And The Kids Ready To Start A New Era At Great Scott This Friday

and the kids

A band playing a residency at a Boston venue is a rarity in today’s “hit every city as many times as possible” music culture. Even the largest acts usually spend two nights max in Boston before packing up their gear and heading on to the next city. This is due in part to the economic reality of being in a band, which usually requires an act to constantly be on the road selling tickets and merch to make ends meet. While you may be able to fill the same room with die hard fans night after night, it’s highly unlikely those same fans are going to keep buying your t-shirts after they’ve already got a closet full of them.

Then of course there is the fact that it’s not easy to build a fanbase that is both large enough and dedicated enough to make a multi-night stay in one city a success. When you think about acts that have been able to pull it off in Boston, you think of household names like The Police, who did it at The Rat in Kenmore Square in 1978, or U2, who played four shows at TD Garden this past summer.

A band you probably didn’t think of is And The Kids. With only one full length to their name, they don’t seem like prime candidates to be setting up shop to play a bunch of shows in one place, especially when that one place isn’t their hometown. But in August, the Northampton-based four-piece did exactly that, playing three successful shows at Great Scott.

“People are always busy in big cities – it’s actually easier to make a name for yourself in smaller cities”

They might not have the name recognition, the back catalog, or the local roots of Speedy Ortiz, who did a three show Great Scott residency a year ago, or Pile, who is currently in the midst of a residency of their own, but they make up for it with accessible-yet-intricate pop songs that have earned high praise from some notable sources, including Pitchfork and NPR.

And The Kids make their return to Great Scott this Friday, but this time they’re only staying for one night, and they might have a few surprises up their sleeves. We spoke to guitarist/vocalist Hannah Mohan about the show and what we should expect from the band and highly-touted support act PWR BTTM.

Allston Pudding: You played three shows at Great Scott just a few months ago and now you’re back – what’s changed since August?

Hannah Mohan: Well since August we’ve been playing more with our new bass player because our keyboard player got deported, and in January we’re going to be recording with our new bass player and our keyboard player in Montreal. So we’re really excited to try out some of the new songs live that we’ll be recording next month.

AP: It sounds like you guys must have the new tracks pretty well developed if you’re recording next month – what’s the vibe of the new material?

HM: Well first of all it’s a bit different because we added a bass player, so our keyboardist doesn’t have to play bass with her left hand anymore and there will be a real bass sound. I’m guessing it’s going to sound a little more wintery. I think we’re getting into some nice sonic dreamy qualities.

AP: You’ve played in Boston a lot, but you’re definitely part of the Western Mass scene – how has getting your start in that area shaped your approach to touring and trying to get your name out there?

HM: Well starting in Northampton was great simply because we’re technically in the middle of a bunch of different cities – 2 hours from Boston, 3 hours from Burlington, 4 hours from Portland, 4 hours from New York City. It’s a great place to get a start and not have to drop a ton of money to go out and play a show.

AP: Does playing in Boston feel at all different than playing in any of the other cities you mentioned?

HM: Well it’s bigger, so it takes a little longer. You need to play there more often for people to see you because people are always busy in big cities. It’s actually easier to make a name for yourself in smaller cities.

AP: PWR BTTM is opening the show on Friday – you’ve played with them a few times – what are your thoughts there?

HM: We are THE BIGGEST fans. We’re really tight with those guys. We just met them over the past year; we played this random show in Connecticut with them and didn’t know what to expect and they blew us away. We’re so excited to be playing a bunch of shows with them and we hope it never ends. Seeing their energy on stage just pumps us up.

AP: Ok, so you’ve got them on the bill, what are some other reasons to show up on Friday?

HM: Well I’ll say it again – if you haven’t seen PWR BTTM you’re way missing out and you need to see them. You can also come check out of new tunes and give us some input if you want – they aren’t set in stone so we’d love to get your take on them

Don’t miss your chance to hear new music from And The Kids at Great Scott on Friday. We would tell you to show up early to not miss the openers, but the doors aren’t till ten, so there’s no excuse to miss either Kid Mountain or PWR BTTM. Check out our recent interview with PWR BTTM here, and then get your tickets right here.