http://www.wuky.org/tonic.html
Legendary producer Chris Kimsey and singer/songwriter Ken Fletcher from Very Emergency tell tonic’s Kopana about their partnership and how to make a great record
Come on down to the Second Annual New Year’s Eve Party @ The Green Lantern. Last year was such a blast that we decided to do it all over again with Very Emergency.
Expect an awesome night with music starting around 10pm with The Lollipop Factory. Then, after a midnight champagne toast, Very Emergency will take the stage until you have broken at least two of your resolutions.
$10 includes your cover and champagne at midnight as well as The Green Lantern’s super cheap drink specials.
VERY EMERGENCY Breaks Out With The Getaway Special Edition and Rock Legends Chris Kimsey and Grammy Award Winner Peter Frampton
Nobody likes a know-it-all. But in rock ‘n’ roll, everybody loves do-it-alls — bands that pen luscious pop hooks, spin real-life yarns and perform like they swill rocket fuel before blowing up on stage.
And Very Emergency are do-it-alls. Their new album The Getaway rocks like Elmore Leonard with a six-string and a stack of amps. It’s a concept disc about a heist bound for failure and the characters whose lives are intertwined by the luckless caper, all propelled by the group’s sleek trademark sound.
Smartly carved riffs give songs like the title track and “Leader of Fools” urgency, and the quintet’s elegantly uncluttered melody driven arrangements, in support of sparkplug frontman Ken Fletcher’s honey-and-whiskey voice, are the stuff that hits are made of.
“For us, everything starts with a melody, and then we build a song around it,” Fletcher explains. “That’s how we imagine that the bands we love do it, like Weezer and Jimmy Eat World, or, going back to our roots in ’80s pop, the Cars. But we don’t sound like any of them.”
That’s very true. Very Emergency — Fletcher, guitarist Danny Maupin, bassist Greg Melnyk, drummer Jakob Bell, keyboardist Meghan Hodges and new six-stringer Garrett Hodges have instead minted a sound that echoes between rock’s past and its cutting edge without dwelling in nostalgia for even a moment.
Sure, down in the mix there’s the feel-good dance-ability of New Wave as well as the snarl of the punk-pop the group’s members played in earlier bands, but there’s also a modern, urban vibe to their pertly tailored tunes along with the timeless balance of earnest storytelling and pleasing harmonies.
In just three years that approach — and their incendiary live shows — has made Very Emergency the kings of the Lexington, Kentucky, pop scene with a growing base of fans across the mid-South. And now they’ve begun to take on the bigger rock world: playing festivals, making The Getaway with famed producer Chris Kimsey, and even recording and touring with Grammy Award winner Peter Frampton.
Kimsey, who’s taken the helm on albums by the Rolling Stones, Duran Duran, the Cult, Peter Frampton, and dozens of other hit-makers, produced The Getaway at Minneapolis’ Terrarium studios, where Beck, the Jayhawks, Soul Asylum, and the Bad Plus have also recorded.
“I was really captivated by Very Emergency,” Kimsey relates. “Ken’s vocal melodies are great and his disarming style is the opposite of his worldly lyrics, which often subvert the obvious. Plus, the storytelling is believable and the grooves and careful brushstrokes of guitar give their arrangements an uplifting mood.
“On top of that,” Kimsey adds, “they are furious board game players.”
But it wasn’t their Monopoly skills that pulled Frampton’s ear. It was a shimmering, soulful, and ultimately rocking revamp of Frampton’s 1977 smash “I’m in You.” Very Emergency’s version is such a radical departure that Frampton’s wife didn’t recognize the tune when he played their demo at home. The reworking earned the group an invitation to the rock legend’s Ohio studio, where he also played guitar and sang backing vocals on the final take.
“It was great working with Very Emergency,” Frampton says. “It was wonderful to hear an entirely different interpretation of my ‘I’m in You.’ I would have never thought of it that way.
