Kitchens Of Distinction -- S&D//POO/C or D?

Patrick's new Stephen Hero album it out, if anyone is still listening. His voice is still great and Julian guests on one track - what a tease!

I've had everything but Love Is Hell for quite a while, and love it all pretty equally. Very consistent band. Still can't seem to track down that first record, though, and I've been looking for years...

So you're saying you need a CDR burn, then.

(Nothing's turned up on Amazon? Odd, it did get a nice rerelease on A&M over here.)

I don't do a lot of online shopping, too impersonal. Maybe it's time to check Amazon/eBay for this one though.

ah yes, Amazon is loaded. i may have to look into that.

Just placed an order for the 2CD version of Capsule, very excited. Are there any key tracks on the b-sides/live/acoustic/etc. disc that I ought to pay extra-special attention to?

Post a tracklisting for that again. There are indeed some spectacular ones.

Full tracklisting at http://wc10.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3zfixq8aldhe

Andy K sez:

The first 2500 copies of the set came with a second disc of B-sides and radio-session versions, several of which wouldn't be undeserving of first-disc placement -- see the alternately dreary and blissful storms of "Glittery Dust," and the anti-Thatcher "Margaret's Injection," in particular, along with the 12" (albeit inferior) version of "4 Men."

Yes to all that.

I heard a track on the radio and thought it was Patrick from KOD back and not very good.

It turned out to be "An End Is A Start" by Editors.

Roffles

"Prize" is beautiful.

Indeed it is.

"Do I get a prize..."

Was just listening to the demo version earlier today; because the 3rd time ep was my introduction to them I think I actually even prefer it to the album one.

Hahah, I was listening to the demo yesterday. Mindmeld etc.

Prize was the first song of theirs I heard and it was so good it sort of ruined the rest of their stuff for me.

Doubtless the KoD fans here have already picked up on the surprising amount of live footage that's on youtube, but may as well link just in case. I like to think it's a measure of the love for them that still exists that people lugged video cameras to gigs back in the '90s and are now uploading that footage years later. I went to this show in Brum, so it's extra weird to find it again, and although you can't see much you can *hear* everything:

And then there were the Toilets of Destruction:

http://www.dailymotion.com/playlist/xxnh0_RileyELFuk_toilets-of-destruction-12oct-91

The Ride cover/parody = roffles.

There's a funny version of 'Prize' there too. WHat was this gig all about then?

They did random shows in this vein under the Toilets of Destruction name in London every so often -- I remember hearing about them at the time. What's nice is hearing how clearly they all become Kitchens songs thanks to the tone of Julian's guitars in particular!

Yeah, very true, and there's always that voice too. I'd normally hate "wacky" stuff like this, but those are pretty endearing clips.

That cover of "Heroes" is great - as you say, Ned, it's unmistakeably Kitchens once Swales gets his guitar all over it.

So I knew absolutely nothing about these guys, had only heard the name a couple times before and, for some reason, had a vague notion that they were most post-punk than shoegaze. Anyway, happened across a $1.99 copy of The Death of Cool and, remembering it being on Ned's 90s list, grabbed it without another thought. OH MY GOD. Fantastic discovery, must find more.

They kind of are more postpunk etc but it's in how you define it. And glad you liked it!

Yeah I can see the influence, but in my mind I was picturing something closer to Josef K (I have no idea where this came from!).

Another great gig from '92, rare *daytime* footage on this occasion. Wish they could have played Manchester's Piccadilly Gardens in such a manner...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYOkZZMy-Eg&feature=channel

remembering it being on Ned's 90s list, grabbed it without another thought. OH MY GOD. Fantastic discovery, must find more.

This seriously happened to me at least a dozen times from 2005-2007 era.

Ha, well, glad to help!

Wow that live clip sounds even better than the record!

I had the same Ned's 90s experiences between about 2000 & 2002.

Tempted to start a "best album from Ned's 136 that I don't already have & love" poll...

listening to the shimmer in the outro of 'blue pedal' just now, it's like a second sun. i only saw them live twice. i still remember the first show most with kingmaker and bleach and they played shiver, mad as the snow and polaroids consecutively and it was the most beautiful thing ever. what an amazing band.

