Good King Friday

Good King Friday, named after the character from the show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, formed after members of the avant-garde classical group the Los Angeles New Music Ensemble played a show at Spaceland in Silverlake, CA, met up with some long-lost friends, and got down to writing some serious symphonic rock. After seven months of slaving away at writing, arranging, and producing their first album, GKF has something that they hope puts a little extra beauty into the world.

At the album’s heart are the connections within the band. Canadian Patrick and Chicagoan Audrey met Los Angeles girl Christina playing rough-and-thorny classical music together at the University of Oklahoma. Christina introduced them her L.A. childhood friends, siblings Kelly and Chris. Kelly, Chris, Christina, and Nathan had attended high school together in Valencia, California, and, after crossing paths for the first time in years at that show in Silverlake, Nathan and Kelly were married to each other a little over a year later. As the band grew author Matt Kolbet, Nathan‚Äôs brother-in-law, joined the ranks with his dynamic and thought-provoking lyrics.
Each song on the album sways and shakes to the tune of a dozen different influences filtered through late-night rehearsals and later-night conversations until they all speak with the same unique voice.Arrangements and lyrics and choruses were sent back and forth over email until each song was fully documented through hummed parts, midi takes, scores, scratch tracks, and email chains. All these puzzle pieces and bits of sound and verse came together to make this album something beautiful and new.

You can find a review on Good King Friday here