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The Kinks' Dave Davies: “We never shied away from touching on the darker reaches of ourselves”

The Kinks' Dave Davies joins Kyle Meredith to discuss their 60+ years, classic songs, and Star Trek philosophies

Dave Davies is in a reflective mood. But then again, when you’ve spent over 60 years in one of rock’s most iconic bands, you earn the right to look back. The Kinks are celebrating their anniversary with The Journey, a compilation that organizes their vast catalog thematically. It’s an approach that makes sense when you consider how much of their music has always been about storytelling—whether it’s tales of success, heartbreak, or, as Dave jokes, mostly girls.

The anniversary coincides with Davies’ own solo retrospective, Living on a Thin Line, which includes a memoir and an album of remixes. He admits that revisiting the past is a complicated process. “I have so much stuff under the smell of time,” he says, clearly amused by his own phrasing. “You can’t say it all in a three-minute song.” If there’s a defining theme in the Kinks’ music, it’s the push and pull between light and dark, humor and melancholy. “We never shied away from touching on the darker reaches of ourselves,” he says. “But we always found a way to lift it up again.”

That balance is evident in The Journey , which arranges the band’s songs in a way that makes them feel like pieces of a larger puzzle. Davies attributes this to how he and his brother Ray have always approached music. “Even when we’re playing and writing, it feels visual. Like we’re watching it as well as hearing it.” He compares their catalog to a film—one filled with characters and stories, sometimes tragic, sometimes hilarious, but always compelling.

As for his solo work, Living on a Thin Line includes a new version of “This Is the Time,” a song that touches on an intersection of spirituality and politics. If that sounds heavy, well, welcome to being Dave Davies. “I think we’re all spiritual beings,” he says. “But we’ve got to get over these barriers of separation.” He describes the remix process as an experiment in sound, one that blends philosophy with rock and roll. He also manages to slip in a Star Trek reference because, of course, he does. “There’s so much philosophy in those old episodes,” he says, a statement that somehow makes perfect sense in the context of Kinks lyrics.

Davies sees imagination as humanity’s greatest tool, whether in music, sci-fi, or just getting through life without losing your mind. “If we didn’t have imagination, we’d be even more messed up than we already are,” he quips. “It’s important to be able to create change around us.” He credits his time in a band for helping him understand collaboration and self-expression. “We rely on each other to bring things to a positive resolution,” he says. And then, in true Kinks fashion, he throws in a bit of sibling rivalry: “My brother Ray has been one of my biggest gurus… and one of my biggest pains in the ass.”

But even after six decades, he insists The Kinks’ story isn’t over. “No, we keep going. If the music’s in you, it’s going to come out somewhere.” He’s excited about the future—his own, the band’s, and humanity’s in general. “I believe in the future. I believe in The Kinks. I believe in you, my friend.”

If that’s not enough to restore your faith in rock and roll, nothing will.

Listen to the interview above and then check out the video below.

Kyle is the WFPK Program Director. Email Kyle at kmeredith@lpm.org

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