I started my interview with Chris Kinnon of Vancouver band, Lions In The Street with the obvious question: What happened? You see, Lions in The Street were signed to a major US label, they started recording a cd that was never finished, and were left in limbo where they could neither be released from their contract nor finish the record. It took a skilled lawyer to get them free. According to Chris it was nothing out of the ordinary in this business, "We signed a deal with a really big label, but it didn't work out for us. It was those silly things that happen all the time, fights with the managers and people not getting along over petty non-musical things." He didn't seem bitter from those experiences, but rather found it all a bit strange, "We made a record, but we didn't finish it, which seems bizarre to me to spend a lot of money, not see it through, and then release us from the contract."
There's many reasons why Chris Kinnon doesn't spend his days lamenting lost opportunities. First of all, that band that existed two years ago, is vastly different from Lions in the Street today and that major label adventure eventually came to be seen as a positive step for Chris and the band, "That kind of bad experience, that kind of adversity really crystallized our ambition." Besides, "At that point we were a different band. We were in the process of becoming the band that we've always wanted to be ." The sounds that were recorded, but never released, had more of a power-pop sound. They were heavily influenced by Badfinger, Big Star, and the Beatles. These days, Lions In The Street look back to the forefathers of r&b and rock and roll for their inspiration: musicians like Fats Domino, Chuck Berry, and Little Richard.
While it may surprise some people to hear a band from Vancouver that is steeped in southern rock and early rhythm and blues, and not the art rock sounds that Americans tend to associate with Canada, it doesn't seem out of place at all to Chris, "The geography of Vancouver really separates it from the rest of Canada. Not only is it separated by distance, but the climate is vastly different as well. It's not as cold and there isn't the snow. It just rains like 75% of the time. It is a setting that lends itself well to the blues."
Lately, it hasn't just been Lions In The Street who are making names for themselves. Other Vancouver bands are also starting to get noticed including Black Mountain, Blood Meridian, and Ladyhawk, all of whom share a loose connection to the blues. In talking to Chris, you get the sense that the groundwork is getting laid for an honest to goodness rock and roll scene, "Vancouver has never really had it's own scene before and there's a sense that there's a real developing scene but no one wants to come out and say it to jinx it."
Ultimately, the reason that Lions In The Street have such a positive outlook on their future, is the excitement generated over the release of their debut e.p, the free internet release, Cat Got Your Tongue. Over 10,000 people have downloaded the e.p from their website and other p2p networks so far. Over five songs Chris and his bandmates tear through the Vancouver blues with rousing rockers like "Mine Ain't Yours" and "Already Gone" and tear the blues (in the other sense) with delicate southern ballads like "Lady Blue" and "Feels Like a Long Time."
It's hard to imagine the band taking such a step in their career without the events that happened earlier. As Chris would later tell me, "Why not give the music away as a promotional tool? Get it to the people who care about it, who like it, and who want it. When you're up front and honest to people and not trying to get them to buy into something their not sure about. I think people will really appreciate your honesty." After all, the economics of record contracts of both independent and major labels rarely are to the benefit of the bands. "It's a paradox to most bands," Chris added, "They need the label to open doors to press, to touring, and to recording, but on the other hand you have no leverage and often times they end up signing really bad deals. The only sensible way to do it is to already have a sizable fan base and have that group of people really committed to your music."
As if all of this happened according to plan, the benefits of releasing their music directly to the people is starting to become apparent. An extensive tour is planned for late summer and this fall that will take Lions In Street everywhere from the west coast, to England, Austin, Tx, New York City, and nearly everywhere in between. None of this would have been possible had they not taken their careers into their own hands. Understandably, Chris is upbeat about the bands future, "It's a really busy schedule but we're happy, we're glad that we have enough demand that will take us to all of these places."
So, what if you're one of those people who still like to own the physical cds and lps? Lions in The Street are working on a distribution deal that will make physical copies of their music available in North America and England later this year. Just don't take this as a sign that Lions In The Street will be changing their ways any day soon, Chris assured me that this release will always be available for free to his fans.
Lions In The Street |
On the way home from work today, NPR had a piece on the Summer Jam. Would it be Nelly Furtado or Christina? The commentator settled on "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley. My question is, who needs a summer jam when you got rock and roll? Not this rocker. That's who. Nothing sounds better in the summer than good old fashioned rock and roll music.
