The Reign of Kindo @ Amsterdam Bar and Hall St.Paul, MN 8/27/17

So this could be an extensively long review, per it's been a long time coming, wanting to see them live for many years, and The Reign of Kindo's tours not coming to the Upper Midwest nor Minnesota.

And they have been an earmarked, bucket-list band to see in concert for me pretty soon after I got into their music. Which that in and of itself may warrant some babbling-on about to an extent.


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August 26th, 2008 Rhythm Chord and Melody was released by the way, now I think I own 3? copies on CD and would LOVE it to come out on VINYL.

Per the Traversing Message Board August 2008

Aug 8th, 2008
yeah I saw their name on the Kaddisfly forum a few days ago and like a lot of what I've heard so far. Sort of a mix of modern pop/rock with a jazz element..piano and what not. 

Still waiting on the chance to hear the whole record as my mp3 player is not being nice to me at home (it loaded 5 tracks and then shut down).

some clown in AP magazine gave it 1/5 stars tho..lol

Aug 11, 2008
listening to some of this today..I'm a little unsure how much replay value their style has..it feels so jazz-pop to me..and the cymbals are clipping which often kills music for me. I guess they remind me a bit of One Republic or Aviatic with some jazz elements, but for some reason the vocal melodies aren't as good.

December 17, 2008
ok..I will eat a bit of crow here and admit to REALLY digging these guys now. the drummer is incredible..the cymbal work is really technical and yet accurate as hell.

I'm pretty addicted to this album. I'd love to see them live now.

So that shows how far it goes back. I don't remember all the discussion on the Kaddisfly fans forum (Crimson Solitude), but it would be interesting to read about now However I don't think it's available unless it was from some kind of web archive.

So, 9 years, and finally last night I got to see them, opening for Jason Richardson with Luke Holland.

Just to not forget, there were 2 local openers, The Atlantis Theorem (who played 2nd),and this band named UMI who were REALLY good. All-instrumental, very jazzy with piano, and some acoustic and electric guitar. Very melodic, and a new band I guess but had Flash Drives for free of I forget how many EPs. But I gave them a little cash and gladly took 1 of them. I hope to include more soon if they are as great as they sounded last night.

Stolas was the other opener, who are a band from Las Vegas? And threw me off a bit. At 1st, they sounded very much in the vein of The Mars Volta or even as bombastic as Hella. But by the middle of their set, I was kind of getting a mid-late 2000's Post-Hardcore vibe. I did l like moments from them, including some group or at least multiple-member percussion.

The vocals at times were not easy to makeout, which makes me wonder if hearing some recordings of them could help.

Jason Richardson with Luke Holland, I did like moments from as well, although I concluded the music was very much in the Shred-Metal vein with hints of Djent. Similar to Animals as Leaders, which I did see 1 person with a Periphery t-shirt on, so that might make sense. The Guitar-worship community I'm not sure knew about this show too much, but like Tosin from Animals as Leaders, I would imagine Jason Richardson should appeal to the tastes of Steve Vai, Satriani, etc. But maybe the fans in this town didn't hear about this show?

Luke Holland though, as noted below, is a monster as he sat-in with Kindo just nailed Hold Out, so I can see why both Kindo was asked to come on this tour with him and Jason Richardson, and why Kindo might ask him to sit-in, as I guess he has drum-cam cover videos on YouTube of Kindo tunes.

So on to Kindo themself. The set list I posted below is not 100% complete sadly, as they played at least 2 or 3 tunes I either haven't listened to in quite awhile and didn't remember, or didn't recognize well enough to be certain. But I put a few tunes below as "unsure."

I know they played at least 2 maybe 3 tunes after City of Gods, and I think Feeling in the Night came after.

note, I can't find any set lists on setlist.fm from their current tour.

But the tunes I recognized I of course went apeshit for. Moments in Between gave me goosebumps, both the energy and the nostalgia. Very similar to my experience seeing Bend Sinister a few years ago for the 1st time, or even Mew a few weeks ago. Tears nearly hit me.

Great Blue Sea and Hero/Saint are 2 favorites as well.\

Hold Out was the 1st tune I ever loved, so that also was a highlight.

And 2 of the new tunes of course I have been addicted to this Spring/Summer especially, really worked well live. Especially with the energy they have. Their drummer Steve Pardin brings.

