Words and Photographs by Timothy Norris

Kooks frontman Luke Pritchard on stage at the Palladium. Click image for entire slideshow.

The boys from Brighton brought it back to Los Angeles, playing the Palladium this time for what may be their last trip to sunny Southern California in support of their latest album Konk. Although the upstairs VIP lounges weren't full, that didn't mean the slightest to the jam-packed dance floor downstairs. The young ladies love this band, and I think their boyfriends might dig the guitars a little too. Possibly the only disappointment of the night was the absence of drummer Paul Garred on stage. The ladies at the front made it clear early in the set with their screams, “Where's Paul? Where's Paul?” like they were asking his mother if he could come out to play.  Yeah, where the fuck was Paul?  Regardless, that didn't slow things up a bit as the Kooks proceeded to tear through one gem after another.  For the encore, frontman Luke Pritchard did the acoustic thing before bringing the band back out to rip it up a little more. I nearly forgot to mention, I'm really digging the new Palladium these days.  Who would have known?  

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