Marmaduke Duke - Kid Gloves
I have followed the adventures of Marmaduke Duke for some time now, and their latest single Kid Gloves doesn’t disappoint one bit.
If you aren’t down with the kids, it’s worth knowing that Marmaduke Duke are a conceptual rock duo from Ayrshire, Scotland; and is the side project of the two leading members of delicious Scottish Alternative Rock bands, Simon Neil of Biffy Clyro and JP Reid of Sucioperro and are otherwise known as The Atmosphere and The Dragon when involved the Duke.
When the band was formed, the boys had the intention of making a trio of albums, firstly, The Magnificent Duke which is 18 tracks in length and was released in 2005. I am hoping that it is to be followed by Duke Pandemonium in April 2009, before finally culminating with Death of the Duke with an unknown recording or release date.
So with that bit of history for you, it’s time to delve into the crazy world of The Duke, with their latest offering, Kid Gloves. From the very beginning I love it, of course I’m biased because I love anything Simon Neil gets his mitts on.
The single is the first section of a three-part story; so obviously you’re going to be buying the next lot too, and you really want to find out where this heavenly journey leads.
The enigmatic vocals of Simon Neil provide almost three and a half minutes of incredible sounds, complete with odd wind chime noises in the background, synths and strings to lose your ears in and a sing-along-chorus that provides a nice respite from the low-key verses, all topped off with guest vocals from the lovely Connie Mitchell of Sneaky Sound System.
The song is crafted with precision and love, and I just want to jump into the world of the Duke, in fact pass me those Kid Gloves, I’m putting them on… I want the hat and scarf too!
For anyone who appreciates the immenseness of the Scottish rock scene at the moment, and who gives a shit about listening to some really decent music, rather just what Radio One thinks you should; then Marmaduke Duke is your new favourite band.