they're called the Reign of Kindo.
Anyways, I feel bad because I did this interview with them, and the issue of Speakerphone (this online mag I used to be a part of) that it was going to be on was never published. So, I was all excited about it, they were going to be our band of the month, I believe, and blah. I asked, and asked, and asked when it was going to be published, and finally I gave up. I guess it would be my luck that I score this great band to do an interview with, and my rep kind of is relying on it, and the mag goes down.
Blegh. I'm going to post it now. I like it. It's pretty funny. They're great guys. Maybe some fans will read it. IDK.
Staff writer Molly Leachman chats with Buffalo based band The Reign of Kindo via e-mail.
When I first heard the name 'The Reign of Kindo' I didn't even know what to think. Some RPG (role player game) scene came into my head, with castles and warriors. It was then that I made the mistake of confirming to my dad that it would be okay to miss them due to his timing for the concert coming up. To be honest, I was just pumped to see This Providence. During the show, while I was playing around with my new film camera, my dad happened to talk to some of the guys from the band. They gave him a free EP out of pure promotion, and once the concert was over somehow he sideswiped listening to my This Providence CD and pushed in the EP he'd received. We listened with open ears, and immediately fell in love. Later when I got home, I found they were formed from a band I personally loved named This Day and Age, and I regretted missing them because of our poor judgment of their name.
Around one leap year later (366 days to be exact) we got the opportunity to see them. Not only was it the best show we'd seen...possibly ever, but it was also a very small, intimate show. About 20 people (not including band members) were there, and most for The Reign of Kindo, instead of the headliner the Pink Spiders. We (my dad and I) spoke with Kelly Sciandra before the show, and somehow the topic of Speakerphone came up. I told him about the magazine, and told him there would be a possibility of me reviewing the concert, if I stuck around for that long. We quickly ended the conversation when band mate Joseph Secchiaroli came to tell Sciandra it was time to go on. The members of the band casually climbed on stage, and began their breath taking set.
After their performance, I knew I had to interview them, or something for the magazine. I couldn't (or wouldn't) stay for the rest of the show, so a concert review would have been out. Not to mention that the whole review would have ended up being all about them. I immediately texted Mae (the editor and chief of this lovely magazine) and asked if we could do an interview with them. She agreed, and I told Sciandra we could do it. It would have to be over email though, because I'm not much of an on the spot interview person, and I had nothing to record with anyway. Sciandra was nice enough to have all of the guys answer at least one question. I'll stop talking now and let you read.
Speakerphone Magazine: Where did the name The Reign of Kindo come from?
Kelly Sciandra:We were sitting at a local taco shop in buffalo trying to think of a name for our new musical act. Frustrated beyond belief, I asked mike to make up a word. The first thing that came out of his mouth was "kindo." After taking a survey from our friends and family to see of they liked the name we discovered that everyone hated it. That's pretty much why we went with it.
SM: After This Day and Age broke up, what went through all of the remaining members' heads? Did you guys know you wanted to continue doing music or were you ready to give up?
SciandraThere were many different thoughts running through our heads. To this day I remember the conversation Joey, Mike, Steven, and I had outside of a Florida venue when Jeff martin leaving the band was official. We decided that with this new band we wanted to write music for fans of music. At the same time we realized that getting people to understand was going to take a while.
SM:What possessed you guys to go from This Day and Age's indie rock styling to The Reign of Kindo's jazz based styling?
SciandraWe all have a deep appreciation for jazz music and musicians. I studied it for a bit in college and before. Although we don't even come close to the talent that a professional jazz musician displays, it's something that we all strive for in our careers. To call our music jazz is a misconception. We are merely fans of jazz music trying to make it as musicians in a pop music world.
SM:Considering the difference in sound between you guys and the bands you have toured with, how hard is it to build a fan base on the road?
Steven Padin: In a way it's difficult, when we open for a more pop punk sounding band, chances are that their crowd is going to want to hear just that, pop punk. Being different than that, sometimes the crowds ears are instantly turned off. At the same time, there are many cases where a fan of the band that were playing with will find something in is that they enjoy. We've found overall that no matter who we play with or in front of, there will be people who find something about us they like....at least we hope.
SM: If you were able to tour with any band in the world, who would it be, and why?
Sciandra: We all have different artists who inspire us. Touring with any artist who inspires us grounds us a bit. Watching our inspirations play makes us realize how much further we have to go as musicians. We would love to go on. Tour with....... Pat metheny, brad mehldau, Dave Brubeck, Radiohead, and Feist. Not to perform every night but to watch them perform and learn from them.
