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Music for a future age. Don't be square, be there! All good clean fun, whatever that means.

Kings of the Wild Frontier is the second studio album by Adam and the Ants, released in 1980. It was the first album done with the new band line-up. Hit singles were "Kings of the Wild Frontier," "Dog Eat Dog," and "Antmusic."


Tracklist:

Side One

  1. "Dog Eat Dog" (3:11)
  2. "Antmusic" (3:37)
  3. "Feed Me to the Lions" (3:03)
  4. "Los Rancheros" (3:30)
  5. "Ants Invasion" (3:19)
  6. "Killer in the Home" (4:22)

Side Two

  1. "Kings of the Wild Frontier" (3:56)
  2. "The Magnificent Five" (3:07)
  3. "Don't Be Square (Be There)" (3:32)
  4. "Jolly Roger" (2:11)
  5. "Making History" (2:59)
  6. "The Human Beings" (4:32)

Bonus Tracks:

  1. "Physical (You're So)" (4:26)
  2. "Stand and Deliver" (3:06)
  3. "Press Darlings" (4:12)

Principal Members:

  • Adam Ant - lead vocals, guitar, piano, harmonica
  • Chris "Merrick" Hughes - drums
  • Terry Lee Miall - drums
  • Kevin Mooney - bass
  • Marco Pirroni - guitar

Feed Me to the Tropes:

  • Added Alliterative Appeal: "Killer in the Home:"
    I live the life that I've been left
  • Alliterative Title: "Dog Eat Dog."
  • Broken Record: "Press Darlings:"
    We are the press darlings (14x)
  • Call-Back: In "Don't Be Square (Be There)" the line, "Dirk wears white socks," is a call back to the title of their debut.
  • Continuity Nod: Much like their previous album, Dirk Wears White Sox the album continues ant and warrior imagery.
  • Concept Album: Much like their stage act all the songs allude to warrior images, in this case The Wild West.
  • Face on the Cover: A close-up of Adam's face.
  • Gratuitous Spanish: "Los Rancheros."
  • Heavy Meta: "Antmusic."
    So unplug the jukebox and do us all a favour, yeah, yeah
    Yeah, yeah, that music's lost its taste
    So try another flavour: Antmusic
  • Hurricane of Puns:
    • "Ants Invasion" makes a pun on the word "ants" and "antics:"
      Too many antics in the forbidden zone
    • "Press Darlings"
      We depress the press, darlings
  • Intercourse with You:
    • "Don't Be Square (Be There):"
      Ant music for sex people
      Sex music for ant people
    • "Physical:"
      I want your rough house, maybe
      I want this night in your ear
      You let me feel your danger
      I want to make this feeling clear, oo-hoo
  • Injun Country:
    • "The Human Beings:"
      Blackfoot, Pawnee, Cheyenne, Crow, Apache, Arapaho
    • "Kings of the Wild Frontier:"
      I feel beneath the white
      There is a redskin suffering
      From centuries of taming
  • Lampshade Hanging: "Don't Be Square (Be There):"
    And love goes to war, whatever that means
  • List Song: "The Human Beings" just names a bunch of Native American tribes.
  • Mundane Made Awesome: "Ants Invasion," a song about an invasion of ants.
  • Record Producer: Chris Hughes, AKA drummer Merrick.
  • Real Time: "Ants Invasion" has the protagonist thinking about whether he should take a decision. The first verse has the time set at 10:35, the second at 10:36 and the third at 10:38, which is also when he realizes he made the wrong decision.
  • Remaster: In 2004, with six bonus tracks.
  • Shout-Out:
    • "Kings of the Wild Frontier" is a shout-out to the TV series based around Davy Crockett, who had this as a subtitle.
    • "Killer in the Home" references Native American chief Geronimo:
      But deep inside Geronimo is tearing me apart
      I've seen him in the streets
      And I've seen him in the pictures
      Killer in the home
    • "Los Rancheros" is a shout-out to Clint Eastwood and his Western films.
      A few dollars more
      They'll hang me high
      (...) Rancheros (Clint)
      (...) Rancheros (Eastwood)
    • "Jolly Roger:"
      Of all the pirates on the seas
      The worst of them was Blackbeard
      So damnable a fiend from Hell
      He was the one they most feared
      Any man who sailed with him
      Was taking quite a chance
      He'd hang them from the gallows
      Just to see if they could dance, haha
    • "The Magnificent Five" is a shout-out to the western The Magnificent Seven.
  • Take That!: "Dog Eat Dog:"
    You may not like the things we do
    Only idiots ignore the truth
  • Title Track: "Kings of the Wild Frontier," but the title doesn't appear in the lyrics.
  • Worst Aid: "Killer in the Home:"
    Oh well, they cut you half with a gun
    And they give you a band-aid

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