King Tuff’s MOO is a full-circle victory that makes both him and us happy. After exploring other spheres, Kyle Thomas is back in Vermont with his trusty Tascam 388 and a beat-up Gibson SG, ditching overworked polish for scrappier, stranger, and cooler garage rock chaos, rediscovering the loose, grimy joy that made us fans of his early records. Great to hear his pounding glam-influenced drums, infectious repetitive riffs, and those characteristic expressive vocals in full glory again.
Written, performed, produced, recorded, and mixed by Kyle Thomas himself, the ten new songs are messy and loud, just the way we like it, with fun and feeling way more important than relevance or perfection. Catchy opener Twisted On A Train is one of the artist’s biggest bangers ever, featuring lyrics with meaning between the lines: “Don’t talk to me // Let me remain // Just another stranger // I don’t have a name // And I’m headed down to destiny // Quietly clutching a flame.” After that, Stairway To Nowhere and Invisible Ink also land instantly; what follows needs a few spins but grows just as strong over time.
MOO is out now digitally, on CD and vinyl LP, through King Tuff’s new record label MUP (distributed by Thirty Tigers). All instruments played by Kyle Thomas, assisted by Corey Rose (drums), Ty Segall (drums), Urian Hackney (drums), and Noel Friesen (bass) on select tracks.