2015 is shaping up to be a huge year for Townsville band King Social, following the success of their second EP 'Big Man'.
After playing sell-out shows in North Queensland, the band is bringing their unique blend of country and hip hop to Brisbane at the end of February. Frontman Angus Milne picks up the story.
You're playing at the New Globe Theatre to celebrate the release of 'Big Man'. How do these shows compare to playing around North Queensland?
The atmosphere and the actual show is definitely the same if not better; but yes, we can only fit 400 inside the New Globe and our outdoor NQ parties are perhaps a little bit bigger. This is our second, Brisbane show and we debuted at the New Globe last Easter. We really love The Valley and the theatre and can't wait to party with all our friends again!
Do you prefer playing to your home crowd?
Honestly, I love playing our songs in front of people who have never heard our music. Our home crowds are awesome and there's always that same lady that gets naked in the front row... at every show... but I personally can't wait to meet a few, new people.
Country music and hip hop seem about as far apart as you can get. How did such a diverse range of musicians end up playing in a band together?
I played footy with Stevie and after a game one weekend we got thrown together and pushed up onto a little stage. We quickly put two unfinished songs together that we each had been working on and came up with a song on the spot. The drunken mob of footy players and their girls seemed to really like it, so I pulled a team of legends together to record our first single, 'It Goes Around', which was the song Stevie and I created that blurry night. The team of legends became the band and now we are King Social.
The blend of hip hop and country works surprisingly well. Have you had any hate from country or hip hop purists?
I don't think we are popular enough to be hated yet but I'm sure we'll get a few eventually. Maybe at this Brisbane show... Come down and throw eggs at us if we're shit!
You recorded 'Big Man' at Vibetone Studios in the Sunshine Coast hinterland. How does recording in that environment compare with recording in the city?
It was freakin' awesome. We had two massive, motorhome buses to live in and no phone reception. We'd drive to the beach every second day for a swim, got way too drunk every night, ate amazing food and just had a ball! Benjy and his family were really great fun too. Awesome people!
Do you think recording in that sort of environment influenced the over-all feel of 'Big Man'?
I'm not sure if the environment affected our sound much but we definitely got a distinct, country vibe from Benjy's mixing and producing. It makes for interesting hip hop! We were pretty relaxed I suppose, so maybe it did.
You were at the top of Triple J's Unearthed charts for a couple of weeks; were you expecting that kind of response?
Actually, our new song has just reached the number one spot again which we are pretty excited about. It's all rigged though I reckon. Well not rigged, but we have some really awesome fans and they seem to all get behind us for these things and vote. It was a bit of a shock to see 'The Dancer' at number one though and that was awesome.
You've got two EP s under your belt now, is there a full-length album in the works?
Yes! Definitely... Very soon hopefully. We have the songs ready, just need the money.
The new documentary 'Legacy' features a song from your first EP. What is the film about and how did you get involved with that project?
It's a really brilliant and pretty heartbreaking film about a couple of men with a fatal illness. Our song features in one of the saddest sections. The filmmaker, Dinusha, discovered us on Triple J Unearthed actually. One of our songs suited his project and we were lucky enough that our song 'Angel' made the cut! It's pretty cool that you know about that.
Are there any Brisbane bands that you want to see while you're down here?
We are really looking forward to seeing our supports: Some Can't, The Bad Lands and Tayla Young. Especially Tayla because that's Stevie's little sister and it's her first-ever show. She's really good. She'll kill it!! We did a show with Hungry Kids Of Hungary awhile back, so it'd be good to catch up with those lads. Although, we won't get to see them play again I suppose... being broken up and all that. I love seeing new, original music, so bring it on Brisbane. Can't wait!
King Social have been nominated in the urban category at the 2015 Queensland Music Awards for ‘It Goes Around’. They play the New Globe Theatre on Saturday 28 February.
