The Kooks Konk Review". BBC. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  37. ^ a b "Konk Review". musicohm.com. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  38. ^ a b "The Kooks, Konk". NME. Retrieved 2009-09-28. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  39. ^ "Bassist's Departure Down to Drugs". NME. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  40. ^ "Kooks Bassist Quits The Band". NME. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  41. ^ "The Kooks considered splitting in January". NME. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  42. ^ "Peter Denton Becomes Kooks New Bassist". The Kooks - Official website. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  43. ^ "The Kooks begin work on third LP". BBC. Retrieved 2009-07-10.
  44. ^ "Review of Konk". popmatters.com. Retrieved 2009-08-02. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  45. ^ "Konk Review". Yahoo. Retrieved 2009-08-02. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  46. ^ "Kooks and Razorlight Feud". NME accessdate=2009-07-10. {{cite web}}: Missing pipe in: |work= (help)
  47. ^ "Kooks and Razorlight Feud Continues". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2009-07-16.
  48. ^ "The Kooks' Luke Pritchard: 'I had to kick Alex Turner in the face'". NME. Retrieved 2009-07-16.
  49. ^ "Kooks and Arctic Monkeys at war over a guitar". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2009-07-16.
  50. ^ "Discography The Kooks". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  51. ^ a b "Discography The Kooks". Irish-charts.com. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  52. ^ "ザ・クークス". oricon. co. jp. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
  53. ^ a b "Discografie The Kooks". dutchcharts. nl. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  54. ^ a b "Discography - The Kooks". Charts.org. nz. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  55. ^ a b c "Artist Albums Chart History - The Kooks". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  56. ^ "ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2009 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  57. ^ "2006 Certification Awards - Multi-Platinum". Irishcharts. ie. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  58. ^ a b "Chart Log UK: The Kooks". zobbel. de. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  59. ^ "2008 Certification Awards - Gold". Irishcharts. ie. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  60. ^ "Artist Singles Chart History - The Kooks". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
  61. ^ "The Saturday Sessions: The Dermot O'Leary Show". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-07-10.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Kooks.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Kooks&oldid=316984789"