As they prepare to release their third album 'Juveniles', Aussie rockers Kingswood find themselves enjoying a period of self-assurance about who they are as a band.
“I don't know if comfortable is the right word, but we feel comforted, maybe, by being who we are and doing what we do. That's probably a better way to describe it,” guitarist Alex Laska says.
“In 2020, we're onto our third album; we've been a band for almost ten years and you start to go 'it feels good to be me and doing this',” he laughs.
The confidence to be themselves is something Alex says has been percolating over the lifetime of the band, emboldened with each release and culminating in their approach to writing and recording the 'Juveniles' album. “We really put it through the ringer,” Alex says of making 'Juveniles'.
“We made two other albums and we learnt the lesson that just because you made it doesn't mean you have to put it out; because it's such an itch to contribute to something and you want to get it out. This time we let it sit with us to see if it was aligned with the emotions and the attitudes and personalities of the band, and what we think represents us best at the time we're doing it.
“With that said, we took that and kept going until it was right, and not let time have the pressure of getting it done. We asked if we are going to be proud of this, and until we started saying yes to everything, we waited and we continued to assess it.
"We'd invite people into the studio off the street and ask questions about their life, just really interesting things to put it to the test rather than being super introspective and going 'this is my idea, I made something so I'm going to put it out'.”
The result is an album that isn't perfect per se, but is the perfect third album for Kingswood to make and release at this time, one that Alex says remains true to the culture and ethos of the band. “It's not about perfection anymore,” he affirms.
“It used to be like that and now it's about: are we proud of these songs, do we love them, do they make us feel good, do they feel true? Yes, yes, yes, great. That's what we want. That was a more important thing this time around.”
'Juveniles' is due for release mid-March, meaning Kingswood will soon be back in their natural habitat when they set out for their tour in support of the album from March until June. “We've grown out of a live situation and resonating with each other musically in garages,” he says.
“Music for me is an exchange; we share these things with each other in these small rooms then on stages and that goes on to people experiencing it. The excitement of it is contagious. I prefer playing guitar a lot more now on this album.”
'Juveniles' is out 13 March.
Kingswood Australia Tour 2020
Thu 12 Mar - Barwon Club (Geelong)Fri 13 Mar - The Corner Hotel (Melbourne)
Sat 14 Mar - Volta (Ballarat)
Wed 18 Mar - Kambri ANU (Canberra)
Thu 19 Mar - UoW Unibar (Wollongong)
Fri 20 Mar - Oxford Art Factory (Sydney)
Sat 21 Mar - Cambridge Hotel (Newcastle)
Thu 26 Mar - The Gov (Adelaide)
Fri 27 Mar - The Rosemount (Perth)
Sat 28 Mar - Prince Of Wales (Bunbury)
Sun 29 Mar - Freo Social (Fremantle)
Thu 2 Apr - The Triffid (Brisbane)
Thu 9 Apr - Republic Bar (Hobart)
Sat 11 Apr - Saloon (Launceston)
Sun 12 Apr - Forth Pub (Devonport)
Thu 16 Apr - The Northern (Byron Bay)
Fri 17 Apr - Miami Marketta (Gold Coast)
Sat 30 May - Big Pineapple Music Festival (Sunshine Coast)
Thu 25 June - The Jack (Cairns)
Fri 26 Jun - Otherwise Bar (Townsville)
Sat 27 Jun - CBD McGuires Hotel (Mackay)
