Kingsley Flood, a six-piece band based in Boston and Washington, D.C., has accumulated many labels since their 2010 debut LP “Dust Windows”: Americana, rock ‘n’ roll, country rock and folk rock, to name a few. However, when their newest album “Battles” hit the shelves earlier this year, the band proved that they’re not one for labels. A two-time winner of the Boston Music Awards, Kingsley Flood has managed to expand their sound and transcend any existing genre markers. They recently put out a fun, gender-defying music video for the track “Sun Gonna Lemme Shine” and have been garnering attention for their energetic live shows in the past year.
As the band revs up for their first headlining gig at Boston’s Paradise Rock Club on Saturday (10/12), I talked to frontman, vocalist, and guitarist Naseem Khuri about stage diving, music festivals, cemeteries, and what we can expect at the show this weekend.
Jenna: So, first off, I know that you guys are a pretty local band. You’re from Boston, which is awesome. Can you tell me about how you got the band started and what it was like joining the Boston music scene?
Naseem Khuri from Kingsley Flood: Sure. Basically it all started because I was a grad student, and I had these songs that I had just written in my bedroom. I decided to ask my roommate Nick to pick up a bass for the first time. And so he, you know, learned bass on the spot, and then we sort of went from there. That was about, oh my god, five years ago. And then ever since then we’ve just sort of… picked up people along the way. So, Jenée I knew from growing up because she took violin lessons from Nick’s parents. George Hall has played with lots of bands in Boston over the years. The same for Travis and Chris.
There are just so many supportive people out there. We’re often considered, whatever, Americana or rock ‘n’ roll, but there’s a million different types of bands out there, and they’re all accepting of one another, so that’s always a really cool thing.
Jenna: You guys are headlining the Paradise Rock Club this Saturday, your biggest show in Boston to date. How does that feel? How did the show come about?
Naseem: I remember going to a million shows at the Paradise and being like, ‘Alright, I wanna play here.’ And we’ve just been working hard…. we’ve just been sort of hustling. Earlier this year, we played Brighton Music Hall, and that was cool. That was sort of prepping us for the Paradise. And we’re psyched to play on the stage that so many amazing acts have played. [The Paradise] is sort of notorious because of that whole, what was that? Drew Bledsoe, the old Patriots quarterback, went stage diving and broke somebody’s arm. [Laughs] We will not be stage diving, and hopefully not breaking peoples’ arms because we can’t afford the insurance, but no, we’re gonna have a good time. It’s gonna be rowdy. We’re just gonna leave it all on stage. That’s the plan, at least.
Jenna: That sounds great. On that note, what are some of your favorite Boston venues to play at?
Naseem: Paradise is definitely one of them. We’ve done a few support gigs there. This’ll be our first headline. One place that’s technically not in Boston, but the place that we kind of consider home, is a bar in Gloucestor called the Rhumb Line. We kind of feel like we got our start there. It’s the type of place where, before you play, you move the coffee machines and set up. When we first started playing there, it was two people, then it was twenty, and whatever.
And now they’re like, our rowdiest shows, and we play for four hours. It’s a blast. And then, you know, the Brighton Music Hall is great. It was great having our [album] release there earlier this year. And you know, we’re also suckers for the Lizard Lounge for a more intimate room, where we did a three-night thing a couple years ago when our EP came out. So, you know, there are so many great places. It’s like children. I can’t choose a favorite.
Jenna: So, you guys made your debut at the Newport Folk Festival over the summer. How was that experience? Are you looking to play more festivals in the future?
Naseem: Yeah, absolutely. That was an absolute blast. And it’s not just because it’s an awesome stage, you know, hallowed ground and all these [artists] have played there. That’s great, but the fact that you sort of get to hang out outside for a weekend, and hang around a great festival, that’s really what it’s all about. It’s very much like a community. And we want to infiltrate as many other communities, and festivals, as we can. So yeah, next time I’d like to be on the road doing all that stuff.
Jenna: I want to talk about your new album, “Battles,” which I really dig, by the way.
Naseem: Cool, thanks.
Jenna: What made you choose to record it in Maine? What was the recording process like?
Naseem: We just really wanted to work with the producer Sam Kassirer, [who’s worked with] Josh Ritter and David Wax Museum. He’s made really cool sounding albums, and we love his ideas. Basically I play an acoustic guitar, but I play it in a live show like I’m beating the hell out of it. I’m channeling one of my idols, Joe Strummer from the Clash… We want our records to be a good reflection of our live show, where we try to give out a lot and again, try to leave it all on stage. So Sam, that’s why we were attracted to him.
And yeah, the studio was just fun. In the middle of Maine, really rural. The town only has, like, cemeteries and churches, that’s basically it. So you can either pray or die. [Laughs] But it was a great experience working with him. We’re excited about the reception for the album. We felt like it was the album we wanted to make for a while, and now that it’s done, we’re looking for the next one. We’re looking to record again pretty soon, actually.
Jenna: When do you think you’ll get back into the studio? Or are you more focused on touring right now?
Naseem: We are touring — we have a bunch of shows — but when we’re not doing that, we’re working on new stuff. We don’t know the exact plan yet. We feel like, it’s not a new sound we’re going for. It’s just our old sound, kind of amplified. So we’d just like to mess around with it. At the Paradise, we’ll probably play three or four totally new ones that people won’t be familiar with. People will probably stand there with their arms crossed, but maybe they’ll like them.
Jenna: Okay, last question. What have you been listening to lately? Are there any new releases or artists that you’re really into?
Naseem: Funny you should ask, because today, NPR is live streaming one of our favorite bands, called Lucius. They’re just amazing, I don’t know if you’ve heard of them. Go check them out. The album comes out next week. We’re actually gonna be on the road with them in December. We’re doing four or five dates with them. Their song “Turn it Around” has just been in my head, nonstop rotation, to the point of total annoyance. [Laughs] It’s bothering me how much it’s stuck in my head. They’re a band that we are stoked about, and we’re psyched to be touring with them, and we actually really like them. We’re psyched that this kind of music is coming out.