For Your Viewing Pleasure

This update has been a long time coming, and I apologize.

Back in the winter, I got my hands on What Is?! and Mr. Supernatural, the two albums that currently retail for King Khan and the Shrines. The result was listening to both albums straight through about four times each and becoming undeniably hooked. How could anyone not like their sound?

Quickly, it became apparent that it wasn't so much that people didn't like King Khan and the Shrines, rather, they had never heard of them. Normally, I'd do my best to be all humble about that kind of thing, especially since I try to avoid situations where I become the doucebag who has heard of that band, why haven't you? and remain accepting that not everyone scours the internet and their friends iPods/computers for new music. But here, I've just found it unacceptable that the millions and millions of geeks like myself who read internet music news haven't gotten their hands on a copy of What Is?! and properly wet themselves.

On the myspace page, you can feel free to browse the list of interest and gourge yourself on the videos of the king of funk himself and Sly Stone. This is certainly an apt description, and Khan has alligned himself with a close-to-10-piece band to bring the funk right at you. The result is a deliciously retro funk groove, which hurtles unrelentingly into psychadelics, which is the only way Khan would have it. He is well known for his experimentation and one need look no further than the episode of Don't Look Down on the myspace page to understand just how strange a character he is.

Still, the guy knows how to pump up a crowd, James Brown style, and when he tells you to get funky with it, you do.

The crowd at the 930 was surprising for a band that has struggled somewhat with recognition in the US (although they made an appearance at last year's Pitchfork Music Festival which drew quite a crowd). Not to mention, the band had drawn the latenight slot on a Wednesday. Still, in the front row, we were joined by a few hundred other screaming fans. The club may not have sold out like it has for almost every other big name coming through this May, but everyone who was there damn well wanted to see the show.

Again, it's not that people don't like King Khan and the Shrines, they just haven't made it all the way out of Europe yet. With the US release of What Is?! under their belt, and a frightenly awesome stage show touring now, it's hard to imagine that the band will return to Germany with anything less than a new and hefty following.