“They are a terrific new band!”
The song will be included on The Getaway’s re-release — just in time for Very Emergency’s August dates with Frampton.
That tour finds Very Emergency truly ready for a legion of new fans.
“Working with Chris and Peter really helped us take a step forward,” says Fletcher. “Also, our manger David Hadland has helped us grow. He got us to break out of our box by giving us songwriting exercises like making everyone work on a riff or a melody on something other than their regular instrument.
“Being with Chris in the studio helped the band get tighter and better, and Chris and Peter both made us feel more confident by validating our songwriting and playing as a band.”
Kimsey in particular encouraged Fletcher to pursue The Getaway as a narrative. “A lot of bands will write about girls and parties,” the ebullient frontman says. “I always found the idea of following a plot line more interesting. And over the course of writing the songs for The Getaway that helped me become more of a storyteller than just a lyricist.
“The song “The Getaway” was the first time we really stepped out of our boxes,” he continues. The lyrics introduce our criminal character, who is obviously doomed from the beginning of the album.”
The band also decided The Getaway would have no love songs. “ ‘Picket Fence’ and ‘Last Call’ are the only slow numbers on the disc, and ‘Last Call’ is more an anti-love song,” Fletcher explains. “It’s about a guy who picks up a prostitute he can’t perform with, but it’s arranged so it might sound like a love song, which is our way of maybe playing with people’s expectations.”
Then there’s “Leader of Fools,” told from the perspective of a would-be hero trying to stop a bank robbery. Again the band’s subversive streak kicks in as the song’s sweet melody and chugging beat sounds almost blithe as an inevitable unhappy ending looms.
“Fun is what it’s really about,” Fletcher observes. “When we’re having fun and everybody in the audience is having fun because of the music we’ve created, well, then we feel like we’re doing something worthwhile with our lives.”
The Bob & Tom Show was a blast! If you missed it, we’ll be adding the audio to this site within the next few days. Also, WGN-TV will be airing the show soon. The show airs at midnight EST most nights. A huge thank you to Bob & Tom and all of the crew at the station. You guys couldn’t have been nicer and really made us feel comfortable. A special thanks to Eddie for working extra hours to make us sound perfect!
Now that you’ve heard some songs….go buy the album!
Buy it on iTunes
Buy it at CD Central
Buy it on Amazon
We’re on Bob & Tom!!! Tuesday 8/25 at around 8am. Peter Frampton will be calling in around 9am to chat as well. We’ll be talking about our tour with Peter Frampton as well as our new re-released album, The Getaway SE featuring “I’m in You” with Frampton on guitar and backing vocals. We’ll also be performing our song “Watches” live in the studio. If you miss us on the radio, Bob & Tom airs the show on TV’s WGN that night.
We’re in Memphis for the next two days, Birmingham on Tuesday and our first date with Peter Frampton on Wednesday in Atlanta! We want to thank Nate and Ashley for letting us stay at their place for the past 4 nights. You’ve been a lifesaver!
For those that don’t follow us on Twitter……..
Buy our stuff on iTunes or Amazon!
-VE
Greg, Jake, Ken, Garrett, Meggie, and Danny
Our new Special Edition album, “The Getaway” is officially out today, right now! It includes two new songs: I’m in You (featuring Peter Frampton) and Watches. Go buy it, it’s totally the best. Our tour kicks off tonight at The Dame in Lexington, KY with Cursive. If you miss this show then we probably weren’t friends to begin with….it’s Cursive! But seriously, if you miss this show check out our tour page and come see us with Frampton.
You may have noticed some new members or you may have also noticed missing older members…..you’re right! VE will be touring with Garrett Hodges on guitar, Meggie Hodges on keys and Jake Bell on drums as well as Ken, Danny and Greg doing the same sh*t as before. We are so excited to be playing with these new members and our live sound is unbelievable. It’s like getting punched in the throat, but with songs.
