Music
The duo behind the indie-pop x sultry late night RnB sounds of Kllo
We caught up with the Melbourne-based cousins before they hopped across the ditch for their two 'Red Bull Music Presents' NZ shows - curated by A Label Called Success
Since 2014, open-eared and reflective Melbourne cousins Chloe Kaul and Simon Lam, collectively known as Kllo, have been releasing wistful and nostalgic, yet meticulously crafted songs that fuse the exuberant joy of indie-pop, and sultry swerve of late night R&B with the bounce and bass of UK Garage and 2-Step.
Across two EPs, 2014’s Cusp, 2016’s Well Worn, and their debut album, 2017’s Backwater, they’ve turned praise from the likes of Pitchfork, The New York Times, and HighSnobiety, into the opportunity to perform extensively from Australia to Europe and back again.
Along the way, they’ve connected with an ever-growing audience of dancefloor dreamers. This weekend, Kllo are headed to New Zealand to perform for Red Bull Music and A Label Called Success at two shows in Wellington and Auckland alongside Jack Berry (both shows), Borrowed CS (Wellington), Hugo Jay and imugi 이무기 (Auckland).
We caught up with Melbourne-based duo before they crossed the ditch. Check out the full interview below.
Red Bull: You've been releasing music and playing shows as Kllo for a few years now. What keeps you motivated and inspired around making and performing music?
Kllo: We've grown a lot together since [we started in] 2014, as artists and as friends, though we feel like there's still a long way to go for Kllo. We've surprised ourselves a lot, and the more we push ourselves, the stronger the project gets. We're determined to see how far we can take it, and hopefully, one day have a lot of music under us that we can be proud of.
What have your past experiences in New Zealand been like? Anything you're excited to do this time you haven't done here before?
Amazing! We went to New Zealand for the first time at the start of this year and loved it. Everyone was so friendly and laid back, even more so than Melbourne. Red Bull lent us their studio in Auckland, and that's where we fleshed out the demo for our latest single 'Potential.' Auckland is a super inspiring city, we wrote a heap [of music] there with such ease. We also went bungee-jumping (we will absolutely not be doing that again). We might take the less extreme path this time around and just find nice parks and spots to eat; the food is definitely the best we've ever had over there.
Are you enjoying any New Zealand music at the moment, and why?
Fortunes, always! We recently had an incredible session with them, and it was really eye-opening. The fluency in their writing together was very inspiring for us. Their next body of work is sounding next level; we have really high hopes for them. Also, Alexa Casino. They supported us at our show in Wellington and blew the audience away with their beautiful voice and intricate beats. The perfect warm up to our show, can't wait to see what they've been creating over the last few months.
How are things feeling post album? Any ideas of new musical directions you'd like to explore now, or paths you'd like to retread in a deeper manner?
We learned a lot making the album. It was a really challenging experience, and we're perhaps learning even more now that it's been out in the world for a bit. There's a lot of things on there that we wouldn't do now, and a lot of parts where we can hear us doubting ourselves. We'd like to make the next chapter of music a lot more direct, a lot more confident. Just say exactly what we want to say. The latest single is definitely pushing in a direction we'd like to pursue, more minimal but more fuller at the same time.
GET YOUR TICKETS BELOW:
$5 on the door with RSVP, $10 without
Meow, Wellington (Friday 22nd June 2018)
Galatos, Auckland (Saturday 23rd June 2018)