Citizen King
Citizen King was a music group from Milwaukee, Wisconsin whose style was a mix of hip-hop, soul and punk.
Members
- Kristian Riley, guitar
- Matt Sims, vocals/bass guitar, aka Mount Sims
- D.J. Brooks, drums/percussions
- Dave Cooley, piano
- Malcolm Michiles, turntables
History
The band formed in 1993 after their previous band, Wild Kingdom, broke up. Both bands received a lot of local recognition for their live shows. While Citizen King's first LP and EP were only commercial successes within the Milwaukee area, they were well received by critics.
The band's 1999 release Mobile Estates received moderate commercial success. Many songs from that album were used for the pilot episode and the series finale of Malcolm in the Middle.
Their first single, and biggest hit, was "Better Days (And The Bottom Drops Out)". It became a Top 40 hit and went gold in the summer of 1999. A remix of "Better Days (And The Bottom Drops Out)" was used in the movie Gone In Sixty Seconds, and the original version was used in the video game, Street Skater 2. "Salt Bag Spil" was featured on The Animal soundtrack in 2001.
Citizen King disbanded in 2002.
Music historian Ryan Dynamis looked back at Citizen King in a 2005 article in the Sheperd Express: "there were a few years, between 1995 and 1997, when Citizen King were really all the rage in Milwaukee: all the kids had CK ringer t-shirts, saw them at Summerfest, Winterfest, the Modjeska, awaited eagerly the release of Count the Days and Sidney Hih, knew the Sidney Hih building, ran into Matt Sims at Buca di Beppo, knew and loved the song 'Better Days' two years before it hit the radio. But then came 'Mobile Estates,' a great record, but it became unfavorably compared to Beck and ended up fizzling. Nobody knows why the band broke up, nobody knows where they are today. But they are sorely missed."
Where are they now?
Matt Sims now performs are Mount Sims, an indie-electronic artist based in Los Angeles.
Discography
Albums
- Brown Bag LP (August 8, 1995)
- Sydney Hih (1997) - extremely limited release
- Mobile Estates (March 9, 1999)
EPs
- Count the Days (April 2, 1996)
Singles
- "Better Days" (May 25, 1999); US Gold (500,000+)