Emperor Penguin – Gentlemen Thieves

UK band Emperor Penguin are back with Gentlemen Thieves, a worthy follow up to 2022’s Sunday Carvery. They stay true to their stylistic roots, acting as a new age XTC or Dukes of Stratosphere of sorts. Here’s how they describe a few of the new tracks:

“Silver Apples muses on the fickleness of devotion and the poetry of W B Yeats, Ladybird rants against the annoying things in life and Sonnez Les Matines leads you through a nightmare dreamscape from a Rice Paper Tea House to the bottom of a freezing harbour.”

First Rate Psych Pop

Sounds like some heady stuff. That said, I’m drawn to the simple things – catchy melodies, guitars that jangle and hooky choruses. And we have plenty of that here. “What’s the Worst That Could Happen” sports an early Beatles, basic rock ’n’ roll groove with a catchy, repetitive guitar motif and hooky chorus. 

The pace accelerates significantly with “Ladybird”, a bitch list of sorts. “You and Me” is a catchy number with a horn arrangement reminiscent of Sgt. Pepper. Following in the vein of Beatles pop, “The Persuaders” has a feel that conjures up memories of Rubber Soul or Revolver era Beatles. Positively groovy.

Get Gentlemen Thieves Here

Like Sunday Carvery, Emperor Penguin’s Gentlemen Thieves is available on CD through their record label, Kool Kat Musik. The release date is January 18. GET IT HERE. Get the digital version HERE.