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Licking their ticket

A blast of full-frontal, high energy pop from the UK
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By James Scanlon
For The Prague Post
January 16th, 2008 issue

COURTESY PHOTO
Expect a lively set by these boys from Bristol, who like to mix it up with the audience during their concerts.
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Chikinki

When: Sunday, Jan. 20, at 9
Where: Lucerna Music Bar
Tickets: 300 Kč, available through Ticketpro and at the venue

Despite having swallowed the retro gene in its entirety without even bothering to spit out the pips, Bristol’s five-piece Chikinki remains determined to keep pushing the whole thing forward. Heavy on guitars and harboring a singer who seems trapped in Mick Jagger’s body, what gives Chikinki an edge over contemporaries such as the Zutons and the Editors is a likeable pop sensibility and added application of squelchy electro-clash, courtesy of a two-pronged attack on keyboards.
Chikinki was conceived in the early 1990s when the band members were all living together “like monkeys” (their words) while attending the University of Bristol, with their commitment to studying a very distant second to booze and frolicking with women. Priorities were shaken up, however, when Rupert Browne, the band’s current singer, turned up one afternoon with a portable 12-track studio. Like pigeons fighting over a discarded chip, his housemates all wanted a piece of the action, and there seemed to be no solution other than to form a band.
With all the members furiously writing songs, an insurmountable amount of material had been recorded before they decided to venture outdoors. They developed their chops by playing almost every dingy den in the country before recording Experiment with Mother, their debut album released on Bristol’s very own Sink and Stove label. In lots of ways, it captured the exceedingly raw nature of their early gigs. But, most importantly, it managed to stir up interest with the likes of Happy Mondays and U2 producer Steve Osborne. He helped them get a record deal with Island Records then hung around to produce their 2004 debut for the label, Lick Your Ticket.
The sound was almost impossible to classify. That’s because, according to Browne, “We took our inspiration from the classic songwriters [Burt] Bacharach, The Kinks and Brian Wilson. We also listened to a lot of Motown and a lot of three-minute pop songs.”
Quite evidently, although with songs like “Ether Radio,” “Hate TV” and “Assassinator 13,” the subject matter had become a lot more quirky and surreal. And, for the video of the latter song, the lads decided to appear nude.
A certain element of vulnerability soon set in at the Chikinki camp again, however, when Island dropped them. But they licked their wounds and headed to Germany for a Teutonic tonic. There, in between various debauched activities, they managed to tap into a whole new club scene with local labels Peaches and Gonzales and Kitty Yo.
“The plan was to do some B-sides with Tiefschwarz and Ewan Pearson,” Browne says. “But what happened was we went over there, did a great set in a house club and didn’t want to return.” Two members are still there, which probably explains why Central Europe has since become a favorite hunting ground for gigs.
The band’s latest disc, Brace Brace, is a more stripped-down, back-to-basics affair, with the band returning to their favorite topics of booze and women. The new single, “You Said,” isn’t bad, though generally a bit below par. Fortunately, things get a lot livelier on stage, with Chikinki’s hyperactive front man often losing all sense of time and space and ending up singing amongst the crowd.
For their return to Prague, let’s just hope all flesh remains firmly under wraps.

James Scanlon can be reached at features@praguepost.com


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