It seems that this week taught The Kooks guitarist Hugh Harris that ostrich meat is not compatible with the overriding message of “See the World” – or more to the point, the question raised in that song – from the UK band’s Virgin debut, Inside In Inside Out. At the outset of it, lead singer Luke Pritchard sings, “Do you want to see the world/Do you want to see the world in a different way?” Harris let it fly with the feathered thing, most notable for its head-burying ways, and he drew the white flag, preferring to never again view the world in the future with eyes connected to a tongue that tasted like the aftermath of that meal. His face, it was reported by witnesses, to be one of such disgust that electronic mail would not do it justice. So there you have it. It’s a rotten way to introduce a band that has been giving England and its NME erections and glass nipples for the better part of a year now, as the next ginormous thing to the last ginormous thing. There’s a reason for the sundry accolades and big British words tossed their way – scores of unmistakably momentous melodies. What they’re singing about – the pursuit of what they think they’re looking for, another filly to get warm with and getting completely lost before the rolled credits are even close by. Inside In Inside Out is absolutely a journey piece that is speckled with broken pieces of glass, shards of the experiment that shine because they’re glass, but hold a less than rosy glare. There are a lot of difficult times hidden throughout the record and there are just as many mischievous times that all play into an album that couldn’t be any more bullseye to what it’s like to actually fall on your face, do the wrong person, fall for the right person, mess it up irreversibly, wake up to a day you vow to turn it all around and then slip into old ways – but not as terribly. It’s as if you’ve learned something along the way. Kind of like these Kooks. Maybe you learned about the pitfalls of dining on ostrich. – Sean Moeller

The life of Hugh Harris included these minor milestones this week as the band began a short stint of U.S. dates (listed below)

First: The book Valis, (by Philip K. Dick); a really funny and interesting book that I chanced upon.

Second: The Small Faces – Ogdons Gone Nut Flake album. I listened to this while I was hungover and it got me through it.

Third: Went to CBGB’s (Sunday), just as it was closing and about to be demolished. We ended up with the honor of being the last band to set foot in the place.

Fourth: Bought a new tailored hat from an amazing hat boutique in N.Y. (Sunday). Not enough people wear dress hats these days.

Fifth: I ate ostrich for the first time (Sunday). It tastes like chicken. I would not recommend it, but it was a new experience.

10-25 – Spaceland (Silver Lake, Calif.)
10-26 – Pop Scene (San Francisco, Calif.)
10-28 – North Six (Brooklyn, N.Y.)
11-7 – AB Box @ Ancienne Belgique (Brussels, Belgium)

The Kooks