Kissing Party
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Kissing Party

Denver, Colorado, United States | INDIE

Denver, Colorado, United States | INDIE
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"Kissing Party: The Hate Album"

Imagine perusing the “K” section of the local last-standing record store or browsing your favorite indie music web site and coming upon a band called Kissing Party. Despite having no prior knowledge of their sound, on name alone you can infer that Kissing Party must be: A) An exhaustingly twee band who sound like a pillow fight; B) A bit more ragtag yet still twee-favoring indie-pop band; C) Something completely unexpected, like a raunchy hip-hop outfit or a Scandinavian death metal sextet.

Of these choices, letter B most closely describes the sound of Kissing Party’s third release, The Hate Album. Although on songs such as “The Homecoming”, singer Deidre Sage’s vocals sometimes veer too closely to “boo hoo someone stole my lolly” twee territory, proceedings mostly unfold in a disheveled, My Bloody Valentine-indebted way. When guitarist Gregory Dolan takes the mic, songs like “Donna Joy” and “King Graves Road” reveal themselves as downright blissful. File under “cute”, but make sure that “c” is lower-case.
- Pop Matters


"The Kissing Party is no love affair Gregg Dolan talks, you know, hate and stuff"

You might be tempted to think that the guy behind The Kissing Party’s extravagantly jangly indie-pop record, The Hate Album, would be as soft-spoken and amicable as his music—but you’d be wrong. Gregg Dolan, the band’s guitarist-vocalist is anything but reserved. He’s an outspoken and opinionated rocker at heart, and he’s not about to let scene etiquette stand in the way of expressing his mind. In advance of the band’s album release tomorrow night at the Hi-Dive, Dolan spoke with The A.V. Club about, of course, all the things he hates (including the local music scene).
The A.V. Club: The Hate Album is your fourth recording, and after shopping it to a few labels, you’re self-releasing it. How’s the industry hustle treating you?
Gregg Dolan: I can’t stand any of that stuff. That’s half the reason that I don’t think we have that many fans. [Laughs.] Everybody in our band’s lazy. None of us are business-minded, so it’s really hard to do stuff like that. If you know any Colonel Parker types who are looking forward to exploiting us, let me know.
AVC: In interviews you’ve said that you hate your last album, Rediscover Lovers.
GD: [Laughs.] I don’t hate it. I just wish all the songs on the record, sound quality-wise, were better. I think all the songs are good. They just sound like that basement type of indie bullshit. That’s what I do not want to do. I think that record just turned out like that. A lot of people liked it, and they liked it for the exact reason I hated it.
AVC: Do you feel less hateful about The Hate Album?
GD: I’d like to say that it’s way fucking better than the last one. My best friend says that, but most people are like, “It’s really good. I really like it.” It’s different than the last one. People inevitably say it’s twee or it sounds like Belle And Sebastian. Fuck! It’s not supposed to.

AVC: The Kissing Party is pretty polarizing, and you seem to have a lot of people who hate you. Why is that?
GD: I guess it’s because we don’t have a violin in our band. We don’t have acoustic guitars and we’re not crying about anything. [Laughs.] If I saw some of our early shows, I’d probably hate us, too. We’ve had a lot of awful shows. We’ve had a lot of good shows. We’re not consistent. We have critics who seem to like our band, but then the shows are still just our friends coming. I think a lot of times, it’s just people’s opinions you can’t change. If people are going to like certain bands—that are going to remain nameless—you wouldn’t want them liking you anyway. It’s like the Aesop’s fable: People often applaud imitation, but when the real thing comes along, they don’t give a shit.
AVC: Beyond Aesop, do you have any other advice for Denver audiences?
GD: I could probably talk shit about the Denver scene for hours. I just hate that it’s a very small scene, and it’s very incestuous. There’s a lot of people patting each other on the back and bullshit. When you see the [Denver Post’s] UMS list, it’s almost better not to be in that top 20. What’s actually weird to me is, are people actually buying these albums or listening to them? Do they genuinely like these bands? The scene in Denver, I gave up on it. I personally don’t want to go see some sad-bastard shit.
AVC: Denver’s music scene is often pretty self-congratulatory, but you’re obviously not afraid to be seen as a hater.
GD: I talk shit to people—it shouldn’t be taken that seriously. I just hate on shit. - The Onion


