The Kissaway Trail
Encyclopedia
The Kissaway Trail are a five-piece indie rock
band from Odense
, Denmark
. They follow a number of other Danish alternative bands to make names of themselves, such as Mew
, The Raveonettes
and Carpark North
.
Their material is released in Europe (aside from Scandinavia
) and Japan by Bella Union
, Etch n Sketch in Australia
and New Zealand
, and Playground Music in Scandinavia. On their breakthrough album underground producer Morten Frank helped them in the studio.
The title of their song 61 relates to the number of days a band member had to wait to hear if their family member had a terminal illness. The member involved is kept under wraps for very personal reasons; some fans believe it is Hasse, the drummer, because he has a tattoo of the number '61' on his chest. Other sources suggest he might have gotten the tattoo because, according to his own admission, 61 is his favourite song to play live.
In the Autumn of 2007, The Kissaway Trail acted as the main support for Editors
on their UK and European tours, alongside Ra Ra Riot
in the UK and The Boxer Rebellion in Europe.
The Kissaway Trail are renowned for their own individual slant on the English language within their lyrics.
The band have cited influences to their music include The Beach Boys
, Granddaddy, Daniel Johnston
and Sonic Youth
, amongst others. Their sound has also been compared to that of the Polyphonic Spree
and Canadian band Arcade Fire.
The band have been known for their live performances, which have included songs from 'The Kissaway Trail', as well as b-sides such as 'Romeo And Romeo' and 'La Mia'. They have also performed at the Wireless, Latitude
and SXSW festivals in 2007, and the Montreaux Jazz Festival in 2008, where they supported Interpol
and The National
.
to perform two live free gigs in Dublin and at the Cork Opera House
on December 9 and December 10.
The Kissaway Trail planned to release their new album entitled Sleep Mountain in March 2010. They have a new single from the upcoming album. The single "SDP" can be downloaded for free on the band's Facebook. In March and April 2010 the band played in North America in opening support of Australian band The Temper Trap
.
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band from Odense
Odense
The city of Odense is the third largest city in Denmark.Odense City has a population of 167,615 and is the main city of the island of Funen...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. They follow a number of other Danish alternative bands to make names of themselves, such as Mew
Mew (band)
Mew is a Danish alternative music band consisting of Jonas Bjerre, Bo Madsen, and Silas Utke Graae Jørgensen. Bassist Johan Wohlert was also a founding member of the band, but left in 2006...
, The Raveonettes
The Raveonettes
The Raveonettes are a Danish indie rock duo, consisting of Sune Rose Wagner on guitar, instruments, and vocals, and Sharin Foo on bass, guitar and vocals...
and Carpark North
Carpark North
Carpark North is a Danish electronic rock band. The band was formed in Aarhus, Denmark on 28 July 1999 by Lau Højen , Søren Balsner and Morten Thorhauge...
.
History
Three members of The Kissaway Trail (Søren, Thomas and Rune) originally recorded together under the names of 'Hostmom' and 'Isles'. Isles self-released an album called "We have decided not to die" in 2005. Since then, an additional guitarist, Daniel, and drummer Hasse joined the band, while Thomas started to sing alongside Søren making the distinctive two lead-vocal sound that they have today. Various tracks from this early period of the bands history can still be downloaded from Danish music websites. The band’s musical existence very nearly ended when Søren lost his love for music after his father was killed under tragic circumstances. However, he made his own decision to start performing and recording again, and The Kissaway Trail started to create their debut album.Their material is released in Europe (aside from Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
) and Japan by Bella Union
Bella Union
Bella Union is an independent record label that was started up by Simon Raymonde and Robin Guthrie in 1997.After releasing records with 4AD for a large part of their career, Cocteau Twins decided to take a step towards independence and started up the Bella Union record label, through which they...
, Etch n Sketch in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, and Playground Music in Scandinavia. On their breakthrough album underground producer Morten Frank helped them in the studio.
The title of their song 61 relates to the number of days a band member had to wait to hear if their family member had a terminal illness. The member involved is kept under wraps for very personal reasons; some fans believe it is Hasse, the drummer, because he has a tattoo of the number '61' on his chest. Other sources suggest he might have gotten the tattoo because, according to his own admission, 61 is his favourite song to play live.
In the Autumn of 2007, The Kissaway Trail acted as the main support for Editors
Editors
Editors are a British indie rock band based in Birmingham, who formed in 2002. Previously known as Pilot, The Pride and Snowfield, the band consists of Tom Smith , Chris Urbanowicz , Russell Leetch and Ed Lay .Editors have so far released two platinum studio...
on their UK and European tours, alongside Ra Ra Riot
Ra Ra Riot
Ra Ra Riot is an American indie rock band from Syracuse, New York, consisting of vocalist Wes Miles, bassist Mathieu Santos, guitarist Milo Bonacci, cellist Alexandra Lawn , violinist Rebecca Zeller, and drummer Kenny Bernard.-History:...
in the UK and The Boxer Rebellion in Europe.
