Kingrow
The Story
Part 1 - Origins
It all began when Jared Rowbotham and Forbes King first met at high school in 1994 at Linwood College (then known as Linwood High School). After forming a friendship that would stand the test of time, it wasn't long before the pair started to display their creative side.
Their first attempt at creativity came in the form of a band known as Swede, which launched in late 1995. Jared started writing lyrics after creating a few original song titles. It wasn't long afterwards when Forbes discovered Jared's works and offered to contribute towards them. The foundation of Swede had arrived.
As Swede, the duo would eventually compile a long list of song titles to use, but seldom write lyrics and even less original music compositions (most songs with music were technically parodies of other people's works). While doing this, they recruited 3 of their friends to make Swede more of a band, enlisting a keyboardist/backing vocalist, drummer and a trumpet player (you read that correctly). These 3 friends of Jared and Forbes never actually played with them in an actual band environment, however. They were just along for the ride.
Unfortunately, good things would come to an end. Swede would disband due to a disagreement between Jared and Forbes in mid-1996. Jared would carry on using the Swede name and write more material, until he joined a real band called Supertrip. Forbes went and did his own thing elsewhere. Thankfully, this falling out would only be temporary as the duo would find themselves in the same class in 1998. Opting to have a pleasant year under the same roof, they buried the hatchet and moved on. Swede was never reconsidered at this point, although it did get revisited from 2001 to 2006, but still never actually existed.
Jared and Forbes would work on a few other projects from 1998 and beyond, but they wouldn't get involved in the music scene together until 2004. By this time, Jared had already been in Supertrip from 1997 and left in 1999. Joined 2 new bands afterwards (Driftwood from 1999 to 2000, and Kerfü in 2000). After which he formed his own solo project, n-Somnia, officially starting in 2002. Forbes would approach Jared in 2004 with some compositions he had been working on with the use of some music software for the PlayStation 2, called "Music 2000". After presenting his works to Jared, it was decided that a new project would emerge, taking both their surnames and combining them to give the project a title (Forbes KING and Jared ROWbotham). Kingrow was born.
Their first attempt at creativity came in the form of a band known as Swede, which launched in late 1995. Jared started writing lyrics after creating a few original song titles. It wasn't long afterwards when Forbes discovered Jared's works and offered to contribute towards them. The foundation of Swede had arrived.
As Swede, the duo would eventually compile a long list of song titles to use, but seldom write lyrics and even less original music compositions (most songs with music were technically parodies of other people's works). While doing this, they recruited 3 of their friends to make Swede more of a band, enlisting a keyboardist/backing vocalist, drummer and a trumpet player (you read that correctly). These 3 friends of Jared and Forbes never actually played with them in an actual band environment, however. They were just along for the ride.
Unfortunately, good things would come to an end. Swede would disband due to a disagreement between Jared and Forbes in mid-1996. Jared would carry on using the Swede name and write more material, until he joined a real band called Supertrip. Forbes went and did his own thing elsewhere. Thankfully, this falling out would only be temporary as the duo would find themselves in the same class in 1998. Opting to have a pleasant year under the same roof, they buried the hatchet and moved on. Swede was never reconsidered at this point, although it did get revisited from 2001 to 2006, but still never actually existed.
Jared and Forbes would work on a few other projects from 1998 and beyond, but they wouldn't get involved in the music scene together until 2004. By this time, Jared had already been in Supertrip from 1997 and left in 1999. Joined 2 new bands afterwards (Driftwood from 1999 to 2000, and Kerfü in 2000). After which he formed his own solo project, n-Somnia, officially starting in 2002. Forbes would approach Jared in 2004 with some compositions he had been working on with the use of some music software for the PlayStation 2, called "Music 2000". After presenting his works to Jared, it was decided that a new project would emerge, taking both their surnames and combining them to give the project a title (Forbes KING and Jared ROWbotham). Kingrow was born.
Part 2 - Getting Started
With Forbes' "Music 2000" compositions and some of Jared's unreleased tracks previously made for n-Somnia, Kingrow had already put together a variety of songs to begin grabbing a fan base earlier than most musicians. With the help of the Internet, the duo were sure to find websites to cater for their needs to reach out to the public.
Between 2004 and 2006, a selected number of tracks would be used to help promote Kingrow to get their name out there. Some songs used for this purpose would later be considered as just an album track or B-side rather than a single. A song called "Lint" - a 12-minute epic - would very briefly be used to promote Kingrow on one particular website. For obvious reasons, it would be rejected as a single in the years that followed, but it would serve its purpose as an album track later on.
One of the most notable promo tracks of the early days was "The Dream". This track would continue to promote the band afterwards as it had potential.
