Stripped of the Shrines, the Almighty Defenders and regular co-conspirator BBQ Show (aka Mark Sultan), “Desert Mile” finds King Khan going back to basics. However, in this case it doesn’t mean a one-man, three-chord garage stomper, rather a jangly downtrodden number, fleshed out by Khan and a mysterious female backing vocalist. The two reminisce about love lost and searching for a place to call home, at times giving “Desert Mile” the feel of a Lee Hazelwood-Nancy Sinatra collaboration, a nod to the classic American song. Surely Khan’s country-western leanings shouldn’t surprise anyone, as his understanding and consistent re-contextualization of uniquely American genres (doo-wop, garage, soul, punk) has proved Khan an apt educator for children looking to delve into the annals and archives of radio stations come and gone. “Desert Mile,” along with an interview with Khan dubbed “We’re bending the spoons of our minds!,” appears on the forthcoming Viva Radio The Best of Me + You Vol.1, along with fifty-plus other interview/exclusive cuts recorded on Viva Radio, featuring takes by Fiery Furnaces, Growing, Tyvjk, Amazing Baby, Jennifer O’Connor, Dark Meat, Fiasco and Khan co-conspirators the Black Lips.

King Khan, Desert Mile

MP3 Download

King Khan and BBQ Show’s long-awaited 3rd full-length album entitled, Invisible Girl, is set to be released on Los Angeles-based In The Red Records Mid-November. Dudes. This is going to be epic. This promises much more nipple than ever before. Mark Sultan, (bka BBQ) has said the new album “includes a song so vile that it cannot even be mentioned.” The boys have been working with Black Lips as the Almighty Defenders, but come this fall you can catch them in their original incarnation in any of the following North American cities:

10.17.2009 Portland, OR @ Vice Garage Festival
10.28.2009 Northampton @ Pearl Street Nightclub
10.29.2009 Cambridge, MA @ Middle East Downstairs
10.30.2009 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
10.31.2009 Brooklyn, NY @ The Bell House
11.01.2009 Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church
11.02.2009 Washington, DC @ Rock and Roll Hotel
11.04.2009 Atlanta, GA @ Lennys
11.05.2009 Birmingham, AL @ Bottletree
11.08.2009 Austin, TX @ Fun Fun Fun Fest
11.10.2009 Memphis, TN @ Hi-Tone Cafe
11.11.2009 Nashville, TN @ Exit In
11.12.2009 St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway
11.13.2009 Lawrence, KN @ The Jackpot Saloon
11.14.2009 Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater
11.16.2009 Phoenix, AZ @ Rhythm Room
11.17.2009 Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour
11.18.2009 San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
11.20.2009 Portland, OR @ Dantes
11.21.2009 Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
11.23.2009 Vancouver, BC @ The Red Room
11.25.2009 Calgary, AB @ The Warehouse
11.26.2009 Edmonton, AB @ Pawn Shop
11.27.2009 Saskatoon, SK @ Amigos
11.28.2009 Winnipeg, MB @ Royal Albert Arms
11.29.2009 Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock Social Club
12.01.2009 Milwaukee, MN @ Mad Planet
12.02.2009 Chicago, IL @ Logan Square Auditorium
12.03.2009 Cincinnati, OH @ Northside Tavern
12.04.2009 Toronto, ON @ Lees Palace
12.05.2009 Ottawa, ON @ Babylon

We’re just going to throw it out there that this collaboration between current Tripwire feature, King Khan, and former Tripwire feature, Black Lips, will probably sound like “good old rock & roll” and will probably also be a little “crazy” and “wild.” The recording may also have involved dudes spitting on or in each other.

Press release!

When the Black Lips had to flee India after almost getting arrested (long story) and getting their passports confiscated (longer story), they fled to Berlin to hole up with their old pal and label-mate King Khan. Mark Sultan (aka BBQ, one half of King Khan & BBQ Show) also happened to be there, and it happened to be freezing in Berlin that week so no one really wanted to leave the house. So what do a bunch of garage-rock all-stars (and international refugees) do in the middle of winter in cramped conditions? They give birth to an album and band of the same name, The Almighty Defenders. The guys went to Moon Studios and recorded these tracks, brimming with soul, earnest shouts, cries and hand-claps over post-modern gospel-rock anthems.

Photos by Victoria Jacob

Last Friday we showed you what a crazy spectacle a King Khan and The Shrines show is. But have you ever wondered what kind of transformation takes place before the show?
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The problem with a King Khan and the Shrines show is that it usually involves so many different people, outfits and antics, it’s nearly impossible to walk away with less than thirty amazing pictures of the spectacle that is King Khan. That is exactly what happened when Tripwire photographer Victoria Jacob went and saw them at The Music Hall Of Williamsburg.
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