Rock Preview: Remodelled Kooks back with a new album

When The Kooks burst onto the music scene five years ago, they quickly became the darlings of the musical press.

Although their arrival was overshadowed by the fervour surrounding fellow debutants the Arctic Monkeys, they still won an MTV award for Best New Band and their debut album In/Inside Out sold more than two million copies.But in a business that can be as fickle as the weather, they found themselves supplanted by newer, younger bands and while their second album, Konk, went straight to the top of the charts it only managed to sell around 100,000 copies.

Following this and the departure of bass player Max Rafferty due to “musical differences” the band took a hiatus during which drummer Paul Garred also left because of nerve problems in his hands.

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Now the band, albeit slightly remodelled, is back with a new album Junk Of The Heart, out on Monday, and a tour which takes in Hull and Leeds next month.

Frontman Luke Pritchard admits it’s been a long time coming. “It never got so bad that we were going to split or anything,” he says.

“But it just didn’t feel right. We would have loved to have banged out a record a lot sooner, but we needed to get excited again.”

After initially struggling to find their grove, something clicked and the album was done and dusted in a productive two-month burst.

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“I think we’ve got a good thing going with this album and we have a future again,” says Pritchard. “I think you’re going to see us be a lot freer now.”

The Kooks play Hull City Hall, Oct 4, and Leeds 02 Academy, Oct 9.

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