Having worked with so many local bands in the past few years, it’s always somewhat rewarding to see many of them break beyond the “local” boundaries. Sometimes it’s sad to see bands break up or fall under the “radar,” yet others seem to flourish, even while following that simple DIY, work hard recipe. You may recognize Kid Felix, a six-piece band from Laurel Springs, from my Local Radar in the past. They’ve tackled everything from playing with bands like Alice In Chains and Soundgarden to rocking the Bamboozle Festival and having music in regular rotation on rock radio—all within just two years.
All six members contribute something so unique to the band’s signature yet original sound. I recently had the opportunity to chat with Brett Hagen and Ken Baxter of Kid Felix about their new music, action-packed summer show lineups, and plans for the future. They are no strangers to hard work and determination, and I think it’s safe to say these guys are well on their way. Hopefully in just a short time you will be hearing and seeing them all over the place!
Thanks for taking the time to chat! I have featured you guys a few times in the past, and now it’s time to touch base with all of the cool things that are happening in the lives of Kid Felix these days. You’ve had a killer lineup of shows this summer, and you kicked it off by opening up the WMMRBQ at Susquehanna Bank Center with Alice in Chains and Soundgarden. How has the ride been these past few months?
Brett/Ken: Thanks for taking the time to chat with US! It’s been pretty surreal, to say the least. It seems like every time we get finished with one thing, we get another opportunity. We’re definitely not taking it for granted though. It’s taken a lot of hard work to see the results we’ve seen so we know we have a lot more work ahead of us. We will never stop working hard.
You guys just released two brand new incredible singles entitled “I Am The River” and “Jericho.” I am really glad you decided to release both of them at the same time, for I feel it would’ve been hard to choose! The songs seem very mature, and you are definitely growing with your sound, progressing in the right direction. Can you tell us a little bit about the writing and recording process of these two tracks?
We always write as a group, so putting these songs together was fun. It always has to be fun. We all love rock, but that’s about where the similarities end in our musical tastes. Everyone has very different influences so it’s pretty cool to see how the songs come together after we are all able to put our own touches on them. We all love and are inspired by so many different things. I think that’s what makes our style so unique. We recorded them with Ron DiSilvestro at Forge Recording.
Well tell Ron he did a great job! The songs are so catchy and showcase all of your talents so well. Now your single “Class Action Satisfaction” is on regular rotation on Philly radio. I have heard it a few times, and it never gets old. Will either one of these tracks be getting some airplay soon as well?
We’ll be submitting both to them, so fingers crossed!
Now I don’t know from experience, obviously, but it must be a weird yet amazing feeling driving in the car and hearing your own song on the radio. Have you ever mistaken it for your iPod? How have your fans reacted to it? I am sure they go nuts every time it’s on with texts like “Dude, I just heard your song on the radio!”
We definitely have. It’s a strange feeling hearing it on the air or when a DJ gives the band a compliment. All our fans seem super excited for us too, which is always awesome. It’s been really exciting to see people posting about hearing our song at random times throughout their day, although I’m sure some of the DJs are tired of them texting in to request our song! We have great fans.
Are these tracks the tease and lead-up for a possible new EP, or perhaps a full-length? Have you started writing a lot more songs already? What gives? A girl has to know these things!
(Laughs) Well, we are actually in the process of writing for a full-length. The plan is to just keep writing as much as we can. There’s no set date on this yet, but we promise it’s not going to be too long. You will know as soon as we know! We want it to be our best work to date.
You guys recently announced that you will join Three Days Grace and Otherwise on stage at the Starland Ballroom on Sept. 26, a show presented by The Rat and WDHA. How excited are you for this show?
This is actually our first time at Starland Ballroom, so we’re all really excited to be supporting such well-known bands. We’re hoping to just get out and play in front of as many new ears as we can this fall, so playing at such a great venue with a great history with bands of that caliber seems like a pretty good start. They are coming back strong with a great lineup of shows from what we have seen, and we are so excited to be a part of that!
You guys have played with so many well-known acts and even have headlined some pretty big shows at some famous venues! Now what I want to know is, are there any local bands that you guys are supporting hard right now, other than your own projects?
Oh yeah, there are a ton! We’ve recently played some really great shows with some awesome bands that we are pretty excited about. Three bands from the south area to definitely check out are Phantasm, Black Stars and The Great Socio. They are just a few that we support!
Well, as you can tell, I am a huge fan, and I want to spread the word to many who may not have heard your stuff yet. Where can current and soon-to-be fans access the new tracks along with your catalogue?
You can check out all the songs on iTunes and Amazon.com, or head over to our website for links to all of our stuff. We’re very active on our socials and handle them all ourselves, so we love to interact with our fans!
Thanks so much for updating me on what has been going on in your rock star lives guys. I will see you at the Starland Ballroom!
Thanks so much to you and The Aquarian Weekly for featuring us!
Catch Kid Felix at the Starland Ballroom on Sept. 26 with Three Days Grace and Otherwise. For more information and to hear their two new singles “Jericho” and “I Am The River,” visit kidfelix.com.
