''Black Rooster EP'' is the debut EP by

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band

The Kills The Kills are an English-American rock duo formed by American singer Alison "VV" Mosshart and English guitarist Jamie "Hotel" Hince. They are signed to Domino Records. Their first four albums, '' Keep On Your Mean Side'', '' No Wow'', ''Mid ...

Background

In 2001, the Kills showcased new songs on a demo tape; however, the pair shunned approaches from major

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

s. Recording as VV and Hotel, they contributed the song "Restaurant Blouse" to the compilation ''If the Twenty-First Century Did Not Exist, It Would Be Necessary to Invent It''. Shortly after this, they signed to Domino Records and recorded their debut release, the ''Black Rooster EP'' in Toe Rag Studios in March 2002; it was all recorded on 8-track by Liam Watson except "Dropout Boogie" which is live at Paint It Black, 4 April 2002 and "Gum", recorded on a

Dictaphone Dictaphone was an American company founded by Alexander Graham Bell that produced dictation machines. It is now a division of Nuance Communications, based in Burlington, Massachusetts. Although the name "Dictaphone" is a trademark, it has bec ...

by the band. The record sleeve featured photos of Mosshart and Hince taken in a

photo booth A photo booth is a vending machine or modern kiosk that contains an automated, usually coin-operated, camera and film processor. Today, the vast majority of photo booths are digital. History The patent for the first automated photography ma ...

rather than professional photography. The record was

lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate choice. The ...

in both musical and

aesthetic Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed th ...

terms. Musically, the record was a sparse, lo-fi

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

hybrid though the band cites

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LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy, co-founder of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals, various instruments), Nancy Whang (synthesizer, keyboards, vocals), Pat Mahoney (dr ...

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, The Fall,

Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter and author who became an influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album '' Horses''. Called the "punk poe ...

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and

Royal Trux Royal Trux was an American alternative rock band active from 1987 to 2001, reuniting in 2015 but disbanded once again in 2019. It was founded by Neil Hagerty (vocals, guitar) and Jennifer Herrema (vocals). History While still a teenager, Hagert ...

as immediate influences; the music press has largely compared them to

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Track listing

Personnel

;The Kills * Alison "VV" Mosshart – vocals, guitar on "Wait" * Jamie "Hotel" Hince – guitar, drums, tambourine, vocals

References

2002 debut EPs The Kills albums Domino Recording Company EPs {{2000s-punk-rock-album-stub