simple kid

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Simple Kid (nom de plume of Irish native Ciaran McFeely) wasstillin primary school (Queen's English for elementary school)when hecame home with a copy of Bon Jovi's cheese-metalmasterpieceSlippery When Wet. His older, more music-savvy brotherdid the dutyof all older, music-savvy brothers and chucked itdirectly out ofthe window. "He took me up into the attic where hekept his recordsand introduced me to Zeppelin and practically theentire Bowiecatalog. I came to school in flares (Queen's Englishforbellbottoms); I was like an 11-year-old hippie. You could say Iwasa bit odd. But I reveled in it." It's safe to say that revelinginoddity is what has made Simple Kid the unique musical gemcriticsand fans came to know through his first album, the one-manmash-upmasterpiece 1. Recording his mostly acoustic songs straightto an8-track cassette recorder, Ciaran would then drop the songsonto hiscomputer and, "...jumble them up, mess with them untilthey weresomething new." Trying to always keep it simple, McFeelydidn't workwith a producer on 1, nor did he take the music intothe studio,preferring instead to keep control of all the aspectsof production.This resulted in a totally autonomous creativeprocess and an albumthat gushes with trademark Simple Kidingenuity, as well as ahardcore DIY production aesthetic.Following the critical success of1 and near constant touring allover the globe, McFeely foundhimself weary of the constant demandsof the music industry. "I wasjust drained, emotionally andphysically. I realized that there werea lot of other things Iliked to do, not Simple Kid things butCiaran things. I wanted toget back to that." Now feeling as thoughhis life was based onissues and events associated with his SimpleKid persona and nolonger rooted in the very things which spawnedhis creativealter-ego in the first place, McFeely decided to grabthe reigns ofhis own life and make a change. He went back toLondon, took anine-to-five job, and concentrated on just beinghimself for awhile. Renewed with inspiration, Simple Kid was soonback inCiaran's thoughts. "I realized how much I missed makingmusic and Ihad ideas for songs already so I set up all myequipment. That wasthe biggest step, just getting it all out of thecloset and wiringit back up. Once I did it, it felt great." As hisMySpace pagesays, it was time to, "Wake up Simp...you been sleepin'too long."On his latest release, the logically titled 2, Simple Kidhasveered away from the post-modern, cut and paste stylings of 1for amore organic, traditional approach to songwriting andproduction."I just felt like to do it the same way I did it lasttime I wouldonly be doing it that way because that's what peopleexpect fromme, not because that's really what I wanted for themusic. It wouldhave been a bit fake to me." This time Simp (as hisfriends andfans have come to know him) sought to write the songsacousticallyas he had before, but he refrained from overmanipulating themdigitally. "I wanted them to just be what they arewithout mescrewing around with them very much. I still might addsome drumson the computer but basically I just left the music alonethistime." Despite still featuring the fuzzed-out acoustic guitarandbanjo over big beats formula that jolted critics and fans on 1 ,2moves Simple Kid's sound toward folk with its more linearsonicsand less scattered production. "Serotonin" is a sweepingcreeperwith melancholy guitar strumming over a syrupy-slow funkbeat. Theslightly dark undertone of the song stems from the lyricswhichexplore the idea that happiness isn't a state of mindachievable asthe result of particular actions, but just the simpleflow ofchemicals through the brain. The live performance of"Serotonin"features Simp's signature video backdrop, the lyricsscrollingnon-stop throughout the song, resulting in the audiencefocusing onthem, instead of the performer. "I've seen people at myshows whowere talking the whole time but when the lyrics startrunning onthe screen they stop and pay attention. But they aren'tlooking atme. It's interesting that they are at a live show butwhat reallygets their attention are just words on a screen." ASimple Kid liveshow is in fact a full-sensory experience. Byscouring the internetfor funny, weird or ominous video clips andother media, McFeelycompiles his own video programming to playduring his set. "I liketo have something else going on visuallysince there isn't a fullband to watch." But just as with his music,he keeps it in themoment. "When I get tired of what I'm using Ijust get my computerand make something new. This way I can changeit while I'm on theroad, whenever I feel like it. Music should bechangeable." Set forrelease on August 7, 2007, Simple Kid's 2exemplifies his plasticview of music, rendering hyphen-heavy genredefinitions completelyirrelevant. As Simp says, "The songs are allthat matter. These aregood songs and I think people will likethem." Simple? Perhaps.True? Absolutely.

On his latest release, thelogically titled <em>2</em>, Irish-born Ciaran McFeely (aka SimpleKid) has veered away from the post-modern, cut and paste stylings of his groundbreakingdebut album <em>1</em> for a more organic, traditional approach tosongwriting and production. Despite still featuring the fuzzed-out acousticguitar and banjo over big beats formula that jolted critics and fans on hisfirst outing, <em>2</em> moves Simple Kid's sound toward folk withits more linear sonics and less scattered production. But never fear, Simp canstill rock a party with tracks like "<ahref="http://www.yeproc.com/upload/media/view_media.php?id=438">Lil'King Kong</a>" and the stream-of-consciousness dour funk of"<ahref="http://www.yeproc.com/upload/media/view_media.php?id=436">Seratonin</a>."Zanily mature in its development and scope, <em>2</em> raisesMcFeely's music beyond mash-up DIY wizardry and into the league of the bestsongwriters of his generation.

 

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Pre-order<em>2</em> and <strong>download 5 bonustracks</strong>, including Demos from the 2 recording, "Ain'tNothing Wrong" and "This Is Called the City," a cover of theBeatles' favorite "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band," plus liveversions of "Seratonin" "Lil’ King Kong," and"Staring At the Sun.". The DRM-free MP3s will be available in yourStash right away!

 

Buy the first single off<em>2</em>, "<ahref="http://www.yeproc.com/upload/media/view_media.php?id=437">TheTwentysomething</a>" in the <ahref="http://store.yeproc.com/album.php?id=12500">Yep Roc WebShop</a> now!