The only thing I think is worth mentioning other than I certainly would love to see an even longer set and some/any of my favorites like "Till We Make Out Ascent," "Out of Sight out of Mind," "Sing When No One's Around," "I Hate Music" among others, is Joey's LEAD VOCAL MICROPHONE and mix at The Amsterdam was probably not ideal.

Now mind you, when Kindo hit the stage, I went to the front (which most shows now I do not do), but per this was the 1st time seeing them live after so many years, I made an exception. Plus the show/crowd size last night, even with Kindo being the 4th band performing, per there was enough space among the crowd to not have to deal with fighting my way that far up, etc.

But Joey's lead vocals from where I was were at times at least audible, to other times barely present. I'm not sure if it was the fact the BASS MIX was really high, or just his mic was also not high enough.

The BASS MIX though was rather high for all the bands it seemed except maybe UMI, so that is why I wonder if it was the venue or the setup/board/levels, etc there last night.

But, minor issue overall.

Seeing them live finally was still an incredible thrill, and happily, getting to chat with Jeff their bassist a fair amount after the show as he was behind the Merch booth. Joey and Steve as well after wards. And I did get to talk to John Baab their lead guitarist, outside. Very cool guy as the rest of the band was.

Among the folks I met/saw, my friend Min Lee with Cities 97 was there, not surprisingly. But nice to catchup with him. Hopefully he will find a way to review their next album when it comes out, on the Cities 97 website like he did back in 2013 with Play With Fire. Which to include a detail or 2 in talking with Jeff.

1st off, there's a new track coming soon to the Patreon (September likely) that he thinks is the best (or Jeff said is his favorite, more than "About Love" which has become my favorite among all great new tunes per the Patreon).

And as far as a release, etc. Jeff just mentioned to me that the album may not actually be released officially until around February of 2018. But he added, that what will be on it, likely may not include some of the Patreon songs. And even the songs that may be on it that were part of the Patreon, may not all be the exact versions on the album, etc.

Now this is just what he told me, etc. Relatively vague, but at least as a fan, I'm not anticipating an official release/new album for a few months, which I totally understand, especially given the Patreon tunes, and so many of them already.

Also one other thing that irked me a bit as I came to learn chatting with Jeff and telling him how long it had been waiting to see Kindo, and what I believed is they had never come to Minnesota,
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He mentioned coming like 8 years before, which would have been in 2009, at 1 of the theaters. Well so in searching, I failed to find a show/tour with them from 2009 or even 2010 or 2008 in Minnesota.

However, Google with the help of last.fm, found a show they played on October 21st, 2007 at The Varsity Theater with 3 other bands I don't know of, the headliner being a band called Daphne Loves Derby.

So it made sense that I wouldn't have known about or seen that show, since, like Janelle Monae a year or 2 later at The Varsity, and maybe even more significant, the 1 and only Minnesota Oceansize show in 2004 at The 7th Street Entry, I had never heard of The Reign of Kindo in October of 2007, so I can't really regret missing them. Along with the fact 10/21/2007 also happened to be the same exact night Between the Buried and Me headlined on the Colors tour (playing the entire album) at The Triple Rock.

Now had I known Kindo and a Concert jump were possible, I sure as hell would have tried to do both, but it may have been a bit of a tall task, and then being way in the back at The Triple Rock show, etc.

But anyway, all parallel universe realities and not mine.

I also did hear from Min Lee and 1 or 2 of the guys in the band, they are looking to tour the US again next Spring and Summer. Spring 2018 likely won't happen in MN, but more likely Summer of 2018.

Maybe with The Dear Hunter or Headlining or even another band (one I love or may not know yet, I could rattle off a handful of them if I wanted to. But maybe that's for another entry, lol..both REALISTIC and unlikely's like Vennart or say Pepe Deluxe or 22 of course...pipe dreams of course).

Oh and a final note, like Bend Sinister, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Agalloch and some others moderate to big..Kindo and Bend Sinister being very big deals..I look to Imogen Heap I guess as the primary Bucket List artist I have yet to see that I haven't, from at least somewhat of a realistic touring performer, and in the US namely.

A BUCKET LIST I should post/post again/update maybe soon. People like Fjokra, Vennart, Pepe Deluxe, Subterranean Masquerade, Small Leaks Sink Ships...Fish/Andre Matos/John Arch (or Arch Matheos), 22, Major Parkinson, etc. But Heap is the earmarker 1 since like Kindo, I got into her in the previous decade and at least 1 time, she toured the States a decent amount. Now this decade she has not unfortunately per her lack of releases and I recall her having children, but I hope she can and will eventually again and I can see her like I just finally did with The Reign of Kindo.




