Fresh off the release of the greatest hits The Supreme Genius of King Khan and The Shrines, we are excited to let you know that the 11-piece psychedelic-soul big-band explosion known as King Khan & The Shrines will be making their first trip to Australian this December. Recently announced for the Falls Festival, Sunset Sounds and Southbound, they are also bringing their anarchic, horn-bedecked, luchador-masked live act to headline sideshows in Melbourne and Sydney.

“These nine ex-Berliners so hotly evoke Nuggest-era garage rock (plus horns) that a dance party is liable to bust loose anytime their album is played louder than a whisper.” – SPIN

“I’m out to give audiences an ‘eyegasm’ as well as an ‘eargasm’ ” – KING KHAN

After tearing it up in Montreal while in the Spaceshits, and in between stints as the sexy half of the King Khan & BBQ Show, Khan moved to Germany where he and his Shrines have been spreading their love like peanut butter since 1999.

King Khan & the Shrines have been called everything from psychedelic food for the soul to James Brown worth funk-n-punk. Their live shows see Mr. Khan journey from leisure suited with a crawfish necklace to pared down with a glittery cape, gold chainmail veil and some very brief briefs, topped off by a Deutsche bräu belly. King Khan is a head-spinning dynamo of poly-sexual energy and The Shrines bring it, song after song – on a continuous cycle of sing, dance, sweat, repeat.

The line-up of this super bad ass 11 piece soul inferno includes 60 year-old Chicago-born, Ron Streeter (the live-percussionist of Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, and many other Soul- Legends), a horn section consisting of Simon Wojan (the mastermind behind Kranky Records recording artists “Cloudland Canyon”), Ben Ra Germany’s John Coltrane, and famous French rockabilly saxophonist Big Fred Rollercoaster. The rhythm section of the Senasational Shrines has been called “a German/French version of the Freak Brothers”.

Deutschland has seen a flurry of full-lengths, EPs, singles, and hard-to-find vinyl, and we in Australia recently saw the release of their greatest hits of his greatest hits from VICE Records – Supreme Genius of King Khan & The Shrines, the cream of a very creamy crop! King Khan’s earlier album “What Is?!” was #33 on Pitchfork’s Top Albums of 2007 and received critical acclaim from all over the world. Their track “Welfare Bread” also made the #66 on Pitchfork’s Top 100 songs of 2007.

This debut Aussie trek from this wigged-out showman and his merry 10-piece garage soul revue will be one of the absolute pleasures of the summery season. All tour info below.

“…if you’ve been listening to these guys since the Spaceshits…why the hell didn’t you tell anyone?!” – Pitchfork

Dates Played

MELBOURNE
When: Mon 04-01-10
Where: Ding Dong Lounge

SYDNEY
When: Wed 06-01-10
Where: Oxford Art Factory

King Khan MySpace