Kings & Queens of the Underground
2014 studio album by Billy Idol
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Kings & Queens of the Underground is the eighth studio album by the English rock singer Billy Idol, released on 17 October 2014 by BFI Records. It was Idol's first album of new material since Devil's Playground (2005). It debuted at number 34 on the Billboard 200, becoming Idol's highest-debuting album to date, and number 9 on the Billboard Top Rock Albums chart for the week of 8 November 2014. Videos were released for the songs "Can't Break Me Down" and "Save Me Now".
- Sarm (London)
- Echo (Los Angeles)
| Kings & Queens of the Underground | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 17 October 2014 | |||
| Recorded | January 2010 – September 2014 | |||
| Studios |
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| Genres | ||||
| Length | 47:42 | |||
| Label | BFI | |||
| Producers | ||||
| Billy Idol chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Kings & Queens of the Underground | ||||
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| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 5.3/10[3] |
| Metacritic | 64/100[4] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| The Arts Desk | [6] |
| Classic Rock |  [4] |
| The Guardian | [7] |
| laut.de | [8] |
| Mojo | [4] |
| The Observer | [9] |
| Q | [4] |
| Record Collector | [10] |
| Rolling Stone | [11] |
Background
The album features new-wave synthesizers and keyboards, reflecting a new creative direction for Idol, and includes autobiographical lyrical themes from his co-written autobiography, Dancing With Myself. The title track was a collaborative effort, with Idol conceiving the concept and then, with his band, paying homage to fallen New York rock and roll heroes.The initial recording sessions were completed, but Idol felt the album was still incomplete. To finish the record, Idol reached out to Greg Kurstin, who wrote and produced the songs that would become the album's single.[12][13]
Tour
The Kings & Queens of the Underground Tour started on 5 November 2014 and ended 4 April 2015. Over the 40-date tour, Idol with his band performed in Europe, North America and Australia. The setlist included five songs from the album, "Postcards from the Past", "Can't Break Me Down", "Save Me Now", "Kings & Queens of the Underground" and "Whiskey and Pills", as well as 13 older songs and two guitar solos by Steve Stevens.[14]
Critical reception
The album was met with mixed to positive reception with the album receiving a combined score of 64/100 on Meatcritic. Classic Rock game the album a positive review stating “The plastic punk with the cartoon sneer has made his grown-up masterpiece.”[15]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bitter Pill" |
| Trevor Horn | 3:57 |
| 2. | "Can't Break Me Down" |
| Greg Kurstin | 3:42 |
| 3. | "Save Me Now" |
| Kurstin | 4:31 |
| 4. | "One Breath Away" | Horn | 4:10 | |
| 5. | "Postcards from the Past" |
| Horn | 4:20 |
| 6. | "Kings & Queens of the Underground" |
| Horn | 4:53 |
| 7. | "Eyes Wide Shut" |
| Horn | 4:29 |
| 8. | "Ghosts in My Guitar" |
| Horn | 4:47 |
| 9. | "Nothing to Fear" |
| Horn | 4:39 |
| 10. | "Love and Glory" |
| Horn | 4:28 |
| 11. | "Whiskey and Pills" |
| Horn | 3:43 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Hollywood Promises" |
| 4:11 | |
| 13. | "Cradle of Love" (live from Vienna) |
| Keith Forsey | 4:42 |
| 14. | "Dancing with Myself" (live from Vienna) |
| Forsey | 5:39 |
Personnel
- Billy Idol – vocals (all tracks)
- Steve Stevens – lead, rhythm guitar (all tracks), acoustic guitar (tracks 1, 6–8, 11)
- Billy Morrison – rhythm guitar (tracks 4, 9)
- Trevor Horn – bass guitar (tracks 1, 4–11), programming (tracks 5, 7, 8), keyboards (tracks 6, 8, 11)
- Ash Soan – drums (tracks 1, 4, 6–10), percussion (tracks 1, 8)
- Matt Chamberlain – drums (track 3)
- Joel M Peters – drums (track 11)
- Tim Weidner – percussion (tracks 4, 9, 11), programming (track 7)
- Julian Hinton – orchestral arrangement and programming (tracks 4, 6, 8, 10)
- Pete Murray – orchestral arrangement and programming (track 7)
- Geoff Downes – keyboards (tracks 1, 4–10)
- Cameron Gower Poole – programming (tracks 1, 4, 9), keyboards (tracks 7, 9, 11), guitar (track 9)
- Greg Kurstin – guitar (track 2), bass guitar (tracks 2, 3), keyboards (tracks 2, 3), drums (track 2), programming (track 3)
- Josh Campbell – programming (tracks 1, 5), guitar (track 5), bass guitar (track 11)
- Renate Sokolovska – flute (track 6)
Charts
| Chart (2014) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[18] | 81 |
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[19] | 17 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[20] | 109 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[21] | 127 |
| Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[22] | 69 |
| Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[23] | 24 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[24] | 75 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[25] | 37 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[26] | 102 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[27] | 8 |
| Italian Albums (FIMI)[28] | 45 |
| Scottish Albums (Official Charts)[29] | 39 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[30] | 10 |
| UK Albums (Official Charts)[31] | 35 |
| UK Independent Albums (Official Charts)[32] | 4 |
| US Billboard 200[33] | 34 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[34] | 4 |
| US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[35] | 5 |
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[36] | 9 |