Kite Operations/Actually, Records x GRSF

L.A.-run Giant Robot magazine and Chicago-based Actually, Records have been big supporters of each other over the years, and we're glad to finally get together by having the first stop of the record label's West Coast mini-tour at GRSF. Three of the slots on the roster are XYZR_KX (one-man noise crew pronounced "Scissor Kicks"), The Gold Medalists (w/ members of Total Shutdown and Ee), and Jack Tung (as enigmatic as he is versatile). The headliner is the always-evolving Kite Operations, featuring Joseph Kim, who I hit up for a preview.


GR: Kite Operations has gone through drastic shifts in sounds over the years. Can you talk about straying from the earlier, more pop sound?
JK: Yeah. Our sound seems to change a lot with each album, but from within the band the change always seems very gradual. It naturally evolves a little bit at a time, with each song. Very loosely put, our first album is pop, the second is rock, and the new one, Festival, is our jazz album. The biggest change on it is in the way that we feel time: only one song has a steady beat. Getting rid of rigid time opened up so many possibilities and a whole new emotional palette to work with. I think there's a lot more exploration with time that can be done... 

GR: How are you going to scale back your full-on, radical sound for the in-store at GRSF?
JK: Preparing for the in-store with Dave has been fun and challenging, given the space and volume limitations. The songs will be stripped down of all the "noise" and, hopefully, reveal other sides to the music that have been there: melody, tunefulness, sensitivity...

GR: As far as I know, this is the first full-blown Actually, Records tour. Will you need name tags or do you know the other bands pretty well?
JK: These guys are all really good friends of ours. They actually flew over for our release party in Brooklyn a few months back, and we had such a blast we started planning that same night to bring the show to the West Coast. Hopefully, we can recreate the good vibes in California!

GR: Lots of Asian-American musicians in tow, Asian-American magazines on the flyer... Do you anticipate  yellow-on-yellow violence in the pit?
JK: Yes. Let the mayhem begin. 



Tomorrow afternoon's GRSF show is not only a great chance for Bay Area rockers to see some kick-ass bands for free, but also the all-ages option. Check it out: Friday, March 26, 5:30 p.m. at 618 Shrader St., just around the corner from Amoeba. (Me? I'm going to the L.A. show on Saturday night.)