S Poddar
You may think King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard is not really your cup of tea. With a back catalog that goes off like a firework – 25 studio albums in a decade, plus a mountain of live stuff – it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. They’ve dabbled in everything from microtonal tuning to psychedelic concept albums about monsters. You know, the usual band stuff.
But don’t let that sort of wild name or experimental forays fool you, mate. These Aussie lads can actually turn in a pretty darn good set of catchy tunes when they need to. That mellow, bossanova record a few years ago? Yeah, it’s here, and with the production, they’re wizards—able to twist their garage rock into something equal parts funk, jazz, and dance floor filler.
But their lyrics are deeper than they seem, too. Sure, there are the monsters and magic, but a sharp eye on the world’s ills: corporate greed, climate change, societal unease—treated with a surprisingly deft hand for empathy.
The latest album, Flight b741, at first turns out to be a head scratcher. Their record label touts it as the most accessible and fun album they have ever produced, but with King Gizzard, you know there’s more going on than what you hear literally. Like, they seem to channel a soul in classic rock bands—think Steve Miller Band, Doobie Brothers, that kind of vibe—but all dark and twisted underneath.
It’s just pure, unadulterated fun. It has that swagger of classic rock, with all those chunky guitar riffs and sing-along choruses. There is something, though—one kind of raw energy, garage rock edge that keeps things interesting. It’s like taking a time machine back to the 70s and returning with the best bits, but with a modern twist.
Beware of its sunny disposition, though. It’s almost the lyrics of quite a different tale: lost, lonely, suicidal. Kind of a weird contrast, this really upended, feel-good music with some pretty heavy subject matter. It feels like they’re trying to move away from this reality through these classic rock riffs, yet the truth happens to creep in on them.
It’s a bold move, likely to make most bands shy away from such dark themes when they’re trying to make a catchy pop record. But King Gizzard aren’t most bands. They are the band that is always trying to push those boundaries, test those limits, and do that new thing. And with Flight b741, they have created something at once familiar and completely unexpected.
It’s not their most profound album by any means, but it definitely has a good time. It’s the kind of record that makes you crank up the volume and sing right along to the words, even as it is exploring some pretty heavy stuff. And that’s a rare, special thing.
So if it’s that feel-good album with a dark heart you’re looking for, Flight b741 may well prove to be just that record. It certainly won’t leave you any fewer in questions at the end, though.
