Interview: Luke Pritchard of The Kooks
Taken by Jasmine Garcia
Jasmine Garcia and Lauren Sykes
Luke Pritchard of The Kooks
26 September, 2014
Nearly three years after the release of their album Junk of the Heart, The Kooks recently put out their newest album, Listen. Fortunately for us Americans, the band set out on their US Tour this past week and played an awesome show at the House of Blues in downtown San Diego this past weekend. Check out our quick- fire questions interview with Luke Pritchard, the lead singer of the Kooks.
Question: So I saw you did “The Kooks Gold Heart,” who came up with that idea?
Luke Pritchard: I think maybe Peter, our bass player. That was a lot of fun.
Q: What’s your favorite city in America to visit?
LP: Los Angeles.
Q: Coolest venue you’ve ever played?
LP: The Troubadour.
Q: English fans or American fans?
LP: English fans. Sorry Americans! English fans because we’re from England. I can’t… I have to say that, sorry.
Q: Things from home that you miss the most on tour.
LP: A good cup of tea.
Q: What’s your favorite cup of tea?
LP: I like Earl Grey, a little bit of milk. Which you’re not meant to do, technically, but we do it.
Q: Favorite American food?
LP: I like pancakes in the morning. I really like that in the American breakfast you have the maple syrup sweet with the bacon. And that’s like a whole revelation for the English people. ‘Cause like sweet and savory together in the morning? That’s cool.
Q: What was the first concert you ever went to?
LP: Chuck Berry.
Q: And where was that?
LP: That was at the Hammersmith Apollo in London.
Q: The first time you heard yourself on the radio?
LP: I remember that actually very well. Jo Whiley Show on Radio 1 and we were on the splitter bus, which is like a small van in which the band’s in the back. I remember we heard it was going to be on so yeah, it was an amazing moment.
Q: Do you remember what song it was?
LP: Yeah, it was “Eddie’s Gun”, our first single.
Q: Why was “Down” chosen to be the first single off the new album Listen?
LP: We felt that “Down” was probably really different to what we’ve done before. So we thought it would kinda spark the idea of what we’re doing. And it’s quite catchy.=
Q: Who’s your biggest musical influence on the new album?
LP: It’s hard to pick one. I actually was asked by the producer to not really listen to any music, which I’ve never done for an album.
Q: Favorite song off the new album?
LP: “Sweet Emotion”.
Q: Favorite song to play live?
LP: “Around Town”.
Q: Dream country to tour in?
LP: China.
Q: Crazies tour moment?
LP: One of the obvious ones for me was lightning hitting our plane, a really small plane and I don’t like flying. Most people don’t like flying, let’s face it. And I’m cool with the fact that I’m going to die one day, but I really don’t want to die on a plane. You know what I’m saying? But yeah we had lightning hit our plane, it was quite bad.
Q: Craziest fan encounter?
LP: Craziest fan encounter was someone years ago sneaking onto the bus and we didn’t realize it until we got to the next city. [laughs]
Q: Favorite festival you’ve ever played ever?
LP: Ever? Glastonbury. The first time we did it, probably.
Q: Proudest moment as a band?
LP: Making a fourth album and seeing it get out. That was pretty cool.
Q: Records versus CDs?
LP: Record. The only problem is that you can’t carry them around.
Q: Dogs versus cats?
LP: Dogs.
Q: Best emoji on the iPhone that best describes your life right now?
LP: Emoji? .. Oh like emoticon? The one with the girl that’s dancing. I like her. She’s cool.
Q: Where can people find out more about your music?
LP: Best thing for The Kooks is come to a show, come to a gig. That’s the best place to hear us. We’re touring all over so hopefully catch a show.
Check out the recorded interview along with footage of the show over at USDtv!
And make sure to check out The Kooks at:
https://www.facebook.com/thekooksofficial
https://twitter.com/thekooksmusic
http://instagram.com/thekooksmusic