By Kent Davies
Winnipeg punk-rockers Kids on Fire have accomplished a lot in the few short years they’ve been playing. Comprised of local ska/punk vets Ian Lodewyks (Subcity/ the Barrymores), Steve Hallick (the Resistance/ the Crackdown) and Leif Gobeil (Vibrating Beds/ the Afterbeat), KOF’s infectious sound is a perfect combo of hardcore, street punk and Clash-inspired rock that you can’t help but pay attention to. Since their 2009 self-titled debut, they’ve played to packed audiences and came second in last year’s Uptown reader’s poll for both best new band and best local release. Now they’re set to embark on the rarest of touring opportunities: teaming up with non-profit group Solidarity Rock to play Cuba. Not only will KOF be playing shows across Cuba they’ll be bringing down much-needed instruments and equipment for aspiring Cuban musicians. Stylus recently caught up with KOF before their headlining gig at the 6th annual tribute to Joe Strummer, a benefit for Solidarity Rock.Stylus: How did Kids on Fire start?
Steve Hallick: Pretty much I was having a great life. And than Ian started harassing me about playing with this guy named Leif. I said, you mean that guy from the Afterbeat. Fuck him. And then we started playing in seedy basements and it sort of progressed from there. Lots of drinking later, we recorded an album.
Ian Lodewyks: Leif and I always wanted to be in a band together. We asked Steve to be the drummer and he whined about it. Then we said we were going to get another drummer – then he said he would do it.
Stylus: Was it the goal of the band to cut an album on vinyl right away?
IL: We’ve all been in bands before, but for Kids on Fire we really wanted to do it a different way then usual.
SH: Instead of playing a bunch of gigs and saving money, we thought, let’s fucking do it backwards and record an album first. It’s seemed to work.
Stylus: What were the influences you brought to the table? There seems to be a good cross-section of different punk rock styles.
Leif Gobeil: I don’t think we really talked about it but we have different conceptions of what we could do. We did have a complete understanding that…
SH: We wouldn’t be playing reggae. No reggae.
IL: I think we all agreed that every good band has different sides to it. And Leif and I always preferred bands that would switch off vocals and songwriting duties. It gives us a little more depth and room to come up with the material.
Stylus: Right after the album came out Steve fucked off to Central America for a few months. By the time he came back KOF had garnered a lot of attention. Were you surprised by that?
SH: It was the plan all along in my head but I didn’t think it would actually happen. It was one of those things where ideally you would play some shows release this album and then leave and then not play for a long time and maybe let the album speak for itself.
IL: It was ass-backwards. We sold enough albums from the first shows that word of mouth spread and by the time we played again we had a good crowd at most of the shows we played. I think a lot of bands play too many shows sometimes and wear their audiences thin.
LG: We’re still working on doing that.
SH: Slowly but surely we’ll get there.
Stylus: Let’s talk about Solidarity Rock.
SH: In a nut shell, it’s a non-profit organization based out of Edmonton that’s primary goal is to bring musical instruments and recording equipment to Cuban performers. With the trade embargo and with the general life in Cuba is very difficult for musicians to get equipment. Solidarity Rock started as a response to that. They help struggling bands in Cuba by having bands tour and bring down gear.
Stylus: How did you first find out about Solidarity Rock?
SH: We did the tour with a band called the Slates this summer. Slates were the second band to go down to Cuba with Solidarity Rock and it was through talking with them that the opportunity kind of came about.
IL: The organization is available to any bands that want to be a part of it as long as those bands are willing to put in the time and legwork into getting there. We were chosen because they liked the fact that we were willing to organize a series of benefit shows and pay our own way.
Stylus: What are your expectations for this tour?
IL: I don’t think any of us have our heads around it yet. We just got our itinerary including like, six shows, a radio spot and two TV appearances. I think our expectations are to gain a huge life experience. To play punk rock for an audience that hasn’t necessarily heard that genre of music will be crazy. Hopefully we can also influence some kids down there to start a punk band.
Stylus: You’re also touring with Cuba’s only hardcore band.
IL: We are renting this giant bus down there for the tour. Since there’s tons of room, Drew McIntosh, the president of the Solidarity Rock foundation, asked Arrabio, Cuba’s only hardcore band, to play with us on the tour. This will be the first time this band has ever toured their country. Hopefully it spreads the word that not only that there is punk rock out there but it exists in their own country.
Stylus: Are you planning on a new album following the trip?
SH: We have enough new songs for an album. The plan is when we get back from Cuba to go in the studio and record.
IL: We’re planning on some smaller releases, maybe a seven-inch instead of a full album. We had plans to go in the studio recently but we thought we should wait until after Cuba. It will be a chance to play the new songs to a unique audience. I think the songs will get kind of an all-ages reaction, an instant reaction. If they like it, they’ll just go off. That’s way better then going on the road and testing them on like, a Toronto audience that acts way too cool to get into it. Even if they like the song they’ll look around to see if it’s okay to tap their foot. While I think a Cuban audience will either will love it or hate it.
If you missed the Joe Strummer tribute you can help out Kids on Fire and other local Solidarity Rockers by attending the following benefit shows:
February 25 – with High Class Low Lifes and the Noble Thieves @ the Cavern
March 4 – with Subcity & Vibrating beds @ Times Change(d)
March 11 – with Kids on Fire & friends @ the Albert
For more info on Kids on Fire and Solidarity Rock, check out:
http://www.kidsonfiremusic.com/
http://solidarityrock.com