Louis XIV (band)

Infobox musical artist
Name = Louis XIV


Img_capt = James Armbrust at ACL 2007
Landscape = Yes
Background = group_or_band
Origin = San Diego, California, United States
Genre = Post-punk revival
Garage rock revival
Indie rock
Sleaze Rock
Years_active = 2003–present
Label = Atlantic
Associated_acts = Convoy; The Killers
URL = [http://www.louisxiv.net/ Official website]
Current_members = Jason Hill
Brian Karscig
Mark Maigaard
James Armbrust
Past_members =

Louis XIV is an American Post-punk revival band from San Diego, California. Their music features rough, primal rock and lyrics replete with double entendres. Known as staunchly independent, they act as producers for all of their recordings.

History

Lead singer/guitarist Jason Hill and guitarist Brian Karscig formed the group in April 2003 while living in Paris, France. Bassist Mark Maigaard and drummer James Armbrust joined soon after.

"Louis XIV", the band's first album, was released in November 2003. It was recorded in a basement in the Spanish district in Paris, France and tells the story of a boy living his life while locked in a tiny room. Recorded on a 16-track tape machine, it was released independently through Pineapple Recording Group, a label started by Hill and Karscig. Although the record was only sold at shows, on the band's website, and in some independent records stores, it sold over 22,000 copies in the first six months. First embraced in the UK in 2004, doing the famous Jonathon Ross show television show one week after Oasis and the Mary Hobbs show on BBC Radio 1. They were embraced by Distillers frontwoman Brody Dalle and Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme at the 2004 NME Awards.

The "Scotland World News" billed Louis XIV as the best band of the T in the Park festival. The music video for the instrumental song "The Hunt" was filmed by Hill. The New York-based group Stolen Transmission, run by former "Spin magazine" writer Sarah Lewitinn, released a three-song handmade CD featuring the songs "Hey Teacher" and "God Killed the Queen". After the band returned to California, local deejays, including 91x in San Diego, began playing an unreleased song from the bands website, "Finding out True love is Blind", leading to the release of two simultaneous limited EPs, "Pink" and "Blue". Eight major radio stations on the West Coast then named the single a top five song, leading to the band signing to Atlantic Records in late 2004.

The band released an EP entitled "Illegal Tender" in January 2005, (self produced) followed in March by their second full-length album, "The Best Little Secrets Are Kept" (produced by Jason Hill). The album depicts a half-naked girl with the song titles written on her back. A tamed-down version of the cover was released in Wal-Mart, with a portion of the girl's body cropped off. Their first single was titled "Finding Out True Love Is Blind". The band released their second single off their debut album, "God Killed the Queen", in September 2005.

In 2005 "NME" called the band "music to flunk rehab to", while "Rolling Stone" and MTV named them as one of its top 10 bands to watch. The music video for "Pledge of Allegiance", filmed again by Hill, was filmed containing the album cover girl undressing in front of a camera. The music video for "Paper Doll" was released exclusively on the alt porn website Suicide Girls. The video, featuring various models in different stages of undress, was directed by alt-porn pioneer Eon McKai, director of "Art School Sluts", the "Kill Girl Kill" series, and "Neu Wave Hookers". In 2007, David Bowie and Alicia Keys asked the band to play their BlackBall charity event for Aids in Africa. Bowie cites Louis XIV as one his favorite new bands in numerous Conde Naste publications.

Band members Jason Hill and Brian Karscig sang on three songs on The Killers 2007 album "Sam's Town", which has gone on to sell over 4 million records.

In 2007 Hill is credited as tour guitarist for country musicians Dixie Chicks as well as drum technician. He also remixed a song by the Los Angeles-based punk band The Bronx(Island/Def Jam) and produced an EP by the New York-based The Virgins (Atlantic) featured on HBO's "Entourage".

Also in 2007, Louis XIV toured Australia, Mexico and the USA with The Killers.

"The Distances from Everyone to You", another EP, was released through the iTunes Store on September 11, 2007. The EP contains the band's cover version Queen's "Flash Gordon" theme and later used for the Sci Fi Channel's new "Flash Gordon" television series. Regardless of their involvement in the show, a member of the band called it "possibly the worst show on modern television".

Their newest album, "Slick Dogs and Ponies", produced by Hill, was released on January 28, 2008. The album contained the release of "Guilt by Association", complete with an eight piece cello and eight guitar solo and ending with a flute. The first single, "Air Traffic Control", featuring a 24-piece string section, is currently in the Top 40 Alternative radio charts.

The band toured North America between January and March, supporting Editors. On June 7, 2008 the band opened for The Sex Pistols in Las Vegas, the only U.S. performance of the Pistols' "Combine Harvester" tour. Audience members harassed the band with chants of "Pistols!" and "God Save the Queen!", and at one point an audience memeber struck Hill in the head with a cup of ice. The band continued to play through the jeers, and after their set thanked thecrowd.

Louis XIV recently announced a European tour for August 2008, including the Carling Weekend Reading and Leeds Festivals.

In 2008, Karscig produced an album for San Diego-based singer/songwriter Anya Marina, as yet unreleased.

Controversy

Louis XIV have become known for their sexually provocative lyrics. In 2005 the Hoover, Alabama board of education withdrew an invitation for the band to perform a free concert at Hoover High School after hearing complaints about the band's lyrics. The board determined that it was "not appropriate to have a band of this kind of nature." Citing a recent arrest in California for drug possession, song contents and "the likely possibility of irresponsible acts". Richter, Greg (April 27, 2008) "Outside Looking In - Decadent glam rockers Louis XIV claim they're banned in Alabama - Pennsylvanians hate comparison," "Birmingham News"]

The incident has given rise to the exaggerated claim that the group has been "banned from Alabama". As Hill explained to "Reverb Magazine" on November 17, 2007, while on tour in Melbourne, Victoria:

When you hang out with us, you realize that we like having a laugh. But Alabama banned us — we weren't allowed to perform in the state. I have no idea why. I've been called a sexist and a male chauvinist. There was a really great article in San Francisco's paper, "The Guardian", which was about "10 Reasons Why You Should Not Like Louis XIV"; it was the greatest article I’ve ever read. I've even been called a racist when I used the terms "Chocolate Girl" and "Vanilla Girl". I was trying to be playful and flirtatious. People don't realize when we're being tongue-in-cheek. But in some ways, the most negative press can also be the biggest compliment.

Members

* Jason Hill – vocals, bass, guitar,piano engineer,producer
* Brian Karscig – vocals, guitar, bass, piano
* Mark Maigaard – drums
* James Armbrust – bass

Discography

Albums

*"Louis XIV" (November 2003), Pineapple Recording Group
* "The Best Little Secrets Are Kept" (March 22, 2005), Atlantic – #159 U.S. "Billboard 200"
* "Slick Dogs and Ponies" (January 29, 2008), Atlantic

EPs

PINK EP (2004), Pineapple Recording GroupBLUE Ep (2004), Pineapple Recording Group
* "Illegal Tender" (January 25, 2005), Pineapple Recording Group
* "The Distances from Everyone to You" (September 11, 2007), Atlantic

ingles

Notes

External links

* [http://www.louisxiv.net/ Louis XIV official website]
* [http://somafm.com/articles/dlfest-louisxiv.html Interview with SomaFM]