"The Kissing Party is no love affair Gregg Dolan talks, you know, hate and stuff"

You might be tempted to think that the guy behind The Kissing Party’s extravagantly jangly indie-pop record, The Hate Album, would be as soft-spoken and amicable as his music—but you’d be wrong. Gregg Dolan, the band’s guitarist-vocalist is anything but reserved. He’s an outspoken and opinionated rocker at heart, and he’s not about to let scene etiquette stand in the way of expressing his mind. In advance of the band’s album release tomorrow night at the Hi-Dive, Dolan spoke with The A.V. Club about, of course, all the things he hates (including the local music scene).
The A.V. Club: The Hate Album is your fourth recording, and after shopping it to a few labels, you’re self-releasing it. How’s the industry hustle treating you?
Gregg Dolan: I can’t stand any of that stuff. That’s half the reason that I don’t think we have that many fans. [Laughs.] Everybody in our band’s lazy. None of us are business-minded, so it’s really hard to do stuff like that. If you know any Colonel Parker types who are looking forward to exploiting us, let me know.
AVC: In interviews you’ve said that you hate your last album, Rediscover Lovers.
GD: [Laughs.] I don’t hate it. I just wish all the songs on the record, sound quality-wise, were better. I think all the songs are good. They just sound like that basement type of indie bullshit. That’s what I do not want to do. I think that record just turned out like that. A lot of people liked it, and they liked it for the exact reason I hated it.
AVC: Do you feel less hateful about The Hate Album?
GD: I’d like to say that it’s way fucking better than the last one. My best friend says that, but most people are like, “It’s really good. I really like it.” It’s different than the last one. People inevitably say it’s twee or it sounds like Belle And Sebastian. Fuck! It’s not supposed to.

AVC: The Kissing Party is pretty polarizing, and you seem to have a lot of people who hate you. Why is that?
GD: I guess it’s because we don’t have a violin in our band. We don’t have acoustic guitars and we’re not crying about anything. [Laughs.] If I saw some of our early shows, I’d probably hate us, too. We’ve had a lot of awful shows. We’ve had a lot of good shows. We’re not consistent. We have critics who seem to like our band, but then the shows are still just our friends coming. I think a lot of times, it’s just people’s opinions you can’t change. If people are going to like certain bands—that are going to remain nameless—you wouldn’t want them liking you anyway. It’s like the Aesop’s fable: People often applaud imitation, but when the real thing comes along, they don’t give a shit.
AVC: Beyond Aesop, do you have any other advice for Denver audiences?
GD: I could probably talk shit about the Denver scene for hours. I just hate that it’s a very small scene, and it’s very incestuous. There’s a lot of people patting each other on the back and bullshit. When you see the [Denver Post’s] UMS list, it’s almost better not to be in that top 20. What’s actually weird to me is, are people actually buying these albums or listening to them? Do they genuinely like these bands? The scene in Denver, I gave up on it. I personally don’t want to go see some sad-bastard shit.
AVC: Denver’s music scene is often pretty self-congratulatory, but you’re obviously not afraid to be seen as a hater.
GD: I talk shit to people—it shouldn’t be taken that seriously. I just hate on shit. - The Onion


"The Kissing Party The Hate Album"

