Strange, Strange Times (2021)
Bandcamp: https://theuglykings.bandcamp.com/album/strange-strange-times
Napalm Records & All stores: https://smarturl.it/strangestrangetimes
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The Ugly Kings offer a stripped down but powerful injection of energy and emotion to the modern rock scene; formulating what can only be described as ‘Power Blues’.
Memorable beats, thunderous bass lines and an electrifying barrage of bluesy ‘grit’ riffs tied with raw and emotive vocals.
For fans of The Doors, Jack White, Black Sabbath, Arctic Monkeys, Royal Blood, Rival Sons, The Dead Weather.
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1.
Strange, Strange Times 00:00
2.
Technodrone 05:27
3.
Do You Feel Like You’re Paranoid? 09:19
4.
In the Shadows 13:37
5.
Last Man Left Alive 17:04
6.
Lawman 21:24
7.
Electric Lady (My Kryptonite) 26:07
8.
The Devil Comes with a Smile 29:18
9.
Mr. Hyde 33:45
10.
Another Fucking Day 37:44
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Soundmagnet – August 2021
“Singer Russell Clark has a haunting yet strangely calming voice, which more than once reminds us of a certain Jim Morrison.
The Ugly Kings have a talent for combining different styles into a coherent overall picture.. they actually deliver the right soundtrack for these strange times. This album should catapult the guys from Down Under to the top. 9/10”
Rock Hard Magazine, Germany, August 2021
“A captivating music theatre, in whose semidarkness Josh Homme smokes a herb blunt with Jim Morrison’s ghost to old songs from his Queens Of The Stone Age.”
“The Ugly Kings can be compared even more aptly with Grinderman.”
Hailing from the great down under but headed straight to the top, Melbourne, Australia based gritty alternative rockers THE UGLY KINGS are poised to turn heads with their bombastic sophomore full-length, Strange, Strange Times, out August 13, 2021 via Napalm Records. Equal parts darkened power blues and raw punk with a metallic rock edge, THE UGLY KINGS channel the flavor of groups like Queens Of The Stone Age and The White Stripes while preserving razor sharp, daringly introspective control with clever lyricism and addictive riffage. Strange, Strange Times punches from 0 to 60 at the start of its five-and-a-half minute introductory title track, “Strange, Strange Times”, before frontman Russell Clark brings the listener back down to earth with his ominous, Jim Morrison-esque croons of blissful ignorance amid relentless chaos. The band’s revitalizing infusion of dark energy is immediately evident on tracks like radio-ready, gothic punk-laced head- bobber “Technodrone” and retro-inspired tripper “Do You Feel Like You’re Paranoid?” – both interwoven with warning lyrics relevant to the times. The post-punk revivalism spirit continues on tracks like the creeping, dynamic “In The Shadows” and seductive foot-stomper “Electric Lady (My Kryptonite)”, while the band goes on to flex their musical muscles on tracks like whiskey-soaked murder ballad “Lawman” and smoldering hard rocking standout “The Devil Comes With A Smile”. Listeners will get lost in tracks like the psychedelic, grooving “Last Man Left Alive” and equal parts proto-metal/horror punk “Mr. Hyde”, before commiserating with closing working man’s inspirational anthem “Another Fucking Day”. In a scene in which gimmick-free, angsty, inspired rock n’ roll is becoming increasingly difficult to come by, Strange, Strange Times is a breath of welcomed, yet strange, strange air.
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released August 13, 2021
Produced by The Ugly Kings and Julian Schweitzer
Recorded & Engineered by Julian Schweitzer
Recorded at Newmarket Studios in Melbourne, Australia
Mixed by Julian Schweitzer at Labracadabra Studios in Melbourne, Australia
Mastered by Joe Carra` at Crystal Mastering in Melbourne, Australia
Backing Vocals on ‘Lawman’ & ‘Electric Lady (My Kryptonite)’ by Catherine Schweitzer
All illustrations by Reginald Pean (@frenchinald)
Design Layout by Hound Machine (@houndmachine)
The Ugly Kings are:
Russell Clark (Vocals)
Christos Athanasias (Guitars)
Nicolas Dumont (Bass)
Joel Martin (Drums)