Over the course of their career, the band has released five studio albums - "Love is Hell" (1989), "Strange Free World" (1991), "The Death of Cool" (1992), "Cowboys and Aliens" (1994), and "Folly" (2013).
Dan Goodwin (drums) met Julian Swales (guitar) at college in 1980, and Swales met Patrick Fitzgerald (vocals/bass guitar) at a party in 1985.The trio began rehearsing together that same year, taking their name from a company of the same name that specialised in home decor and kitchen and plumbing fixtures after Swales spotted one of their advertisements on the side of a bus while riding his bike. The Kitchens' first single, "The Last Gasp Death Shuffle" (which featured Swales on lead vocals and bass, as well as guitar) was recorded in just one day on an eight-track in a Kennington basement, and was released in December 1987 on the band's own Gold Rush Records. It was named a single of the week in the NME, and led to the band signing with the British indie label One Little Indian Records; it was around this time that Fitzgerald, a medical doctor, put his career on hold to devote himself fully to the band. Their first singles for One Little Indian, 1988's "Prize" and 1989's "The 3rd Time We Opened the Capsule", made it onto the "NME Writers' 100 Best Indie Singles Ever" list, published 25 July 1992.
Their first full-length album, Love Is Hell, was released in April 1989. Fitzgerald's impassioned, wordy, often bluntly personal vocals careened over what sounded like a mass of swirling guitars, though the band only had one guitarist. Swales' chiming, effects-laden style of playing drew him comparisons to the guitarists of The Chameleons, Cocteau Twins, and A.R. Kane. KOD's melodic yet abstract sound was a precursor to the shoegazing scene of the late 1980s/early 1990s.
Despite the promising start, the band faced a subdued reception from the mainstream music industry, generally due to their lyrical content. For instance, "Margaret's Injection", on the 1989 Elephantine EP, was a fantasy about killing then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Also, Fitzgerald was openly gay, and his lyrics were unapologetic, especially on tracks like "Prize" and "Within the Daze of Passion". Even the more indie-focused television programs like Snub TV and Rapido failed to give them much coverage, although Snub TV played the video for their 1991 single "Drive That Fast". Likewise, they were not offered a John Peel radio session, although they eventually did get one after asking Peel personally, following a Glastonbury performance which he appreciated.
Kitchens of Distinction sometimes performed "secret" gigs under the alter ego Toilets of Destruction.[2][6] An example was at The Bull & Gate in Kentish Town on 6 August 1990, where the band appeared in drag and played ABBA, David Bowie, and Bauhaus covers.
In 1990, they signed with A&M Records in the US, and went into the studio with producer Hugh Jones (Simple Minds, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Undertones). Their second album, Strange Free World, was released in February 1991, and spawned some moderately successful singles in "Drive That Fast" and "Quick as Rainbows", both of which were very well received by college radio in the US. The band went back into the studio in 1992, again with Jones at the helm, and their third album The Death of Cool came out in August that year; it was named in honour of the passing of Miles Davis, who had released an influential album titled The Birth of the Cool in 1950. A&M balked at the band's choice of "Breathing Fear" for the first single, due to its touchy subject matter (gay bashing), so "Smiling" became the album's initial single in the US. The band toured extensively, including a high-profile slot opening for their US labelmate Suzanne Vega, whose album 99.9F° came out within a few weeks of theirs.
Later in 1993, KOD began work on their fourth album, co-producing it themselves with engineer Pete Bartlett. One Little Indian rejected the album twice, and eventually, both label and band agreed to bring in up-and-coming producer Pascal Gabriel to work on a couple of tracks. One of the label's complaints about the album as the band originally submitted it was that they felt it lacked a potential hit single, so Gabriel produced a new song ("Come on Now") that the band had written after the rest of the album had already been recorded; Gabriel also remixed two of the album's other tracks (the opener "Sand on Fire" and first single "Now It's Time to Say Goodbye"). The resulting album, Cowboys and Aliens, was released in the UK in October 1994, and although the band admitted that they enjoyed working with Gabriel, the changes did nothing to help the album's dismal sales. When the album saw its US release in early 1995, it was largely ignored by the same alternative rock radio and media that had championed them just a few years before. By the end of 1995, both A&M and OLI had dropped the band.
Shortening their name to Kitchens O.D. and signing to the London-based indie label Fierce Panda Records, they issued a single, "Feel My Genie" in May 1996, which was named "Single of the Week" by Melody Maker, but they officially disbanded that summer after a farewell gig at London's Kings Cross.