To a well-established band, predictability can be friend or foe. In the case of The Kissing Party, it's both. The Denver shoegaze-pop group's third release, The Hate Album, finds it treading some new ground while simultaneously sticking to old tricks, and through it all, rocking some first-class negativity. Let's just say the album is appropriately titled.
The Kissing Party sound nothing like Belle And Sebastian, a baffling comparison made frequently of the quintet. The band’s sound never has mirrored the famous Glasgow group, and especially doesn't here. The closest the act gets to B&S likeness is that the vocals are shared by a boy and a girl—but Stuart Murdoch and Isobel Campbell they ain't. If anything, Kissing Party’s wall-of-sound-via-clean-electric-guitars aesthetic has much more in common with neo-shoegaze acts like Asobi Seksu and The Radio Dept., and at certain college-radio-friendly moments, like Tullycraft.
While the band hasn't made much headway into new sonic territory in its last few years, Kissing Party has nearly perfected what it was already doing best: making straight-ahead, two-minute pop songs. Deirdre Sage's voice and delivery are both stronger than ever, and the album's production values have made leaps and bounds since the last recording. “You Made Me Happy”—a slow, pensive track—sounds like the first real step in a mature direction, as tape recordings and weird noises in the background add a newfound gritty layer to the Party's overall sound.
What really pop from The Hate Album are the self-aware, generally pessimistic lyrics dotting the record. Guitarist-vocalist Gregg Dolan has apparently reached his most acerbic stage yet as a songwriter, with lines like “I was fuckin' dyin' / chokin'” and “I don't need anybody,” delivered with such detached cool that we actually have no choice but to believe him. And, while this is much of what we've already heard from the band, we can't help but wonder: Do The Kissing Party members kiss their mothers with those mouths?
A.V. Club Grade: B - The Onion


"Music Recommendation Sunday!"

Ok, so I realize this is Derby News Network and not Pitchfork, but I just wanted to use this space to point people at The Hate Album, the most recent release from Denver band Kissing Party, which happens to include Deirdre Sage a/k/a Boo Boo Radley of the Denver Roller Dolls as one of the two vocalists. I'd heard a few tracks online from them earlier this year and really liked them; a copy of the new album Mysteriously Turned Up at the DNN broadcast table when we were in Denver for Western Regionals, and I finally got a chance to listen to it on the way back home.


The Hate Album - Kissing Party

OMFG it's so ridiculously good. It's completely not what you might expect from the context it comes out of; the genealogy of roller derby seems to have made rough-edged rockabilly and punk the unofficial soundtrack to our sport, but Kissing Party's music is all chiming, jangly guitars, sugary vocal melodies and insanely catchy hooks. If that's your sort of thing, well, then, this is what you've been looking for. If that's not your sort of thing, you are a bad human being. This is some of the best ear candy I have heard in a while.

If there's anything negative to be said about this album, it's that there isn't too much variation in the sound and some of the late-album songs sound fairly similar to the opening ones. Only "Melania (reprise)," "You Made Me Happy" and the last untitled track step outside the template laid down through the first third of the album -- however, since the average song here is about the length of a full-length jam (15 songs clocking in at just over 30 minutes long total), the album is over long, long before you get tired of listening to it. I rocked this album like four times in a row during a single flight. Seriously, just hit play now and thank me later.

Also check out an older Kissing Party song, "Commit A Tiny Crime Together" -- this is the song that first made me love them. - Derby News Network


"Kissing Party has Out Of Body Experience"

Ah, love at first play. The splendidly named Kissing Party‘s minimalist, dark romantic bliss pop gem, “I Just Want to Get Out of This Body” floats my boat like pain killers over a broken heart. Goth-y 80's English gloom-glamour meets present day Denver, Colorado angst, and speaks of cre8ive defiance in the face of vast cultural isolation. What could be wrong? Hand claps and bells complement the Joy Division-simple beats and guitars beautifully, lifting lustful lonely vocals above the fray to a shining peak where uncertainty becomes something to be sure of. All in 2 minutes 17! Yay. - Superfan2009


"Kissing Party has Out Of Body Experience"

