Kid Gib

"These kids have their musical sensibilities about them, playing delicious harmonies and hooks that you could eat for breakfast."


Kid Gib are a full-out pop-punk band, from the music to the hair to the onstage energy. But it’s the good kind of pop-punk, and not the boring and contrived mainstream fodder. These kids have their musical sensibilities about them, playing delicious harmonies and hooks that you could eat for breakfast.

These guys have it down to a T. There was not a beat misplaced throughout the entire set; from the moment they took the stage, Kid Gib were entirely in control. The music was tight, their energy was high and they had proper stage banter that would put some pros to shame. All of this was pretty surprising considering they were the first set of the night and the audience was pretty meager. This four-piece definitely have their pop-punk sensibilities about them. I give them an A for awesome.

From the moment they took the stage, Kid Gib were solid. They know their sound, and they know how to deliver it to the crowd. Their energy was high and unwavering. They even had the stage banter down: repeating their name throughout the set, thanking the crowd for showing up, welcoming them to the festival and even throwing out the slightly corny, yet classic, "We love you Toronto" out at the end. Their live show is tight and tons of fun.

Their sound is well-defined; they're sure of themselves musically, even with everything they have going on. From the harmonies to flawless song transitions to quick tempo changes, they are solid through and through. The music is intricate and interesting and overall, a lot of fun.

They’re rockin’ the pop-punk and skater styles, a la Simple Plan and Blink-182. They’ve got the style, the music and the talent — these kids have their shit together. Even though it was early in the night and the size of the audience could’ve been discouraging, Kid Gib continued to command the stage. Overall, they rocked it like pros.

-- Jen White, Chartattack.com - Chartattack.com

"impressively tight harmonies, along with big guitar melodies and a solid rhythmic foundation far beyond noteworthy."

Friday night at Kitchener’s favourite stag (not buck) and doe locale, The Schwaben Club saw quite the diverse line-up of bands assemble for the C.D. release party of popular Kitchener pop-punk outfit Kid Gib.

These cats have been together for the past few years, touring extensively around Canada and even venturing into the U.S. for extended stints behind a few released demos; however, Friday night’s show was a celebration of the band’s first, and seemingly long-awaited, full-length release. As bassist Nick Korck explained, "This album has been a long time coming."

Local rockers Gran Casino opened the show for them, followed by B.C.’s Glory Nights and Southern Ontario favourite Shotgun Rules.

I realized there was an upside to my tardiness, in that my virgin ears were now solely Kid Gib’s for the taking. That metaphor creeps me out, but I’ll leave it there, if only to relay the excitement of my first experience with this reputable band (other than a few preparatory MySpace listens).

They opened their set with the infectiously-poppy "Now That This Is Over," which gave a nice taste of what the rest of their performance would entail — a twin vocal attack that was velvety-smooth, with some impressively tight harmonies, along with big guitar melodies and a solid rhythmic foundation far beyond noteworthy.

It’s not hard to tell that these boys have been perfecting their sound on the road for so long; their rock-solid execution was evident after only a few power-chords and it was consistent through the all-too-short set.

"The Runaround" was a great upbeat tune that I remember made me bounce around a little bit, reminiscent of Hit The Lights in its sound, while power-ballad “Broken Promises” was perhaps a little too familiar in structure, but still a nice addition to the set.

I asked Nick how it felt to play songs from the record to a hometown crowd, to which he replied, "It was great! A lot of kids who have seen us before have heard these songs, but this show was a lot more fun because we had so many friends and family members in there helping us celebrate this long-awaited release."

Actually, I was surprised at how subdued the crowd seemed. Kid Gib play a brand of music that really needs an audience singing and jumping around to reach its full potential, which I felt was lacking. It only made me long to see what these guys could do in this element sometime in the future. This band is surely poised to grow in popularity.

Fans of what Nick describes as "edgy pop-punk [that’s] not too poppy, nor too aggressive" should quickly climb aboard the great, big gravy train with me.

Their C.D. release tour, which is extending to Western Canada over the next short while, will only bring them more of the fans they deserve, as this band is just another testament to how solid the music scene is around our area.

Andrew King - Staff Reporter

- imprint.uwaterloo.ca

...Kid Gib shows a maturity in arrangements and lyricism that belies their genre as well as their band name. The songs are tight and upbeat, with the right amount of crunchy guitars and hooky pop melodies.

- BRYAN BIRTLES - Vue Weekly

"this cd should leap the band out of the Southern Ontario area..."


I don't know if Kid Gib have selected a lead single for their self titled release, but if it isn't 'Runaround' I'll really be bummed. The third track into their super-energetic ten-son debut CD is worth the price of admission alone.

