Dave Keuning, guitarist and one of the founding members of The Killers, is set to release his debut album, ‘Prismism’, under the name Keuning. The album comes out on January 25 next year, via Thirty Tigers. Keuning has also announced two UK performance dates – Manchester and London, on December 9 and 10 respectively.
‘Prismism’ is the second release from the album, the first being ‘Restless Legs’, which was released mid October:
Keuning felt burnt out from constant touring, and wanted to spend more time with his 13 year old son, and so took the ideas he’d been amassing over the years, working on them in his home studio, until each idea became a complete song. The result is ‘Prismism’, a fourteen track album, upon which, apart from a few drums, Keuning has played himself. The title reflects the idea of seeing things from all sides, focusing on the details, while at the same time not missing the bigger picture. The album takes a closer look at basic relationships and interactions with family, friends, and co-workers, and examines how we can feel trapped by their surroundings, and by those who rely on us, both emotionally and/or professionally.
As a solo artist, Keuning has found that he has been able to do more instrumentally than he can in The Killers; for ‘Prismism’ he’s combined both acoustic and electric guitars, and explored keyboards, and electronic music, about which he’s had a long time fascination. ‘Prismism’ in a sense serves as a psychic diary, allowing Keuning to join the dots, and learn for himself what has brought him to a crossroads in his career. On starting the album he initially had no plans to sing, but as with the instruments, he’s taken the plunge.
“I never wanted to be the singer in The Killers,” he insists. “And I don’t care if people don’t believe me. I’ve definitely had those thoughts, but I can honestly tell you ever since I picked one up at 14, all I ever wanted to do was play the guitar.”
Still actively contributing song ideas for the next Killers album, Dave hopes some of his new music might also appeal to the band.
“But there’s no stopping me now. I’m going to pump out new music for the rest of my life, for audiences big or small, Killers or no Killers. Now that I’ve got a taste of how enjoyable this is.”
Keuning plays the following UK dates:
Sun 9th December, Manchester, Night and Day
Mon 10th December, London, Dingwalls
