King Sized King Adora exploded onto the scene last year with a clutch of glitter-spangled spunk-filled two minute pop assaults designed to show the anodyne plastic charts that the true spirit of rock'n'roll is not dead... Rock Midgets caught up with lead singer Matt Browne for a chat about a sexational year, the recording of the new album and, well, alcohol, of course... Interview by Ruth

What was the highlight of last year for you?
The people coming to the gigs really. They've made us a successful as we have been. They're all very loyal, very hardcore. I think that know we've got them onside. I mean you need the right press and radio, like people like Steve Lamacq's been, you need those people at the start, but...

What was the Leeds festival weekend like?
It was a bit mental, but it was good for us. We did Reading on Friday, and then like stayed in Reading since we didn't have to be in Leeds until Monday, so we stayed in Reading and did the buses, and stayed in tents and stuff like that.

So you did the whole festival thing?
Yeah, absolutely. I was always too broke to go to a festival really, and I'd only really been to one before where I hadn't actually played in it. I was about 14 and I saw Nirvana play at Reading. It's a great memory to have. I never went to another one, so it was good to play in Reading. I like doing the whole festival thing, I don't like just going back to the hotel, stuff like that, it's boring.

Do you prefer it to just touring?
Touring's great. It's like one big pub crawl.

Have you had the chance to get out in Manchester yet?
We haven't really, no. Had a bit of a walkabout, but we didn't get here 'til late, so no, not really. I've been here before, though, stuff like that, I've got friends here. I haven't been out this side of town, but I've got friends drink round the gay quarter. Our tour manager's from round Manchester, so maybe he'll take me out one day...

You've been quoted as saying "There's no such thing as a day without alcohol". Do you ever worry about burning out like Placebo almost did?
Erm... (pauses) possibly. But I think that it's just the way we are, really. It gives us an edge, so we don't worry about burning out. If you worry about burning out then you will. It's not an issue to us.

What was it like doing the Mansun tour last year?
Fantastic. Mansun are great guys, really, really nice, and very similar to us. And it's a very similar fanbase as well, so it did us the world of good, a lot of favours. We're playing with them this week as well, doing the Brats at the Astoria, so, look forward to seeing them.

You haven't done the Astoria before, have you? Nervous at all?
No. I mean, we've done the Shepherd's Bush empire with Mansun live and stuff, so no, not at all.

After the Mansun show you were swarmed with fans. Does it ever feel weird to have so many obsessive fans this early?
It does, yeah, but... It does, but it's like you can't be involved in stuff like that talking to people and doing autographs like that, cos I think a lot of people live through your eyes and a lot of the time you're a role model to a lot of people. It's the least you can do really. People like embracing your whole life really, what you do. So no, absolutely it is weird, it's strange doing stuff like that full-stop, but it's always still very weird for us. We don't know what on earth's going on around us, but it's nice.

You also have quite a lot of younger fans.
Yeah, it's great. That's what we want. That's what we've done in Scotland. We've just played three gigs with 14's and above. You get a wristband everytime you go in whether you can use the bar or not. I think everywhere should do that, really. They're the main record-buying public, really.

Are you against the idea of bands playing venues that are only 18's and over?
Absolutely. I'm completely against that.

With such an obsessive audience, has anyone ever got too close for comfort?
There's been a couple of those, but you just get that kind of thing. You get sent some scary stuff in the post and stuff like that. Next time you go back to that town you have to be a little bit wary, but that's like one in every few hundred people.

What's the scariest thing you've been sent through the post?
I've had used razorblades and stuff like that...

Melody Maker was one of the magazines that really championed you from the beginning - what did you make of it's disappearance, along with Select?
It's very sad really, cos they were both good papers, and they both liked us, which was unfortunate, so we'll probably lose a lot of press out of that. But they supported us while we were there, so we're thankful to them, but it's a big shame really, very sad.

How did you spend Christmas and New Year?
In the pub. Just locally really, it was quite quiet, quite chilled out. Just trying to get a little bit of rest.

I hear you've been working a lot on the new album between touring...
We finished it at the end of December. We're gonna go back, do the first single again, cos we recorded it with somebody else and we wanted it to be the same guy. Go back after this tour, do that song and it's all done really.

