farewell the mighty king blues

I am still struggling to take in the news that the King Blues, the inspiration behind this website, have announced that they have split.   They leave behind them a gaping void in the music business, the hearts of thousands of dedicated and fiercely loyal fans.  But they also leave behind a legacy of powerful, meaningful and just pain brilliant music that will never go away.

I could talk for hours about the King Blues; about how Itch’s crowd-surfing broke my rib the first time I ever saw them; about their willingness to allow me the backstage access and how their ongoing encouragement made this website possible; about how their afternoon set at Glastonbury 2009 remains the finest example of live music performance I have ever seen (and for someone who is at gigs three and four times per week, that’s saying something).

Sure, there have been some lows along the way: Fruitbag’s departure; the delayed release of Punk & Poetry; the overly-poppy Holiday.   But when I look back over the past three years, they are filled with highlights.

Of course, the key members of the band will re-emerge with new bands and new ventures.   But the thing that marked the King Blues as unique – a feeling of a bunch of herberts against the world – will be lost forever; and music will be poorer for their demise.

But while I currently feel like a close friend has died, I will not allow this post to be sidetracked by emotion.   The King Blues gave me so much to be thankful for.   Through their music, I discovered politics and activism; I met some amazing people both inside and around the band; I visited some great (and some not so great) venues; and for an all-too-brief period, I got to feel what it must’ve felt like to be a punk in 1977.

In a music world of style over substance, the King Blues stood like a beacon of hope; a hope that music could still mean something; a hope that music could just change the world.

So to Itch, Jamie and the rest of the band, I would just like to say thank you for all the incredible memories and experiences; thanks for your support, encouragement and friendship; and thanks, of course, for the music.

“...The smell of cider, and sweaty bodies, will always remind me of you...”

Love always

Courteney

Tear us Apart Review

A little bit of history repeating...

In 1979, punk had run its course, its once bright light extinguished seemingly forever.   With the Sex Pistols in disarray and The Clash on the verge of implosion, the angry revolution gave way to a variety of gloomy post-punk from the likes of the Joy Division and politically-ripe ska from bands like The Specials.

In a classic case of history repeating itself, London-based punk/ska flag bearers The King Blues have invoked both of these seminal bands on the first song to be aired from the as-yet-unnamed follow-up to last year’s Punk & Poetry.   Containing the line “not even love will tear us apart”, the song is a definite nod to Ian Curtis’ finest hour; but the ska feel and skanky rhythm would have The Specials’ Jerry Dammers smiling with admiration.

In many ways, the new song harks back to The King Blues first album, Under the Fog, which at times sounded like a long-lost Specials album found lurking in a previously undiscovered Two Tone vault.   But the song also shows further signs of the band’s growing maturity.

Frontman Itch remains a lyrically gifted as anyone of his generation, but the new song displays his ability to do more than just recite finely-crafted and intricate prose.   Dude can sing!   And he is ably abetted by the two female members of the band whose tight harmonies give the song considerable depth.   And the band, swelled from the original three-piece that produced the raw Under the Fog, no longer sound like a rag-bag collective; they sound like a genuine musical force.

What will fans make of it?   Taken out of context – the rest of the album remains months away – it is hard to say whether the song shows a total move away from the anger displayed on songs like We Are Fucking Angry from Punk & Poetry.   And those that followed the band on various political rallies through London accompanied by a pair of acoustic guitars and the bicycle-mounted Sound System could argue that the band has softened or even sold out to commerciality.

Such a judgment would be harsh.   The band remains as politically active as ever, and if music is ever going to change the world, it needs an audience.   We Are Fucking Angry was a tremendous rallying cry, an epic anthem.   But it was also about as radio unfriendly as it is possible to get.   With its latest song, The King Blues might just find themselves embraced by a wider, more mainstream audience weary of manufactured pop and processed beats.

Regardless of its history, its reflection of the band’s development and the likelihood of it making The King Blues the “next big thing”, just imagine listening to this song on a warm summer’s evening, out in the open with a group of friends, with a pint of cider in your hand. 

The King Blues may have just recorded the soundtrack of the summer.

Tear us Apart

The new king blues song " Tear us apart" 

was played for the first time last night on Mark Davies punk rock show on radio 1. 

it will be on the fouth alubm which will be realeased later on this year.

the king blues to play slam dunk

the slamdunk line up 

city of punk

so i found this on city of punk pattrick stump and the king blues very nice x