I’m a big fan of Sub Pop. Always have been. Dating back to the late 80s, if Sub Pop is putting it out, you can be pretty sure that it’s going to be legit. And in this vein, Indie outfit Kiwi Jr is no different. They’ve definitely got a style of their own. More importantly, they’ve got that cool factor that Sub Pop releases so often have. Don’t know what I’m talking about? Well, head over to Kiwi Jr’s Bandcamp here and dig into their new album, Cooler Returns, which is officially out today. It’s a trip. Get lost in the sounds. Wanna learn more? Head over to Sub Pop’s site here and check out their bio. But before you do that, take a few minutes and dive into this interview. It’s dual affair with both Brian Murphy and Jeremy Gaudet of Kiwi Jr. Cool music. Cool people. Dig it.
Andrew:
Hi guys, thank you for taking the time to speak with us. It’s been some year, hasn’t it? What have you been doing to keep your mind off the ever-raging dumpster fire?
Brian:
Our pleasure, we’ve got nothing but time on our hands. It seems like the dumpster dwellers have subsided slightly, light at the end of the hole?? But gosh darn, some year…some year. We’ve been lucky in Canada, I suppose. Brohan and Jeremy still work full time from home, Mike is deep in the vortex of school and Brian is training to win the Tennis PEI Men’s A div Gold medal ($75 prize).
Andrew:
Tell us a bit about your backstory. How did you get into music?
Brian:
When I was a kid, my mother noticed I could clap/tap along to music in time, and she asked my two older brothers to try it out, and they couldn’t do it - huge win for the youngest brother.
Andrew:
As an artist, who are some of your earliest influences? As you’ve evolved musically, how have those influences changed?
Jeremy:
Songwriters? Usual suspects like Bob Dylan, Lou Reed etc. Hasn’t really changed much since I was a teenager. Maybe more Country music nowadays. I probably didn’t see myself listening to Alan Jackson when I was younger but here we are.
Andrew:
Kiwi Jr. has a new album coming out this month, right? Tell us about your new record, Cooler Returns.
Brian:
That is correct, the aforementioned album Cooler Returns comes out today, January 22nd, 20-god bless-21. 13 songs recorded in a great studio with a great engineer and friend Graham Walsh. Recorded exclusively on weekends between the happy hours of Friday at noon until Sunday at midnight.
Andrew:
Tell us about the story of Kiwi Jr. How did the band come together? What are the origins?
Jeremy:
With all due respect, there’s nothing interesting to tell here. Four friends started jamming and got enough songs to finally play gigs and make records.
Andrew:
How has the band progressed since its debut, Football Money? What’s changed?
Brian:
We’ve certainly gotten better as a band from getting the opportunity to open for bigger/better bands thanks to generous promoters in Toronto like Craig Laskey.
Andrew:
Where can we get the new album? What formats is it on?
Jeremy:
You can buy it directly from us on Kiwijr.bandcamp.com and you can get vinyl, CD, and tape.
Andrew:
I read that the band was making a commitment to transitioning from “crunchy” to “smooth” by 2021. Can you expand on that sentiment a bit?
Jeremy:
A little less feedback and more acoustic instrumentation; trying to sing nicely instead of yelling at the listener. Uninspired music writers will call this a more “mature” sound, but the peanut butter analogy works better.
Andrew:
Let’s switch gears a bit now. Tell us your thoughts on the current state of the music scene these days? What’s it like out there for an indie artist?
Brian:
It’s obviously shifted from live touring, to an online based presence now. People aren’t talking about how great that show last night was, they’re talking about how funny someone’s post is. We’re trying to be cooler online. We’ve been watching that Brad Paisley video with Jason Alexander a lot; hopefully it helps.
Andrew:
Are you into vinyl? Tapes? CDs? Or are you all digital now? Where do you like to shop for music?
Brian:
We all still love listening to vinyl. Toronto has many great vinyl stores - Rotate This, She Said Boom, Sonic Boom.
Andrew:
Once COVID-19 is finished with us, what’s next for both you and the band?
Brian:
Pick up the pieces and move on I guess! We might wanna see our families. None of us have seen them this year and probably won’t until next summer (hopefully), so yeah, gotta check in with Mom 100%.
Jeremy:
Who says it’s gonna be finished? I’m not making plans just yet.
Andrew:
Last question. How do you feel you’ve evolved as an artist compared to your earlier days? Has the mission statement of Kiwi Jr. changed?
Jeremy:
We’re a bit more confident in our sound/identity. There are certain things we’ll do in rehearsals or the studio and we’ll look at each other and think, yes, that is the Kiwi sound/idea.
Brian:
Mission statement = Tom Cruise in Jerry McGuire, WHO’S COMIN WITH ME!!!
Interested in learned more about the music of Kiwi Jr? Check out the link below:
Dig this interview? Check out the full archives of Vinyl Writer Interviews, by Andrew Daly, here: www.vinylwritermusic.com/interviews
