Just over a year after the Brighton-formed quartet last graced the Southampton stage, The Kooks are back and are set to play to a sold out crowd once more at o2 Guildhall. When the 2017 tour was announced back in November last year, it sparked rumours of an accompanying album, exciting Kooks fans who had not been treated to new material since 2014. Although the boys did reveal that it would be in celebration of their 10 year anniversary, in March an album entitled The Best Of… So Far was made available for pre-order and was said to be a compilation of their biggest hits alongside two new and unheard tracks, ‘Be Who You Are’ and ‘Broken Vow’. Lead singer and guitarist, Luke Pritchard, promised fans however that this would not signal the end of the band, maintaining that they did not intend to stop any time soon.
Considering the success The Kooks have had over the past ten years it is likely that the album – although referred to as a cop-out money-maker by some critics of greatest hits albums – will also top the charts. Set for release on 19th May, the deluxe edition will also include demos and alternative versions; every Kooks-lover’s dream.
Always a humble band, the boys treated selective audiences to two pre-warm up shows in Brighton at the beginning of April, leaving the locations of the tiny venues secret until the last moment. The tour officially kicked off however in Manchester last week and will culminate in a final headline show at London’s Alexandra Palace on 13th May before the band jet off around the globe. The UK stint includes sold out nights at Nottingham, Bristol, our very own Southampton and at Bournemout. France, Germany, Prague and Russia are just some of the international stops included in the calendar alongside festival appearances at Liverpool Sound City, Isle of White Festival and Ibiza Rocks.
Tickets are still available for selected dates here.
