They’ve definitely been here; the pool table has a few un-potted balls from an unfinished game. There are cigarette ends in the ashtray. A half-eaten sausage sandwich and a tepid mug of coffee sit on the large glass table. T shirts and towels hang on the radiator, drying. A pile of CDs are strewn on the table: Bob Dylan, Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones, The Stooges, Bonnie Prince Billy. The beige sofa looks as if it’s seen some action. Then again, it most definitely has. Gigwise is waiting in the basement rooms of Ray Davies’ Konk studios, which has played host to a number of seminal recording sessions by the likes of The Kinks (naturally), The Stone Roses, Primal Scream and Elastica. You can smell the kudos!
Just as we’re getting nostalgic, our reverie is interrupted by a fresh-faced fellow who shuffles in, brushing a mop of curls from his eyes. This is Hugh – the youngest member of Brighton band The Kooks. He’s been over-dubbing some guitar whilst the rest of them are down the pub, although the approaching rabble signals their arrival. The rest of the band clatter in: bassist Max a Johnny Borrell doppelganger (this isn’t well received) haughtily plonks a bottle of Jack Daniels on the table and nods in acknowledgement. An Über slim, slightly sullen guy in a yellow t-shirt and dark curly hair joins the table, eyeing Gigwise suspiciously with piercing blue eyes; Luke, the singer. Then the fourth flops on to the sofa with a friendly smile dancing across his face. This is Paul – the drummer. Together they’re The Kooks, and yep, they are named after that Bowie tune. Lovely.
They’re a young band (Hugh, at 17, is the youngest), the eldest is 21. Obviously wary of the age subject, Luke shoots Gigwise a withered look when we ask if the band met at school. “No, we met through a dating agency,†he says, flatly. Eeep! The real answer is they went to college together in Brighton, started the band, “well, more a collective with a few tunes,†corrects Paul, and recorded a demo.
Such was the diffidence of this ‘collective’ they were unsure as to each other’s willingness to participate because they were all into such “different stuff†says Paul. It transpired their musical tastes did, in fact, convene due to the eclecticism of their favoured musical genres, which is the spirit that informs their diverse sound. A wild weekend ensued, where they all got on “fucking amazingly†and the rest, well, is history - in the making.
It’s been a somewhat meteoric trajectory for this lot. They played their first gig a week after getting together and were subsequently signed by Virgin on the merit of an early show. “We did four songs - 20 minutes, short and sweet,†says Paul, matter-of-factly. “Yeh, we don’t like to overstay our welcome,†quips Max. Gigwise points out this is a rather polite approach to adopt, although Luke challenges us with an alternative, more sensible answer with his characteristic steely determination. “It’s more a case of not being self-indulgent as a band. We’re more about songs and hooks... more concise.†Luke might be trying to unnerve Gigwise, but he’s actually right. Listening to a few sample tracks from the as yet untitled debut, they are, in fact, concise, and hooky. And they have songs. ‘Eddie’s Gun’ is two-and-a-half-minutes of pure, sixties sunshine-drenched pop melody with roguish lyrical intimations, whilst ‘Sofa Song’ is a jangly, jerky offering, hinting more towards their bluesy, folk influences.
They’ve served their apprenticeship by recently supporting The Thrills on tour, which they found slightly daunting. “We’d gone from playing to no-one,†says Max, “to playing to hundreds of people. It was a great experience.†Talking of great experiences, recording a debut in Ray Davies’ studio surely has to be up there. “It’s mad seeing a living legend walking around,†they enthuse. “He wrote us a letter and we were gonna ask him to play on one of our songs, but he kinda had to go to Belgium.†The conversation turns to idols and inspiration and they banter with each other about the merits of certain artists. Their chat is peppered with references to Neil Young, John Martyn, Nick Drake, Bob Marley. They’re vociferous in their endorsement of these acts and they have an evident, earnest passion for all things musical. In fact, it’s not just music. They’re an intelligent and charmingly opinionated lot. We chat about politics, world debt, you name it – they’ve got an articulate answer for everything. And they’ve thawed out a bit now too – even Luke’s not so frosty. They’re actually really genuine and affable guys.
They crack open the Jack as talk turns to what we can expect from the album. “Everything,†they laugh. “All the songs will be different, reflecting our diverse influences. It’s going to be an honest album. All the tracks are recorded live, we don’t mind having the mistakes in there.†They’re more concerned with creating an ambience rather than getting it note perfect, which is admirable considering they opine about the slick, over-production of many current pop records. They’re astute lads, who know it’s a tough trail to the top and they’re keeping a collective level head. They’ll be touring at a venue near you soon, so, take a chance on a couple of Kooks…if you do, you won’t be sorry.
