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 Local downer pop trio KITCHEN’S FLOOR have returned from a sojourn in the United States with a new record in tow. DARRAGH MURRAY catches up with the band’s vocalist/guitarist MATT KENNEDY to get the lowdown.
Kitchen’s Floor second record Look Forward To Nothing is a fascinating and somewhat revelatory journey into the psyche of the band’s songwriter, Matt Kennedy. The follow-up to the 2009 debut Loneliness Is A Dirty Mattress, Look Forward to Nothing developed from Kennedy’s own battle with a variety of physical and emotional demons.
“It’s the album I’ve wanted to make for ages and I’m glad that it’s now finally released and people can hear it.” Kennedy says, “It’s the result of two years of stress and change. After Loneliness came out in 2009, I hurt my back and spent the whole of 2010 mostly confined to bed in chronic pain, which really does have an effect on you mentally. I was having a lot of personal problems with my friends as well and things were just generally shitty. Writing music was the only decent thing I had going for me.”
This approach seems to be working, the band courting an increased international profile having been added to the roster of US independent label Siltbreeze earlier in the year. They’ve also spent September crisscrossing the United States playing what seems like a brutal schedule of shows. Kennedy is pleased with how band have been received by US audiences.
“America was epic. We did something like 25 shows over a month. I found that most people were extremely generous and would go out of their way to make sure we had a good time. We played in a lot of basements in small towns; there is a whole culture in the USA based around it because every house has an incredible basement underneath it.
“Even if it was a Monday night there would usually still be at least 30 crazy Americans drinking themselves to death and they’d be a little amused that this weird band all the way from Australia was playing in their little town.”
Still the band are somewhat relieved to back on home soil even if they continued playing shows up and down the east coast, including a gig at Newcastle’s Sound Summit after going three days without sleep. In spite of this gruelling schedule, Kennedy is rejuvenated by the prospect of returning to Brisbane to play Bedroom Suck Records’ underground hoedown Maggotfest, their last show in support of the record.
“It’ll be a fun night,” Kennedy promises. “We played with Chrome Dome in Sydney recently and they are currently better than ever so I’m looking forward to them. It will be the last show of our tour and probably the first time Kitchen’s Floor has played a proper Brisbane show in over a year so I’m excited to play in my home town again.”
The future? Well, Kennedy needs to get some rest.
“I’m going to keep Kitchen’s Floor in the bedroom for the rest of the year and write some new songs,” Kennedy reveals, “I don’t want to spend another two years making a 20-minute album, but I’m excited about the idea of going back to being a recluse and making some new music.”
KITCHEN’S FLOOR play Maggotfest at Woodland on Saturday Oct 15, alongside Scraps, Chrome Dome, Repairs, Mere Women, Martyr Privates and Cobwebbs. Tickets are $10 and available on the door. See www.siltbreeze.com/kitchensfloor.htm and www.woodlandbar.com.
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