Kinski is an American rock band from

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

. They have released eight albums, a number of split albums and EP.

Career

They formed in 1998 in a pub, when bartender and drummer Dave Weeks overheard a conversation between two customers, Chris Martin (guitar) and Lucy Atkinson (bassist) about

analog recording Analog recording is a category of techniques used for the recording of analog signals. This enables later playback of the recorded analog audio. Analog audio recording began with mechanical systems such as the phonautograph and phonograph. La ...

. Weeks joined the discussion, and they found they also shared mutual musical interests, and hence agreed to form a band. They started playing live the same year. Near the end of 1999, guitarist/keyboardist/flautist Matthew Reid Schwartz was added to the line-up. Kinski issued its first record ''Space Launch for Frenchie'' earlier that same year consisting of six tracks running for 45 minutes. The band went on their first US tour with Mainliner from Japan, where they befriended

Kawabata Makoto Kawabata Makoto ( ) is a Japanese musician and founding member of the band Acid Mothers Temple. He was part of one line-up of Gong (band), Gong when Acid Mothers Temple and Gong briefly fused into one group. Band history Kawabata is chiefly fam ...

, also of

Acid Mothers Temple Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O., commonly shortened to Acid Mothers Temple or AMT, is a Japanese rock music, rock band, the core of which formed in 1995. The band is led by guitarist Kawabata Makoto and early in their career feat ...

. Tours throughout the US would follow the next two years with such bands as

Hovercraft A hovercraft (: hovercraft), also known as an air-cushion vehicle or ACV, is an amphibious craft capable of travelling over land, water, mud, ice, and various other surfaces. Hovercraft use blowers to produce a large volume of air below the ...

Silkworm ''Bombyx mori'', commonly known as the domestic silk moth, is a moth species belonging to the family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of '' Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. Silkworms are the larvae of silk moths. The silkworm is of ...

, and Primordial Undermind. Their second album, ''Be Gentle With the Warm Turtle'', came out on Pacifico in 2001. The band also toured Japan with

in late 2001. In early 2002, after the band finished recording their third album, Weeks left and later went on to join Seattle band Black Panties. That summer, Barrett Wilke took over on drums. The band at this time signed with

Sub Pop Sub Pop is an independent record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman. Sub Pop achieved fame in the early 1990s for signing Seattle bands such as Nirvana (band), Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney, central players in the gru ...

. The album ''Airs Above Your Station'' was released in 2003. Later in 2003,

issued a split album with Kinski and

. Each band contributed their own material for this release, along with two collaborative pieces that were recorded during their earlier tour of Japan. Finally, the three-way "triptych" split, ''Crickets and Fireflies'', was released by the Music Fellowship label with the bands Paik & Surface of Eceon. Around the time that Weeks left the band, the remaining members began performing as an improvisational threesome under the name Herzog. An album, ''Don't Climb on and Take the Holy Water'', was issued in 2004 by the Strange Attractors Audio House label consisting of live recordings from Herzog performances. The band also contributed a track to the

Franco Battiato Francesco "Franco" Battiato (; 23 March 1945 – 18 May 2021) was an Italian musician, singer, composer, filmmaker and, under the pseudonym Süphan Barzani, also a painter. Battiato's songs explore many themes (including, but not limited to, ph ...

tribute album, ''What's Your Function''. A brief west coast tour with

Mission of Burma Mission of Burma was an American post-punk band from Boston, Massachusetts. The group formed in 1979 with Roger Miller (rock musician), Roger Miller on guitar, Clint Conley on bass guitar, bass, Peter Prescott (musician), Peter Prescott on drum k ...

rounded out the year. In 2005, the band came back with ''Alpine Static'', their sixth album overall and third on

produced by Randall Dunn. Tours throughout the US, Europe, and Japan followed, stopping in London for a session with

Huw Stephens Huw Meredydd Stephens (born 25 May 1981) is a Welsh radio and television presenter, currently broadcasting on BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru and BBC Radio 6 Music. Stephens founded the Sŵn music festival with John Rostron and the yearly s ...

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

. Kinski was the opening act during the spring 2007 leg of

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's '' 10,000 Days'' tour. Just before leaving for this tour, they finished their seventh album, ''Down Below It's Chaos'' which was released on August 21, 2007. In August 2012, it was announced that Kinski' had signed with Kill Rock Stars. The album, ''Cosy Moments'' was released April 3, 2013. In February 2015 the band released a split EP with fellow Seattle band Sandrider on Seattle label Good to Die Records. The second album on

Kill Rock Stars Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in February 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but it was orig ...

entitled ''7 (or 8)'', was recorded and mixed in San Francisco at El Studio with Phil Manley (of Trans Am) and was released in June 2015. In 2017 Kinski adapted a passage of

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (born James Augusta Joyce; 2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influentia ...

Finnegans Wake ''Finnegans Wake'' is a novel by Irish literature, Irish writer James Joyce. It was published in instalments starting in 1924, under the title "fragments from ''Work in Progress''". The final title was only revealed when the book was publishe ...

for the Waywords and Meansigns project. In August 2018, it was announced that for Kinski's 20th anniversary as a band, they would be releasing a vinyl reissue of ''Be Gentle With the Warm Turtle'' as well as releasing a new album titled ''Accustomed To Your Face'', with both albums being released on

on October 12, 2018. On January 28, 2025 Kinski revealed their latest album ''Stumbledown Terrace,'' their first for the label Comedy Minus One. It was announced that Schwartz had departed the band, which continued as a three-piece. The record was released digitally on March 7, 2025 and physically in stores on the 28th of that month. ''Stumbledown Terrace'' was the first record in the band's discography to not feature a second guitarist, and their first tour as a trio.

Band members

*Chris Martin (guitar) *Lucy Atkinson (bass) *Barrett Wilke (drums)

Discography

*''Space Launch for Frenchie'' - 1999 self-released; reissued 2005 on Strange Attractors Audio House *''Be Gentle With the Warm Turtle'' - 2001 on Pacifico; reissued 2005 on Strange Attractors Audio House *Penthouse Suite 7" single - 2001 on

*Semaphore EP - 2002 on

*''Airs Above Your Station'' - 2003 CD on

; LP on Strange Attractors Audio House *

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

- 2003 on

*''Crickets and Fireflies'' split album with Paik and Surface of Eceon - 2004 on Music Fellowship *"Guess I'm Falling In Love" 7" single - 2004 on The Great Pop Supplement *''Don't Climb on and Take the Holy Water'' - 2004 on Strange Attractors Audio House *''Alpine Static'' - 2005 on

Kinskiat

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

and the band's website contains a discography. *''I Didn't Mean to Interrupt Your Beautiful Moment'' - 2006 on Three Lobed Recordings *''Down Below It's Chaos'' - 2007 on

*''Cosy Moments'' - Released April 2, 2013 on

*Sandrider + Kinski Split EP - Released February 17, 2015 on Good to Die Records *''7 (or 8)'' - Released June 2, 2015 on

*''Accustomed to Your Face'' - Released October 12, 2018 on

*''Stumbledown Terrace'' - Released March 2025 on Comedy Minus One

References

External links

Kinski's website

Kinski's Sub Pop page

Kinski's Kill Rock Stars page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kinski Rock music groups from Washington (state) American post-rock groups Sub Pop artists Kill Rock Stars artists Musical groups from Seattle