Introducing The Band

I make no secret of the fact that I detest summer. My Celtic complexion burns with the slightest exposure to the sun and my ability to sleep in temperatures over 18 degrees is non-existent. So when summer hits, I disappear. You won't find me at the beach in a speedo, nor will you find me roller-blading along Beaconsfield Parade in bike shorts. All summer long I will be inside, preferably in front of an air-conditioner.

On one of these unbearably hot days a few weeks ago I was bunkered down reading a book of short stories about my ancestral home of Wales when I decided to form a band. Whilst the book was no substitute for, say, a spot of bird watching in Snowdonia, it did provide enough inspiration to rekindle my desire to express myself through the art of music. One could say I heard it from the valleys and I heard it ringing in the mountains that the band would be called The Emergency Kisses, and they would be destined for big things.
I had formed a couple of bands previously, there was the vocally-vegetarian Swedish electro-poppers Jag Älska Grönsaker (I Love Vegetables), and the political Québécois rap group Reste Ensemble (Remain Together). However both bands never quite made it due to some unforeseeable difficulties. Jag Älska Grönsaker had to sell all our instruments to pay legal fees as some band called "The Smiths" objected to our album title "Meat Is Murder". Whilst Reste Ensemble only lasted one gig after we got tomato'd off stage at a Quebec City arts festival during our pro-federalism anthem "A Vote For Charest". Later that evening I was stuffed into a sack made out of the Fleurdelisé and rolled down a hill, gaining two broken ribs and a new found respect for René Lévesque.

These were tough lessons, but ones that I think have equipped me well for my current project. I have a better understanding of what I want to convey with The Emergency Kisses, and also the street smarts to implement the vision. I'm a little older, a little wiser and a lot more savvy.

Whilst The Emergency Kisses are definitely a pop band, I feel it is important that the band push boundaries on both a musical and socio-political level, as well as providing a desirable aesthetic. And so to this extent the band are the perfect combination of the feel good pop hooks of La Casa Azul, the electronic experimentation of Broadcast, the shady anarchism of Godspeed You Black Emperor!, the feminist rhetoric of Kathleen Hanna and the razor-sharp cheek-bones of Suede's Neil Codling.
In fact due to the band's broad range of influences, their intellect, wit and conscience they have already been described by one notable critic as "the Thomas More of indiepop; truly a band for all seasons"

There is a definite, almost tangible buzz surrounding the band at the moment. Why just the other day I walked into the bar Troika and as I was ordering a vodka cranberry overheard the following conversation between two young girls sitting near the front window:

Girl A: Isn't that the guy from The Emergency Kisses?
Girl B: Yeah, I think it is. Have you heard them?
Girl A: No, not yet, but a friend of mine says she has their demo and it's awesome.
Girl B: Really? Does the band have a Myspace page?
Girl A: I don't think so, I think Myspace might be a bit passé now
Girl B: Wow, he's a real 21st century renegade.
Girl A: I know, and such a dreamboat as well! I'd love to get to know him better.

The Emergency Kisses are a band for the people. I'm not content with critical acclaim and the adoration of the hip and beautiful, that's too easy. Spreading the word to the masses will be the band's next objective, an objective I'm dedicated to achieving. But this isn't for me, it's for them. The public needs a band like The Emergency Kisses. The band are a wake-up call as well as a celebration. The Emergency Kisses are the rain to break the drought.