Eventually, it was time to release something that would be more permanent than just a few promo songs. By 2007, the duo would release what would be known as "Kingrow Online". It was named so because the duo intended to release some of their works in physical form as well as digitally, but "Kingrow Online" would be exclusive to the Internet no matter what happened.
At first, "Kingrow Online" would actually be released as a 10-track album, featuring "Lint", "The Dream" and "Winter Heart". It was later decided that these 3 songs in particular would be omitted from this release and used on the follow-up, and therefore turning this one into a 7-track EP instead. "Kingrow Online" would be supported by 3 promo tracks - "Death is the Cure", "Funking Good" and "Goat Porn".
Soon after "Kingrow Online", the duo released a couple non-album promo singles. The first was actually featured on their comedy project's album, "Ducksel FM - Episode 7: The Best of Ducksel FM". Both songs from the single appeared on the album, which is why "The Door of a Thousand Faces" and "M. Stands for Murder" are considered double A-side tracks. The follow-up from this was a stand-alone track called "The False Prophet", which displayed Jared's obsession with end time prophecy with its dark sound and imagery.
All while working on and releasing these pieces of music, Kingrow had been working hard on the successor to "Kingrow Online". Those 3 songs that were omitted from the original release had to go somewhere.
Between 2004 and 2006, a selected number of tracks would be used to help promote Kingrow to get their name out there. Some songs used for this purpose would later be considered as just an album track or B-side rather than a single. A song called "Lint" - a 12-minute epic - would very briefly be used to promote Kingrow on one particular website. For obvious reasons, it would be rejected as a single in the years that followed, but it would serve its purpose as an album track later on.
One of the most notable promo tracks of the early days was "The Dream". This track would continue to promote the band afterwards as it had potential.
Eventually, it was time to release something that would be more permanent than just a few promo songs. By 2007, the duo would release what would be known as "Kingrow Online". It was named so because the duo intended to release some of their works in physical form as well as digitally, but "Kingrow Online" would be exclusive to the Internet no matter what happened.
At first, "Kingrow Online" would actually be released as a 10-track album, featuring "Lint", "The Dream" and "Winter Heart". It was later decided that these 3 songs in particular would be omitted from this release and used on the follow-up, and therefore turning this one into a 7-track EP instead. "Kingrow Online" would be supported by 3 promo tracks - "Death is the Cure", "Funking Good" and "Goat Porn".
Soon after "Kingrow Online", the duo released a couple non-album promo singles. The first was actually featured on their comedy project's album, "Ducksel FM - Episode 7: The Best of Ducksel FM". Both songs from the single appeared on the album, which is why "The Door of a Thousand Faces" and "M. Stands for Murder" are considered double A-side tracks. The follow-up from this was a stand-alone track called "The False Prophet", which displayed Jared's obsession with end time prophecy with its dark sound and imagery.
All while working on and releasing these pieces of music, Kingrow had been working hard on the successor to "Kingrow Online". Those 3 songs that were omitted from the original release had to go somewhere.
Part 3 - Living in Parallel Worlds
Production for the follow-up to "Kingrow Online" had actually started before the EP was even released. Some of the songs that were used as promos in the early years (their instrumental versions anyway) would eventually make it onto the album. It became more clear in what direction the album's sound was heading in 2006 when a teaser clip was uploaded to the duo's (now defunct) MySpace page. Unfortunately, due to technical issues with hardware and the occasional writer's block, further production delayed the album for a number of years. The original release date proposed was to be 07/07/07. In the end, it would be almost 2 whole years until the world would receive the final product.
Heavily inspired by Depeche Mode, the 2009 album known as "7-Sided Parallel" would finally see the light of day, led by its first single (the one used in the teaser clip), "Money-Go-Round". The album would release 4 singles in total - 2 of which were double A-sides, making it a total of 6 songs promoting the album. The last of which was actually an outtake from the recording sessions.
The hype surrounding "7-Sided Parallel" would take up most of 2009, but sadly it didn't capture the audience as much as the duo had hoped for. But that was no excuse to quit. In fact, Kingrow had a lot more to contribute immediately after the final single came out.
Heavily inspired by Depeche Mode, the 2009 album known as "7-Sided Parallel" would finally see the light of day, led by its first single (the one used in the teaser clip), "Money-Go-Round". The album would release 4 singles in total - 2 of which were double A-sides, making it a total of 6 songs promoting the album. The last of which was actually an outtake from the recording sessions.
The hype surrounding "7-Sided Parallel" would take up most of 2009, but sadly it didn't capture the audience as much as the duo had hoped for. But that was no excuse to quit. In fact, Kingrow had a lot more to contribute immediately after the final single came out.
