Album Review: Walking Dancing Dying by King Dinosaur
King Dinosaur’s debut album Walking Dancing Dying captures the energy and originality that have made them a standout live band. Read the review to find out more.
King Dinosaur are one of the South West’s exciting live bands, and their debut album Walking Dancing Dying captures that electricity with warmth and authenticity. A five-piece made up of drums (Paul Bullock), double bass (Matt Taylor), piano (Jacob Kodicek), guitar (Alik Peters-Deacon) and vocals/trumpet (Ed Hart), King Dinosaur have built a reputation for raucous, joyful shows packed with movement, spontaneity and heart, the kind of gigs you hear people talk about.
Their sound is hard to pin down. Drawing from jazz, Latin rhythms, mariachi, Eastern European folk and swing, the band fuse these influences into something their own. They describe it as “Spaghetti Western Swing” a fitting name for music that feels cinematic, playful and slightly wild around the edges. It’s danceable, high-energy and deeply human, with heartfelt lyrics sitting comfortably alongside top-class improvisation.
Walking Dancing Dying is a nine-track collection of original songs written by bassist Matt Taylor, recorded live in a single day at Middle Farm Studios. Performed together in one room and captured on 24-track tape by engineer Peter Miles, the album has an immediacy that modern studio productions often lack. You can hear the air moving, the band reacting to one another, and the subtle push and pull that comes from musicians truly playing together.
The album’s title, taken from the standout track Dead Man’s Shoes, acts as both a metaphor for life and a perfect summary of King Dinosaur’s ethos. These songs move effortlessly between exuberance and reflection, balancing chaos with moments of tenderness. The improvisational passages never feel indulgent; instead, they serve the songs, adding colour while keeping the groove front and centre. Available now on download, CD and pressed 12” vinyl, Walking Dancing Dying is a confident, honest debut from a band clearly at the height of their creative powers. It’s a record that invites you in, makes you move, and leaves you smiling.