Partial Set List
The Moments in Between
Needle and Thread
The Hero, the Saint, the Tyrant and the Terrorist
Great Blue Sea
Hold Out (with Luke Holland on drums)
Human Convention
City of Gods
Feeling in the Night

Unsure
Romancing a Stranger
Just Wait
Thrill of the Fall
Battling the Years

edit: if/when I find a more fully accurate set list I'll try and update this. Unlike many shows of late, I didn't see a set list sheet to pickup unfortunately. Maybe next time.

Saturday Night, January 19th, 2013 @ Shank Hall in Milwaukee, WI

In all likelihood, I'll write some kind of length of a review about this show and what it means to me to finally see Kevin's music live. My exact agenda before and after this show is not exactly certain. Taking a City Bus from where the Megabus drops me off (near the Amtrak Station) to Shank Hall, a Taxi or something else. And the same getting back there on Sunday morning at 9:10AM when I am scheduled to depart on the Megabus back home. Killing time from after the show until then, I may hang with some folks afterwards at a hotel/motel or even split one. It's all sort of up in the air right now. I just hope I don't totally throw my sleep cycle off horribly. Having Monday, the 21st off for MLK day is a relief.

But in the mean time, here's a nice overview about it, Kevin and Shaming.

Found linked here on the January 19th Listing

Champions of Nothing perform Kevin Gilbert's "The Shaming of the True"

8:00pm $10.00

Sex! Drugs! Rock-N-Roll! It's all here, and more - fame, greed, exploitation, despair - everything you¹d expect from a night at the opera, right here at Shank Hall. Chicago's Champions Of Nothing bring the saga of "Johnny Virgil" to life. The late Kevin Gilbert, composer of "Shaming," actually performed here at Shank Hall in 1995, and The Champs are excited to be taking the stage where their hero once stood. Opening will be special guests Department Of Revenge, and hosting will be Mark Krueger of WMSE's Planet Prog, heard every Sunday at 9 PM. We will be filming the show, so come on down and be a part of history! 

The Band: 
With a combined professional experience of over a century in a wide variety of genres, the Champions Of Nothing came together in 2009 to realize the revival of one of the greatest rock operas ever written: "The Shaming Of The True" by the late Kevin Gilbert. In addition to their many other projects, these eight Chicagoland musicians have taken it upon themselves to rescue this masterpiece from undeserved obscurity, in order to keep the musical legacy of Kevin Gilbert alive for future generations of music lovers everywhere. For more information on "The Champs" and their many other projects, please visit www.ChampionsOfNothing.com. 

The Man: 
Kevin Gilbert was one of the most talented musicians/composers/producers of Generation X, counting among his many collaborators Michael Jackson, Madonna, Keith Emerson and Eddie Money (with whom he earned a Gold Record, at age 22) during his tragically short life. His bands "Giraffe" and "Toy Matinee" achieved critical acclaim but little commercial success, and his major contribution to Sheryl Crow's hit album "Tuesday Night Music Club" was mostly unrecognized. Gilbert died in 1996 at the age of 29 during the recording of his magnum opus "The Shaming Of The True." His colleagues, recognizing the brilliance of the material, completed the album for release in 2000 and gave its only live performance at the ProgWest festival in 2002 - until the debut of "The Champs" in August 2010. More information on this amazing musician can be found at www.KevinGilbert.com. 

The Story: 
"The Shaming Of The True" is a variation on the classic rags-to-riches-to-rags story arc; we follow the adventures of a young singer/songwriter named "Johnny Virgil," largely patterned after Gilbert's own personal experience, who moves to L.A. to try to become a rockstar. In order to achieve this goal he is forced to compromise his artistic integrity and become a "sellout," getting rich and cynical in the process. Yet eventually, fame and fortune prove to be too much for Johnny and a nervous breakdown forces him out of the game and into further misadventures. This story is all-too-common in show business, but made much more poignant given that it's mostly autobiographical. Mostly - because whereas an aging Johnny Virgil sometimes hears his songs "on the oldies radio," Gilbert passed away at the beginning of a most promising solo career. Our revival of "Shaming" is therefore also a celebration of the life of Kevin Gilbert and the star he would have become if fate had been kinder to him.