Part 4 - New Decade, New Direction?
Within weeks of the final "7-Sided Parallel" single's release, the next release was ready to launch. In November 2009, "Kingrow Online Again" was released. A direct sequel to their debut EP, only this one was an actual album. Keeping with the original plan, it was intended to be an Internet-only release. There were plans to mass produce copies of "7-Sided Parallel", but this didn't take place due to lack of key resources and funding.
"Kingrow Online Again" would spawn 5 singles in total. The release of the singles on a once monthly basis took place during the crossover into the next decade. In fact, the second single, "GIHQP 654700" was released on New Year's Day 2010.
By the time the 5th single was released, it was realised that Kingrow had enough singles to make a compilation album. From the first promo track on "Kingrow Online" to this point in time, there were a total of 17 tracks. To make it an even 18, a new song was made for the compilation album. Jared had an instrumental track he was willing to contribute, especially since Forbes expressed how much he liked it whenever it was played to him. A vocal track was later added, and "Lead Astray" was complete. The compilation known as "Single File" was released soon after.
There was a time of rest for Kingrow in 2010. This is partially due to Jared and Forbes being involved with their Ducksel Comedy project, "Ducksel FM" for much of this year. Also, in the midst of it all, an earthquake would hit their home city of Christchurch in the early hours of September 4th, which caused some delays.
Soon after the September quake, Jared started working on the next release for Kingrow. The final product would become a 4-track EP, but this one would stand out from the rest of Kingrow's discography at the time, and in some ways it still does.
The EP known as "Digital Distortion" was released in October 2010 and it gave a potential direction for Kingrow to go for future releases. However, little did they know at this point, more unforeseen events were soon to follow, and this musical direction would be used elsewhere instead.
"Kingrow Online Again" would spawn 5 singles in total. The release of the singles on a once monthly basis took place during the crossover into the next decade. In fact, the second single, "GIHQP 654700" was released on New Year's Day 2010.
By the time the 5th single was released, it was realised that Kingrow had enough singles to make a compilation album. From the first promo track on "Kingrow Online" to this point in time, there were a total of 17 tracks. To make it an even 18, a new song was made for the compilation album. Jared had an instrumental track he was willing to contribute, especially since Forbes expressed how much he liked it whenever it was played to him. A vocal track was later added, and "Lead Astray" was complete. The compilation known as "Single File" was released soon after.
There was a time of rest for Kingrow in 2010. This is partially due to Jared and Forbes being involved with their Ducksel Comedy project, "Ducksel FM" for much of this year. Also, in the midst of it all, an earthquake would hit their home city of Christchurch in the early hours of September 4th, which caused some delays.
Soon after the September quake, Jared started working on the next release for Kingrow. The final product would become a 4-track EP, but this one would stand out from the rest of Kingrow's discography at the time, and in some ways it still does.
The EP known as "Digital Distortion" was released in October 2010 and it gave a potential direction for Kingrow to go for future releases. However, little did they know at this point, more unforeseen events were soon to follow, and this musical direction would be used elsewhere instead.
Part 5 - Shockwaves
From time to time, Jared and Forbes would continue to work on some musical compositions that were intended for upcoming releases. At the same time, they were wrapping up their "Ducksel FM" series after 10 long years of working on the comedy project. Overall, there wasn't a lot released by Kingrow after "Digital Distortion" before February 2011.
On February 21st, 2011, Jared let the cat out of the bag about a music project he had been working on since the release of "Digital Distortion". He had been secretly working on what would become the first n-Somnia release since 2007 - "The Awakening". Until this time, n-Somnia had been retired in favour of working on Kingrow material. It seemed that working on "Digital Distortion" inspired Jared enough to revive his solo career after so long, and the sound of the EP was the direction he wanted to take n-Somnia. However, this would have to wait because of yet another unforeseen event was to take place the day after he made the comeback announcement.
A major earthquake had hit the city once again on 22 February 2011. This time, the impact was on a personal level, especially for Forbes. As a result of this event, Forbes had no choice but to step down from his role in Kingrow and other related projects within the network. Jared was understanding of this and decided to release the rest of Kingrow's catalog until he ran out of the available material.
The first of the post-quake releases was another compilation album. This time it focused on the B-sides and other evasive tracks. "Hidden Treasures" took the tracks from the singles released from "7-Sided Parallel", "Kingrow Online Again" and "Single File", and even featured the "7-Sided Parallel" hidden song, "Visa-Go-Rectangular". The nostalgic throwback song, "Retrovirus" was used to promote the compilation.
"Hidden Treasures" would be followed by an album of unreleased material called "Kolorz of the Raynbo", which spawned 2 singles - the dark and sinister "Are You Under Extinction?" and the soft and soothing "Safe With You".