Ah, love at first play. The splendidly named Kissing Party‘s minimalist, dark romantic bliss pop gem, “I Just Want to Get Out of This Body” floats my boat like pain killers over a broken heart. Goth-y 80's English gloom-glamour meets present day Denver, Colorado angst, and speaks of cre8ive defiance in the face of vast cultural isolation. What could be wrong? Hand claps and bells complement the Joy Division-simple beats and guitars beautifully, lifting lustful lonely vocals above the fray to a shining peak where uncertainty becomes something to be sure of. All in 2 minutes 17! Yay. - Superfan2009


"Lots of love on The Hate Album"

There seems to be a lack of representation in the purely fun and engaging pop-rock genre in the Denver music scene. Except for The Kissing Party. The fun, bouncy group's new release, The Hate Album, is the band's first attempt at breaking away from their prior lo-fi sound, while continuing to create joyful, fast-paced, and energetic music. The Hate Album debuts at a CD release party this Friday, August 28, at the Hi-Dive.
The band formed in 2005 after haphazardly meeting through friends in the basement of a house. Gregg Dolan (Guitar/Vocals) was jamming with one of his friends in the basement while Dierdre Sage (Vocals) was living at the house. The rest of the members connected in a similar fashion-friends of friends. Guitarist Joe Hansen explained that "[The band] met by chance; it wasn't anybody looking for musicians."
The Kissing Party has been through a handful of personnel changes, but the current lineup will be, they say, the final version.
Each member grew up outside of Denver and moved to the city for a variety of reasons. "[Hansen and I are] both white trash from Ohio, and [singer Dierdre Sage] is from P.A., so that means something. It's a mind-frame," said Dolan. Each of the band members brings a different influence from experiences growing up in different cities.
The Kissing Party does not take itself too seriously. The band presents a refreshing escape from mind-bending concept albums by commenting on the meaning of life and providing a carefree environment where listeners don't have to think.
The Hate Album is an album you can just listen to for a good time-throw it in the car and sing along. It's easy to get lost in the group's flamboyant toe-tapping pop-rock. Fun and refreshing is the only way to describe their sound.
Vocalist Dierdre Sage titled the album in lieu of her hatred for the band's last album. "I hated the last album," said Sage, "It makes me very upset." Even though the sound and feel of The Hate Album is somewhat similar to the last, the quality has certainly been stepped up a notch.
"I don't think anything changed," explained Dolan, "It just sounds better quality-wise." Added Hansen, "we spent a lot more time on it, so I think we had a different relationship with the songs."
The Hate Album's first track, and one of the best, "The Heart of it All," sets the tone for the album. Fun and fast-paced, the light-hearted sound continues through the rest of the tunes. The only gripe to be made is that, at just under one and a half minutes long, the track ends before it has a chance to go as far as it certainly could.
The fifth track, and what could be considered the band's first single, "King Grave's Rd," is no less entertaining than the rest of the songs. The tune has a catchy melody, and is sure to stick in listeners' heads. The band made a low-budget music video for "King Graves Rd," featuring group members playing live in Denver clubs and riding bikes around the city. The video for the song can be accessed through the band's Myspace page.
Although the songs take on a simplistic structure, they do not feel overly thin. Each track has a full sound. About the composition stage of the song, Hansen prefers simplicity: "We have intentional restraints. When I come up with guitar parts I keep it simple on purpose."
Still, at times, the vocals become lost, and it feels as though you may be missing something lyrically.
Even though The Kissing Party is gaining a considerable fan base, the band members feel as if they do not fit into the Denver music scene. Dolan said, "I think the bands here generally love each other. It's like a big family; we're the stepchild." This disconnect may stem from each of the members' non-native status in Colorado. Dolan added, "We're in the wrong city in the wrong decade."
Their growing fan base seems to suggest otherwise. So don't expect to see The Kissing Party leaving Denver any time soon.
The Hate Album will be on sale at the band's CD release show Friday at the Hi-Dive at 8 p.m. as well as subsequent shows. Eventually, the album will also be available from the iTunes Store and local record shops such as Twist & Shout.
- Advocate


