Kula Shaker

Crispian Mills – vocals/guitars
Alonza Bevan – bass
Paul Winterhart – drums
Harry Broadbent – keyboards

Kula Shaker are back, but their history is long.  Their career started way back in 1988, when Mills and Bevan met at college, but the band as it was recognisable in the 90s didn’t come together until Mills, Bevan, Winterhart and vocalist Saul Dismont formed The Kays in 1993.  However, following 2 years of failure, Mills had an epiphany, re-named the band Kula Shaker and took a more spiritual turn.

1996 proved to be a fabulous year for the newly revamped quartet.  Dismont had, by this time, been replaced with Jay Darlington and the band’s joint win of the ‘In The City’ contest (with Placebo) had led to a recording contract with Columbia Records.  The band’s single, ‘Grateful When You’re Dead’ hit the charts at number 35 and gave them sudden exposure, causing ‘Hey Dude’ to debut at number 2 in August, 1996.  In October, Kula Shaker’s debut album, K, became the fastest selling debut since Oasis’ Definitely Maybe and sold over 850,000 copies in the UK alone.  1997 brought a Brit Award and a number 2 single (‘Hush’) but was marred by negative press following Mills’ somewhat controversial comments about swastikas.  One long apology later, the band released a second album – but the damage was done – and the public’s opinion of the spiritual face of Britpop had turned.  Kula Shaker split in September 1999.

After the split, Mills attempted some solo work to limited success, and the other members turned to new bands.  The first inklings of a reformation came in 2005 when Mills organised a charity album and invited his ex-band members to play, although Darlington declined.  The sessions went well, and Kula Shaker officially reformed on 11th January, 2006 with new keyboardist Broadbent.  An EP followed a short spring tour, and latest news from the Kula Shaker camp is that work on the 3rd album is underway.  So it seems that only time will tell for this new reincarnation of the band.

Discography

K – 1996 (Columbia Records)
Summer Sun EP – 1997
Peasants, Pigs and Astronauts – 1999
Kollected – The Best Of – 2003
The Revenge Of The King EP – 2006