King Creosote
Encyclopedia
Kenny Anderson, known primarily by his stage name King Creosote, is an independent singer-songwriter
from Fife
, Scotland
. To date, Anderson has released over forty albums, with his latest, Thrawn, released in 2011. Anderson is also a member of Scottish-Canadian band, The Burns Unit
. In 2011, Anderson's collaborative album with Jon Hopkins
, Diamond Mine, was nominated for the Mercury Prize
.
Anderson's brothers are also musicians: Ian Anderson (known as Pip Dylan) and Gordon Anderson (Lone Pigeon
) - who is lead singer and main songwriter with The Aliens
. Collaborations between the three often occur at live shows and on album releases.
musician Kenny Anderson launched his own label, Fence, and began recording albums under the name King Creosote:
Today, Anderson runs Fence Records alongside Johnny Lynch
, as well as Fence's annual Homegame Festival.
In recent years, Anderson has teamed up with Domino Records who have co-released some of his albums. He also spent some time on Warner
subsidiary, 679, which gave him major label backing for the first time.
To this end, KC Rules OK
was re-released in 2006 with different versions of some songs, and a version of the album called "Chorlton and the Wh'earlies" recorded with The Earlies
was available with some purchases. Bombshell
was released with an additional disc, a DVD film of King Creosote and friends on tour.
In a June 2008 interview on BBC 6 Music
, mistakenly introduced as "King Creole", he told Tom Robinson
that he'd like to play a festival every weekend this summer and then return home for the weekdays.
In the 2007 film Hallam Foe
two of his songs, "The Someone Else" and "King Bubbles in Sand", were featured.
In late 2009, Anderson released a new studio album Flick the Vs
, and crafted a performance only album, entitled My Nth Bit of Strange in Umpteen Years
. Anderson also contributed to the Cold Seeds
collaborative album along with Frances Donnelly of Animal Magic Tricks, and Neil Pennycook and Pete Harvey from Meursault
; which was released on the Edinburgh-based indie label
Song, By Toad Records. Anderson, Donnelly and Pennycook all wrote songs for the project, which all four performers then recorded together; each singer often taking the lead vocal role on a song written by another of the artists. The album was given a special limited release at the Fence Records
Homegame Festival in Anstruther
, Fife
in March 2010, before a general release was announced for June 2010.
In 2011, Anderson attended the SxSW Music Festival and played a number of shows, two of which featured fellow Scottish attendees Kid Canaveral
as his backing band. The same year, Anderson released Diamond Mine, a collaborative album with electronica
composer Jon Hopkins
, to critical acclaim. The album was nominated for the Mercury Prize
, with Anderson stating, "It feels like this is the beginning of something. And to feel that so far down the line, after putting out forty effing albums, oh my God! It means, I can still do this, it's not over." The duo subsequently released an EP, Honest Words
.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
from Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. To date, Anderson has released over forty albums, with his latest, Thrawn, released in 2011. Anderson is also a member of Scottish-Canadian band, The Burns Unit
The Burns Unit
This article is about the music group. For the medical facility, see Burn center.The Burns Unit is an eight-piece Scottish-Canadian music group. The band formed in 2006, after the musicians met at Burnsong, a Scottish songwriting retreat...
. In 2011, Anderson's collaborative album with Jon Hopkins
Jon Hopkins
Jon Hopkins is a London-based producer and musician who writes and performs his own melodic electronica and dance music. After starting his career performing keyboard for Imogen Heap, he's produced or contributed to albums by Brian Eno, Coldplay, David Holmes, and others...
, Diamond Mine, was nominated for the Mercury Prize
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...
.
Anderson's brothers are also musicians: Ian Anderson (known as Pip Dylan) and Gordon Anderson (Lone Pigeon
Lone Pigeon
Lone Pigeon is the working name of Gordon Anderson, a Scottish musician and co-founder of The Beta Band...
) - who is lead singer and main songwriter with The Aliens
The Aliens
The Aliens are a Scottish band consisting of former Beta Band members Gordon Anderson , John Maclean and Robin Jones...
. Collaborations between the three often occur at live shows and on album releases.
