MISTER GOBLIN SHARES NEW SINGLE "KENTUCKY KINGDOM"

Posted on October 3rd, 2023

[as seen on Stereogum]

Last year, Mister Goblin — the long-running project of Two Inch Astronaut frontman Sam — released a new album, Bunny. Today, he’s back with a new single, “Kentucky Kingdom,” a downtrodden one about feeling underprepared: “Haven’t really worked for shit in my whole life/ Hoping that it’s not too late to learn to/ Because I haven’t done much of anything.”

“I’ve had some version of ‘Kentucky Kingdom’ written for a while but it’s enough of an outlier that it didn’t really seem to fit on Bunny or my upcoming record,” he shared in a statement, continuing:

I’ve written some schmaltzy stuff before, but this one is pretty deep in the teen soap opera soundtrack zone. The song is essentially about the experience of having a really nice time while wondering whether you’ve earned it. Kentucky Kingdom is a theme park in Louisville and there are a few references to specific rides in the song, but I’ve never actually been there. I did go to Kings Island over the summer in Ohio, but Kentucky Kingdom just has more of a ring to it.

This is not the first or even the second Mister Goblin song named after a theme park. See also “Six Flags America” and “Holiday World.” Listen to “Kentucky Kingdom” below.