In September 2012, Fitzgerald announced that he and Swales had recorded and were in the process of editing ten new songs. The reunited trio of Fitzgerald, Swales, and Goodwin released their fifth studio album Folly, their first new album in 19 years, on 30 September 2013
The 3rd Time We Opened the Capsule
Kitchens of Distinction Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm falling asleep again.
Take my sins and take my tablets
Have these notions culled from oceans (of experience).
Hide them well in fear
I'll abuse them wake up with an unchanged whim.
Take my sins and take my tablets
Have these notions culled from oceans.
The third time we opened the capsule everything went.....
Here sings the innocent
He's turning water into brine.
Take my words and take my language
Have these notions culled from oceans.
Hide them well and let them rust
Falling asleep with more to trust.
Take my words and take my language
Take my words and take my language.
The third time we opened the capsule everything went.....
I want a light to shine in my eye
Holding secrets in controlled flight to make it easy
Breathing big take these truths and dig dig dig.
The song "The 3rd Time We Opened the Capsule" by Kitchens of Distinction seems to be about drug use and addiction. The singer is asking the people around him to take his sins and tablets, possibly referring to prescription drugs he is using to numb himself. He knows he will abuse them and wake up with the same whim. The notion of hiding them well in fear suggests that he is aware of the harm he is causing himself and others, yet he cannot stop. The line "Have these notions culled from oceans" could represent the vastness of his experience with substance abuse.
The innocence referred to in the song seems to be the singer's own lost innocence. He is turning water into brine, representing the corruption and decay of his soul. He wants people to take his words and language, perhaps to save him from himself. The line "falling asleep with more to trust" could suggest that he is ready to trust those around him, but he cannot do it alone.
The repeated phrase "The third time we opened the capsule everything went..." could represent a turning point in the singer's drug use, perhaps the moment when it became clearly destructive or dangerous. He wants a light to shine in his eye and to hold secrets in controlled flight, suggesting that he wants to regain a sense of control and clarity. The phrase "Breathing big take these truths and dig dig dig" could be a call to action, a reminder to keep working towards recovery and a better future.
Line by Line Meaning
Go good and gentle men
Addressing the listeners as good and gentle men.
I'm falling asleep again.
Expressing sleepiness or tiredness.
Take my sins and take my tablets
Asking someone to take care of one's sins and medication.
Have these notions culled from oceans (of experience).
Referring to one's experiences and ideas that have been collected over time.
Hide them well in fear
Asking to hide these thoughts and emotions due to fear.
I'll abuse them wake up with an unchanged whim.
Admitting to abusing one's thoughts and emotions and waking up with the same mindset.
Take my sins and take my tablets
Repeating the earlier line to emphasize the importance of taking care of oneself.
Here sings the innocent
Introducing the artist as the innocent.
He's turning water into brine.
Using a metaphor to explain the process of transforming something pure into something less desirable.
Take my words and take my language
Asking for someone to take care of one's words and language or way of expressing oneself.
Hide them well and let them rust
Suggesting that one should keep their words and thoughts hidden and let them fade away over time.
Falling asleep with more to trust.
Referring to the feeling of going to sleep with more trust or faith.
Take my words and take my language
Repeating the earlier line to highlight its importance.
The third time we opened the capsule everything went.....
Introducing the idea of opening a capsule and something happening.
I want a light to shine in my eye
Expressing the desire for illumination or understanding to come.
Holding secrets in controlled flight to make it easy
Describing the process of managing secrets or emotions in order to make things easier.
Breathing big take these truths and dig dig dig.
Encouraging the listeners to take deep breaths and explore the truth through introspection.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: DAN GOODWIN, JULIAN SWALES, PATRICK FITZGERALD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@IKB28513
One of the most underrated bands to come out of the UK.
@DioBach
One of the great indie tracks of the 1980s. Lucky enough to have seen them a few times around 1989/90. Utterly superb band.
@mikesilva5085
Came to London in 1989 to study fine art at Middlesex Poly- lived in a flat in Green Lanes with 13 other students . London was falling to bits but so alive. This track was played a lot and listening to it now in hospital as a 51 year old wondering where time went .
@tonybigalow3236
How are you now Sir ?
@mikesilva5085
@Tony Bigalow still in remission. Thank you for asking .
@tonybigalow3236
@Mike Silva 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
@andrecosta281
I studied at middlesex as well, Pop Music but 20 years after, a dif generation, I hope you're doing ok and you+re enjoying life, sending an internet hug!
@PumaFist
I saw them open for Suzanne Vega in Washington D.C. in 91 or 92. They stole the show. Glad I got to see them live. I was just a kid. But they blew me away. Loud as hell!
@chrisgaxiola9393
It’s like The Smiths and Slowdive had a baby. And I’m living for it.
@toferbarber6348
THIS!!