Kingsley Flood

“[Battles] underlines the difference between a local band ascending to a national stage and one that’s finally ready for and deserving of it.” - The Boston Globe Boston and Washington, DC based six-piece Kingsley Flood released their first full-lenth Dust Windows in 2010, generating both critical acclaim and a passionate fan base. In 2011, the band issued the six-song EP Colder Still, with tracks that were touted by NPR, Esquire, and Paste.The band, described recently by the Boston Herald as a “Rolling Thunder Revue with a punk rock sneer,” has supported Grace Potter and Nocturnals, Angus and Julia Stone, Langhorne Slim, and Brett Dennen, among others, and is a two-time winner at both the Boston Music Awards and the Boston Phoenix Best Music Poll. In 2013, Kingsley Flood has no plans to sit still. Battles, their latest full-length (released Feb. 5), is the band’s most honed, complex, and meaningful project to date. Recorded with producer Sam Kassirer (Josh Ritter, Langhorne Slim, David Wax Museum) at Great North Sound Society in rural Maine, Battles amplifies the band’s pension for dynamics — rock songs that can fill music halls, quiet songs that sound two feet away.The resulting sound blends Dylan-esque storytelling, Kinks-inspired melodies, and the urgency of the Clash. With songs inspired by everyone from delusional dictators to spray-tanned politicians to laid-off workers trying to get back on their feet, Battles winds a deliberate path from self doubt (opener “Don’t Change My Mind”) to quiet determination (closer “This Will Not Be Easy”). The band is: Naseem Khuri: vocals, rhythm guitar Jenée Morgan: violin, saxophone, vocals Chris Barrett: trumpet, keys, percussion, vocals George Hall: lead guitar, vocals Nick Balkin: bass, vocals Travis Richter: drums, percussion