Review Fix Exclusive: Kidi Band Talks ‘So Good’ And More

By Patrick Hickey Jr.

Review Fix chats with Kids Band’s Steven Kai van Betten, Linnea Sablosky, Cari Stevens, and Cooper Wolken, who discuss their origin in music, creative process and new album, “So Good.”

Review Fix: How did you get involved in music?

We’ve all played various instruments since we were children!

Review Fix: What’s your creative process like?

It varies, but generally it’s something like this: One of us writes some starting version of a song, can be short, just a single idea like a riff with a melody, or something nearly fully realized, like a complete song with lyrics and overdubs with all the parts. Whatever phase it’s in, when it reaches the band it’s usually completely deconstructed and dissected and then built back up with each person writing and rewriting their parts until it feels good. Then we infinitely loop and repeat each section until all the parts start to mesh and we get a homogenized sound. 

Review Fix: What inspires you?

Rad music, friends, the ocean, rocks, people, conversations, road trips, climbing, surfing, dancing, laughing, crying, screaming, drawings, paintings, cooking, burritos, riding bikes, walking, listening, flowers, trees, skateboarding, handbalancing, yoga, books, podcasts, family, dogs, cats, lovers. 

Review Fix: What does music mean to you?

Music is the sunlight through a stained glass skylight. It’s the feeling of walking into a space and being greeted by with a bunch of people that you love, all singing. Music means every part of your body lighting up with goosebumps. Music is an exquisite garden. Music means standing on the edge of a very tall cliff. Music means crying until you’re dry. It’s being in a forest at night, afraid to move. Music means diving into the ocean on January 1st! Music means headbanging in your car. Music means calling you mom. Music is the smell of brownies just out of the oven. Music your lover’s touch. 

Review Fix: How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard you?

Polyrhythmic, singable, danceable, rich, weird, clever, fun.

Review Fix: How are your live shows different from your studio work?

Not super different! We arrange everything in order to play live! In the studio we can edit mistakes, so that’s nice.

Review Fix: What inspired your latest single?

Free Will was inspired by all the scary questions we ask ourselves, like “am I in control of my body and mind, or am I just false identifying?” Asking this kind of question can feel like stepping into a whirlpool, because one leads to another, to another, to another. Suddenly you’re hanging out with these really big ideas, questions you feel completely unqualified to answer, and it can make you feel small and confused without any sense of progress toward truth… Maybe you know there’s a better way to spend your time and mental power, but you can’t resist looking over there because these questions have an almost addictive quality to them. The music takes a mechanical, relentless, and anxiety-inducing approach, creating a sonic representation of what it’s like to be gripped by these kinds of thoughts.

Review Fix: What are your goals for 2021? 

Play a dang show!! 

Review Fix: What’s next?

We’ve all written a lot of songs this last year that we haven’t been able to rehearse… So the next step is to get in the same room and bang out some bangers.

Review Fix: Anything else you’d like to add? 

Kidi is pronounced “KEE-dee”  ;)