The Kissaway Trail are renowned for their own individual slant on the English language within their lyrics.
The band have cited influences to their music include The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
, Granddaddy, Daniel Johnston
Daniel Johnston
Daniel Dale Johnston is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and artist. Johnston was the subject of the 2006 documentary The Devil and Daniel Johnston. He currently lives in Waller, Texas....
and Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
, amongst others. Their sound has also been compared to that of the Polyphonic Spree
The Polyphonic Spree
The Polyphonic Spree is a choral symphonic pop rock band from Dallas, Texas that was formed in 2000 by Tim DeLaughter. The band's sound relies on a variety of vocal and instrumental color by featuring a choir, flute, trumpet, trombone, violin, viola, cello, percussion, piano, guitars, bass, drums,...
and Canadian band Arcade Fire.
The band have been known for their live performances, which have included songs from 'The Kissaway Trail', as well as b-sides such as 'Romeo And Romeo' and 'La Mia'. They have also performed at the Wireless, Latitude
Latitude Festival
The Latitude Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Henham Park, Southwold, Suffolk, England. It was first held in July 2006....
and SXSW festivals in 2007, and the Montreaux Jazz Festival in 2008, where they supported Interpol
Interpol (band)
Interpol is an American indie rock and post-punk revival band from New York City. Formed in 1997, the band's original line-up consisted of Paul Banks , Daniel Kessler , Carlos Dengler and Greg Drudy . Drudy left the band in 2000 and was replaced by Sam Fogarino...
and The National
The National (band)
The National is an indie rock band formed in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1999 and currently based in Brooklyn, New York. The band's lyrics are written and sung by Matt Berninger, a baritone...
.
Current activities
In 2009 the band teamed up with Heineken Music IrelandHeineken
Heineken is a Dutch beer which has been brewed by Heineken International since 1873. It is available in a 4.6% alcohol variety in countries such as Ireland. It is the flagship product of the Heineken company and is made of purified water, malted barley, hops, and yeast. In 1886 H...
to perform two live free gigs in Dublin and at the Cork Opera House
Cork Opera House
Cork Opera House is a theatre and opera house in Cork in the Republic of Ireland. It was originally built in 1855, although its existence has not been continuous; having survived the burning of much of Cork by British forces in reprisal for an ambush of a military convoy in 1920 by Irish rebels,...
on December 9 and December 10.
The Kissaway Trail planned to release their new album entitled Sleep Mountain in March 2010. They have a new single from the upcoming album. The single "SDP" can be downloaded for free on the band's Facebook. In March and April 2010 the band played in North America in opening support of Australian band The Temper Trap
The Temper Trap
The Temper Trap is an Australian indie rock band which formed in 2005. The core members are Jonathon Aherne on bass guitar and vocals, Toby Dundas on drums and programming, Dougy Mandagi on vocals and guitar, and Lorenzo Sillitto on guitar, keyboards and vocals. They are supplemented on tours with...
.
Members
- Thomas L. Fagerlund – vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, acoustic 12-string guitar, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, synthSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
, xylophoneXylophoneThe xylophone is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets...
, tread organ, banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, travel guitar - Søren B. Corneliussen – vocals, guitar, acoustic guitarSteel-string acoustic guitarA steel-string acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the classical guitar, but strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound...
- Daniel Skjoldmose – guitar, keysKey (instrument)A key is a specific part of a musical instrument. The purpose and function of the part in question depends on the instrument.On instruments equipped with tuning machines, violins and guitars, for example, a key is part of a tuning machine. It is a worm gear with a key shaped end used to turn a cog,...
, piano, backing vocals - Rune Pedersen – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, backing vocals - Hasse Mydtskov – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, backing vocals
Albums and EPs
- Into the Ocean and Rise Again (EP, October, 2006)
- The Kissaway TrailThe Kissaway Trail (album)The Kissaway Trail is the self-titled debut studio album by Danish indie rock band The Kissaway Trail. It was released in January 2007 in Denmark, in April 2007 in the UK and Australia, and in May 2007 in mainland Europe and Scandinavia.-Track listing:...
(LP, January 2007) - Sleep Mountain (LP, March 2010)
Singles
- "La La Song" (2007)
- "61" (2007)
- "Smother + Evil = Hurt" (April 2007, re-release February 2008)
- "Beat Your Heartbeat" (July 2010)