"Kissing Party The Hate Album"

There are tons of local bands that claim indie rock, yet most don't have a trace of the quirkiness and urgency that once made indie a haven for the lonely, the wimpy and the pissed off. But even among this city's douchebags and fashion victims, there's still a place for purity. Enter Kissing Party's The Hate Album. A refinement of the group's sweet, sharp sound, the disc smuggles razor-blade sentiments inside candy-apple melodies such as the awesomely titled "This Disgusting Morning," on which singer Deirdre Sage chirps, "It's so, so cold/It's so fucking cold out" while the band does its zestiest approximation of My Bloody Valentine's pre-shoegaze jangle. It's official, Denver: You now have three months to produce a better indie-rock album of 2009. Good luck with that. - Westword


"Kissing Party - The Hate Album"

We've been huge fans of genuinely killer underground pop bands for decades. Accordingly, we are absolutely blown away by The Hate Album. Kissing Party is the Denver, Colorado based quintet comprised of Gregg Dolan (vocals, guitar), Deirdre Sage (vocals), Joe Hansen (guitar), Lee Evans (bass), and Shane Reid (drums). This album features fifteen succinct, direct, and totally infectious simple guitar-driven pop tracks that stick in the mind like glue. No unnecessary ingredients here...just the basics. But when the songs are this good...that's really all you need. Killer underground pop cuts include "The Heart Of It All," "The Homecoming," "Lets Face These Times," and "You Made Me Happy." A total feelgood experience from start to finish. Top pick. - Babysue


"Kissing Party - The Hate Album"

We've been huge fans of genuinely killer underground pop bands for decades. Accordingly, we are absolutely blown away by The Hate Album. Kissing Party is the Denver, Colorado based quintet comprised of Gregg Dolan (vocals, guitar), Deirdre Sage (vocals), Joe Hansen (guitar), Lee Evans (bass), and Shane Reid (drums). This album features fifteen succinct, direct, and totally infectious simple guitar-driven pop tracks that stick in the mind like glue. No unnecessary ingredients here...just the basics. But when the songs are this good...that's really all you need. Killer underground pop cuts include "The Heart Of It All," "The Homecoming," "Lets Face These Times," and "You Made Me Happy." A total feelgood experience from start to finish. Top pick. - Babysue


"kissing party "the hate album""

Kissing Party hails from Denver Colorado. Their lyrics have certain sweetness to them and are presented with a natural sing along structure. The vocals are soft and lovely. Their melodies recall early Stills, early Strokes, Joy Division, and Hearts By Darts.

Although Kissing Party may not be very well known yet, these songs certainly provide a potential for far more. One important aspect of quality to note is that there are many indie/pop bands which haven’t quite made it as far in terms of progress and recording quality as Kissing Party has reached in their 4 years as a band. Recent trendoid bands like PAINS haven’t quite done it for me or much of anyone. Bands with a little more seasoning than PAINS such as Kissing Party are perfectly capable for filling the void from those feelings of disappointment.

Check them out here: www.myspace.com/thekissingparty - Even in the Future Nothing Works


"THE KISSING PARTY KISSING PARTY/The Hate Album"

What if the Cardigan's weren't on a major label and didn't break out of a major soundtrack right out of the box? Would they make sunshine pop in need of lithium? Some kids breathing thin air in Denver seem to do a fine job of answering that question. Like the Cardigans produced by the Ramones, these 2 minute pop flawed gems are completely nuttier than what you think you are hearing at first pass. Wild stuff for those that ain't down with the Cole Porter view of rhyming love. - Midwest Record


"The Kissing Party, The Hate Album"

