Product Description

The Britpop quartet Kula Shaker appears to have raided the closets of its favourite bands in the making of its debut album. K contains a bluesy, retro ambience very much like The Stone Roses and Primal Scream. The full-throttled guitars sound like those of Oasis. And a hefty dose of Hindu mysticismruns rampant throughout--a la Cornershop.
But Kula Shaker manages to make something original of all those borrowed parts. Rising above its influences, Kula Shaker creates a niche of Britpop in which transcendence is the goal. Amidst theblues-drenched guitars and the Hindi chanting, the band is hard at work building something spiritual and sensual. Kula Shaker isn't afraid of a tamboura, using the exotic instrument on several tracks. Nor is it afraid to be linked with theGrateful Dead, eulogising that band in the track "Grateful When You're Dead/Jerry Was There". But Kula Shaker is no freewheeling "jam" band; there's a precision to the musicianship on this record that cannot be ignored.

Track Listing

1. Hey Dude
2. Knight On The Town
3. Temple Of Everlasting Light
4. Govinda
5. Smart Dogs
6. Magic Theatre
7. Into The Deep
8. Sleeping Jiva
9. Tattva
10. Grateful When You're Dead
11. 303
12. Start All Over
13. Hollow Man

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #23866 in Music
• Released on: 1996-09-16
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
Kula Shaker take their name from a 9th-century Indian King, and their debut album, K further reveals their obsession with Eastern mysticism: the band sing in Sanskrit on "Tattva" and "Govinda" is based on an ancient Indian chant. On the strength of these and other hit singles, the band were voted Best Newcomers at the 1996 BRIT Awards and K went into the album charts at Number One--the fastest selling debut since Oasis' Definitely Maybe. A mixture of classic rock and 60's psychedelia, Kula Shaker were treated with critical derision that seemed to counteract their chart success. But the blend of East and West obviously struck a chord with the public, making this an interesting and exciting debut. --Carina Trimingham

Customer Reviews

Fast,Fun and Bizzare
After The Success of '(Whats The Story) Morning Glory?' there was perhaps a Thought that Britpop couldn't get higher, noone could match The Brillance of 'Morning Glory' and Knebworth was as far as Britpop could go. Performing as a Support Slot at Knebworth was Kula Shaker, a Psychedelic Rock band, who were tipped for the top before this performance. The Band consisting of Crispian Mills(guitar,vocals) who is daughter of Actress Hayley Mills, Alonso Bevan(bass) Jay Darlington(keyobaords) and Paul Winterhart(drums)were influenced by the late 60s Psychedelic bands like The Doors,Jimi Hendrix,Cream and The Beatles. There debut album eventually became the most successful debut album since Oasis 'Definitely Maybe'. Opening Track 'Hey Dude' is a brilliant Rock song which combines Stone Roses like Drums with More Traditional Rock guitar work. The next song 'Knight on the Town' carries on. It rocks with an edge and never goes back. The first taste of Indian Influenced Rock was 'Temple of Everlasting Light' which remains one of the weakest tracks. The next song 'Govinda' is more of the same,Govinda was sung totally in Sanskrit, and mixed swirling guitars with traditional Indian music.The Next Track Smart Dogs like Knight On the Town is more of a traditional Rock song which contains some of the strangest Lyrics on the album. The inturlude Magic Theatre in some ways ruins the album's flow but still remains a fine piece of music which makes Into The Deep a fine listen overall, the next song Sleeping Jiva carries on the indian influence into the next song, The brilliant 'Tattva' which is a highlight for any Kula Shaker fan. The next track Grateful When Your Dead/Jerry Was There might be a bit of a Rip off of Jimi Hendrix 'Purple Haze' but remains the Album finest moment which makes '303' the next track a more fascinating listen. Start All Over is perhaps the albums only Ballad, and Hollow Man is the epic which ends the album.
They might not have Fulfilled to there true potential but Kula Shaker's 'K' remains a fun listen none the less and remains one of the Decades most Underrated listens.

Key Tracks:Hey Dude,Knight on The Town,Into The Deep,Tattva,Grateful When You're Dead,303

Also Buy: 'Magical Mystery Tour' The Beatles

Hidden Gem from the Mid-Nineties
If a group of people were to start reeling of names of British bands that had hits in the mid-nineties, it would probably be a while before Kula Shaker got a mention, if at all. However, the four piece band fronted by Crispian Mills (son of actress Hayley Mills) released K in 1996 and it became the fastest selling debut album in Britain since Oasis. Despite it's acheivement a decade later it has become a hidden gem of the `Brit-pop' movement.