Musical career
In 1995, local FifeFife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
musician Kenny Anderson launched his own label, Fence, and began recording albums under the name King Creosote:
I had a band and we did all the things you know you do with a band and you trial it and take advice and do shows, then you lose money and the band gets hacked off then the band breaks up and it just got to a point where I just questioned why I was doing it in the first place. In a way, it seemed like the fun had gone out of it. A lot of the songs I was writing were written for the band & things became big things, I just got to a point where, I thought the band were hating every song I was writing for whatever reason, some people were like oh no I don't want to play that, that's too this or that's too that. It just got to a point where the band broke up and I thought, well, you know what I just want to get back into recording again and doing it on my own, I don't have to watch the clock I'm not in a studio anymore more, and at the time I got one of the really early stand alone CD Burners and that was like a revelation because it meant I could make CDs so I'd have a DAT tape as a master then burn albums one at a time and do artwork.
Today, Anderson runs Fence Records alongside Johnny Lynch
The Pictish Trail
Johnny Lynch is a Scottish musician who performs under the stage name The Pictish Trail. Lynch runs Fence Records alongside Kenny Anderson.As of 2010 he also plays with Adem Ilhan in the band Silver Columns.-Early life:...
, as well as Fence's annual Homegame Festival.
In recent years, Anderson has teamed up with Domino Records who have co-released some of his albums. He also spent some time on Warner
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...
subsidiary, 679, which gave him major label backing for the first time.
To this end, KC Rules OK
KC Rules OK
KC Rules OK is a studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote, released on September 19, 2005 on Names. A subsequent remastered special edition version of the album was released in 2006 with a new track, "So Forlorn", re-recordings of "678" and "Marguerita Red" and liner notes by author...
was re-released in 2006 with different versions of some songs, and a version of the album called "Chorlton and the Wh'earlies" recorded with The Earlies
The Earlies
The Earlies are a band formed by Christian Madden and Giles Hatton from Lancashire, England, and Brandon Carr and John Mark Lapham from the United States...
was available with some purchases. Bombshell
Bombshell (album)
Bombshell is an album by King Creosote, released in 2007.Regarding the album, Kenny Anderson states that:The new ones are pretty much my insecurities or paranoia of whatever I'm going through at this part of my life...
was released with an additional disc, a DVD film of King Creosote and friends on tour.
In a June 2008 interview on BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....
, mistakenly introduced as "King Creole", he told Tom Robinson
Tom Robinson
Tom Robinson is an English singer-songwriter, bassist and radio presenter, better known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson Band...
that he'd like to play a festival every weekend this summer and then return home for the weekdays.
In the 2007 film Hallam Foe
Hallam Foe
Hallam Foe is a 2007 Scottish drama film directed by David Mackenzie based on the novel written by Peter Jinks. The film was released in the United States as Mister Foe. The screenplay was written by Ed Whitmore and David Mackenzie....
two of his songs, "The Someone Else" and "King Bubbles in Sand", were featured.
In late 2009, Anderson released a new studio album Flick the Vs
Flick the Vs
Flick the Vs is a studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote, released on April 20, 2009 on Domino Records and Fence Records.A limited edition version of the album includes a five-track bonus disc....
, and crafted a performance only album, entitled My Nth Bit of Strange in Umpteen Years
My Nth Bit of Strange in Umpteen Years
My Nth Bit of Strange in Umpteen Years is a performance-only album by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote, debuted in October 2009, at Fence Records' Hallowe'en Homegame Festival...
. Anderson also contributed to the Cold Seeds
Cold Seeds
Cold Seeds is a musical collaboration between Kenny Anderson , Frances Donnelly , and Neil Pennycook and Peter Harvey of Meursault....
collaborative album along with Frances Donnelly of Animal Magic Tricks, and Neil Pennycook and Pete Harvey from Meursault
Meursault (band)
Meursault are an alternative indie band from Edinburgh, Scotland, led by singer-songwriter Neil Pennycook. Their musical style has been variously categorised as folktronica, alternative rock and indie folk...