This isn’t your everyday Kissing Party; this is a group of Denver musicians that gives you their Hate Album. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, The Kissing Party will definitely get your attention. Coming off their previous release, Rediscover Lovers, from two years ago, this band is ready to set the bar high NOW.
TKP is made up of five talented artists: Dierdre Sage on vocals, Gregg Dolan on vocals & guitar, Joe Hansen on guitar, Lee Evans on bass and Shane Reid on drums. The overall presence that this band exhibits is overwhelmingly impressive. The chemistry is evident and the musicianship is apparent, so let’s get ready to rock and roll.
What you get from this album is a jumpy pop/rock sound with punk & alternative influences. The music speaks for itself because each song is quick and to the point. The Kissing Party is not messing around here as they move along at an emphatic pace. Each track is done in such a speedy fashion that will get you all pumped up and ready to go, go, go! It is time to join the The Kissing Party now and get your blood racing with The Hate Album.
I simply loved the dynamics between Dierdre and Gregg’s vocal styles. Both Sage & Dolan sing in completely different manners, but they blend it all together to make it work nicely. This vocal aspect is one of the reasons why the music is so damn catchy and appealing. Without question, you will be hooked once you hear them.
The guitars are on point, the drums are slamming and the bass is kicking as The Kissing Party offer up a ridiculous amount of energy. This is not a game and this not a party, this band is the real deal. My only concern was that the music was performed in such a way that it was hard to follow the real substance behind the lyrics. The tracks moved along so quickly that it was difficult to focus on the words at hand. Honestly I didn’t care about this because I was majorly digging the style and sound. I was definitely hooked once I pushed play on my CD player and The Kissing Party never let up on the gas. These Denver natives did not disappoint as they went full steam ahead on The Hate Album. For more information or to find out more about The Kissing Party and their new release, SKOPE out www.myspace.com/thekissingparty. I look for this band to be big on the music scene of today, so keep your eyes peeled and place TKP on your listening radar. - Skope Entertainment


"The Kissing Party, The Hate Album"

This isn’t your everyday Kissing Party; this is a group of Denver musicians that gives you their Hate Album. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, The Kissing Party will definitely get your attention. Coming off their previous release, Rediscover Lovers, from two years ago, this band is ready to set the bar high NOW.
TKP is made up of five talented artists: Dierdre Sage on vocals, Gregg Dolan on vocals & guitar, Joe Hansen on guitar, Lee Evans on bass and Shane Reid on drums. The overall presence that this band exhibits is overwhelmingly impressive. The chemistry is evident and the musicianship is apparent, so let’s get ready to rock and roll.
What you get from this album is a jumpy pop/rock sound with punk & alternative influences. The music speaks for itself because each song is quick and to the point. The Kissing Party is not messing around here as they move along at an emphatic pace. Each track is done in such a speedy fashion that will get you all pumped up and ready to go, go, go! It is time to join the The Kissing Party now and get your blood racing with The Hate Album.
I simply loved the dynamics between Dierdre and Gregg’s vocal styles. Both Sage & Dolan sing in completely different manners, but they blend it all together to make it work nicely. This vocal aspect is one of the reasons why the music is so damn catchy and appealing. Without question, you will be hooked once you hear them.
The guitars are on point, the drums are slamming and the bass is kicking as The Kissing Party offer up a ridiculous amount of energy. This is not a game and this not a party, this band is the real deal. My only concern was that the music was performed in such a way that it was hard to follow the real substance behind the lyrics. The tracks moved along so quickly that it was difficult to focus on the words at hand. Honestly I didn’t care about this because I was majorly digging the style and sound. I was definitely hooked once I pushed play on my CD player and The Kissing Party never let up on the gas. These Denver natives did not disappoint as they went full steam ahead on The Hate Album. For more information or to find out more about The Kissing Party and their new release, SKOPE out www.myspace.com/thekissingparty. I look for this band to be big on the music scene of today, so keep your eyes peeled and place TKP on your listening radar. - Skope Entertainment


"The Hate Album Kissing Party"

There are a lot of reasons people start making music: they want to rebel, they want to be part of an exciting new sound, they want to be a player in the scene, they want to make an artistic statement. They're all more or less valid reasons for picking up a guitar and heading down to the basement, but they're nowhere near as legitimate as the reasons behind Kissing Party's latest album. The Hate Album just wants to spread the joy of pop music.