SM: Who are some of the band's biggest influences?
Sciandra: Pat Metheny, Dave Brubeck, Brad Mehldau, any romantic era classical musician, Donald Spiserly, Billy Lakeebee, the list goes on...
SM: What are the top ten best video games, ever, in the band's opinion?
Padin and Mike Carroll: 1. Link to the Past, 2. Ocarina of Time, 3. Super Mario World, 4. Super Metroid, 5. Goldeneye, 6. Fire Emblem Path of Radiance, 7. Secret of Mana, 8. Final Fantasy 3, 9. Contra 3, 10. Sonic the Hedgehog, 11. Mega Man 2, 12. Act Raiser
Sciandra: Personally my favorite game of all time was a game for PC back in the day called "Dinosaur Teasers (Aiming for Pleasure )."
SM: What's the craziest thing that's happened in the middle of one of your sets?
Jeff Jarvis: We played a show in Jacksonville where nobody showed up. The only people there were the other bands. For the show Mike [Carroll] played in a maroon sweat suit and wore a bright yellow hat with "farts" written on the front. I also played in just my boxers and socks. We made mistakes on purpose and did a couple minute jams with terrible funk grooves along with some metal.
SM: Do you plan on incorporating more living room furniture in the set up at your shows?
Sciandra: Probably not. The lamps help set the mood. Eventually we will probably get nicer lamps that give off more of a " classy" vibe as opposed to disgusting torn up salvation army lamps.
SM: For someone who's just been exposed to The Reign of Kindo's music, what would you like them to walk away with from your live show?
SciandraHopefully the will be inspired. Hopefully they will realize the point we are trying to make. None. We are simply 5 musicians who write music and want to continue to share with anyone who has an open ear.
SM: How do you guys keep sane during the long drives from show to show?
Carroll: We don't.
SM: If you could have a profound affect on something in the world today, what would it be?
Jarvis: These questions are always tough for me. There are many things that concern me like human trafficking, shortage of clean water in various parts of the world, health care, and poverty in general. I would love to make a profound difference in every one. But one thing that is very difficult for me to do is follow that age old golden rule: treat others as you want to be treated. More often than not my focus is on the bigger picture while I forget to simple love my neighbor. I find this extremely off setting because this is the root of the bigger issues. I find that I am selfish and uninterested in other people. Wanting to keep myself so I am not bothered by what someone may want to say. This is not all the time, but happens often enough where I am concerned. So much of a difference can be made when you take the time to listen to someone when they need to pour their heart out.
SM: How do you go about writing music for an album?
Sciandra: Someone will have an idea and each one of us will write parts to the idea. It's very collaborative and stressful. Trying to please five song writers is nearly impossible. We somehow found a way. "Bands want to learn how to collaborate, buy our video 49.99 plus shipping."
SM: Are you happy with the outcome of your full length record, Rhythm, Chord, and Melody?
Sciandra: Very, very happy. We were rushed to release it and will demo and spend more time with our next record but we are overall very happy.
SM: You wrote "I Hear That Music Play" about music that keeps you guys going, so what do you have to say to the fans who hear that song and think of your music?
Joe Secchiaroli: If our music inspires others like our muses inspired us then we are joyed to hear about it. Listen to music that inspires you.
SM: What's the most embarrassing song any of you will admit to listening to?
Sciandra: Our merch guy Marco likes some pretty bad music. Songs that I will not list. "Cough...Creed...cough"
SM: Does the band have a 'New Years Resolution'?
Sciandra: This is not something that we discussed. I would say though that 2009 is the make or break it year for kindo. We have invested so much in this band and truly believe that success is possible.
SM: In what direction is the Reign of Kindo expected to go in the near future?
Sciandra: We are going to take the next few months off to regroup and learn our songs all over again. As musicians it is so important to each one of us that we are constantly trying to get better. It is hard to feel accomplished sometimes being on the road playing the same songs over and over again. So in the next few months we will hopefully become better musicians for 2009.
SM: If you guys could start all over, would you do everything the same? Or if not, what would you change?
Sciandra: I would say that the only thing we should have done differently is released our album sooner. The EP did not generate as much steam as we had hoped for. We are working our way there though and will continue to.
To hear The Reign of Kindo for yourself (which I strongly advise you to do) check them out on myspace.
Molly Leachman
So yeah.
I suck. They PROBABLY hate me. I'm still stoked to see them though. They're so fucking talented. They put me in awe each time I see them. Gah I fucking suck.
ps. There's so many errors in this, hahaha. I'm way too lazy to fix them, so deal with itttt.
