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Kay Kay And His Weathered Underground
Alternative Press - Rob Ortenzi on 6/4/09 @ 4:54 PM - altpress.com
NOW PLAYING: Kay Kay And His Weathered Underground (VINYL COLLECTIVE; vinylcollective.com)
WHY YOU SHOULD KNOW 'EM: After the demise of scene cult faves Gatsbys American Dream, bassist Kirk Huffman and keyboardist Kyle O'Quin returned home to Seattle and to an era of music during which "experimentation" wasn't a dirty word.
YOU LIKE? YOU'LL LIKE: PORTUGAL. THE MAN / THE DEAR HUNTER / MAPS & ATLASES
STORY: Brendan Manley
PHOTO: Melissa O'Hearn
At the height of Gatsbys American Dream's popularity, bassist Kirk Huffman was just as broke as ever, and spent the majority of his days riding in a van from one gig to the next with little more than a sack of weed to dull the monotony. Then suddenly, it all ended. When the prog-emo collective decided to take an indefinite hiatus in 2006, Huffman and keyboardist Kyle O'Quin found themselves back in their hometown of Seattle, and quickly realized they needed to find actual jobs to live. "We never made a dime with Gatsbys, so when we got home, it was like, 'Fuck. We're back to 9-to-5-ing it," Huffman says. Both ended up becoming cooks-Huffman took a morning shift at a favorite local breakfast spot, while O'Quin (who's partial to the espresso maker) signed on at a "swanky" Italian restaurant and cafe. In their spare time, the two collaborated on music-eclectic, '60s-inspired psychedelic pop-that had started taking shape during the Gatsbys days. Huffman took on the role of singer/guitarist, his friend Phil Peterson joined on cello and backing vocals, and Kay Kay And His Weathered Underground were born.
After releasing a cassette single in 2006, the group attracted the attention of V2 Records, but the label was soon acquired by Universal, killing the deal. So Huffman launched his own label-Bombs Over Bellevue-and the group released the CD/DVD life set Live At The Pretty Parlor in 2007. Their self-titled studio debut, which is only available on vinyl or via download, hit the streets in February 2008, courtesy of Suburban Home Records subsidiary Vinyl Collective. The album is a complex, meandering pop cantata that's meant to be digested as a whole, rather than as a series of tracks, and is a testament to indie creativity. Operating on a level that is as DIY as it gets, Huffman says artists no longer need the support of a label, and actually benefit from the artistic freedom afforded by such independence. "So far, we've sold just as much of [our debut on our own] as Gatsbys did during the big first week of release on Fearless," Huffman says. "That's incredible to me. At this point in time in music, labels don't do anything you can't do yourself sitting around with your laptops and wireless [internet]."
Meanwhile, the physical incarnation of the Kay Kay experiment continues to grow and evolve. Although there are technically only three members, Kay Kay live feature a revolving ensemble of supporting musicians (including Huffman's wife Rachael on backing vocals), bringing expertise with unconventional rock instruments like violin, tuba and flugelhorn. It's all part of a loose, super-creative artistic collective Huffman and friends have developed, which include not only Kay Kay, the Bellevue label and Huffman's other project, Wild Orchid Children, but also crossover bids into entirely new mediums like film. Huffman recently completed a screenplay adaptation of a Philip K. Dick short story reminiscent of Invasion of The Body Snatchers, which the once prospective film student says will hopefully be the first of many cinematic projects. He's also busy finishing the next Kay Kay record, which is tentatively scheduled for a March 2009 release and will treat listeners to focused, tightly crafted dream-pop representative of the band's ongoing maturation. "We've been taking the best parts of what we're writing and nailing them down into three-and-a-half-minute, structured radio singles. For me and Kyle, that's a real head-fuck," Huffman says. "But, there's still going to be plenty of zany shit that's going to totally freak people out. We believe it's light-years ahead of anything we've done in the past."
Which album's had the most influence on you?
"Paul McCartney's Ram is the second record he did after the Beatles broke up," says Kirk Huffman. "Ram is when he meets Linda, and he also quits drinking and starts smoking just tons of reefer after being a mad alcoholic for, like, two-and-a-half years. I think it's better than any of the Beatles' records. Kyle [O'Quin] and I have really fallen in love with Ram as an influence for our next record, because like the whole Linda-and-Paul thing, these new lyrics deal with Rachael and me a lot. Sound-wise, it's an incredible listen, and it's really happy."
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