Entertainment
Brisbane’s Best Kept Secret – Between Kings
From their sun-kissed love song “Bon Amour” to their darkly introspective “Howling” and endless summer vibe of “Party Song,” the four-piece Australian band, Between Kings is primed to claim their place on the court of post alternative rock royalty. On a recent stop in Los Angeles, guitarist Jordan Coyne took some time from recording and scheduling an upcoming tour to tell Culture about the band that is Brisbane’s best kept secret, and is soon to take America by storm.
How long has Between Kings been together?
Jordan Coyne: We’ve been together for about three years now.
Who are your influences and inspirations?
Our new stuff is influenced by Imagine Dragons, but all of us have different inspirations. I think that’s what makes our music interesting. Me and Nic, the lead singer, love the Red Hot Chili Peppers, our bass player Jayden likes bluesy sort of stuff, our drummer Nick really likes hardcore and pop/punk. When our influences collide, we embrace that. I can’t imagine writing with other people, we have a great relationship, and we all love each other.
Can you describe the sound of Between Kings?
We have songs that have an in-your-face type of feel, and then songs like “Party Song” which is about having a good time and living in the moment, then songs like “Broken Valley” and “Bon Amour” that are about relationships. We try to catch the full range of human emotion.
Does everyone in the band contribute to songwriting?
Yeah, we all play our parts. There’s no ego in it or anything like that.
“As far as medically, I think [cannabis is] great. As far as recreationally, I don’t see any harm at all. You should let people do what they want to do. It’s that simple, really.”
Between Kings has been categorized as post alternative rock. Do you agree with that description?
I think that actually encapsulates us quite a fair bit. Alternative rock is such a broad term. You can fit so much into it. On one hand, you’ve got the Red Hot Chili Peppers and then you’ve got Radiohead and Rage Against The Machine and Linkin Park. Then you have what we’re doing, which is revamping that sound. It’s the sound we grew up on.
So, you’re the second generation of alt rock?
Yeah. Yeah, I think so. At the same time, it’s just music to us.
Your lyrics are often intensely personal. Do you think twice about sharing your emotions with the world, or does it come naturally?
Oddly enough, it just comes naturally. We’re very sort of emotional people, so we feel things on a deep level. I think expressing that is a way of release, as well.
Do you have any tour plans in the works, or any other upcoming shows?
Yes, we’re releasing an EP later this year, and will be touring America in early 2017. That is what we love doing, after all of the hours put in writing, when you get to go on stage and pour that out, that’s what makes it for us. That’s why we do it. Whether it’s a small crowd or a huge crowd, it doesn’t matter. We love what we do.
You’re back and forth between Brisbane and L.A. quite a bit, do you expect to call the States home any time soon?
You see more interesting stuff in L.A. in one day than you do in a year in Brisbane! It’s great, I love it. We’d definitely love to make the jump over here, it’s where our dream is.
How do you feel about the push for cannabis legalization in the States?
I think there’s no real big deal about it, personally. We know people who use marijuana, and I’ve seen where it’s helped people through cancer and people going through a lot of pain and trauma, like PTSD patients. As far as medically, I think it’s great. As far as recreationally, I don’t see any harm at all. You should let people do what they want to do. It’s that simple, really.
