KINCH

KINCH is four college-age boys with music catchy enough to stay in one's head and interesting enough that it is not an annoyance once it is installed there.

KINCH is not afraid to be somewhat intellectual: the band's name comes from a James Joyce novel and one of its songs is called "Rudimentary Knowledge." But neither do they try and avoid being "popsy"; the lyrics fit themselves into the melody rather than being background noise to some sort of earnest and philosophic stream of consciousness that delights its authors by confusing its audience. The result is that the sense arrives after the sound, but in addition to providing several songs whose lyrics have a "Love-Love-Me-Do" simplicity (with a lot of descents into inarticulate "la's"), KINCH also has quite a few that actually become more pleasurable after one knows what the singer is saying because the lyrics introduce engaging word choice in a medium as full of clichés as it is of pelvic thrusts. The sound of KINCH is a unique stew of familiar flavors. Weezer, The Pixies, Radiohead, Blur, Coldplay, and others can all be said to have leant something to the pot. The sum of KINCH’S sound, however, is distinct from its parts. KINCH is its own sound… a whole lot of its own sound, in fact, judging by their song catalogue.

They have an astonishing amount of songs: over one hundred-and-fifty recorded at last count. These songs meander in and out of, use, and abuse such various genres as rock, folk, pop, country, and even dance, when Jake spends too much time on Fruity Loops. You can hear their genre-bending in the latest EP, Corinth. The record moves from rock to country to some sort of indeterminable balance that can only be called original. And they picked songs on their ease of recording, not necessarily on the songs’ inherent quality. Remember, the whole EP was recorded in Bri’s kitchen, except for the drums, which were tracked at a home recording studio in Phoenix.

The total cost for the EP with mixing and mastering was an admirable $180, not including the cost of cigarettes, tea and liquor. In short, what songs you’ve heard of KINCH are only the tip of an ocean-liner-busting iceberg. Steel yourself for the coming onslaught.

The gentlemen of KINCH include Rew Junker (lead vocals/guitar/piano), Bri Coughlin (vocals/guitar), Pat Kane (vocals/bass), and Jake Malone (drums). Rew, Bri, and Jake grew up together in Phoenix and are friends from childhood. They attended high school together, played music together, and in Bri and Rew's case, are even cousins together. It was at the University of Dallas that Rew and Jake met Pat Kane, who was born and bred in the D.C. It has not been established whether or not it was Pat Kane's obvious aptitude for the bass, his dedicated absorption with music that can only be pigeonholed as "epic," or his offer to style his hair in a faux-hawk that purchased his ticket as KINCH's bassist.

Perhaps it was this early togetherness (along with cross-continental flight and internet posting) that allowed the band to remain together even though they spent time apart. This closeness allows for a preternatural cohesion within the group. Often, due to the vicissitudes of their individual locations, KINCH has had to play a show with little if any practice. The tightness of their performances in this light is, indeed, extraordinary.

Thankfully, distance is no longer the band’s nemesis as they are now all crowded into a one-bedroom apartment in Los Angeles, making music and playing shows.

KINCH would like to present their appreciation for your time in reviewing this material and to say “Thank you, a good time is promised to all.”

… plus uno maneat perenne saeclo …