"some of the best in the world, the old man agrees, giant steps with a pensive stair..."
I have sat in front of this old laptop multiple times trying to write my thoughts about the hyper kinetic "Presidential Walk" by the Brighton (UK) 7 piece divergent punk outfit KEG only to happily scratch my head, smile and walk off muttering "fuck me" under my breath. Love the track, that is not the problem. Adore the progressive intertwining guitar and bass dances propelled by seriously exquisite drumming. I am taken aback by the wide eyed maniacal, sardonic vocal aesthetic of Albert Haddenham's scowl with lyrics that are surprisingly, vaguely curious, holding deep thoughts at every swipe and as the lead singer shares is, in fact:
"an ode to Wikipedia and a French president’s annual cerebral walk. Whilst reading about some palaeolithic cave paintings in the south of France, our dearest friend Wikipedia took us to a page about Francois Mitterands excursions around the area in an attempt to clear his head. I've never been able to find the same page so maybe I dreamt this. The track has been through a few versions, gradually speeding up each time until it reached the rabbit speed you will hear. Stand up to enjoy, serve with a large glass of burgundy."
The absolutely full throttle jamming musical breaks incorporating ultra staccato marriages of sounds a horn solo, percussion punches, falls of beautiful dreaminess that gives way to a cacophonous explosion of sound. All at once, as the track sails by at, for the most part at breakneck speed, reeling like something between instruments falling down a stairwell (in utterly precise ways) and fusing jazz with punk or vice versa I feel an incredible energy that makes me think of a smashing up of artists like Pere Ubu, Gang of Four, Devo, Wall of Vodoo, Television and Zu.
KEG is so much for my head to absorb and digest that I suppose I am finding it hard to write about them, yeah, fuck me indeed. Their Debut EP "Assembly" drops October 22 (2021) via Alcopop! Records.
-Robb Donker Curtius
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THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:
https://www.facebook.com/kegbandboys/
https://twitter.com/kegtheband/
https://www.instagram.com/kegband/
https://ilovealcopop.co.uk/collections/keg
(8th September, 2021) –– Brighton based 7-piece Keg today release their new single "Presidential Walk" – the second track to be lifted from their upcoming debut EP 'Assembly', out 22nd October via Alcopop! Records.
Produced by the band themselves and mixed by Sean Oakley (Show Me The Body, Sorry, Scalping, Kae Tempest), EP opener and new single "Presidential Walk" is an intricately woven slice of erratic, cognisant indie-punk.
Freewheeling guitars match up seamlessly with manic percussion and foreboding trombone, with singer Albert Haddenham's captivating rasp roaring things forward throughout.
Speaking on the new single, Haddenham said: "It's an ode to Wikipedia and a French president’s annual cerebral walk. Whilst reading about some palaeolithic cave paintings in the south of France, our dearest friend Wikipedia took us to a page about Francois Mitterands excursions around the area in an attempt to clear his head. I've never been able to find the same page so maybe I dreamt this. The track has been through a few versions, gradually speeding up each time until it reached the rabbit speed you will hear. Stand up to enjoy, serve with a large glass of burgundy."
Erupting from a frenzied passion for the ‘song’, Keg toe a fine line between the angular throb of contemporary post-rock sensibilities and a timeless necessity for harmony and meticulous songwriting. This push-pull can be heard woven into each of their compositions. What you may not hear upon first listen is the achingly personal nature of their lyrics as well as the myriad influences injected into it by its instrumentalists, all of who come from varied musical backgrounds.
Albert Haddenham (vocals), Joel Whitaker (bass) & Will Wiffen (synth) grew up together around the seaside Yorkshire town of Bridlington; and like many artists growing up in removed quarters of the country, they shared a yearning to leave. Spreading around different parts of the country after leaving school, they found their bandmates in their respective cities and found one another once again on the southern shores of Brighton.
Frank Lindsay (guitar), whose background resides mostly in hip-hop, afforded the sound a unique pulse with a guitar sound which is manic, discordant but firm. Jules Gibbons (guitar, also in Spang Sisters) whose songwriting sensibilities come from a love of cadence and craft of beautiful soul ballads, imbued the band with his structured sense of composition.
Both Charlie Keen (trombone & shell) and Johnny Pyke (drums) come from classically trained Jazz backgrounds. Johnny - throughout Keg - is able to demonstrate this, as well as his ability to remain in the pocket. Similarly, Charlie can both compliment the bands manic moments as well as improvise, uniquely bringing the trombone to the foreground of the sound.
There is but one aim that Keg look to achieve - to write good music, with a wry smile. Keg's new single "Presidential Walk" is out now. The band's debut EP 'Assembly' will be released October 22nd via Alcopop! Records.
KEG, post punk, punk, jazz punk, alternative rock, experimental punk, Brighton, UK, "Presidential Walk", divergent punk, wide eyed vocal aesthetic, debut EP, reeling, jamming, progressive, EP "Assembly", Alcopop!,
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