King Tuff MOOves home with new record

King Tuff, or Kyle Thomas as he’s known by his parents, returns on March 27th with his first album since his self-reported phase of sonic departures (albums The Other and Small-Town Stardust) with MOO. MOO is an album of returns for the stoner rock statesmen.

Coming back to the garage, his sound returns to its lo-fi roots. His previous two albums were the answer to the question of what would a rocker do if they could do anything. That answer was two albums without the grit that made the King so tough. MOO finds Thomas returning to his newly refurbished Tascam 388, which he used to record his debut album (Was Dead) with all the vintage tone you could ask for.

Equipped with his Gibson SG, Jazijoo, he created a quintessentially rock n’ roll album which, through its analogue datedness, achieves poignance. Speaking on the process and music in general, Thomas says on his website, “Modern music sounds like absolute shit because everyone is trying to make everything sound big and epic, but it ends up sounding like painful, unlistenable, overcompressed shit. Plugins are shit. Computers are shit. It’s too easy to make “perfect” recordings, and I’ve got news for you: perfection is shit. However, imperfection is THE shit.” The clear driving creative force behind this album is returning to the creative spark and synthesis therein of creating music with flaws and restrictions. To Thomas, the music doesn’t get worse because of its imperfections or its limitations. It becomes real, and it becomes singular.

For those unfamiliar with King Tuff by name, he is as staple of the rock world and has been for nearly the last 20 years. He has toured constantly since he dropped his sophomore album in 2012, he played in Ty Segall’s band the Muggers, and is one of the frontmen in WITCH with J. Mascis. His name is not to be left out when talking about the rock scene of the last two decades. Even those who think they may not know him may still recognise the banger, “Sun Medallion,” off his debut album.

The songs off the new album are fun and funny and loud while still carrying complex expression to the listener. Thomas returned to Vermont from LA with the completion of this album. After years of being smothered creatively in a city often cited for its plastic feeling, Thomas has returned to his roots in the Atlantic Northeast to recapture the beautiful chaos of rock music. He plays most of the instruments on the album and did most of the engineering and mastering on his own as well.

The biggest strengths of the album are his guitar and his voice. Phased-out and distorted chords and riffs pair perfectly with his higher-pitched vocals. He emotes equally effectively through his word choice and inflexion as well as his note choice and tone. When the duo meet up to crescendo in solo and stanza, the effect is awesome. The dark horse on the album are the bass lines, which keep an upbeat tempo and jam packs in as much groove per note as I’ve heard on an album.

After taking time in his life to expand and then hone his style, King Tuff has returned. He has returned home and returned to his sound, and the results are electric. He goes on tour this spring, and as this is music that is meant to be played loud, I suggest any who find themselves unable to stop listening at home to go to one of his shows to see how the music comes to life.

Cover image by Wyndham Garnett

King Tuff tour dates

April 15 – Troy, NY @ No Fun
April 16 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg *
April 17 – Kingston, NY @ Tubby’s *
April 18 – Philadelphia, PA @ Kung Fu Necktie *
April 19 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd Music House *
April 21 – Raleigh, NC @ Kings *
April 22 – Atlanta, GA @ The EARL *
April 24 – New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa *
April 25 – Houston, TX @ Moon Tower Inn *
April 26 – Austin, TX @ 29th Street Ballroom *
April 29 – San Diego, CA @ Casbah *
April 30 – Los Angeles, CA @ Sid The Cat Auditorium *
May 1 – Ojai, CA @ Ojai Women’s Center *
May 2 – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel #
May 4 – Seattle, WA @ Barboza #
May 5 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios #
May 7 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge #
May 9 – Denver, CO @ Globe Hall #
May 11 – Sioux Falls, SD @ Total Drag
May 12 – St. Paul, MN @ Turf Club
May 13 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall ^
May 15 – Grand Rapids, MI @ Pyramid Scheme ^
May 16 – Toronto ON @ Sound Garage ^
May 17 – Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz PDB ^
May 19 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground ^
May 20 – Portland, ME @ SPACE ^
May 21 – Hamden, CT – Space Ballroom ^
May 22- Boston, MA @ Middle East Upstairs ^
May 23 – Brattleboro, VT @ Stone Church ^