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"Spotlight On: Cyanide Kiss"
The Satellite
by Laura Olson
Rob Likes outrageous moustaches, Jeff can't play drums with shoes on,
Matt confesses he forgets everything and Adam missed the interview altogether.
If quirks aren't enough to grab your attention, here are the real reasons
you won't want to miss the Cyanide Kiss CD release party on December 2nd.
More than just another indistinguishable local band, Cyanide Kiss is an
independent Hamilton act woth coming out to see. This alternative-slash-grunge-slash-rock
group punches through the typical music genre shortcommings to which most
local bands fall prey, and are now releasing their impressive raw second
album Halcyon Daze.
Cyanide Kiss guitarist and vocalist, Rob McKenna, percussionist Jeff McKenna
and keyboardist Matt Kras dropped by the satellite office last Friday
afternoon. They were friendly, laid back, and excited about the CD release
party set for december 2nd at the Underground in Hamilton.
Bass player Adam Kras, noticeably absent from the interview, had celebrated
his birthday the night before. His bandmates admitted they had no idea
where he was. "hopefully he shows up on the weekend," Rob Joked.
Influenced by bands like Smashing Pumpkins, Audioslave, and Tool. Cyanide
Kiss has been rocking out together for almost three years, playing at
local venues and developing their material. The band recorded their first
CD here in Robin Aube's home studio over the span of a week, during the
summer of 2003 and distributed it locally. "We printed the boolets on
paper taken from New York Fries," Rob said, shaking his head. For their
new release Halcyon Daze, Cyanide Kiss built their own studio, affectionately
titled the "Feels Like Home Studio" and invested a considerable amount
of time into developing the album.
"We've been working on this thing since almost a year ago," Matt said.
"There is so much more that's gone into it, it's kind of like a piece
of artwork. Its been satisfying. Rob did a fantastic job with the mixing,"
he added.
The new album escapes the pitfalls of overproductio, and clearly conveys
the promising sounds of a local band imporving and coming into their own.
Cyanide Kiss keeps every song on Halcyon Daze fresh and switches up tempos
and styles, all while staying true to their unique message. The band explained
that Halcyon Daze isn't a spiritual album, but that a few tracks express
a clear confusion about faith. "What are we relying on to keep us going
every day?" Matt asked rhetorically.
"I cant play with my shoes on," Jeff confessed. "Its because my drums are always in a house, so I'm not used to playing with shoes on."
For anyone who's never caught a Cyanide Kiss show, expect a lot of impromptu transitions, and not a lot of talking. "We get right into the songs," Matt explained. "Fans have come to notice we're there to throw out a variety of music, and there won't be much talk."
And definitely don't expect any encores from these guys. "We did an encore once," Rob said, wincing. As Matt and Jeff exchanged knowing glances, he explained that at their third show, the band hadn't rehearsed for an encore, but when cheered on by the crowd attempted to play their song "Led Astray". "We just dropped the song in the middle. So now we don't do encores and we don't play that song," Rob said. "Lead Ashtray," Jeff quipped.
Of all the challenges that face an independent band, Jeff said the biggest challenge for him was, "Putting up with Rob 5 minutes before the show." "Rob just wants to make sure everything goes as planned," Matt offered. "He gets a little nervous," Jeff continued. "A little mean," he said, later affirming that Rob is "Otherwise an extremely nice person."
Rob admitted his favourite song to perform live is 'Kept', one of their newest. "I don't know why," he said. "Maybe because I don't do any singing, but I can get into the guitar." "You can see the emotion on stage," Matt interjected, finishing Rob's sentence. Much of the interview is like this; one member will finish another's thoughts, a clear sign that the bands connection is intuitive, something that is sure to pay off in their live shows.
Cyanide Kiss chose Hamilton's The Underground for their CD release party on December 2nd.
