We The Kings have enjoyed a strong following in Australia since the Florida five-piece released their debut album almost a decade ago.
Every millennial knows 'Check Yes Juliet', their 2008 breakout hit that you couldn't get away from for at least a couple of years there (no complaints here; like all We The Kings tunes it was insanely catchy).
Speaking to We The Kings' fiery-haired frontman Travis Clark, it's easy to tell how proud the guys are of 'Strange Love', their sixth studio album released last November. After all their hard work, it's their Aussie fan base who will be the first people to hear the new material from 'Strange Love' live, other than a couple of hometown shows.
According to Travis, there's a fundamental difference between their Australian and American fans. “When we go on tour in Australia the tickets always sell out almost straight away – and I think that's because they aren't sure when they're going to see us again. American fans, they know if they don't go we'll probably be back some time soon.”
Even when things have turned to disaster on stage in the past We The Kings have shown how dedicated they are to giving their fans a great experience. “There were issues with the power grid in this city and all of the lights and all of the equipment went off [during the show],” Travis says.
Rather than cancel the show, the guys knew how important that night was to the audience, so they continued the concert in acoustic mode. “It was really special, because it's not something we'd done before and they still got to see us.”
Another technical difficulty at a show left the band performing to fans in their tour bus. Come hell or high water, it seems like We The Kings will always put on a great show for the people that support them.
The one thing Travis knows about his die-hard fans from down under is they're great about being prepared for the shows. "They'll buy this album ['Strange Love'] specifically so they can learn it before the shows that are coming up, and that's fucking awesome.”
'Check Yes Juliet' was a massive hit globally and Travis knows it. “I'll never get sick of playing that song.”
The response it gets from the crowd, Travis says, is usually his favourite part of the show. “I save up all of my energy for that last moment, because it's normally the last song we play, or the encore – it's always a great moment, and that song is what gave us our start.”
When they're down under touring, Travis will get to play 'tourist'. “I've always loved sharks, and they asked me if I wanted to do that while I was there. They said I'll be swimming with three-metre-long great whites and I was like, 'I don't know what three metres is'. Then they told me, and I was like 'whoa! Okay!'”
As the conversation returns to 'Strange Love', Travis says there are songs you can dance to, clap along to, and sway to as well. “I'm kind of drawn to the slower songs. I can be really happy and giddy, you know, but the ballads are always really interesting to write because I have plenty of things to write about, when it comes to the slow songs.”
Travis has had some experiences worthy of tear-jerker ballads. “You know, I've lost people, and I was bullied a lot in middle school and elementary school; stuff like that comes up when you're writing more personal songs.”
Written by Stephanie O'Neill
We The Kings Tour Dates
Thu 25 Feb - Eatons Hill Hotel (Brisbane)Fri 26 Feb - Metro Theatre (Sydney)
Sat 27 Feb - The Basement (Sydney)
Sun 28 Feb - The Corner Hotel (Melbourne; afternoon and evening shows)
Wed 2 Mar - The Gov (Adelaide)
Thu 3 Mar - The Rosemount (Perth)
