| King Champion Sound | |
| Genre: | Post-punk, free jazz |
| Associated Acts: | The Ex |
| Website: | https://kingchampionsounds.wordpress.com |
| Current Members: | |
King Champion Sounds is an experimental post-punk free jazz band.[4] The band has been compared to Sun Ra[4] The Fall,[2] and Ennio Morricone.[5] The band consists of members of The Ex (G.W. Sok),[5] Ivan The Tolerable and Detective Instinct (Oli Heffernan),[1] and The Bent Moustache (Ajay Saggar).[6]
Ajay Saggar's band The Bent Moustache was asked to open for Mike Watt and Saggar agreed with the proviso that he could create a special 30-40 minute piece especially for the show.[6] After writing the music, Saggar contacted G.W. Sok to write lyrics and perform vocals.[6] Next, Saggar invited Oli Heffernan on guitar and Mees Siderius on drums.[6] Ditmer Weertman and Chris Moerland were then invited to contribute horns.[6] The show was successful enough that Saggar decided to give the project a name and continue. King Champion Sounds played their first gig at the Paradiso in Amsterdam on 17 July 2013.[6]
Musically, songs are initially written by Saggar who then forwards them to Sok to author lyrics.[6] From there the songs continue to be built in stages.[1] Their first album was entitled Different Drummer[6]
Their third album, To Awake In That Heaven Of Freedom, featured guest appearances by J Mascis (Dinosaur Jr) and Mike Watt (Minutemen).[7]