A mixture of rock and Indian influences bring about a very interesting album and one that should be more well known and appreciated than it sadly is today. Clear influences are felt throughout, especially from The Beatles' later work and The Greatful Dead. Mills' vocals are nothing amazing but they are good throughout and have their really good moments. The band are also well adept, especially using some great guitar riffs and melodies, at times sounding almost like a Jimmi Hendrix tribute act but in a good way. This is a very enjoyable album, and whilst not the first time to mix popular music with an Eastern flavour, it certainly does it in a way that really works.

1. Hey Dude- A fine intro, the drums and guitar kick off and show how the `rockin' side of this album will feel. A very catchy song with interesting lyrics, great guitar work and one of the rare songs where I like the verses more than the chorus.

2. Knight On The Town- Guitars once again lead this song, the main riff opens the tune and slight Indian tones are felt for the first time in this album as well as a prog-rock feel as the track goes on.

3. Temple Of Everlasting Light-A more trippy and Indian song next. I don't like the first half of this but once it builds up and the extra voices kick in then I am fully there even when it mellows back and resumes its semi-trippy vibe.

4. Govinda-This is where we get into full traditional Indian music mode. A surprise hit back in the day, it is the only top ten hit in Britain to be sung entirely in Sanskrit. however, it is very catchy and it certainly rocks out in the second half. This song shows how two styles of music can mix and still be brilliant, the guitars go so well with the beat and the tamboura etc and the public embraced it, even if they didnt know what they were singing.

5. Smart Dogs-We're back with rock, though the vocal melody retains the Indian vibe. Yet another great guitar riff as it whails its way through the track, lyrically it is weak but this song is more about fun than meaningful messages.

6. Magic Theatre-A more mellow track follows. Some people will like this, but i don't really care for it much. I feel it is not only in the wrong place, but it spoils the mood that has been set up by the previous tracks.

7. Into The Deep-Probably my favourite track on the album. I love the piano intro, love the middle eight, love everything about the track.

8. Sleeping Jiva-This is a purely instrumental tune, purely made up of traditional Indian instruments. It's kind of ok but not really my thing, its more of a lead up to the next song but feels slightly too long for it's purpose.

9. Tattva-Another hit here in the UK, this time with English lyrics in the verses. Slightly less catchy than Govinda, but still a really good song.

10. Grateful When You're Dead/Jerry Was There-A clear reference to one of this album's greatest influences. Another great guitar riff leads the song in, good lyrics, a strong vocal perfomance and a catchy `Ba ba baaaaa, ba ba baaaa' in the chorus. This is another fun song. Unfortunately, the second half, a tribute to Jerry Garcia fro the Greatful Dead, is the opposite. It is another slow, trippy track that just plods it way to the end. Nothing exciting here, which is a shame as the first part of this combo is great.

11. 303-Here we have some very cheesy and cliche lyrics and yet the song is catchy, fun and full of energy and life. This song is nothing amazing, but when it comes on it's hardly one to skip. Enjoy it for what it is, don't spend time thinking about the words, especially if you do not like them. Great guitar work throughout though and a very good peformance on the vocals.

12. Start All Over-I really like this track, it must be a bit understated as I always forget about it until it plays. Good lyrics, good performance by the band. There's something missing that prevents it being a great song, but not all dongs need to be great. The song is perfectly placed in the running lost, fits fantastically with the feel and mood that the album bathes itself in.

13. Hollow Man-We close with a slow intro, piano based. This is a lovely gentle two and a half minutes which leads into the songs acoustic guitar and vocals. After a simple song the electric guitars make their final appearance on the album, bringing it to a rocking end, not as catchy as the better songs but still pretty good. There is a thirteen minute silence followed by a brief recording of a holy man speaking about his guru.....not worth the wait.

Find your way home...
Let's get one thing out of the way - it shouldn't matter whether Crispian Mills is the son of an actress or a comprehensive school dropout who's been on benefits all his life; judge the music on its own merits and leave the inverse snobbery out of it.

"K" is an excellent album, full of feelgood classics. "Hey Dude", "Govinda", "Grateful / Jerry" and "303" are particularly good tracks. OK, there's nothing innovative here, but since when does good music have to be innovative (eg Oasis)? It takes its cues from all the right sounds and melds them into something quite distinctive. A soupcon of early '70s Floyd, a dash of Doors, a bit of early Purple and of course the much-mentioned "eastern mysticism" (which, apart from on "Govinda", doesn't really add much, and in fact threatens to become a bit of a musical albatross at times). The musicianship and production are excellent throughout - especially the trademark swooping bass. And Crispian Mills proves that, just because you're someone famous's son, it doesn't stop you from being a great writer and a great singer.

Highly recommended - a great summer album for anyone who likes classic rock. One criticism is completely justified though - it's probably one of the worst examples of cover art EVER....