; which was released on the Edinburgh-based indie label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
Song, By Toad Records. Anderson, Donnelly and Pennycook all wrote songs for the project, which all four performers then recorded together; each singer often taking the lead vocal role on a song written by another of the artists. The album was given a special limited release at the Fence Records
Fence Records
Fence Records is a record label based in Fife, Scotland which is owned and run by musicians King Creosote and The Pictish Trail...
Homegame Festival in Anstruther
Anstruther
Anstruther is a small town in Fife, Scotland. The two halves of Anstruther are divided by a small stream called Dreel Burn. Anstruther lies 9 miles south-southeast of St Andrews. It is the largest community on the stretch of north-shore coastline of the Firth of Forth known as the East Neuk,...
, Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
in March 2010, before a general release was announced for June 2010.
In 2011, Anderson attended the SxSW Music Festival and played a number of shows, two of which featured fellow Scottish attendees Kid Canaveral
Kid Canaveral
Kid Canaveral is an indie pop band that formed in St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, but are now based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Since 2007 the band have released a number of well received singles, an E.P. and an album on their own label, Straight to Video Records, and in 2011 they signed with Scottish...
as his backing band. The same year, Anderson released Diamond Mine, a collaborative album with electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
composer Jon Hopkins
Jon Hopkins
Jon Hopkins is a London-based producer and musician who writes and performs his own melodic electronica and dance music. After starting his career performing keyboard for Imogen Heap, he's produced or contributed to albums by Brian Eno, Coldplay, David Holmes, and others...
, to critical acclaim. The album was nominated for the Mercury Prize
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...
, with Anderson stating, "It feels like this is the beginning of something. And to feel that so far down the line, after putting out forty effing albums, oh my God! It means, I can still do this, it's not over." The duo subsequently released an EP, Honest Words
Honest Words
Honest Words is an EP by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote and English electronica musician Jon Hopkins, released on September 19, 2011 on Domino Records...
.
Albums
- Queen Of Brush County (FNC 01, 1998)
- Rain WeekendRain WeekendRain Weekend is the debut album by King Creosote, released in 1998.-Track Listing:#Lonesome Pigeon#Oh No, It's Him!#Turps# My F.A.B. Tattoo#Injecticide#Crazy Paving#You Won't Regret It#Take Flight#Had I Been Around#If Ever#Try Again...
(FNC 02, 1998) - Inner Crail To Outer Space (FNC 03, 1998)
- Or Is It? (FNC 04, 1998)
- Gink Scootere (FNC 05, 1998)
- 1999: An Endless Round Of Balls (Parties And Social Events) (FNC 06, 1999)
- Wednesday (FNC 07, 1999)
- Jacques De Fence (FNC JDF, 1999)
- I Am 9 (FNC 09, 1999)
- Planet Eggz (FNC 10, 1999)
- Or Was It? (FNC 11, 2000)
- 12 O'Clock On The Dot (FNC 12, 2000)
- Stinks (FNC 13, 2000)
- G (FNC 14, 2001)
- Radge Weekend Starts Here (FNC 15, 2001)
- King Creosote Says "Buy The Bazouki Hair Oil" (FNC 16, 2001)
- Disclaimer (FNC 17, 2001)
- Squeezebox Set (FNC 18 to 22, 2002) - 5 album boxset containing:-
Fair Dubhs
Favourite Girl
Whelk Of Arse
More Afraid Of Plastic
Losing It On The Gyles (very limited http://www.fencerecords.com/setdetails.php?set_id=4) - Now (Nearly 36) (PF A01, 2003)
- Psalm Clerk (FNC 23, 2003)
- Ideal Rumpus Room Guide (PF B03, 2003)
- Sea Glass (FNC 24, 2004)
- Three Nuns" (PF B10, 2004)
- Kenny and Beth's Musakal Boat RidesKenny and Beth's Musakal Boat RidesKenny and Beth's Musakal Boat Rides is the first album by King Creosote released by Fence Records and Domino Records, however far from his debut release on Fence alone. It was Anderson's first album not to be released as a CD-R. The album made No...
