king biscuit time

steve mason released two promising ep's under the name king biscuit time while his main job, the beta band, was still in existence. now that they're not around anymore, his time has been freed up enough to turn kbt into a full-time gig. it's been rumored that, since finishing black gold, mason has quit the music biz, making this both his first and final full-length record. ouch! that's one seriously cold slap in the face - and while our other cheek is still stinging a bit from the one the beta band gave us in '04. but who knows? maybe the rumors are only as true as the same ones which were aimed at dave chappelle after he hightailed it to africa.

and then a bulletin just posted on myspace...
"i want to say thank you all so much for the messages of support and love. it has been a whacked out time for me and the messages meant so much, really. i'm very lucky to have such people who are into the moosic i make. thank you.
i do feel alot better now and will return. want to apologize for cancelling the tour but it was not possible to do it at the time. but that will be happening at some point. working with a friend on her music right now which is helping me get back into it. album came out monday, very happy with it and hope you get on it.
peace and general warm vibrations to you all,
steve."

and the whole world breathed one big sigh of relief!

thought i'd share some of the moss that the rolling black gold stone is gathering on the world wide web:

"black gold is easily the equal to anything the beta band made, perhaps even better."

""rising son" is a psychedelic lullaby that will burn itself into your subconscious whether you want it to or not, "c i am 15" is an intriguing piece of lo-fi hip-hop that just about manages to out-gorillaz gorillaz."

"this belated debut album defies you not to join the canonical dots that start, perhaps, with george harrison's lesser-known revolver songs, proceed to pink floyd's pastoral scarecrow, take the scenic route round can, kraftwerk and augustus pablo's wistful melodica, swerve off to gerry rafferty's baker street, then hit the home straight through talking heads and brian eno to arrive next door to strumming melancholics elliott smith and eric matthews."

"...an album of skew-whiffed pop that grabs fistfuls of electronica, reggae, avant-business, sunshine-drenched melodies and square-shouldered funk - then presses them through a cookie-cutter of oddball goodness that can't fail to satisfy."

"mason's creaky, lonely voice...was always the rubber cement that held the betas' rickety balsa wood genre constructions together. and he's yet to lose his knack for gentle beauty."

"his droll delivery is cunningly balanced by the intricate vocal harmonies which make a 33 year old scot sound like a chorus of, slightly scuffed, angels."

listen to these tunes, then say thanks and wish him well by buying his record.

MP3: "kwangchow"
MP3: "rising son"
from the album: black gold
release date: 05/15/06 (import & digital download)
label: pop tones
buy it: hmv / amazon uk
myspace: add as friend

bonus MP3: "pirates" (available on myspace)