What was it like recording at Sawmills, a place only accessible by boat?
I know, it was fantastic for us. They won't put us in the cities, they don't trust us. The first stuff, we did in London, but they said "You won't get any work done", and we didn't, so... It's perfect for us, though, it's like our little heaven.

How did the rest of Devon react to you?
People were actually really really nice. We went clubbing one night, bout 20 miles away, and the local lads didn't like us very much. But all these old people down the local pub loved us, we got on with them really well. They were really cool.

Describe the new album to us.
It'll be exciting, all the singles'll be on it, some other new tracks. It's all very mad, but it's very well done. We're trying to get it as close to what we do live. We think it's really worked, hopefully it'll be a bit of a soundtrack for people's lives, I don't know. But we're very happy with it.

What's your favourite song so far that you've recorded?
God, I don't know. I couldn't do that. I'm happy with them all, really. I have favourite songs to play like 'Smoulder', and 'Bionic' when we're playing live. I love them all, really.

In the Smoulder video you were confined in a box. Was it something you had a lot of involvement in?
Nah, not at all, but we didn't have... they spend more money on you as you go up with each video, so that one was just do what we could do. We didn't mind. It was a bit uncomfortable. Especially with the drummer, who's got a bit of a wind problem.

Who's got the worst habits?
Probably between the drummer and the guitarist. Very nasty habits.

You've been quoted as saying "People need us to prove that rock'n'roll isn't dead. Do you think rock'n'roll is dying?
It was before we came along, yeah. But we're back now, so it's all alright.

What does the word "sexational" mean?
It's like sensational, but sexier. I just made it up to try and get it in the dictionary.

Claire's Accessories or Accessorize?
Oh, the cheap one every time. Fuck style.

When you got signed you made all the industry people come to Birmingham instead of you going to London. What was the thinking behind that?
Just because they get paid for doing fuck all, and they don't do fuck all ever. We just decided to do it that way, play by our rules for a change. We made sure we got a bit of interest first, but other wise we'd have been told to fuck off. It was just the way we wanted to play it, really. Just goes to show they'll do it if you make them, they're just very lazy. It was nice to get one over them.

You're quite an uncompromising band, and you're certainly stars in the minds of your fans. Do you think that there could ever be anyone who could overshadow, or take it all away from you?
No. Short answer to a big question. There are new bands I like at the moment, bands I think are alright. My Vitriol are pretty good, the ...Trail Of The Dead, forget what they're called, they have afros...
At The Drive In?
Yeah, they're alright. But I don't know any British bands... Soulwax, I think they're very good. As in new bands we're talking about, well I know a lot of people like Mansun, but, no, there's not a lot really seems to be going on, to be honest, but nobody would be stupid enough to do what we're doing. We're the only ones stupid enough to be doing what we're doing.

So who do you listen to on the tourbus?
Anything and everything, from Marvin Gaye through to the Pixies, through to Smashing Pumpkins, to a little bit of Bee Gees 'Saturday Night Fever'. Depends on the mood of the tourbus. We've got a different soundtrack to every day. Lot's of stuff, really.

Is the media attention you've received a curse or a blessing?
I don't know. I'm indifferent to it now. I think at the start I think it's important when you start to have some people on your side, which we've had. But like I said before I don't really care anymore. I think people will always say something about us. They might despise us or they might love us. It's great either way, because they won't sit on the fence with us. We're very lucky like that. So no, I don't think we care about it. I suppose the biggest thing they could do against us would be to say nothing, I suppose. But they won't. We wind them up too much. They don't like people like us doing well.

So do you prefer fanzines to the rest of the press?
Absolutely, yeah. Very much so.

With King Adora, there's very much not just the music, but an image and a lifestyle that goes with it. Do you ever worry that people will remember you more for your image than your music?
Maybe. I don't know. I think everybody initially is sort of connected with people on an image sort of basis anyway, you know? But I can't see people really coming to our gigs just because of our image to be honest. I think they like the songs. So I would never worry about that, no. I wouldn't worry about anybody who thought that.

I've heard that you've been told that you have an addictive personality... Do think it affects your attitude towards making King Adora a success?
No, not really. It strengthens it if anything I suppose. That's the one thing I could never let go, the one thing I'm more addicted to than anything else is doing what we're doing. It's very good for me in that way. Definitely a positive thing.

What essential thing on your rider could you not live without?
Alcohol. That's it.


LINKS
www.kingadora.com www.superiorqualityrecordings.co.uk