There's nothing fancy, flashy or fashionable about Kissing Party. The band plays jangly bedroom pop that taps into the Sarah and Matinee Records traditions as singer Deidre Sage and singer/guitarist Gregg Dolan move through a set about the highs and lows (mostly lows) of love and life. With production by Bryan Feuchtinger (Hot IQs) that brings out the sparkly highs while casting slightly ominous shadows in the background, The Hate Album is the sort of universal geek-pop album that could come from any pop hotspot, be it London, Stockholm, Portland or Copenhagen. Kissing Party hail from Denver, but that has hardly anything to do with this album, other than to help pin the five-piece as black sheep in the Mile High underground's fascination with orchestrated pop and folk bands.

While Sage's sugary vocals and Dolan's reserved ones push the band's third full-length toward twee territory, there's a lot more than sheer cuteness and cuddle-power at work in the band's songs. Dolan's genuflected long at the altar of The Smiths, and, as a result knows how to write a tune that makes the most out of the tension between sunny pop and anguished vocals. He couples those instincts with a no-fuss approach that approaches punk's lean song structures; as a result, all but two of The Hate Album's 15 songs get in, get to business and wrap up in less than two and a half minutes. Kissing Party's buoyant pop is meticulously pruned and densely packed to make every note count.

Count it does. The album opens with "The Heart of It All," a pop gem that lets Sage's whipped-sugar vocals lead the band through a bout of pure jangle that wraps up in less than a minute and a half. "The Homecoming" is about twice as long, but Kissing Party uses those three minutes to concoct a nearly perfect blend of girl/boy vocals, bells, slowly unwinding guitar leads and a vocal melody that'll get lodged in your brain for hours. With just the perfect hint of melancholy to give it flavor, it's the band's best mix of dreary and jangle on the album. "King Graves Rd," "This Disgusting Morning" and "The Recovery" all wrap tales of broken -- or at least bending -- hearts around a core of shadow-jangle.

There's no hidden agenda behind Kissing Party's music. It's just pop created to spread the joy of a great pop tune. No matter what all those other bands tell you, that's more than enough reason for a band to exist. Kissing Party proves that.

- Matt Schild - Aversion.com


"Kissing Party — The Hate Album"

{8}

buy it!

{Self-released}

Just in time for our carefree summer soundtracks of 2010, Denver, Colorado band Kissing Party has arrived to infuse our sunny days with coy refrains and enough jingle jangles for a sunset beach dance party. Dissecting an indie-pop library stocked with the likes of Strawberry Whiplash and Black Tambourine, Kissing Party encourage even the wallflowers amongst us to take to the dance floor, or at least give us a reason to drink up.

The band fuse Belle and Sebastian understated acumen with Darling Buds beguiling charms while carving out their own niche with upbeat songs laced with ambition and bittersweet sentimentality. It's an easy task to bestow the Murdoch crown on them. The band themselves tip their hats to the the gods of Lazy Line Painter Jane with the album art design of their latest, The Hate Album. The title signaling not only their own Pains of Being Pure At Heart leanings, but also the wry humor we love most in our songsmiths.

Notes from The Primitives swirl in with commanding girl vocals and relentless splashes jangle happiness of "The Heart Of It All" and "King Graves Rd." From there Kissing Party plunges us into the loneliness of love in "Donna Joy" and "Lets Face These Times," wavering with fuzz and longing backdrops of infectious ohs and ahs.

