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
Thought He Had Everything
Kitchens of Distinction Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Pacing the flat, runs out to the park
The city is wheezing, in the sun he's breathless
He hits the ground hard, he laughs out loud.
I thought he had everything
11pm he gets too nervous
He runs out of bars to get fresh air
He must get home before he breaks without reason
I thought he had everything
When he's home he plays tapes of 70s records
He stares at the bookshelf, the off TV
He hasn't any reason, no god to believe in
Everything he sings doesn't help any more
But if he was in love
He'd have someone to shout at
When you're in love
You have someone to hit.
The lyrics to Kitchens of Distinction's "Thought He Had Everything" depicts a person who seems to be having a hard time coping with life despite everyone else perceiving him as having it all. The song begins with a description of the person being overly excited at 11 am and pacing his flat, only to run out to the park and fall on the ground laughing. However, we later see him struggling with anxiety at 11 pm when he is out with friends and fears breaking down without reason. When he returns home, he plays tapes of old records, staring at a bookshelf and an off TV, seemingly without any purpose or belief in God. The last verse seems to suggest that the person needs love or someone to shout at.
The song explores the idea of how people may seem to have everything together, but in reality, they are struggling with their inner demons that we may not know about. The person highlighted in the song appears to be trying to find joy and solace in old records but is ultimately not successful in finding happiness. The last verse is particularly poignant as it suggests that love or someone to shout at may be what is missing in the person's life.
Line by Line Meaning
11am he's already excited
At 11am, he is already energetic and enthusiastic
Pacing the flat, runs out to the park
He paces in his apartment and then rushes out to the park
The city is wheezing, in the sun he's breathless
The city is suffocating, and in the sun, he is out of breath
He hits the ground hard, he laughs out loud.
He falls hard on the ground but laughs loudly
I thought he had everything
Despite all this, he seems to lack something important
11pm he gets too nervous
At 11pm, he becomes extremely anxious
Even with his friends and beer for company
Even though his friends and beer are there to keep him company
He runs out of bars to get fresh air
He exhausts all nearby bars to get fresh air
He must get home before he breaks without reason
He needs to hurry back home before he loses his sanity for no particular reason
When he's home he plays tapes of 70s records
When he's at home, he listens to tapes of music from the 1970s
He stares at the bookshelf, the off TV
He glares at the bookshelf and the switched-off television set
He hasn't any reason, no god to believe in
He has lost his sense of purpose and does not have faith in any god
Everything he sings doesn't help any more
The music he listens to no longer provides him any solace
But if he was in love
However, if he were in love
He'd have someone to shout at
He would have someone as an outlet for his frustration
When you're in love
When you are in love
You have someone to hit.
You have someone to take out your aggression on.
Contributed by Christopher A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Raymond Bruce
Beautiful! Thank you for this. Can you do the last 2 minutes of Prize? Also, any advice on how to get those swelling guitar effects at the end of Prize?
Guitar Cooks
Last 2 minutes of Prize should be easy. The problem is replicating the effects. Let me give it a try. Thank You!
Patricio Aradas
I'dont know if you're the one i've mailed around 4 months ago, Youtube really mess up with the notifications and stuff, nonetheless I thank you from the bottom of my heart; i've been trying to play these songs for years.
Thank you <3
Guitar Cooks
+Patricio Aradas Hey yes, same person you mailed 4 months ago. There's another guy that posted several videos. Hopefully that helps. I linked some of his videos.
Steve oh yes Steve
aha this is great, I've not seen anyone playing Kitchens stuff - I'm a huge, huge Kitchens fan and I wouldn't mind contributing here (I play guitar and know a fair few Kitchens songs) unless you're just uploading your own videos. Either way, great to see this, hope to see more songs coming up.
Guitar Cooks
I was watching them Berkeley vids in the beginning to get my bearings. Awaiting your uploads! THX
Steve oh yes Steve
Yeah my fave guitarist too - I can do some recordings, there are some great videos on YouTube at Berkeley where you can see some fairly clear fingerings, though still not always clear what he's playing due to the fx. I can take a stab at Drive That Fast, I'll see if I can record something in the same way you did, playing along with the studio recording!
Guitar Cooks
+Stephen Lewins Thanks! Your contributions are most welcome! Julian Swales, my favorite guitarist! BTW - Most people request "Drive that Fast" haven't done that yet.