For King Thief Diversity is Strength

There’s an argument to be made that at the heart of every great punk band is an element of tension and conflict. There’s a conflict that inevitably exists when disparate and often contradictory personalities and musical sensibilities are merged for a singular purpose that can infuse a band’s sound with a captivating drive and dynamism. A kind of controlled chaos that functions as an utterly compelling sonic experience.

Distill this into its essence, there is a further persuasive argument that when it comes to Punk Rock, both as a music genre and by extension community, its diversity is most certainly its strength.

Edmonton punk rock super-group King Thief has embraced this ethos as both a core tenet of its sound and its underlying political and social message, as well as a principle evidently at play when forming the band, and produced an album that could not be more timely or relevant.

Its own members, each an Edmontonian punk rock legend it their own right, come from a diverse pool of bands encompassing powerhouse drummer Darren Chewka’s spiky pop punkers Teenage Bottlerock (authors of excellent Kiss diss-track Bigger than Kiss), the guitarists’ Shawn Moncrieff’s of iconic Edmonton skate punkers Choke and Ryan Podlubny excellent early 2000s melodic post hardcore outfit The Fullblast, bassist Nick Kouremenous’s This is a Standoff (technical and melodic pop punk/post hardcore) and singer Eric Neilson’s Midnight Peg (as featured in Reverie’s Issue 2).

King Thief in Calgary @ Modern Love (photo by @me_onlylouder)

Sure, there’s elements of all these band’s sound to be found in King Thief’s self-titled debut that is a result of a songwriting process that was forged in the adversity of the pandemic, but to distill the band into its essence: King Thief are what happens when (to paraphrase the band’s own “elevator pitch”) late 70s arena rock gets into a fist fight with late 90s/early 2000s post-hardcore (possibly in an elevator).

Fittingly, for a band called King Thief (the name is an ironic combination of two roles in society that are held in vastly different levels of esteem, the king and the thief, as well as a wry commentary on the relationship of monarchy to colonialism and capitalism), the fusion of two seemingly wildly contradictory elements (the nihilism and irreverence of arena rock with the earnest sensitivity of post hardcore) makes for its own compelling listening experience.

It’s a fusion that in the hands of lesser players and songwriters could result in total listener whiplash, but in the hands of King Thief, it’s a blend that means that when furious syncopated discordant post hardcore riffs are interspersed with face melting spit and sawdust sleaze rock lead solos as in opener “Craver” or when a punishing hardcore ballad makes way for a GNR-style middle section in penultimate track “Easy Answers” the effect is *chef’s kiss*. The combination just seems to make sense in the hands of such skilled guitarists.

This chemistry between dual lead guitarists Ryan and Shawn is one of King Thief’s secret weapons. The chops both players have shown in previous project are in abundance here and are evident in every song on the album, this constant energy and progression, a divergence and convergence of style, the songwriting allowing the instruments to play off each other brilliantly. Again, in lesser hands it could be jarring and discombobulating, but Ryan and Shawn’s skill is in expertly infusing the songs with texture and complexity.

Songs like “Weather Blaboons” and “We Want to Be Controlled” showcase this back-and-forth perfectly (as in latter, where we seamlessly have pounding hardcore one minute and squealing rock and roll the next). They’re brilliant examples of interweaving varied lead and rhythm styles into one powerful punk rock whole. Diversity as a strength.

One of the key reasons that the band can so skillfully navigate the various genres is the skill of the rhythm section holding everything together. The guitars are allowed to play around to the extent they are thanks to the punk rock engine room that is bassist Nick and drummer Darren. There’s a great variety of time changes in the songs as one style or sub-genre transitions to the next and Darren and Nick are incredible as they drive the band through a diversity of tempo switches and breakdowns, all the while maintaining its punk heartbeat. As with King Thief’s guitar duo, it’s incredibly dynamic work and really shows off the chops evident in their previous bands. Check out their work in “Your Father’s Table”, another one of the albums highlights, a great blend of styles. Also, see “Gymposter Syndrome” (it’s easy to see why this was released as single, it has some great hooks) where the tempo changes and technique are reminiscent of Nick’s previous band This is a Standoff).

Vocalist Eric merits special attention too (look, it’s a supergroup, alright…). There’s some memorable and catchy hooks and lyrics on the album and his voice recalls the emotion of the early 2000s post hardcore vocalists in a scene that was notable for vocal excellence, but also the whisky spill and sawdust voices of punk and hardcore’s more aggressive vocalists. A voice that itself is an excellent blend of styles, much like King Thief as a whole. Again, diversity is its strength. Indeed, Eric gives voice to the overriding political message of the band, one that demands that the listener to stay active, stay informed, stay critical. And its a voice that reminds us that at its core, punk rock is an inclusive community, one that should be safe for everyone.

Indeed, this theme is at its most express and overt in one of the albums highlights, “Toxic Scene”. Probably the most hopeful and straight up anthemic song on the record, a self-examination of the punk community and its toxic elements that resolves itself with a communal call to arms (“we need more diverse voices in here/on stage, in the crowd and the atmosphere”). It is a pitch perfect combination of AC/DC-style rock and roll banger with Eric’s politically and socially conscious lyrics. (“Lets’ make a scene for everyone.”). It’s King Thief at its most emphatic and urgent and its upbeat arena rock tendencies are a contrast to the darker tone and sounds of Motorhead-influenced No Allies (“You’re not a an ally is the war against oppression/You’re the enemy”).

“Easy Answers” is one of the album’s best tracks where the band showcase their collective brilliance, Nick with some great runs and fills, Darren who takes on multiple sections and tempos with gusto, and Shawn and Ryan’s kinetic guitar interplay, while Eric delivers one of his best performances on the album. I feel its redundant to point out that each member of a credentialed supergroup is very good at their job but it really does feel like each member is operating at the top of their respective game on this album, bringing in their wealth and breadth of experience to craft something unique and important.

Again it’s an extension of King Thief’s diversity is strength manifesto. There is a determination and energy to King Thief’s music and this album is a call to arms. It’s relevance could not be more pronounced. We live in an age where performative cruelty is in vogue, and empathy and kindness have been politicized and weaponized. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are words increasingly wielded as epithets in mainstream society. Marginalized communities are increasingly targeted. If one thing is clear from the message that King Thief put across, it’s that we, as individuals and as a community, need to stay informed, stay active, stay engaged and stay inclusive. Let’s make a scene for everyone.

Listen if you Like: Refused, Far, The Bronx, Hot Water Music, AC/DC, Motorhead, Agnostic Front, At the Drive In.