SPIN - January 1999

MOST LIKELY TO BE DIAGNOSED WITH ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER: CITIZEN KING

On Citizen King's major-label debut, Mobile Estates, they breathe in the new pollution Beck breathed out three years ago on Odelay. Yet don't tell Citizen King that, because the Wisconsin quintet has been playing the same kind of funky "attention deficit" collage since 1993. "That album definitely had a big impact on us," says lead vocalist/bassist Matt Sims, "but when Odelay first dropped, a lot of people were like, 'Wow, somebody's biting your style, dude!'" But while Beck genre-hops far and wide, Citizen King's music hews closer to sing-songy, radio-friendly modern rock. Sims and keyboardist Dave Cooley co-produced the album with Eric Valentine, who gave both Third Eye Blind and Smash Mouth their pop sheen. Citizen King are also recording remixes with Cibo Matto and Beastie Boys producer Mario Caldato Jr., and they just finished a track for a tribute to '60s acid casualty Skip Spence. "It's super out-there," says Sims, "and that's the kind of music we love."

ANDY GENSLER