Jay Reatard and King Khan have a lot in common. They each started out in the late 90’s – a teenage Jay with the legendary, obnoxious and moronically brilliant The Reatards out of Memphis, and King Khan with the Montreal garage punkers The Spaceshits. Both come from the same DIY punk scene championed by such record labels like Goner, UFO Dictator, Hozac and Sympathy for the Record Industry. Since then, their various bands have shared record labels and stages numerous times. In fact, Jay Reatard and King Khan played together at the Bottom Lounge in Chicago this past Saturday. (Photo by Tracy Popp)
The two dudes have also experienced a similar career trajectory. Both have found increased popularity as of late, similar to their buddies The Black Lips, through constant touring and signing with bigger labels (Matador and Vice respectively). Even indie rock weenies like Pitchfork Media are singing their praises, even though a couple years ago they wouldn’t touch this stuff with a 10 foot pole. Finally, Jay Reatard and King Khan recently issued collections of previously released songs within a few weeks of each other.
Jay Reatard’s Singles 06-07 (In the Red Records) collects 17 songs from six different 7” singles released in 2006 and 2007. On wax, Jay plays all the instruments himself – guitar, bass, drums and the occasional keyboard. Obviously, he has a rhythm section for live endeavors, with Jay providing guitar and vocals. Prior to his current solo efforts, Jay spent the first part of this decade in the Lost Sounds – a band that excellently blended elements of new wave, punk and black metal. The first six songs from Singles 06-07 finds Jay honing his new wave and power pop sensibilities. “Don’t Let Him Come Back” shares a similar happy-go-lucky melody with Devo’s “Worried Man”. These songs exemplify Jay’s ability to write catchy songs.
Starting with “It’s So Useless” (cut 8) and continuing for 2 more songs, the fast tempo, fuzz and paranoia Jay utilized in the Lost Sounds becomes more prevalent. These songs create a speedy and nervous vibe. He switches his sound up to a murkier, lo-fi four-track sound beginning with “Haunting You.” The next song, “Let It All Go,” is a poignant, post-punk gem. The last four songs are earlier, rawer versions of songs that appear on Blood Visions, Reatard’s first solo full-length from 2006. Singles 06-07 also comes with a DVD: Jay Reatard live at four different shows. The footage really captures his manic, energetic live shows. Currently, Jay Reatard is near the end of a string of increasingly limited 7”s put out by Matador Records. These records are going to be compiled and are slated to be released later this fall.
The Supreme Genius of King Khan and the Shrines collects 16 previously released tracks pulled from King Khan and the Shrines’ import only records. King Khan, a Canadian ex-pat living in Germany, splits his time between the Shrines and his other band, King Khan & BBQ Show, with long time musical partner Mark Sultan, aka BBQ. The KK & BBQ Show are a stripped down garage duo with equal parts rowdy doo-wop and 13th Floor Elevators psych. With the Shrines, Khan uses a full band with a horn section to create sweaty, instant-dance-party, rock ’n’ soul madness.
Songs such as “Torture,” “Sweet Tooth,” “Destroyer” and “Live Fast Die Strong” are revved up, greasy R&B barn burners. King Khan’s manic vocals are equal parts James Brown and Little Richard. There are also a couple slow dance grooves here to cool things out. “Fool Like Me” is an Ike and Tina style bring-down-the-house slow jam. While these earlier songs from the Shrines repertoire are not the most original, they make up for it in fun.
King Khan’s songwriting really came into its own on the 2007 LP What Is ?!, of which “Outta Harm’s Way,” “Land Of the Freak,” “I Wanna Be A Girl,” “Welfare Bread” and “No Regrets” appear on this collection. “Outta Harm’s Way” is reminiscent of later period Love. “Land of the Freak” is King Khan’s take on “Land of a Thousand Dances” championing cities around the U.S. were the crowds are known for getting down and dirty when the Shrines play. The horns add to the chaos with Art Ensemble-like short, sharp, freak-out blasts. The gender-bending “I Wanna Be A Girl” has a Velvets-y raga rock feel. It should be noted that King Khan regularly slips into a dress and wig on stage midway through King Khan and BBQ Show gigs. He claims to have turned into Tina Turner when this phenomenon occurs. My personal favorite is “Welfare Bread” – a groovy “as long as we got each other” love song. The music sounds like late 60’s Kinks backed by the Stax studio band. Khan’s Dylan-esque vocals are the clincher.
Both of these collections from Jay Reatard and King Khan and the Shrines are worth picking up for the simple fact that most of these songs are long out of print or the original releases are really hard to get. After following these dudes since the 90’s, I’m happy that they’re still making exciting music.
Here’s a video of Reatard playing “Oh It’s Such a Shame” live: