To say that percussive guitarist Kaki King has been busy lately would be an understatement. In fact, saying Kaki has been anything less than extremely busy and unbelievably productive would be an understatement.
So far this year, the Georgia-born wunderkind has contributed music to two upcoming films, has a guest appearance in a duet with Dave Grohl for the new Foo Fighters album, and has just finished up some tour dates with John Butler Trio.
Kaki composed her pieces in the studio while viewing scenes from Sean Penn’s Into the Wild, and her distinctive guitar work will be featured throughout the film in snippets known as “cues.” Into the Wild premieres at the end of September with an impressive cast that includes Vince Vaughn and Caroline Keener. Also featured in the film’s score is music from Calexico as well as Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam.
Kaki has also lent her craft to another movie that will be released this fall, entitled August Rush, about a young, orphaned boy who also happens to be a music prodigy in search of his birth parents. Kaki is featured in the film as a body/hand double for the boy, playing what she calls, “a ‘reinterpretation’ of a [Michael] Hedges piece called ‘Ritual Dance,'” and has also contributed to the score with another guitar song.
Not only that, but Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters recruited Kaki for a bluegrass guitar duet. According to Grohl, the song will be on the next Foo Fighters release, which is expected come out also in the fall.
Kaki King also joined John Butler Trio recently for a number of shows on the West Coast. Kaki and the Trio enjoyed their time playing a few nights together on the opposite coast so much that she decided to extend her time with them to travel from Seattle to Southern California.
Last, but certainly not least, Kaki has begun making plans and writing music for the follow-up to last summer’s Until We Felt Red. Whether or not she will continue composing music with a full band, the move that distinguished her last album from those that preceded it, is yet to be seen.
Kaki King – “Playing with Pink Noise”