Recorded in Hamilton at Catharine North Studios under the guiding hand of producer Dan Achen, this cd should leap the band out of the Southwestern Ontario area and onto the global paying field in no time at all. If what I'm reading online about their tight live shows are true (I'll find out May 5th at the Salt, when the play here with Chasing Mercury), the band will find their audience by word of mouth alone.

Other tracks to whet your whistle with on their cd include 'Broken Promises' (which boasts a little power-ballad action in its three minute running length), 'Sick of It All', 'Hold Me Down', 'Punch' and the lead track 'Now That This is Over'.

Kid Gib's myspace page has them listed as being from Kitchener, Ontario. They sound TOO GOOD to be from so close by (as jaded as that sounds). Colour me impressed.

- Mike Bax - www.fazer.ca

"a flirtatious ode to sensible songwriting, pop hooks and contagious melodies"

By Shain Shapiro

Sounding like a teenager while turning 40 is boring, not to
mention depressing, thus allowing evolution to be a common
theme every band is constantly concerned with. Over the course
of one’s career, their musical output should change as much as
they do; putting out the same songs over and over grows stale.
After chatting with Bobby Frazer from hometown boys Kid Gib,
the theme of constantly evolving with every show, every note and
every rehearsal soon dominates our conversation.

The band are currently on the bootstraps of a new album
release that exemplifies a mature, seasoned group of rock
musicians. Frazer cannot stop talking about the band’s growth
since inception, especially because he believes their new,
self–titled album is only the tip of the iceberg.

“There is a huge difference between our first full length and
this debut record,” explains Frazer. “Our first album, which we
recorded in high school, was 11 songs of straight–ahead, double
time pop/punk. Simply, we played as fast as possible all the time.
That was just a result of the music we were all listening to at the
time and our life experience, or lack thereof. There are definitely
similar themes lyrically considering they were written within a
year or two of each other, but musically we did complete overhaul
of our sound, an evolution. There isn't a single bar of double time
on the new album. We found that if we slowed it down we could
really zone in on our song writing and focus on creating good
songs, instead of just playing at mach speed.”

Formed in their Kitchener high school in 2001, Kid Gib have
steadily grown to owning the upper echelon of the regions’ pop/
punk circuit, landing them in the capable hands of Key Music
Group, home to Marble Index and Cities in Dust. The release of
their new self–titled full–length album — which the band refers to
as its debut — is a 10– track affair and a flirtatious ode to
sensible songwriting, pop hooks and contagious melodies. The
savvy distortion and makeshift angst worthy of the description
punk is there in spurts but, really, Kid Gib makes pop music —
albeit good pop music — with smidges of punk ethos slathered
on the sides more than jammed in the middle. Lyrically,
relationships, apathy, self–deprecation and cynicism appear, but
the modus operandi here to create hooks, lines and sinkers, and
Kid Gib has lots of each. “You know, I think pop/punk is just a
term that has been used for pop–rock bands that have a more
aggressive or punk influence, because punk is a lifestyle; that is
what it has always been,” responds Frazer. “We have never been a
punk band, but pop/punk is the label that has been given to
bands like us. People have to label a band, I guess, so we get
these question on a daily basis. You know, those ones like “so,
what do you sound like?” or “what style are you?” You have to say
something, but we have never felt that there is a term that defines
our music.
I think we like it that way, to keep people guessing and hopefully keep them interested. If you are just giving them
something they have already heard, then what are you bringing to
the table? Why should anyone care? That is the hardest part —
getting people to pay attention long enough to get them hooked.”
Getting them — them all being fans of pop and/or punk across
Canada — hooked is something Kid Gib excels at. The band has
sold thousands of records independently before even being
signed to Key Music Group, and have crossed the country, touring
and playing with bands like The Shotgun Rules and Crowned King.
Furthermore, extensive touring — almost endless touring, to be
exact — is planned to promote the album which was released in
Canada this spring.

The evolution concept is pressing and evident in each song on
the record. Not only does the band slow down in order to write
better songs, but the chords clanged out are more thoughtful. “I
think the record is just a result of the time in our lives that it was
written. We were 20–years–old, right out of high school, and very
much so finding ourselves — our sound — and still growing up,”
explains Frazer. “There were big changes in all of our lives, and
being able to reflect upon yourself, and what is going on in your
life will always help to write a great song.
“At the time, you know, we probably weren't even sure what
we were writing about, but we felt it, and let it come out in the
music. Our sound as a band will always grow with age, I'm sure
our next record will be much different from this one.”
Instead of holing themselves up in a basement and playing till
their hands fell off, the quartet has, in addition, sat down and
properly conceived this self–titled gem and every hook embedded
in it. “We just wrote and wrote and wrote,” - Echo Weekly