behind the music with

KILL, THE ICON!

We sound like angry and rational people, making punk music that you can dance to

by Giovanna - July 04, 2023

KILL, THE ICON! is the synth-punk project from London-based doctor Nishant Joshi. Joshi made UK headlines during the pandemic, being the first frontline NHS doctor to go public with concerns that staff were not being protected. Joshi and his wife, doctor Meenal Viz, then launched a legal challenge against the government, winning the case and making huge change.

Fueled with frustration, in the summer of 2020 KILL, THE ICON! was born as an extension of Joshi's activism. 'There is a sense of helplessness and hopelessness in modern Britain, which seems to only be getting sharper and sharper by the day. Workers across industries are going on strike. People have been simmering in misery for the last decade of austerity, and now they’re suitably furious. So we’ve embraced the spirit of punk, and we’re using our platform as a positive act of rebellion.'

Your Anger is Rational, the debut protest-punk EP by KILL, THE ICON! is out now on Blaggers Records.

For those that haven’t heard of you yet, can you introduce yourself and the other members of the band?

We've got myself (Nishant) on bass/vocals, Florin (drums) and Ian (synth/producer).
Photos by Rosie Alice Wilson @rosiealicewilson
How did you get together and what inspired your name?

We'd been playing together in different guises over the past few years, but in 2020 our purpose changed. We recognized the need for protest to have a powerful cultural branch, and so we decided to explore activism through our art. I was fascinated with our obsession with icons in 2020. Statues were toppled, and it seemed to be a mark of a cultural shift where people on both sides of the Atlantic were more open about showing their disillusionment with an oppressive system.

I founded the band as a musical conduit to explore the nature of iconoclasm, which was reflected in our first singles Buddhist Monk and Bourdain.

We toyed with the name The Iconoclasts but that felt a bit verbose. Florin always thought the idea of calling oneself Tyler, The Creator was incredibly pompous and self-centred, and then we joked that we could out-peacock him by using all caps and an exclamation mark: KILL, THE ICON! was born (as well as a nightmare for sub-editors).
How would you best describe your sound? Which track of yours should a first-time listener start with?

We sound like angry and rational people, making punk music that you can dance to. Think Hot Chip and The Stooges, by way of Death and Bauhaus.
Our entry song would be Heavy Heart. It's the first song from our EP Your Anger Is Rational.
We have noticed you thanks to the powerful single ‘Bourdain’. Do you have other personal icons?

Thank you! We noticed HBN with your beautiful, modernist web design! We've discovered lots of great bands through your thoughtful posts. Anthony Bourdain was a gentleman who was loved. He was a true cultural icon. I respect people who devote themselves to a cause for justice: we've written a song about Daphne Caruana, the Maltese journalist who was murdered for exposing corruption. It's called Speakeasy.
You have just released your debut EP ‘Your Anger Is Rational’! What was the recording process like?

We recorded at Unwound Studios in Greenwich, London. It's a gorgeous, open, well-lit space in what is otherwise a really gritty industrial park that looks straight out of the 1970s. Most of our songs are well-rehearsed, but something like Danny Is A Hate Preacher was pretty new to us and required a lot of on-the-spot improvisation. Our producer Ian Flynn is really a master at work, so we leave everything technical in his hands and trust him totally with the process.
In your Track ‘Heavy Heart’ you talk about ‘subtle racism’. How is it to be a PoC in rock music?

It's challenging, because it feels that both PoC artists and PoC fans aren't given much visibility or credibility by the music industry. I recently spoke with a booking agent who told me that there's no market for South Asian music in the London live scene. I asked him if he knew that there was a packed South Asian music festival called Dialled In. He froze. It's a bit of a joke, really. You're telling me that thousands of fans of South Asian artists could make it to a well-known London venue, on a single day, and you're not even aware this audience exists? Yet you're speaking as an authority on the subject? It's appalling. They see what they want to see. And they don't see us.
Kill! The Icon live at Hat Factory, Luton. Photos by Paul Curry @thecapoflen
We totally love your artworks and videos! Who’s behind them?

Thanks so much! I do all the artwork (I have a friend who does the colouring), and I do all the videos. I put in an unholy amount of hours into getting the artwork absolutely perfect. I plan it a long time in advance. Our music video for Deathwish took me 83 hours to make. It was AI-generated. It's one of the most challenging things I've ever done.
What’s on your playlist at the moment? Can you name some 'brand new' artists / bands we should check out?

Luna Rosa are based in Northampton and they're extraordinary.
Breakup Haircut play pop-punk in London, and I love them.
Gaylips are a punk duo in Luton, full of energy!
And finally: What’s next for KILL, THE ICON!?

We're planning some shows in late summer, possibly to coincide with more releases. Our video for Deathwish was so popular, that it reached an incredible DJ called Invisible Squirrel who's remixed it. That will be out soon. We've recorded an awful lot more. One song is called My Best Friend Thinks Sleaford Mods Are Edgy, and that might get us banned from the music industry.

KILL, THE ICON! RELEASES ON HBN

Single

behind the music with

We sound like angry and rational people, making punk music that you can dance to

For those that haven’t heard of you yet, can you introduce yourself and the other members of the band?

How did you get together and what inspired your name?

How would you best describe your sound? Which track of yours should a first-time listener start with?

We have noticed you thanks to the powerful single ‘Bourdain’. Do you have other personal icons?

You have just released your debut EP ‘Your Anger Is Rational’! What was the recording process like?

In your Track ‘Heavy Heart’ you talk about ‘subtle racism’. How is it to be a PoC in rock music?

We totally love your artworks and videos! Who’s behind them?

What’s on your playlist at the moment? Can you name some 'brand new' artists / bands we should check out?

And finally: What’s next for KILL, THE ICON!?

KILL, THE ICON! RELEASES ON HBN

You're Just An Average White Band

And Now, The Weather!

Deathwish (Invisible Squirrel Remix)

Danny Is A Hate Preacher

Your Anger Is Rational

Deathwish

Heavy Heart

Protect The Brand

Bourdain

Buddhist Monk