(FNC K&B, also Domino Recording Co, 2003) - Red On Green (FNC 26, 2004)
- Kompanion Cet +1 (PF C06, 2004)
- Rocket D.I.Y.Rocket D.I.Y.Rocket D.I.Y. is a studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote, released on April 4, 2005 on Fence Records and Domino.In 2009, the album was ranked #17 in The Skinnys "Scottish Albums of the Decade" list, with frequent collaborator The Pictish Trail stating, "Now, yes, I know, this was...
(FNC 27, also Domino Recording Co, 2005) - Loose tea on his Wynd (2004)
- Vintage Quays (FNC 29, 2004)
- KC Rules OKKC Rules OKKC Rules OK is a studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote, released on September 19, 2005 on Names. A subsequent remastered special edition version of the album was released in 2006 with a new track, "So Forlorn", re-recordings of "678" and "Marguerita Red" and liner notes by author...
(Names/679, 2005) - Harbour the Hillfolk (2005)
- demos (2005)
- Yellow On Red (FNC 31, 2005)
- Isle of Lo Fi (FNC 32, 2006)
- Waltzer (FNC 33, 2006)
- BombshellBombshell (album)Bombshell is an album by King Creosote, released in 2007.Regarding the album, Kenny Anderson states that:The new ones are pretty much my insecurities or paranoia of whatever I'm going through at this part of my life...
(Names/679, 2007) - Dumps vol.1 (2007) (limited run for 2007 purchasers of the latest release of the aforementioned Squeezebox set)
- They Flock Like Vulcans to See Old Jupiter Eyes on His Home Craters (FNC 34, 2008)
- Flick the VsFlick the VsFlick the Vs is a studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote, released on April 20, 2009 on Domino Records and Fence Records.A limited edition version of the album includes a five-track bonus disc....
(Domino/Fence, 2009) - My Nth Bit of Strange in Umpteen YearsMy Nth Bit of Strange in Umpteen YearsMy Nth Bit of Strange in Umpteen Years is a performance-only album by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote, debuted in October 2009, at Fence Records' Hallowe'en Homegame Festival...
(2009/2010) - performance-only album - That Might Be It, DarlingThat Might Be It, DarlingThat Might Be It, Darling is a limited edition studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote, released in the winter of 2010 on Fence Records. The album is only available to purchase at Creosote's live shows, and is a vinyl-only release...
(Fence, 2010) - Limited vinyl run. - Diamond Mine (Domino, 2011) (with Jon HopkinsJon HopkinsJon Hopkins is a London-based producer and musician who writes and performs his own melodic electronica and dance music. After starting his career performing keyboard for Imogen Heap, he's produced or contributed to albums by Brian Eno, Coldplay, David Holmes, and others...
) - Thrawn (2011)
- Honest WordsHonest WordsHonest Words is an EP by Scottish singer-songwriter King Creosote and English electronica musician Jon Hopkins, released on September 19, 2011 on Domino Records...
(Domino, 2011) (with Jon HopkinsJon HopkinsJon Hopkins is a London-based producer and musician who writes and performs his own melodic electronica and dance music. After starting his career performing keyboard for Imogen Heap, he's produced or contributed to albums by Brian Eno, Coldplay, David Holmes, and others...
)
Singles
- Homerun and a Vow (As King Creosote and Kid CanaveralKid CanaveralKid Canaveral is an indie pop band that formed in St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, but are now based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Since 2007 the band have released a number of well received singles, an E.P. and an album on their own label, Straight to Video Records, and in 2011 they signed with Scottish...
)/Nowhere Near Half Done (Kid Canaveral) (7" Single, 31st October 2011. Fence RecordsFence RecordsFence Records is a record label based in Fife, Scotland which is owned and run by musicians King Creosote and The Pictish Trail...
. FNC-SECRET7-011) Spilt 7" single with Kid CanaveralKid CanaveralKid Canaveral is an indie pop band that formed in St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, but are now based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Since 2007 the band have released a number of well received singles, an E.P. and an album on their own label, Straight to Video Records, and in 2011 they signed with Scottish...