Check back here or Facebook or Twitter or Myspace or whichever social network is the coolest, for updates and pics from the road!
Love,
VE
buy our new album.
New Frampton date August 22 at Meadow Brook Music Festival! If you’re counting, that makes 5 dates with Peter Frampton in one tour!
In case you are wondering how we even got one show with Peter Frampton…..
Here’s the short answer.
We recorded a cover of “I’m in You” in our basement and sent it to our producer (Chris Kimsey) who worked with Peter on a little album called “Frampton Comes Alive.” Kimsey sent the demo to Peter and he absolutely loved it. That was pretty cool for our egos. Peter then told Kimsey he wanted to record the track at his studio.
So, a few months back we spent three days at Frampton’s house recording this amazing track. Toward the end of the session, we somehow convinced Peter to play some lead on the track and even got him to sing! All I can say is that I now understand what “rock legend” means.
We will be releasing the cover before the end of summer with an original song as well (“Watches,” for those that know it).
Here’s the original…
I have no words to describe my sadness upon hearing of Michael Jackson’s death. We lost, not only a great pop icon, but a great brilliant musician, in general. Some of my all-time favorite songs were written by him and…..talk about timeless! I think his work not only stands the test of time, but actually exceeds it by still seeming ahead of its time. No one does what he did!
Yeah, he got real weird towards the end (odd surgery decisions, made his kids wear masks in public, those lawsuits, etc.),but he also wrote “Thriller.”
We’ll miss you.
so awesome!
Hey guys!
Just a quick update as to what we are working on lately….
As you know we have added Garrett Hodges to our lineup and we couldn’t be happier. He is taking over Matt Duncan’s responsibilities of guitar and backing vocals. We have adapted all of Matt’s piano parts over to guitar and it rocks. Our live sound is fuller than ever and beyond amazing. We’re continuing to rehearse and write and we promise we’ll be playing more shows very soon.
Our next show is at Headliner’s in Louisville on July 9th. Come check out our new lineup and party party with us!
Also……
Best tattoo fail.
We just signed on to play a fourth show with rock legend, Peter Frampton.
It’s at The Stone Pony in New Jersey’s Asbury Park on August 30. We are so excited….so many great bands have played here. I’m pretty sure the venue only holds around 800 people so pre-order now—this show is going to be HUGE!
Don’t forget to check out the other dates we’re playing with Frampton. I’ve posted all of the flyers with links.
Hey friends,
Sorry it has been so long since our last update. We have been taking some time so that our beloved singer, Ken, could relax and honeymoon with his new bride, Hannah. But as always, time off is never
really time off.
We have been writing new material and are also very proud to announce the addition of Garrett Hodges to the band.
Garrett will be playing guitar with Very Emergency and we can already tell that he is going to help us expand our sound and live show having two permanent guitarists. If you get a chance, swing by myspace.com/motel to check out another one of his projects. Awesome.
We also would love to announce our upcoming shows:
June 18 – Louisville, KY @ Prime Lounge
June 19 – Louisville, KY @ Uncle Pleasant’s
July 9 – Louisville, KY @ Headliner’s Music Hall (Official Kick-off Party for the Forecastle Festival)
August 19 – Mableton, GA @ Marble House Barnes Amphitheater w/ Peter Frampton
August 28 – New York, NY @ Capitol One Bank Theater at Westbury w/ Peter Frampton
August 29 – Morristown, NJ @ Mayo Center for the Performing Arts w/ Peter Frampton
That’s right… PETER FRAMPTON. Keep an eye on our shows and bulletins because we have a lot more shows to announce soon as well as some more exciting news with our new friend Pete.
Love you all,
Very Emergency
We just signed on to play the Forecastle Festival in Louisville, Ky. This is the 8th year for the festival and this year the lineup is incredible (Black Crowes, Black Keys, Avett Brothers.) We will be opening up the festival on July 9 at Headliners.
Writin’ & Fightin’
Support Local!