Forming in early 2013 five- piece funk soul groove machine Kingston Crown has hit the ground running playing shows and festivals all over Victoria and interstate. Having met though university the guys gigged for eight months before releasing their debut EP Show Me How at Melbourne’s famously soulful Cherry Bar.
As the guys have been working to perfect their show, they have proved popular with young and old alike, dancing up a storm most recently at North Melbourne’s Spring Fling Festival.
Learning along the way the guys have had the opportunity to open for Aussie legends like Daryl Braithwaite and Chocolate Starfish. Continuing to write and preform the guys have high hopes for 2014, so stay tuned for a show near you!
You guys only formed at the start of this year. How did you all come together to create Kingston Crown?
A bit of luck and a bit of good timing I think. Craig and Kenny started with the idea and everyone else just fell in through jamming or mutual love of the music that was being created.
Being a freshly made band, what’s the experience been like so far?
A hell of a lot of fun and hard work. It’s funny how “hard work” isn’t so taxing when it’s what you love doing and everyone gets involved. The teething process was surprisingly quick, it took very little time to get into each other’s heads and start that intuitive band vibe.
How does the songwriting and recording process go down? I’ve heard everyone gets involved, right?
Definitely. We write songs in so many ways, whether someone has an entire song up and running or just a hook or lyric, we sit down and work shop it until it meets everyone’s standards.
Funnily enough, a lot of our songs get written when we start switching instruments, there’s nothing like a fresh set of ears.
What are the main musical influences behind your soulful funk sound?
We all love the old school sound that came out of Stax and Motown Records, we try and bring that into all of our songs in some way or another.
You’ve played a slew of shows throughout the year. Have there been any highlights from the gigs so far?
Meeting Daryl Braithwate was pretty amazing.
The EP launch at Cherry Bar went off and it was a big moment for the band to finally release the music we’d been working on.
Playing the local scene with other amazing up and coming bands has been the highlight for us, we’ve met some really talented guys and gals.
What’s the general vibe from the shows – what should punters expect to see from you guys?
Energy from the get go, killer vocals and tight, funky tunes that you can dance to.
And how has the live show grown over the course of the year? Did it take a little while to come together or did it slot together perfectly from the get go?
Our first gig was to a room of about eigh people in a nightclub in Sunbury, while not the most glamorous of gigs, we all finished playing and knew we were a great fit as a band.
The show has definitely grown and improved however. Bringing the energy for the entire set was the biggest learning point for us, we’ve also added a few points for improv and the show is a lot less planned than it was at the start of the year. We enjoy those moments on stage that can never be replicated.
Do you have any particular ritual before you go on stage, or even a lucky charm you take with you?
I’d never thought of this before, we don’t. Do my drumsticks count as a lucky charm? I don’t play any gig without them.
We’ve heard about some of your stories from on the road, like 4am karaoke in Canberra. What other antics do you guys get up to?
Please don’t remind me. You’d think that as a band we’d be decent at karaoke, but that’s just not the case when everyone decides to start singing Springsteen or Fleetwood Mac.
I think I’ll have to keep our antics on the down low, you already know too much.
What kind of artists are you guys listening to at the moment?
We’re always listening to the legends; Stevie, The Temptations, Marvin, Jackson 5. We recently made a little Allen Stone mix for the car, that’s been getting a run for the last 2 weeks.
More recently I’ve been listening to Justin Timberlake’s new album “The 20/20 Experience”, well worth a listen. Lots of Aloe Blacc, Frank Ocean, Bruno Mars, Electric Empire.
If you could curate your own festival, where would it be, who would be on the bill, how many people would you let in and what features would it have?
It would probably look a lot like Byron Bay Blues Festival. That place is the mecca for great music, food and vibe. Maybe with the addition of some kind of water park and held during Summer, I feel that would be an improvement.
You’re performing at the upcoming Beyond The Music charity show, could you tell us a little about that show and how you came to be a part of it?
Jim our keys player is a good friend of Jake from Beyond the Music. He mentioned that they were putting together a line up to raise some funds for Beyond Blue. Having seen the effects of mental illness in our community we thought we would jump on board raise some funds and try to scrap some of that stigma that is connected with many of these illnesses.
What’s in store for the rest of the year and 2014?
We’re really hoping to head out to some rural areas of Australia and up the east coast at some point. Our goal for 2014 is just to get as many people as we possibly can to hear some Kingston Crown!
Where we can see you play next, what releases do you have available and where can we get them?
We have just recently released our debut EP ‘Show Me How’ you can pop to one of our shows and pick up a copy or check out iTunes!!
BEYOND THE MUSIC – RAISING MONEY FOR DEPRESSION ONE ROCKIN’ SONG AT A TIME
Friday, 25 October, 2013
Doors open at 8pm
The Evelyn – Brunswick Street, Fitzroy
w/ Empra, Holliava, Third Earth
$10 (AllProfits to Beyond Blue)
To support go to: Beyond The Music – Raising Money For Beyond Blue
2nd November – Prince of Wales, St Kilda
6th November – Revolver, Prahran
9th November – Toff in town supporting Better than the Wizards (Single Launch)
16th November – Rubix Warehouse, Brunswick
