Take a gander at the old school rock n roll stylings of Kid Violet’s latest single, ‘Release’. The UK band takes inspiration from musicians as wide-ranging as Joy Division, Arctic Monkeys and The Strokes to Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix and Interpol. The end result gives listeners a modern, relevant sound that still highlights the best aspects found within the genre.
Curious about the band who managed to strike this balance, we sat down for an exclusive interview with lead singer and co-songwriter, Billy. Turns out, he has a pretty unique sense of humour to boot.
Looking back, what were some of your earliest entries into music appreciation? And music production?
My first gig was Glasto 08 but I was in an 11-year-old emo phase so couldn’t really appreciate the music at all. Saw Panic At The Disco over Kings of Leon, so yeah you could say it was pretty bad! Music production, I actually wanted to be a full-time choir boy at one point but I didn’t pass the entrance exam – might have been a blessing in disguise, you know that one.
Take us through your songwriting process. Are there any particular steps you take when putting music together?
Our songwriting process tends to start with an idea recorded and sent in a Facebook message. Then I’ll normally sit on it for a while and come up with some questionable ideas whilst half-cut and listen back in the morning and have to sort it out. Then we put something together on Logic, everyone learns their parts, jump in a practice room, smash it out, bob’s your uncle, fanny’s your aunt.
What gets your creative juices flowing?
Breakups and alcohol
As a musician, it becomes apparent that there is a huge difference between the art and the business. Is there anything about the music scene that you would personally change?
I think social media and streaming platforms mean that things have become much more image-based than they were before, but it also means you can access your fan base much more easily so I don’t think I would change it. People don’t seem to go to as many up and coming band’s gigs as they use to since there is so much to do and see. Hopefully, Rona changes that though and people will be packed to the rafters (figuratively socially distanced).
Studio work and music creation or performing and interacting with a live audience, which do you prefer?
Live audience definitely, although sound can be a big issue at a lot of venues, you can’t beat the real thing.
What is the most memorable response you have had to your music?
We played at a sold-out Nambucca in January and you couldn’t get near enough to see us play. That was pretty cool to be fair. We get people to reach out to us a fair bit on twitter and that feels class, knowing that people you don’t know really connect with your music is an amazing feeling.
What’s on your current playlist?
Even though it’s Bono’s son so it’s nepotism at it’s finest, I think Inhaler are unreal and will be huge next year. I bought a synth and have been working hard on trying to bring a bit more of that into our tunes so there’s been a lot of 80’s music. Honourable mentions for The Murder Capital, Orielles, Shame and The Lilacs
Breakdown the news for us: what can we expect from you in the near future?
We have three new tunes coming out in the next couple of months which we are really excited about. They’re a bit more upbeat indie dance vibes than our last few so it’s nice to mix things up. We’re recording our EP with a fantastic producer Gavin Monaghan at the end of summer and hope to have that out late autumn time to coincide with a big fat tour and world domination.
Famous last words?
“Cheers guys, we’ll see you at Isle of Wight” – Rough Trade Nottingham – 11th March 2020
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