Kites (Interview)

Drunken arguments can end very badly. We all know this. Somebody says something without thinking it through or even meaning it, and before you know what’s going on, friendships are damaged and perhaps even a little property too. Maybe even a bone or two, in extreme cases. Usually a “heated debate” fuelled by alcohol is something we’re wise to avoid. Not so in the case of Kites.

In the dark days before they formed, the members of Kites found themselves in the thick of inebriated conflict over their love of music so frequently, the only workable way for all concerned to come through unscathed was to write the music they could all love between them and take it to the people. Maybe they could even become the focus of a drunken row or two themselves. What more noble aspiration could there be for five young would-be rock gods?

Initially known as Rigsby, the band soon gained a huge and strong reputation for their bristling live performances and instantly memorable tunes, each penned by keyboardist Alex De Boer. Favourable comparisons to the legendary live work of Manic Street Preachers aren’t far off the mark at all. Frontman James Trevelyan has all the passionate, poetic holler you could want from a British Indie Rock vocalist, and the boy ain’t too hard on the eye neither: Brooding, heavy-browed, lockjaw-handsome; James is ideal frontman material, pulling off a sweetness that makes you want to introduce him to your mum but with a simultaneous glint in his eye that suggests he just ate Noel Gallagher’s eyeballs before he took to the stage and washed them down with a pint of smoke. The influence of his all time favourite acts (Stone Roses, Guns ‘n Roses, The Smiths) can be worn on his sleeve if the need ever arises, but his work is always given a personal and passionate, original twist that makes you glad you took a chance on a night out with this fantastic band. Trevelyan immediately pulls you in bloody hard and you’re glad he did; finding yourself surrounded on all sides by huge, bright guitars and battered flat by the fearless work of possibly the best unsigned drummer in the country. I shit you not. Chris Griffiths plays his kit in a way that makes you wish you could form a band of your own and poach him. But your band probably wouldn’t be good enough.

By now, by rights, Kites should be huge. In the Rigsby days they signed to the Flood label and everything was pointing towards serious and tangible success. They had the reputation, the fanbase, the drive and, most importantly of course, the tunes. What happened next is a sad old story, heard a thousand times by a million great UK bands. Flood, well… sank. The label folded and all the exciting, dizzying forward motion came to an abrupt and screeching halt. A period of navel-gazing, gutted aimlessness and introspection followed as you would rightly expect, but the boys refused to give up. Publishing honchos Mute had so far done a great job of getting their material into the public consciousness, and the critical response to the band had been consistently positive. The boys had every reason to stay driven and determined. Flood folding was nothing to do with them or what they brought to the party after all, so it was simply time to find another party.

With the redux came the new name and at this point, enter aforementioned drummer Chris. Ex-skinsmith of the Manchester-based band Label, where he was bandmates with New Order’s Phil Cunningham, Chris already had a reputation as a hard worker and unendingly reliable monster behind the sticks. He happily jumped aboard.

“Obviously, I’m thrilled that Greg [Sykes, original drummer] dropped out”, admits Griffiths, with a healthy and guilt-free opportunists’ grin. “The only frustrating thing for me is, having toured the first record quite a bit already, they only want to play the new stuff now, but seeing as the first album’s still fresh to me, I still want to play loads of tunes from that one. It’s great material and I love playing it even though it comes from before my time.”

Fast forward to June 2009 and, following a few warm-up gigs to and test out their new material and remind the world they haven’t gone away, the brand new shiny line-up known as Kites is prepping an extensive tour schedule and polishing their newly recorded album ready for release in autumn.

It’s not too late to grab hold of Kites. You can still say you were there right at the beginning if you jump onboard right now. Get to the Night and Day in the Northern Quarter on June 26th and listen out for the punk-attack brilliance of “Song for Lazlo”. See if you get all the way through the following day without humming the anthemic pop punch in the guts that is “Farewell to the Stranded”. Kites have the kind of tunes that stay with you for days after a single listen. Watch the crowd and how they throw themselves all the way in when their favourites start playing, and remind yourself that this is a band at the beginning. God knows where this kind of act could go if this is how it kicks off.

Kites are going to fly high. There, I said it.

www.kites-music.com

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