Queen Kwong

Queen Kwong

Black & white photo of Carré Callaway, aka Queen Kwong, in London.
Background information
Origin Los Angeles, California, United States
Genres Rock, Alternative
Years active 2009–present (2009–present)
Labels Dissention Records and Artist Management, Smoky Carrot, Instant Records
Associated acts Nine Inch Nails, Trent Reznor, Joe Cardamone, The Icarus Line, Wes Borland
Website www.queenkwong.com
Members Carré Kwong Callaway

Queen Kwong is an American indie rock band founded in Los Angeles, California. The band was founded by multi-instrumentalist Carré Callaway (or Carré Kwong Callaway), the band's sole singer and songwriter who was discovered at age 17 by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails.[1][2][3]

Queen Kwong usually plays as a three piece line up (guitar, bass, drums).

History

Carré Callaway was discovered by Trent Reznor in his New Orleans studio.[2] She first gained notoriety when she opened for Nine Inch Nails on the 2005 With Teeth tour.[1][3] At this time she was performing solo as a singer/songwriter and soon after moved to Los Angeles under the guidance of Trent Reznor. Callaway dropped out of the music scene for a couple of years[2] and then reemerged in 2009, once again supporting Nine Inch Nails for the Nine Inch Nails "Wave Goodbye" tour this time as Queen Kwong.[3]

Carré released her debut LP, "Get a Witness", in September 2015. It was well received by critics. The 1st Five said, "This album is harsh, confrontational, noisy, dreamy, calming and jarring. It’s doing exactly what great music should do: stir you down to the core and depths of your heart and leave you a shallow husk of mixed emotions begging for more." [4] It was listed in Kerrang!'s Top 50 Records of 2015. The album was regularly played on BBC Radio 1.

In support of the record, Carré toured extensively in the UK and Europe playing festivals like Reading and Leeds Festivals.

In April 2016, Queen Kwong's version of the Chris Isaak song "Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing" started being used as the music for the hit BBC tv show Peaky Blinders (TV series)

Music and performance style

Queen Kwong's sound has been described as primal rock 'n' roll, drawing comparisons to bands such as Nirvana, Queens of the Stone Age, and Hole.[2]

In 2010, Queen Kwong released the self-produced digital EP Love is a Bruise consisting of three demo songs: Pet, Eddie the Kid, and the ballad The Thin Line.[5] The song Pet from Love is a Bruise was featured as part of Levi's fall 2010 European ad campaign.[6]

In 2012, Queen Kwong released the single Long Gone which was co-written with Joe Cardamone, singer of the Indie rock band The Icarus Line. The single was digitally released via UK record label Smoky Carrot. Following the release, London's Artrocker Magazine wrote "Queen Kwong may well be the saviour of rock'n'roll".[7] The music video for the single "Long Gone" which was directed by Carre Callaway was featured on music magazine NME website.[8] In March 2012, Queen Kwong was featured on the Subculture music section of the Fred Perry fashion website.[9]

In May 2012, Queen Kwong made her New York City debut by playing her first show in the city to a packed crowd at the Pianos music venue on the lower east side. The show was positively reviewed and Callaway's music and performance was described as "She snarls, screams, grinds away on her guitar, spits, sneers and thrashes her head around in a fury of emotion. Maybe the Queen is the King of the new L.A. rock set?"[10]

In June 11, 2013, Queen Kwong released the 5-track EP Bad Lieutenant off Instant Records.

In August 2015, Queen Kwong played Reading and Leeds festival leading up to her debut LP release.

In September 2015, Queen Kwong released her debut LP, "Get a Witness" to critical acclaim from outlets including Bust Magazine and The 1st Five. Kerrang magazine also named the title track one of the top 10 songs of 2016.[11]

[12]

References

  1. 1 2 "Queen Kwong". iHEARTRadio. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Phull, Hardeep (November 2011). "Queen Kwong". SXSW Schedule. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 "Queen Kwong". Last.fm. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
  4. ↑ http://the1stfive.tumblr.com/post/127714443670/review-queen-kwong-get-a-witness
  5. ↑ "Queen Kwong Austin Shows on Do512". Do512.com. Retrieved 2013-10-27.
  6. ↑ "Queen Kwong's biography at amazingtunes.com". Queenkwong.amazingtunes.com. Retrieved 2013-10-27.
  7. ↑ "Queen Kwong," by Toby Rogers, Artrocker Magazine, January/February 2012 issue.
  8. ↑ "Queen Kwong - 'Long Gone' - NMETV Latest Music Videos and Clips". Nme.Com. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  9. ↑ "The Best New Music / Fred Perry Subculture / Queen Kwong". Fredperrysubculture.com. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  10. ↑ "Queen Kwong @ Pianos". Music Snobbery. 2012-05-18. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  11. ↑ http://www.queenkwong.com/epk
  12. ↑ http://www.the1stfive.com/news/review-queen-kwong-get-a-witness
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