Why Miles Kane Doesn't Know What To Say

Just prior to our chat, Rachel Brodsky's SPIN article on The Last Shadow Puppets, during which the writer describes the discomfort she felt while warding off Miles Kane's "meant-to-be-funny advances" during their face-to-face interview, went viral. So does Kane have anything to add? "As [the article] said I wrote a note explaining, you know, humour or whatever," he says, sounding noticeably uncomfortable. Kane's apology to Brodsky was published as part of the feature, but the writer pointed out that although she appreciated Kane's note it didn't make her "feel better". "I mean, that's all I wanna say about it, really, to be honest," Kane evades. "I don't know what else I can say, you know." Would he say it was a misunderstanding? "Yeah, totally." 

During our interview Kane's responses are a lot more measured than we're used to. When told we enjoy the bromance he has with Alex Turner, his other musical half in The Last Shadow Puppets (fans refer to the pair as Milex), he simply says "thank you" followed by, "I don't know what to say to it".  

Kane calls Los Angeles home these days. "I was spendin' a lotta time here," Kane explains, "'cause, you know, some of our friends live 'ere and Alex moved 'ere a coupla years ago. So I was sort of back and forth and then I kind of fancied a change in me life." So did relocating Stateside prompt the duo to sport leisure suits? Kane chuckles, "I think I watched The Sopranos too much." Not Sexy Beast then? "That as well," he allows, "and Goodfellas, yeah - all that shit."

"We asked if we could play a song, and our friend had a video camera and so we ended up playin' Bad Habits in this, like, dive bar."

Bad Habits, the first single to be lifted from The Last Shadow Puppets' second album, knocked us sideways when it first blasted through the speakers and has been on high rotation ever since. "It's a bit of a wild card, that song," Kane admits. On the live performance segments of the Bad Habits music video, Kane tells, "When we were recording the record... there was this little bar sort of in Malibu and one evening we went to the bar, we had a few gin and tonics and there was this rock band playing covers in the bar. And we asked if we could play a song, and our friend had a video camera and so we ended up playin' Bad Habits in this, like, dive bar. It wasn't set up, it was just an off-the-cuff thing and we managed to film it, you know."

The single is atypical of Everything You've Come To Expect, the rest of the album tracks adopting a much more chilled vibe; so much so that this scribe can imagine the title track playing in a lounge scene in the next Bond film. "Well, wouldn't that be lovely!" Kane enthuses. "Let's set that up now." String arranger extraordinaire Owen Pallett is back on board for this record and Kane reveals, "On this one I guess we kind of wanted to have the same approach as much as we could, you know, using James [Ford, producer] and, you know, gettin' Owen in as well, 'cause he did such a good job [on 2008's The Age Of The Understatement] and he's such a talent that we would've been fools not to, really... We were sittin' at the grand piano and he was writin' all the parts as we were recordin' them so it was a very nice experience."

On his musical calling, Kane shares, "It was somethin' I'd dream of, you know? I'd always sing in the mirror and I'd daydream in school about bein' in a band or whatever. I don't feel I'm capable of doin' anything else, really, d'you know wha' I mean? And I guess I'm fortunate enough that, you know, I've done it for this length of time - hopefully for a lot longer.

"We're serious about what we do. It just feels normal. I can't really explain it, d'you know what I mean? It's just an exciting process, you know? Like even now in rehearsals with the lads, and the band — and it's like I've missed that even. It just feels good even bein' in a room, goin' over the songs, gettin' ready to go on tour 'cause it's been a while since I've performed live and that's me favourite bit about bein' in band — or bein' a singer — is performin', d'you know wha' I mean? Bein' out there on that stage."

Last time Kane toured our shores was back in 2011 ("ages ago") for Falls Festival and Kane jokes, "I think I had eyeliner on on that tour, d'you know wha' I mean? That's how wild that was." Kane estimates the last time he graced a stage was "a coupla years ago or a year and a half ago", before concluding, "So, yeah! Get me on there."