Very Emergency

Very Emergency got to work with a top producer on its new album
LexGo.com Staff Report

http://www.kentucky.com/745/story/296575.html

Here’s an extended question-and-answer session with the Lexington band Very Emergency, one of the bands playing the LexGo.com launch party at The Dame on Saturday.

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Question: Who’s in the band?

Answer: Kevin Hamilton, drums; Ken Fletcher, vocals; Danny Maupin, guitars; and Greg Melnyk, bass.

Q: Are all of you from Lexington? If not, where are you from? How old are you?

A: Greg, 25, and Danny, 26, are from Louisville; Kevin, 26, is from Lexington; and Ken, 26, is from all over.

Q: How long ago did Very Emergency form? How did you get together? Had you played together before?

A: We’ve been Very Emergency for a little over two years. We all met in college and formed a pop-punk band called I. Raymond. The name change came as a result of wanting to change our sound. Overall, the four of us have been writing songs together for about eight years.

Q: Where does the name come from? Does it have anything to do with the old album by the band The Promise Ring?

A: Yes, The Promise Ring is one of our favorite bands, and the name change served two purposes: being a name we really liked and as a homage to a band we were influenced by.

Q: How would you characterize your sound? What well-known bands do you think you resemble? I hear echoes of Jimmy Eat World, some Rentals.

A: We don’t really know how to categorize our sound. I guess it’s radio-friendly rock. Yeah, we would definitely list those two bands as big influences in our songwriting. I don’t know, we are just trying to make fun music that people can relate to.

Q: Chris Kimsey! Wow! That’s a huge name to work with early on. How did that come about? Tell me about the experience of working with him.

A: Our manager, David Hadland, suggested that we should try to work with a great producer, someone like (wish list) Chris Kimsey, and somehow we convinced him to do it. No, actually he liked our demo stuff and really wanted to be a part of the project. In fact, he wanted to be so involved, he became a part of our label, JDC Entertainment.

Our experience with Kimsey was amazing. He really is a genius; he knows exactly how to bring the best out of you. At first it was nerve-wracking working with a legendary producer, but we became fast friends and he made us feel super-comfortable. We feel like we made a lifelong friend with him. We are in touch often.

Q: Your album "The Getaway" has a lot of escapist themes ("The Getaway") and themes of twentysomething angst ("Picket Fence"). Can you tell me more about that?

A: Yeah, there’s definitely a lot of escapist stuff in there, but really the album is about finding out what’s right for you. It seems like everyone’s blueprint to happiness has become unclear. What are you supposed to do after high school/college? So the album follows one guy who is just trying to find his own way, really. I think that’s something we can all relate to on a personal level in today’s social climate.

Q: You’ve played The Dame quite a bit, right? Anything you like about playing there in particular?

A: The sound, the people and the atmosphere are all top-notch. In our opinion it’s the best live music venue in town. I mean we go see shows there; why not play there?
- Lexington Herald-Leader