Photos of The Kooks at Baths Hall in Scunthorpe, U.K. on April 24th, 2017
Photos of The Kooks at Central Park SummerStage in New York, NY on June 24th, 2015
Photos of The Kooks at O2 Academy in Leeds, U.K. on November 13th, 2014
Photos of The Kooks at 2014 Lollapalooza in Chicago, IL
Photos of The Kooks at Webster Hall in New York, NY on July 28th, 2014
Photos of The Kooks at 2013 Groovin’ the Moo in Bunbury, WA, Australia
QRO’s review of The Kooks at Central Park SummerStage on May 30th, 2012
Photos of The Kooks at Central Park SummerStage on May 29th, 2012
Photos of The Kooks at Bowery Ballroom in New York, NY on June 27th, 2011
QRO’s review of The Kooks at Central Park SummerStage on September 10th, 2008
Once upon a time, The Kooks were a hot young pop/rock band out of the U.K., all charming appeal and love songs. But young bands age, and so did their thing music on 2011’s Junk of the Heart (QRO review) – only for the group to try a bunch of new things on the following Listen (QRO review). Yet for Let’s Go Sunshine, they return to their pop/rock ways.
Not that The Kooks can’t pull off a pop song. Pieces like the drinking “Chicken Bone”, sweet sway “Four Leaf Clover”, and catchy “Initials for Gainsbourg” are definitely enjoyable, and even the weakest numbers (such as the torch-sways “Picture Frame” and “Swing Low”) are acceptable. But there’s not enough depth to the material; it rewards less & less on more spins. And, at fifteen tracks, the record definitely feels too long, wearing out its initial welcome.
The Kooks are always going to be a pop/rock band, and ideas that they might become something more were always going to remain unfulfilled. It’s easy to like them – if hard to love them.