All is not always fair and kind in the world of the Kissing Party. I'm just thankful that they've used their broken heart lessons to our advantage. - Three Imaginary Girls


"NATIONAL CD REVIEWS"

The Kissing Party
The Hate Album
Self-Released
Street: 10.01.2009
Kissing Party = Blondie + the Cure
The Hate Album is the perfect album title for a band called the Kissing Party. Really, that was enough for me to want to listen to this album. They have mastered the art of 80s-esque instrument pop, smothered in reverb. John Hughes would have made the Kissing Party richer than Lindsay Lohan’s lawyer. “The Heart of it All” is basically the perfect song, mixing Deirdre Sage’s sweet/soft vocals with Ringo Starr-inspired drums that will make you want to jump in place waving your arms side to side like an idiot. There’s a rhythmic hook on “Let’s Face These Times” that will cause car accidents as people passionately tap out the beat on their steering wheels. The songs are all fairly similar, but 13 of the album’s 15 tracks are under or around two minutes, so I can’t get bored. I want the Kissing Party to be famous. – Andrew Roy - Slug magazine


"NATIONAL CD REVIEWS"

The Kissing Party
The Hate Album
Self-Released
Street: 10.01.2009
Kissing Party = Blondie + the Cure
The Hate Album is the perfect album title for a band called the Kissing Party. Really, that was enough for me to want to listen to this album. They have mastered the art of 80s-esque instrument pop, smothered in reverb. John Hughes would have made the Kissing Party richer than Lindsay Lohan’s lawyer. “The Heart of it All” is basically the perfect song, mixing Deirdre Sage’s sweet/soft vocals with Ringo Starr-inspired drums that will make you want to jump in place waving your arms side to side like an idiot. There’s a rhythmic hook on “Let’s Face These Times” that will cause car accidents as people passionately tap out the beat on their steering wheels. The songs are all fairly similar, but 13 of the album’s 15 tracks are under or around two minutes, so I can’t get bored. I want the Kissing Party to be famous. – Andrew Roy - Slug magazine


Discography

Self Titled ( 2006 )
Hold Your Hour and Have Another ( 2007 )
All Your Beds E.P. ( 2007 )
Rediscover Lovers ( 2008 )
The Hate Album ( 2009 )
Wasters Wall ( anticipated release 2011 )

Photos

Bio

Kissing Party originated as a one-piece art project by Gregg Dolan (originally from Warren, Ohio) while attending a private art school in upstate Connecticut. Fueled by their love of psychedelic drugs and Robert Pollard of Guided by Voices, Gregg fast became friends with fellow Ohio native Joe Hansen who was studying kinesthetic sculpture. The two formed the first incarnation of The Kissing Party playing local art galleries and house parties.
After dropping out of art school, the two decided to take their show West to Colorado in 2006. With no real plan, two guitars and close to broke, they lived their first Denver months squatting and sleeping on couches, randomly meeting their future drummer Shane Reid at a warehouse show. Friend of a friend Deirdre Sage was added shortly after based on Gregg’s intuition that she might “sound cool.” The four started The Kissing Party later to be shortened to “Kissing Party.” Through a handful underground CD’s, mix tapes, and several bassists, the foursome attracted the attention of bassist Lee Evans, formerly of the experimental noise band The Assdroids, to cement the final lineup of Kissing Party.
The bands first proper release, 2007 Rediscover Lovers, gained local praise from critics and audiences alike and earned them the 3rd best album of the year from The Denver Post music columnist Ricardo Baca. In 2009 Kissing Party entered the studio to produce their most recent record The Hate Album. Consisting of what Babysue.com calls, “fifteen succinct, direct, and totally infectious simple guitar-driven pop tracks that stick in the mind like glue,” Kissing Party has started to garner national attention, getting notice from such publications as Filter.com, rave reviews from Skope Magazine and receiving airplay from radio stations such as KEXP Seattle. Indie-bloggers Three Imaginary Girls best summed up the album as music “to infuse our sunny days with coy refrains and enough jingle jangles for a sunset beach dance party.”