Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
By Stereophonics, Warner Music 2019.
Welsh band Stereophonics has been around for a long time and they’ve cemented their place as one of the giants of the UK music scene.
Since their inception in 1992 they’ve achieved six UK #1 albums, 10 Top 10 albums, 23 Platinum sales awards, 8.5 million albums sold in the UK alone, 5 Brit nominations and one Brit Award win.
They’re still headlining arenas and festivals and, as this album proves, they’re still producing music that is relevant to the younger generations who are flocking to their concerts.
Kind was recorded in just 11 days at The Distillery in Wiltshire and was produced by lead singer/lead guitarist/songwriter Kelly Jones and George Drakoulias, who has worked with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Screaming Trees and Primal Scream plus many other big-name artists.
A decision was made to use minimal studio techniques, overdubs or trickery with this album – thus it has a stripped back, raw sound that provides us with a candid snapshot of a band at the top of their game capturing honest and dynamic performances in the studio.
Jones said that by the end of their last world tour in 2018 he was so ‘done’ that he contemplated quitting. He had no new songs and felt completely drained of inspiration but, after a couple of months of rest, something happened.
Jones puts it this way:
“Suddenly I had a load of songs that just came through me, lyrics just filling up pages, no crossing out, complete songs fully formed. They’re a very open and honest bunch of really vulnerable songs…so, when it came to recording, I just wanted to put them down quickly and honestly.”
They’re a good band and they know when to leave things alone. This is a skill that a lot of performers aim for, but few achieve.
They are experienced enough to know how to sculpt a song that takes the listener on a journey.
I like what they’ve done. There’s a vibrancy to the album that’s captivating, and Kind is right up there with the best work that the band has produced in their long and storied career.
