King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard announced they will be releasing, Infest the Rats’ Nest out August 16 via Flightless/ATO. The band released their previous album, “Fishing for Fishies” on April 26, 2019. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard consists of Stu Mackenzie, Ambrose Kenny-Smith, Cook Craig, Joey Walker, Lucas Skinner, Michael Cavanagh and Eric Moore. The new album features recent metal singles “Self-Immolate” and “Planet B.”
The band is known for their energetic live shows and remarkable recording output, including an EP and 14 studio albums since their formation. In 2017, they released five studio albums, Flying Microtonal Banana, Murder of the Universe, Sketches of Brunswick East, Polygondwanaland and Gumboot Soup in December.
Stu Mackenzie says, “In year 4 there was an older kid who was into Rammstein. I made friends with him and we put together a performance at our school assembly where we headbanged to ‘Du Hast.’ I got whiplash, which I thought was pretty cool. That was my introduction to heavy metal, and soon Rammstein led to Metallica, Metallica led to Slayer, Slayer led to Kreator and Sodom. The German bands really kicked my ass and scared the hell out of me too. Later on, when I picked up a guitar I realised that shit was too hard to play, so I got into rock ‘n’ roll and garage. That was liberating.”
The band begins their summer tour in Australia on June 29 where they will play nine different locations before their show in Japan. They will then head to the United States and Canada before heading to Europe, UK then wrapping it up in Thailand on November 17, 2019.
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have produced multiple albums including, Willoughby’s Beach (2011), 12 Bar Bruise (2012) and Eyes Like the Sky (2013) were released on the band’s independent record label, Flightless. Their third to eighth albums, Float Along, Fill Your Lungs (2013), Oddments, I’m in Your Mind Fuzz (2014), Quarters!, Paper Mâché Dream Balloon (2015) and Nonagon Infinity (2016).
The group originally formed by the band members who all grew up and went to school in the Deniliquin, Melbourne and Geelong areas. They started off as a group of friends jamming together, before a mutual friend asked them to play at a show. The band’s name was created “last minute”. Mackenzie wanted to name the band “Gizzard Gizzard” while another band member wanted Jim Morrison’s nickname “Lizard King”. They eventually compromised with King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. The artist Jason Galea has created all of the band’s album art, and a majority of their music videos.
Photo Credit: Sharon Alagna
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