For indie rock act the Kills, the most frequently asked question from fans is definitely “When will there be new music?” There’s no doubt that the duo, made up of American singer Alison Mosshart and British guitarist Jamie Hince, has an extremely loyal fan base, but with every post or announcement on social media it makes, a few followers can’t help but inquire about a follow up to the Kills’ fourth studio album, “Blood Pressures,” which came out in April 2011.
The Kills are about to reward those who have waited somewhat patiently by debuting new music on their upcoming jaunt, which stops by a couple of the band’s old local haunts including the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles on Monday and the Glass House in Pomona on Tuesday. Mosshart confirmed during our phone interview that yes, the Kills have been working on a new album, but it probably won’t be released until early next year.
“We’re not really touring a ton right now,” she said, also noting that she was jet lagged from flying from a recent stay in L.A. to her home in London last week. She splits her time between residences in London and Nashville, Tenn.
“We’re going to go out for a few weeks and trying out some of the new songs, but every other waking moment we’re trying to finish our record. There’s really no downtime right now and as soon as the record is done, there’s all that other stuff that comes with it, like telling everyone about it for months on end. It’s going to be a super busy year, but I’m excited because we’ll be back in California a lot.”
The Kills formed in 2000 when the pair met while Mosshart was on tour with her previous punk rock band, Discount, in Europe. The musical relationship blossomed quickly and they found success with its debut “Keep on Your Mean Side” in 2003. The album was followed up by lots of touring and two more records, “No Wow” in 2005 and “Midnight Boom” in 2008.
They’ve played arenas and amphitheaters with acts such as the Black Keys, Queens of the Stone Age and the Arctic Monkeys, while enjoying numerous sold-out headlining club and theater runs on their own worldwide. Chances are if you watch television at all, you’ve heard a Kills song, since its music has been licensed for use in numerous hit shows from “The Good Wife” “House” and “Gossip Girl” to “True Blood” and “The Vampire Diaries.”
During their sparse downtime, both Mosshart and Hince have worked on individual visual arts projects. Hince, who is also married to supermodel Kate Moss, opened an exhibit of his photographic work at the Morrison Hotel Gallery in New York, while Mosshart’s original paintings and fabric art were on display at Joseph Gross Gallery in New York earlier this month.
“I make a lot of art on the road backstage, on the bus or in hotel rooms,” Mosshart said. “There’s a lot of waiting around while you’re on the road, but I haven’t been on tour in a while. I’ve been traveling around and doing a lot of things, but I did a lot of painting for that art show while I was in Nashville in the studio so there are a lot of pieces that are larger than suitcase size. I do have a lot of suitcase-sized work to go around for sure.”
The Dead Weather – Mosshart’s other successful musical endeavor, a rock supergroup that formed in 2009 with Jack White (The White Stripes and the Raconteurs), Dean Fertita (Queens of the Stone Age) and Jack Lawrence (The Raconteurs and City and Colour) will be putting out its next record, “Dodge & Burn,” in September. However, because of the hectic lives and schedules off all of its members, the band will not be able to tour in support of the release, which will contain eight new songs and four previously released tracks that have been remixed and remastered.
Mosshart said she is grateful to have been able to find two solid partners in music in both Hince and White.
“People say all of the time that it’s impossible to find people to work with or get along with or that they click with musically,” she said. “I’ve never really had to go looking. Everything that has happened has happened organically where without even talking about it really you just start something and next thing you know, you’ve been in a band for 15 years. I never set out with a plan to be in any band really, but maybe it’s the kind of energy I give off. I love it because this is what I love to do and that’s the kind of energy other people who love making music respond to … I guess I just got lucky twice.”
Contact the writer: 714-796-3570 or kfadroski@ocregister.com
