Q&A: King No-One Talks Exploring Cities on the Road, Upcoming Music, Post-Punk Influences and New Single “Neighbours”
STORMING ONCE AGAIN ONTO THE SCENE — with their newest single and accompanying music video, “Neighbours,” King No-One brings us their usual high-energy, hypnotic atmosphere we’ve come to love in their music. Composed of Zach, James, Joe, and Rob, the band that hails from the north of England is making waves with their lyricism and getting people to move with their tunes.
About to embark on a UK/EU tour this spring and with a new EP around the corner, King No-One is leaving no stone unturned. With “Neighbours,” Rob lets us in on their creative process and how they aimed to craft a song that was both “a banger” and an anthem on not allowing others’ expectations to weigh you down. A fun, electric, head-banging “fuck you” of sorts, it is a sentiment that can be found in the band themselves.
Read below to hear more about “Neighbours,” what King No-One is looking forward to most about their tour, and the process behind their art.
LUNA: Hey Rob! It’s so cool to be talking to you guys ahead of your upcoming tour and right after the release of your new single and accompanying music video, “Neighbours.” The intimacy at the beginning of the video is sweet; having some of it filmed through the doorbell cam is so cool. What was your favorite part of filming and creating this new music video?
ROB: Hello! (Laughs) I’m glad you liked it. We had a lot of fun shooting this video. The concept came together rather quickly but the characters were conceived a little last-minute. We all threw ourselves into the roles, though, and it was hilarious to see our transformations as we embraced our weird little characters. Especially Zach’s, aka Jason, who I named after an old twattish neighbor.
LUNA: With tour coming up, is there any place or venue you’re all particularly excited to be heading to and playing at?
ROB: Tricky one, we’re really excited to be visiting cities in Europe that we haven’t been to before, such as Groningen, Rotterdam, and Baden. But truthfully, as we’ve not been on a headline tour since late 2021, we just can’t wait to get back at it and play a lot of the new material we spent the majority of last year writing. Fave venue in the UK run would probably be Thekla, though.
LUNA: What’s your guys’ favorite part of being on the road and touring, and is there anything you can’t hit the road without?
ROB: We love the travel aspect — being in a different city (or country) from one day to the next is really lovely. A large part of the travel to said city will be spent looking up where’s best for coffee and where we’re gonna eat after soundcheck. It can be difficult to get a sense of a place when you’re only in it for a day or less, though, so we’ll try and cram in what we can with the little time we have in it.
LUNA: What was one major spark of inspiration for your new song, “Neighbours?”
ROB: Lyrically, it was written around a bit of a mental house party one New Year’s Eve a couple of years ago. Musically, we just wanted to write a banger, which I like to think we achieved.
LUNA: How would you guys describe your creative process as a band? From an idea to a song to a whole visual and auditory piece, such as a music video, or even to performing your songs live?
ROB: When it comes to songwriting it can vary, but usually Zach will come to us with an idea, which can be in its infancy [something like] a vocal melody, or it may be something that is more fully-formed, and we will then develop said idea as a group in the practice room or in one of our flats. Once we’ve all written our individual parts, Joe will then create a demo, at which point we will explore and develop the production of the tune. And then with the majority of everything else, it really is a consolidated group effort.
LUNA: Are there any inspirations musically, aesthetically, or in any fashion really, that you find yourselves drawing from in your work lately?
ROB: A lot of the new material we have been writing and the songs that are on this new EP were directly inspired by new wave and post-punk acts, and the artwork was based on the abandoned and derelict Trafford Park Hotel in Manchester.
LUNA: Who is one dream person or group you would love to sit down with and talk music or art?
ROB: I’d have to say Nick Cave. I’m a listener and lover of his music but I wouldn’t necessarily describe myself as a huge fan, and it’s not his music that I would want to speak to him about. Obviously, he’s a gargantuan creative force and he’s cool as fuck, but his general outlook and opinion on things I find both inspiring and incredibly interesting. His latest book with Sean O'Hagan is astounding, and I would recommend it to everyone, regardless of your opinion of his work. So Nick — as I’m sure you’ll inevitably read this — let’s go for a Guinness ASAP, please, mate.
LUNA: Last but certainly not least, what is one thing in the near future you guys as King No-One are especially excited for?
ROB: The tour! And the release of this upcoming EP, of course. Playing live is everything to us, and we’re really hoping to celebrate the record, as we’re incredibly proud of it.
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