King Khan 'Shroom Bust; Issues Statement

They ain't trippin' this time...

By Fred Mills

As any good ol' southern boy such as yours truly who's crawled around on his knees for hours at a time, hunting for psychedelic mushrooms amid the odiferous, plentiful piles of cow dung - don't tote those ‘shrooms around, kids, eat ‘em! You may think you can explain away that big garbage bag full of the fungible fungi when the cops pull you over, but you'll be wrong; it's a lot easier to simply emit a cosmic giggle as you produce your license and sit there quietly watching the pretty colors swirl around John Law's hat.

Sadly, this was not a lesson that the mighty King Khan (a/k/a Arish Khan) had learned as of this past Thursday. You've probably heard rumors about the King Khan & BBQ Show, currently on tour, had been busted the other afternoon in Kentucky - Christian County, to be exact (how's that for irony) - en route to a gig in St. Louis.

According to the Kentucky New Era it was actually Khan along with his tour manager Kristin Klein who were charged with possession of a controlled substance (mushrooms), resulting in being detained and the cancellation of several shows.

Today, Pitchfork reported that the group is finally back on the road en route to Los Angeles, and meanwhile, an official statement was issued to clarify matters:

"On November 16, 2009 Kristin Klein entered a guilty plea to 2nd degree possession of a controlled substance in Christian County, Kentucky. Ms Klein was driving a rental vehicle that was randomly stopped at a safety checkpoint. Officers located a controlled substance in the cab of the vehicle. Ms Klein was unaware of the contraband and the validity of her license was indeterminable at time of arrest. Under KY law a driver of a vehicle is responsible for its contents. Therefore, Ms Klein entered a guilty plea and is scheduled to appear on April 2, 2010 to provide proof of her valid license.

"King Khan & BBQ Show are driving through the night to make their Los Angeles show at Troubadour tomorrow. Tonight's show in Phoenix is cancelled, but all further west coast dates and will to be honored. Kristin Klein is safe with the band and continuing her tenure as tour manager."

Khan, next time y'all are traveling in or near the South, give us a shout - we'll give you some time-proven tips (dating back to, like, the ‘70s) on how to avoid dicey situations like this in the future. Trust us - we are the voice of experience speaking.