Kinski

None of this is Kinski’s fault, but it has to be asked: What exactly are you looking for here? Awkwardly personal facts? A list of bands they’ve chummed it up with? None of that is too terribly important, at least not to the matter at hand: Down Below It’s Chaos, Kinski’s third or fourth (depending on how you count) album for their hometown label. What conclusions do you draw from the fact that Kinski has toured with Oneida, Acid Mothers and Tool? That they’re open-minded and up for rock & roll adventure. Surprise! What great band isn’t? Really, even their names are in your other hand, on the CD; am I to waste precious space repeating them here?

Well, for tradition’s sake, I suppose I am. So for the nosy thrill-seekers out there, here are the correct (at press time) spellings of each member’s name, followed by the answer to one different, awkwardly personal question—but it’s down to you to guess the question: Lucy Atkinson (red); Chris Martin (Italian); Matthew Reid-Schwartz (yes); Barrett Wilke (none).

What else? You want to know, like, what’s on the record? That seems counterproductive, since, again, you’re holding the CD right now. But we’re a service outfit here, and we please to aim: Down Below It’s Chaos was recorded in Seattle by Randall Dunn, who also worked on Alpine Static, Kinski’s previous record, and by all accounts (from my ears, which work well) he really gets it. Just as quickly as “surge” became a bad word in our land, Kinski has won it back for us; their instruments may not kill fascists, but they can neuter right-wing governments.

Ah yes, on the subject of words. I’ve heard tell that Kinski’s easy manner with and without them has upset a few apple-carts out there. Fear not, true believer! I am happy to report that Down Below It’s Chaos is packed with lyrics. But—only a portion of them are in English. The rest come from The Dictionary of Rock Linguistics (Sixth Edition). No library is complete without it! Try Amazon’s Mexico site; or, you could always translate from the album itself.

How much more specific do you need me to get? More important, do you seriously trust me more than your own ears? You want to hear from me about the ringing, howling power of “Plan, Steal, Drive”? The exhortation (or is that accusation?) of “Dayroom at Narita Int’l”? You want to know what all their words and nonwords mean? Look, Kinski hasn’t approved any of this, but as their de facto advocate, I must say: They’ve done the work. Down Below It’s Chaos is in your hands. The only real question here is, what are you bringing to the table?

Kinski:
Lucy Atkinson—bass
Chris Martin—guitar/vocals
Matthew Reid-Schwartz—guitar/keyboards/flute
Barrett Wilke—drums/percussion