It’s hard to believe that acoustic troubadours Kings Of Convenience were once part of a Joy Division covers band in their native Norway. 

Their near flawless 2001 debut Quiet Is The New Loud showcased a set of upbeat mellow songs so far away from the likes of Joy Division that they might as well have been made on another planet. 

The album wasn’t quite as successful as it should have been in the face of competition from similar bands like Turin Brakes, but you suspect that the group were far happier that it was a quiet underground success. 

In the years following their debut the duo, Eirik Glambeck Boe and Erlend Oye, went their separate ways.  Extrovert singer Erlend travelled Europe and recorded Unrest, a dance influenced solo album, while the far more introverted Eirik returned to Bergen to complete his psychology degree.  Riot On An Empty Street was recorded in the last six months in their home town of Bergen, with the now Berlin based Erlend returning periodically to team up with his friend.   

Riot is immediately starker and colder than its predecessor.  The opening track ‘Homesick’, and ‘Cayman Islands’ have the same familiar intricate melodies and vocal harmonies as before,  but the instrumentation has been stripped back and they essentially consist of acoustic strumming.  They are fragile and beautiful songs, but the warmth of Quiet Is The New Loud, once their trademark, has been lost.  ‘Surprise Ice’ is similar in this respect, but this has the added concern of the lack of a coherent tune.  ‘Stay Out of Trouble’, adorned by the usual strings and piano, doesn’t really go anywhere either and has no real hooks to speak of. 

It’s not all bad of course.  First single ‘Misread’ is brilliant, delicate acoustic riffs and strings combining to recapture the warmth most of the record doesn’t have.  It’s the best song on the album by some distance and you wonder if this might have been left over from the Quiet sessions. 

Other highlights are ‘Love Is No Truth’, in which the Kings commit the ultimate crime of plugging in their guitars.  No concern is necessary though, as they produce a great lazy riff topped off by intricate acoustic melody (plus banjo!), which is enticing.  ‘I’d Rather Dance With You’ is excellent too and a marked departure from their usual sound.  Reminiscent of an 80s pop tune, it has a bass line which bounces around all over the place, stabbing strings and stop start acoustic guitars.  You can almost dance to it. 

Erlend is on record as saying that he’s looking forward to everyone pointing out that Riot is not as good as their first album.  I can’t disappoint him – Quiet is the far superior record.  Riot is not bad by any means, but it seems like a rushed attempt to cobble together songs separately written by each of the duo.  On the way some focus and particularly the warmth and catchiness of their songs has been lost.  It’s a shame, because taster single ‘Misread’ promised so much more. 

(3/5)

Release Date: 21 June 2004

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Riot On An Empty Street