"Strange Free World" is just utterly epic - I played it driving home from a music festival and I was pushing 90 before I knew it. "Drive That Fast" indeed!

my wife refers to this excellent band as "kitchens of destruction"

Well there's Toilets of Destruction and all.

And...I happen to be wearing my Strange Free World shirt this very minute.

a/s/l?

tell me what else u are wearing ;)

Lord.

you started it ;_;

"kitchens of destruction" - reading this, the first thing that popped into my head was the phrase being sung to the tune of "symphony of destruction" by megadeth

Via his Facebook account, Patrick F. has linked this:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2577831/Kitchens%20Of%20Distinction-Manchester%20Roadhouse%2012%20May%2096.zip

To quote him:

A rare audience recording, courtesy of the Tarquin Live! website, of the last ever Kitchens of Distinction UK tour in 1996. Converted to mp3 by 'Teenage Kitchenette' Jubby on this link so it should just open straight up in your iTunes library - ENJOY

Awesome, thanks! Oddly enough, someone recently posted a YT clip of theirs on my FB wall out of the blue & I've spent several hours revisiting their records in the last two days. Sadly, I never got to see them live, which is really too bad b/c I think Julian Swales is brilliant guitarist (& overlooked!) - maybe not quite on par w/ Kev, but certainly in keeping w/ the best the second-tier of 90s stompbox dudes like Nick McCabe, Adam Franklin & the Ride guys. Friends who saw them have confirmed that Swales had such masterful control of his reverb/delay that you'd swear there were three or four guitarists playing at any given time.

Death of Cool & Strange Free World are both stone cold classics imo & on my shortlist for best albums of the 90s. Cowboys and Aliens was not quite on that level, but is underrated, I feel. Sand on Fire is a total jam & must have sounded FANTASTIC when performed. Could they maybe get back together and slog it around for those of us who missed them the first time around? I honestly know nothing of how they ended up parting ways..

Strange Free World sound as good, if not better, today than it did 22 years ago. A brilliant and hugely underrated band.

http://devonrecordclub.wordpress.com/2012/04/26/kitchens-of-distinction-strange-free-world-round-26-toms-selection/

Well now this is interesting -- according to recent posts on Patrick Fitzgerald's website:

http://stephenheroband.wordpress.com/

He and Julian Swales are working on a new album, and it looks like they're thinking about reviving the Kitchens of Distinction name for it if a Facebook comment was any indication. Perhaps not, we'll have to see. Here's the most recent blogpost:

Very close to mixing now. 10 new songs recorded with Julian playing guitar and me playing guitar and singing and there’s bass and strings and drums and flutes and oboes and trumpets and tambourines and weird samples and swearing and not swearing and songs that sound old and songs that sound nothing like what we’ve done before and a soprano’s ahhs and the kitchen sink.

Now what to call the thing and in what format to release it?

Wow.

God, what it would be to have some of that old Kitchens magic back; was listening to them on the long drive back from Cromer to Manchester yesterday, with the sun shining and distant wind farms spinning they sounded better than ever. I don't remember enough about the original split to know if there was any acrimony which might have prevented Dan's involvement with this? From the blog it looks like it's been a slow germination of work with Julian again anyway. Pretty exciting tbh :)

Reformation-ah! Dan Goodwin joins.

Great news... I don't expect it to completely sound like the Kitchens, but this is very promising..

We have some news:

https://www.facebook.com/events/444166695621895/permalink/534977803207450/

we are delighted to announce that the fifth KITCHENS OF DISTINCTION recording will be released later this year through the 3 LOOP MUSIC label so please head over to their Facebook page to hear all the latest about the band's new home. If you have any questions about the release - the format/s, the release date, merchandise, etc - then please direct them to the lovely folks over there from now on. It's hoped to be a Digital/CD/Vinyl release, with a possible September/October release date, and a full merchandise range but you'll hear all the finer details from the record label as and when they have them. Julian has expressed a desire to not play live and the health of yours truly is, as most of you know, often too fragile to make any firm commitments so no more questions about live shows please but if we are lucky enough to get any radio sessions then you will be the first to know.