Citizen King stretches out on WB's 'Mobile'

Billboard Magazine - Feb 6, 1999

Volume: 111 Issue: 6 Start Page: 20-21 ISSN: 00062510 Subject Terms: Musical recordings Musicians & conductors Popular music Marketing Companies: Warner Bros Records Inc Citizen King

Abstract: "Mobile Estates," a new album by the band Citizen King, will be released by Warner Bros. on Mar 9.

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Living in the entertainment way station of Milwaukee, the five members of Citizen King have heard what amounts to an endless convoy of music as it makes its way from one coast to the other.

"Everything comes through here," says singer/bassist Matt Sims. "The stuff from the New York underground scene comes through Milwaukee before it goes West, and vice versa. And people are a little less biased here because we are in the Midwest."

"Mobile Estates," the band's Warner Bros. debut, due March 9, is a fitting blend of hip-hop, rock, and fresh melodies; its songs are laden with samples and immediately danceable beats. The album was produced by Eric Valentine-of Smash mouth and Third Eye Blind fameat Citizen King's own studio in the basement of an abandoned warehouse, and it packs almost as much attitude as it does music.

As Sims puts it, "Whatever anyone does in Milwaukee has to be pretty bold to get heard."

The first single, "Better Days (And The Bottom Drops Out)," went to modern rock, college, and tripleA stations Jan. 26; a few stations, including WKQX (Q101) Chicago and KTCL Denver, picked it up early

Mary Shuminas, Q101 music director/assistant PD, says the station got a head start because there's already some recognition of Citizen King among listeners into the local music scene.

"The band is semi-local for us, so there is interest in the area," she says. "The song is fresh-sounding and kind of reminiscent of Beck; that seems to do well for us."

"Overall our amalgamation is like a big casserole," Sims says. "There's a potato guy, a beans guy, a corn guy, a meat guy." In keeping with the culinary theme, Sims jokes that the best thing about being on a major label is the food.

"When we went out to L.A., [Warner Bros. A&R exec] Geoffrey Weiss took us out for the best sushi we've ever had and the best record shopping."

On a serious note, Sims credits the label with not infringing on Citizen King's artistic modus operandi.

"We were afraid about signing to a major label because of all the horror stories you hear," he says. "But they've basically let us do what we want, and you can't ask for more than that."

"With a band with such a strong artistic vision, we're just following simple math," says Warner Bros. marketing director Peter Rauh. "Get them out there, have them meet people, get them in front of audiences."

Milwaukee-based Cast Management and booking agent Monterey Peninsula Artists are finalizing tour plans for late February, and Rauh says the live element will be critical in breaking the album.

"They already have a pretty strong following in Chicago and some other Midwest and Southern markets," he says. "We are going to build on those already-developed markets and then expand."

To spread the word among clubgoers, the label will employ heavy street marketing by both Warner staffers and several independent promotion companies.

"The fans we are going after are people who listen to the radio, buy records, and tell their friends who their favorite band is," Rauh says, noting that the album's depth will keep listeners coming back. "It's not just about a song or two. Even songs that might not necessarily sound as if they're meant to be singles are still really important Citizen King songs that tell you more about who these guys are." The group's songs are published by Civis Rex Music (ASCAP).

Yet the band hopes the answer to the question "Who is Citizen King?" will remain somewhat elusive.

"We are going to be, hopefully, the band people think of that is not a rock'n'roll band, not a funk band, not a hip-hop act with live instrumentation," Sims says. "We are trying to break a bunch of pigeonholes."

Catherine Applefeld Olson