Listen: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Share Second ‘Flight b741’ Single “Hog Calling Contest” and Mini-Documentary “Oink Oink Flight b741: The Making of…”
Photo Credit: Maclay Heriot
Earlier in July, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard took flight with “Le Risque,” the maiden voyage for the prolific ensemble’s long-awaited 26th studio album Flight b741. Today, the band take to the skies once again with “Hog Calling Contest,” another knee-slapping, toe-tapping, barn-burning jamboree emblematic of a shift in its perspective and process. This second single arrives alongside “Oink Oink Flight b741: The Making of…,” a mini-documentary that captures the creation of the bold new project with behind-the-scenes footage compiled by Guy Tyzack.
For its first release on its newly minted p(doom) imprint, King Gizzard strays from the high-concept, thematically-airtight format it has honed in a decade and a half of underground acclaim, steering instead into the unfettered freedom of a “no concept” album. On the first two teasers from Flight b741, the band redirects its restless creative energy into the kinetic collaboration that makes its live shows so distinct, letting full-tilt jamming and gut calls guide the group into uncharted skies.
“While recording Flight b741, we occasionally had these ultra-inspired tune-up/warm-up jams,” the band offers in a release. “Of course, we were never actually recording during these moments though. Lost to time. Except one time; This time. We learned to record these moments; ‘Daily Blues’ came together this way too. But ‘Hog Calling Contest’ retains a unique unhinged-ness that only comes when you’re fooling around with your mates and you don’t think you’re being recorded. Happy in mud!”
“Hog Calling Contest,” is just as deranged as any fan could hope for and more, echoing the twangy, tin-can electrified country of Ween’s 12 Golden Country Greats and the breakneck picking and hoots and hollers of Beastie Boys’ “5-Piece Chicken Dinner.” For all its resonances, though, King Gizzard’s sound is all its own, condensing its six-piece arrangement into a dense boogie that races by like a backroads car-chase. Full-throttle riffs, soaring harmonies and a treasure trough of pig puns abound.
From five-minute, 16mm glimpses of King Gizzard at work, Tyzack–who also directed the “Le Risque” music video–stitches together an unprecedentedly candid view of the band’s creative process in a moment of transition. “We were tasked with capturing the band make an album from scratch in two weeks, they purposefully didn’t prepare much for the recordings so it was very difficult for me to plan what to film,” Tyzack explains. “I just knew they’d be in one room and three of them might drop out at any moment because they were expecting babies. The room looked brown and boring so I painted it like the sky to match the theme of the album in one 17hr stretch with three friends and a slab of mids.”
Listen to “Hog Calling Contest” and watch “Oink Oink Flight b741: The Making of…” below. Flight b741 is cleared to land on August 9 via p(doom), and is available to pre-order and pre-save now. For more information on King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s album rollout and 2024 tour plans, visit kinggizzardandthelizardwizard.com.
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