London five-piece To Kill A King have announced details of their self-titled new album, to be released March 2nd 2015 on Xtra Mile Recordings.
The follow up to their 2013 debut Cannibals With Cutlery, To Kill A King was recorded in The Distillery studio in Wiltshire with producer Mark Crew (Bastille, Rag n Bone Man). Listen to lead single Love Is Not Control below.
'To Kill A King' is the sound of a band hitting the peak of their powers. It’s the sort of record that could only be made now, an album where stadium-sized choruses, artful dynamism and sonic experimentalism slide seamlessly together. It’s also an album with a message – make now count. Says frontman Ralph Pelleymounter, “Compared to our last album, there has been a definite effort on this one to be more optimistic and more life-affirming.”
Pelleymounter and his bandmates – Grant McNeil (electric guitar), Ben Jackson (synth and keys), Josh Platman (bass) and Josh Taffel (drums) – are on the cusp of a big breakthrough and they have made a record fit to kick the door down. It will place the quintet firmly in the lineage of British guitar bands, such as Foals, The Maccabees, and Bombay Bicycle Club, who make imaginative, exciting indie-rock. Like those groups, To Kill A King make music with no straitjacket on, a heady blend of youthful exuberance and spirited independence leading the way.
To Kill A King’s striking cover art features drummer Josh’s father Warren Taffel, who is pictured playing chess with his younger self. The original photo of the younger Warren was taken in the mid-‘50s, when Warren was the same age as Josh is now, 24.
Aside from recording the new album, To Kill A King spent much of 2014 on the road. A headline UK tour culminated in a sold-out London date at Koko, and they also completed their first headline European Tour. They toured the USA as support to Bastille, performed at SXSW, and supported Xtra Mile label mate Frank Turner in Arizona. They will band embark on a UK tour in March following the new album’s release, including their biggest headline show to date at Shepherd’s Bush Empire on 14th March.
To Kill A King tracklisting:
1. Compare Scars
2. Love is not Control
3. Oh My Love
4. Friends
5. The Chancer
6. School Yard Rumours
7. Good Times (A Rake's Progress)
8. Musicians like Gamblers like Drunks like Me
9. Grace at a Party
10. World Of Joy (A List of Things To Do)
11. Today
To Kill A King UK Tour March 2015
Fri 6th Nottingham, Rescue Rooms
Sat 7th Glasgow, Stereo
Sun 8th Manchester, The Deaf Institute
Mon 9th Leeds, Brudenell
Wed 11th Bristol, Thekla
Thu 12th Brighton, The Haunt
Fri 13th Southampton, The Joiners
Sat 14th London, Shepherd's Bush Empire