Other recordings
- 2005: He recorded a cover of Jeff BuckleyJeff BuckleyJeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
's "Grace" for the tribute album Dream Brother: The Songs of Tim and Jeff BuckleyDream Brother: The Songs of Tim and Jeff BuckleyDream Brother: The Songs of Tim and Jeff Buckley is a studio album performed by various artists in tribute to 1960s musician Tim Buckley, and his son, also a musician, Jeff Buckley... - 2006: He recorded an original song about the biblical plague of frogs, called "Relate The Tale" for the ArtangelArtangelArtangel is a London-based arts organisation founded in 1985 by Roger Took. Directed since 1991 by James Lingwood and Michael Morris, it has commissioned and produced a string of notable site-specific works, plus several projects for TV, film, radio and the web...
/4AD project "Plague SongsPlague SongsPlague Songs is an album of songs, by various artists, about the ten Plagues of Egypt described in the Book of Exodus.The songs were originally commissioned by the British arts organisation Artangel for its project The Margate Exodus, which centres around a one-day event that took place in Margate...
" He remixed Badly Drawn BoyBadly Drawn BoyDamon Gough is an English alternative music singer/songwriter. He was born on 2 October 1969, in Dunstable, Bedfordshire. He grew up in the Breightmet area of Bolton, Lancashire, England....
's "Nothing's going to change your mind" for the single release (highest chart position in the UK #38). He recorded a version of the song Nothing Compares 2 UNothing Compares 2 U"Nothing Compares 2 U" is a pop song written by American recording artist Prince for one of his side-projects, The Family. However, it wasn't until Sinéad O'Connor recorded her version for the album I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got when it became a worldwide hit, topping charts in 15 countries,...
originally written by PrincePrince (musician)Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of... - 2007: He recorded an original song "Where and When" with music by King Creosote and lyrics written by Scottish novelist Laura HirdLaura HirdLaura Hird is a Scottish novelist and short story writer.Hird studied Contemporary Writing at Middlesex Polytechnic and is the author of two novels, Nail and Other Stories and Born Free . Hope and Other Urban Tales, a novella and short story collection, followed in 2006. All her novels and...
. This was for the album "Ballads of the BookBallads of the BookBallads of the Book is a studio album, released on 5 March 2007, on Chemikal Underground. The project was curated by Roddy Woomble, and features collaborations between Scottish musicians and Scottish writers. The album is considered a "joint effort" by all those involved...
" a collection of collaborations between Scottish musicians and novellists & poets. - 2008: He recorded a version of Malcolm Middleton's "Choir" which appeared on the b-side of the 7" single version of "Blue Plastic Bags". This was something of a reciprocal deal, with Middleton having covered King Creosote's "Margerita Red" on his 2008 album, "Sleight of Heart" http://www.fencerecords.com/bandstand.php?id=5&bandstand=53
- 2010: He contributed to the Cold SeedsCold SeedsCold Seeds is a musical collaboration between Kenny Anderson , Frances Donnelly , and Neil Pennycook and Peter Harvey of Meursault....
collaborative album along with Frances Donnelly of Animal Magic Tricks, and Neil Pennycook and Pete Harvey from MeursaultMeursault (band)Meursault are an alternative indie band from Edinburgh, Scotland, led by singer-songwriter Neil Pennycook. Their musical style has been variously categorised as folktronica, alternative rock and indie folk...
; which was released on the EdinburghEdinburghEdinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
-based indie labelIndependent record labelAn independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
Song, By Toad Records. Anderson, Donnelly and Pennycook all wrote songs for the project, which all four performers then recorded together; each singer often taking the lead vocal role on a song written by another of the artists. - 2011: He collaborated with Jon HopkinsJon HopkinsJon Hopkins is a London-based producer and musician who writes and performs his own melodic electronica and dance music. After starting his career performing keyboard for Imogen Heap, he's produced or contributed to albums by Brian Eno, Coldplay, David Holmes, and others...
to create the album Diamond Mine which was released on the 28th of March on Domino Records. The songs were written earlier in King Creosote's career and revisited for this project.
External links
- Official website
- King Creosote on Fence Records