Kids Of Survival from NYC are just one of those bands that you can’t help but like because of their wide eyed and bubbly approach to pop music-making and their knee-slapping banter and shtick. They have admittedly avoided the “if you scream it, they will come” mentality of most bands who throw in a breakdown and pig squeals just to sell a few records; KOS are staying true to their pop and punk roots and the teeny boppers of the tri-state area are loving it!
I had no idea what I was getting into when I got in touch with singer Vin Survival for a phone interview that quickly turned into a conference call with Gary, then Dylan and Frank (the rest of the band). I’m surprised a single question was answered between the hysterical laughing and wise cracks. Between questioning each other on who taped the latest episode of Entourage and Flight Of The Concords to trying to figure out how to make a three-way phone call on a Blackberry, Kids Of Survival know how to take anything (their music included) and make it fun.
This energetic and talented band of comics is definitely for fans of All-American Rejects, The Starting Line and Fall Out Boy but with a very homey comfort that you can only find in a local band. With their sophomore full-length album due out the spring of 2009, we’ll see if they can still break as many hearts and tap as many toes as their debut album, Good Til Your Heart Pops.
Whether you’re just going to download KOS tunes, play back songs on their MySpace or be a dedicated fan (and they have armies of them) who makes it out night after night to shows, Kids Of Survival definitely deserves a bit of attention.
Vin: I am delirious on cold medicine right now, Duckie, I should have warned you. This is gonna be great.
[Laughs] I love you guys; you’re too funny.
Dylan: The feeling is mutual. I actually figured out recently that I’ve been saying it wrong. I’ve been saying ‘the feeling is neutral,’ like, not the right word.
[Laughs]
Vin: Gary, all of this is being recorded right now and Dylan just admitted how terrible he is with grammar. Duckie, I swear to god, print that!
Well, my first question is who did you guys grow up listing to? Who are your influences?
Vin: Can we answer this as individuals or a band as a whole?
Individually, please. Gary, you go first.
Gary: Who me? [Laughs] Did everyone else go? [Laughs] If I was speaking for everybody grew up listening to different stuff because we’re ages apart; one of us is 15 and someone’s 12.
Vin: I don’t think that you were listening because she said answer individually.
After another few minutes of banter, Gary cited artist like the Ataris, Minus The Bear, Portugal. The Man, The Mars Volta and other “ambient” music as some of his favorites; Dylan, Blink 182, RX Bandits and other pop/punk bands. Frank likes an odd combination of Bone Thugs And Harmony, Boys2Men, A Day To Remember and Hanson while Vin likes “’90s love rock” (also know as ‘90s alternative like Bush and Oasis).
