Little King’s latest chapter begins not with a riff, but with a revelation. In this candid conversation, Ryan Rosoff — the band’s ever‑restless singer, guitarist, and creative engine — pulls back the curtain on Lente Viviente, a record shaped by family, memory, grit, and the shifting lenses through which he sees the world. Fresh from selling a business, founding another, and rebuilding Little King’s core lineup, Rosoff speaks with the clarity of someone who has lived a few lifetimes’ worth of stories and is finally free to turn them into art. What follows is a portrait of a musician embracing change, sharpening his craft, and chasing the kind of truth that only comes from decades of doing the work.
Who is answering the questions?
Good morning! This is Ryan Rosoff, singer and guitarist for Little King.
When did you realise that you wanted to do music full time?
Well…I think any true guitar addict wants to be using full-time. Seriously, when I first started plucking out Rush and Zeppelin songs on my bed at like age 15, it was a thought. Now, “full-time” has been a relative term throughout my career. Sometimes, oftentimes, I have had a career that supported my 3 kids and a couple X’s through all of the last 28 years. It’s been a lot. So, while touring around and sleeping in buses and motels is fun for a bit, I was never one to be away from my kids AND earning a paltry living. Duty to family first, even before my passion.
I sold my last business in January of 2024, and that has allowed me to focus on music much more substantially than at any time since about 2005. We released Virus Divine that year and had a little label deal that allowed me to breathe. But other than that period, it’s been Many Hats.
Last year, I did co-found another business. This one is called LIvingLens Memoirs, and I’ll tell you what that is and how it is directly tied into the new album…
How did the idea for your latest release come about?
I am an entrepreneur. That’s my identity almost as much as Dad, Son, Partner, and Musician. I live near my mom in Tucson, AZ, and when she turned 80, my son and I filmed her in an informal interview setting. I wanted something forever that would show who she really is! Video is the way to go, as the voice, hand gestures, laugh, facial expressions, etc. all give us so much more than just a photo or a journal.
The light bulb went off and I founded a company called LivingLens Memoirs. Basically, we interview folks who want to preserve their stories for their descendants in a way that is elegant, fun, tasteful, and professional. The idea took off, and so the stories that I am hearing on a weekly basis are front and center in my brain.
2025 was always gonna be the year for a new Little King record. When it came time to write the lyrics, I translated “Living Lens” into Spanish, and lo and behold, the phrase is “Lente Viviente.” Eureka! What a great album name and concept. Filters, perception, light and shadows, shifting lenses…all the themes that I explore on the new album. We are a product of our own perception, and it would behoove us all to remember that we are JUST ONE OPINION.
I see homelessness and addiction daily down at my studio in downtown Tucson. It’s GRITTY. I help take care of my mom (referenced above) and I also have a son who just went to college. I love to fish, have 50-year relationships with friends from my early childhood who I still talk to weekly, and I have a new domestic love who I adore and want to spend my time with.
THESE are my filters. So, what better thing to do than address them musically. That’s been my therapy since our first album back in 1997, and I must say, I am (mostly, kinda sorta) mentally healthy.
Who produced the release, and what were they like to work with (If you produced it yourself, then what do you love the most about working that way?)
I write and produce all of Little King’s music and lyrics. Now, the musicians write their parts to songs that I have basically completed. Sometimes, structures change and things evolve, but mostly it’s my vision with a massive boost from incredible bandmates.
For the first time since 2019, we Little King has a new core. Eddy Garcia has played drums and engineered for Little King (both in the studio and live) since 2005. Manny Tejeda played bass on the last 2 albums and a single (“Silver Tongue” in 2023). These guys are 2 of my dearest friends…I love them both like brothers. But since I am firmly in Tucson and those guys aren’t, I wanted to change things up.
Dave Hamilton is the bassist on this record, and he also plays cello on “Sweet Jessie James” and “Pass Through Filters.” Dave wrote string arrangements for our last 2 albums, Occam’s Foil (2019) and Amuse De Q (2021). He has also toured with us, and he and I just get along fabulously. Personally, musically, karmically (haha)...Dave and I are on the same page. (He’s also the best bass player on the planet. Argue with a wall.)
As I was writing the songs, I called Dave and asked him to move from cello to bass for Lente Viviente. He was eager and excited, and so we started jamming and recording demos in late-2024. But for this album, I wanted to find a badass local drummer. In walks Tony Bojorquez, the musical gypsy and a sometimes-resident of Tucson. He has family here and goes back and forth between Tucson and San Carlos, MX. He has done everything from professional busking in NYC subways to playing Red Rocks, and he lends such a technical AND groovy feel to the new record.
Producing is what I do…engineering is NOT. So, I linked up with Ricky Wascher here in Tucson at Cimamusic. We are almost exactly the same age, and that is always a bonus as you have the same music, movie, tv, current events, and pop culture references in common. We recorded with him from April to June of 2025 in phases. Drums first, then rhythm guitars and bass, then finally vocals and odd bits. Laura Sadie Bette also contributes brilliant vocals on “Kindness for Weakness” and “The Living Lens.”
When we finished tracking, the songs flew to LA and we mixed with Daniel Salcido at Command Space Audio in downtown LA. Daniel mixed the last record and two singles for LIttle King. We have a great friendship, too, so it’s always a pleasure to go out there and hang for a few days. We busted ass and I think the results show that the work was put in! Finally, we mastered with the legend Maor Appelbaum. Maor is THE MAN and put that last 10% of icing on the cake.
How would you say that the sound of the band has grown/changed over the last couple of years?
For Lente Viviente, we rehearsed more than ever before prior to tracking. Tony and I, in particular, were diligent for about 2 months of jamming and working parts out. That’s grinding through tempos and time signatures, which are subtle but definitely present throughout this record. Dave came to Tucson from El Paso a few times to jam as well, so by the time the red light went on at Ricky’s studio, we were ready. Vocally, in particular, I think…I worked really hard.
Because we spent so much time in the collective woodshed, the album sounds tighter and more focused than anything we’ve ever done. In addition, the parts groove because the players are groovy! Seriously, there’s a swing and funk to some songs that really bring out a different side of the arrangements. In particular, Dave and Tony’s playing throughout “Dawn Villa” and “Pass Through FIlters” take Little King in a totally different direction…which is EXACTLY what I am looking for! I mean, I sound like ME. They make US sound like US. Make sense?
What do you want your latest release to do for the representation of the band?
As always with Little King, I want our listeners to come away with an appreciation for the craft, a pause to consider the lyrical sentiments, and a real desire to hit repeat. I believe with everything I am that this is our best work, and I think the band agrees. I know they do, actually. Dave was just saying it this morning in our group chat.
Can you dive deeper? What are you looking for in your listening experience? We may actually have an album that can, in under 30 minutes, make a difference in how you see (and hear) the world. If I can motivate down that road, I’m beyond satisfied.
What else can we expect to see from the band in the future?
We will play shows! I am thinking southwest in the late-Fall, then a full host of shows and festival dates (hoping for Europe, too) in the Spring and Summer of 2026. I just started rehearsing my parts on Monday, and I’m awful again. Dammit. So I need a full month of grinding to play these songs and sing them at the same time in a way we can be proud of. Getting there, for sure, but I have high standards and expectations of myself and our band, and we won’t go out and half-ass it!
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