Since the return of garage-rock to the public consciousness at the turn of the century, successfully blowing the '90s cobwebs away, there's been an almost non-stop stream of bands favouring a modern rock n' roll approach. From those who tickled the upper echelons of the charts like The Strokes or The Libertines, to those who became underground heroes such as Thee Oh Sees and Ty Segall, visceral guitars,clattering drums and short, snappy, melodic power-tunes have been the order of the day. Yeah, it did go a bit tits-up a few years ago when half of the UK though that by sticking on some skinny jeans they could be just like Arctic Monkeys, but the landfill indie thing seems to have thankfully passed now. King TV are from London but their influences come from both sides of the Atlantic, and 'Set 2' is a rollercoaster ride through punky guitar bands past and present.
It's sharp rifs and a frenetic pace right from the start of 'Stand Yourself', a song that could have come from the mid-'70s New York scene; CBGB's would have been happy to give them a few gigs. You can hear the influence of The Strokes in these songs, but also Jonathan Richman, New York Dolls, and even '60s bands like The Sonics or The Monks. Being from the UK it's inevitable that British bands are also a clear influence, and we're talking the fist few punk bands such as The Damned or Aussies The Saints. With some blistering but straightforward guitar solos, 'Set 2' and 'Butlins (End Of The World)' are allowed to fly that bit more. 'No Fun' aims more for fuzz-rock and ends up being mildly psychedelic with it. Blokes with electric guitars have been making stuff like this pretty much ever since there were blokes and electric guitars, the trick comes in keeping it sounding current and vital, and King TV don't come up short on that front. This is garage-punk as you want it to be: scintillating, powerful, jagged, yet flowing freely with the energy of youth and positivity.
King TV's website
Stream or buy the EP
Catch them live:
Jan 16 The George Tavern, London, UK
Jan 24 Roadtrip & the Workshop, London, UK
Mar 06 Nambucca, London, UK
Aug 01 WigFest Festival, Torbay, UK
For more news, reviews and downloads follow The Sound Of Confusion on Facebook or Twitter
contact@thesoundofconfusion.com
No comments:
Post a Comment