Three more albums of unreleased material would emerge after "Kolorz of the Raynbo". Mostly made up of compositions Forbes had made prior to the quakes. These albums were "Sound Vessalz", "Space-Hole" and "Tree of Life". Each had promotional tracks rather than singles with B-sides.
On February 21st, 2011, Jared let the cat out of the bag about a music project he had been working on since the release of "Digital Distortion". He had been secretly working on what would become the first n-Somnia release since 2007 - "The Awakening". Until this time, n-Somnia had been retired in favour of working on Kingrow material. It seemed that working on "Digital Distortion" inspired Jared enough to revive his solo career after so long, and the sound of the EP was the direction he wanted to take n-Somnia. However, this would have to wait because of yet another unforeseen event was to take place the day after he made the comeback announcement.
A major earthquake had hit the city once again on 22 February 2011. This time, the impact was on a personal level, especially for Forbes. As a result of this event, Forbes had no choice but to step down from his role in Kingrow and other related projects within the network. Jared was understanding of this and decided to release the rest of Kingrow's catalog until he ran out of the available material.
The first of the post-quake releases was another compilation album. This time it focused on the B-sides and other evasive tracks. "Hidden Treasures" took the tracks from the singles released from "7-Sided Parallel", "Kingrow Online Again" and "Single File", and even featured the "7-Sided Parallel" hidden song, "Visa-Go-Rectangular". The nostalgic throwback song, "Retrovirus" was used to promote the compilation.
"Hidden Treasures" would be followed by an album of unreleased material called "Kolorz of the Raynbo", which spawned 2 singles - the dark and sinister "Are You Under Extinction?" and the soft and soothing "Safe With You".
Three more albums of unreleased material would emerge after "Kolorz of the Raynbo". Mostly made up of compositions Forbes had made prior to the quakes. These albums were "Sound Vessalz", "Space-Hole" and "Tree of Life". Each had promotional tracks rather than singles with B-sides.
Part 6 - The End Days
Forbes had a very large collection of unreleased material by the time 2012 came along. Kingrow could've carried on for quite some time afterwards. However, it was decided that the remaining tracks he had left would be put towards his solo project, Gosney, which released its first album in 2008. For a long time up to this point, Gosney had only released 2 albums, followed by a non-album single. It seemed like a fair decision to create more out of the rest of Forbes' music and give Gosney a bigger discography in the process.
Upon deciding this, it was time to wrap things up with Kingrow and release the final compilation album. However, this was delayed slightly after Jared rediscovered some unreleased material of his own - instrumental versions of tracks from "7-Sided Parallel". It was then decided to create an album with these tracks before the final curtain. The album known as "Heptagonal Parallel" was released with no singles or promo tracks, acting as a form of fan service. "Heptagonal Parallel" was actually the working title of "7-Sided Parallel", which is why this release was given the name.
After the brief delay, it was time to make the final compilation. This release, which originally had a total of 39 tracks (after creating some new exclusive material), would be given the title "This is Kingrow", and would see its release in 2012. However, a newer track ("Flee to the Wilderness" Remix) would later be added to the list, making it an even 40 in 2013.
Two of the 3 exclusive tracks from "This is Kingrow" would be used to promote the release. They were "Blowtorch" and "Lost". "Blowtorch" was made by Jared on his PlayStation 2 console, using "Music 3000" to create it. "Lost", however, was originally intended to be an n-Somnia song (called "Jungle Fever"), but it was decided that Kingrow would benefit from it more as a perfect way to end the legacy.
Upon deciding this, it was time to wrap things up with Kingrow and release the final compilation album. However, this was delayed slightly after Jared rediscovered some unreleased material of his own - instrumental versions of tracks from "7-Sided Parallel". It was then decided to create an album with these tracks before the final curtain. The album known as "Heptagonal Parallel" was released with no singles or promo tracks, acting as a form of fan service. "Heptagonal Parallel" was actually the working title of "7-Sided Parallel", which is why this release was given the name.
After the brief delay, it was time to make the final compilation. This release, which originally had a total of 39 tracks (after creating some new exclusive material), would be given the title "This is Kingrow", and would see its release in 2012. However, a newer track ("Flee to the Wilderness" Remix) would later be added to the list, making it an even 40 in 2013.
Two of the 3 exclusive tracks from "This is Kingrow" would be used to promote the release. They were "Blowtorch" and "Lost". "Blowtorch" was made by Jared on his PlayStation 2 console, using "Music 3000" to create it. "Lost", however, was originally intended to be an n-Somnia song (called "Jungle Fever"), but it was decided that Kingrow would benefit from it more as a perfect way to end the legacy.