Artist:  Kick 

Date:  27 march 2001 

MM - Introduce the band to us.
Nick Workman - vocals
Chris Jones- lead guitar
Mikey J.- bass;
Olli Cunningham- keyboards
Benjy Reid - drums

MM - When was the band first formed and how did you all meet?
The band was formed at the end of 1997. Chris and I (Mikey) are brothers and had previously released an album under the name of FREEFALL, called 'Rebel Hard'.

We were introduced to Nick after we put the word out for a vocalist (I recorded the vocals on 'Rebel Hard').  I've known Olli for seven years or so. He was playing in a covers band in Sussex and I took his number. He recorded keyboards for numerous demos that I had written and was keen to play in KICK, once we had got signed to Sanctuary in 1998.

Benjy replaced Adam, our original drummer in the summer of 1999. He was introduced to us by our soundman, Phil Brown, who helped mix our first album, 'Consider this....'

MM - Where do the band call home?
KICK are based in Croydon, South of London. However, two of us live a lot further afield!

MM - How would you describe your music and who do you think it would most appeal to?
We play mainstream melodic hard rock, but every now and again we'll venture off the beaten track and try something new. We don't like to stand still!  The choruses have to be very big and very catchy, or they are ditched!

A great deal of the music is traditional hard rock, but we want to take the genre forward, without compromising ourselves. We seem appeal to a wide range of rock fans, including those who are into Bon Jovi and Def Leppard, and there have been comparisons to INXS, U2 and even Queen.

MM - Tell us a little bit about your new album 'Sweet Lick Of Fire'. What can the fans expect this time around and how does it compare with your debut album 'Consider this ...' ?
The new album is far more diverse than our first, 'Consider this....', and is certainly more powerful! 'Consider this....' was recorded at our own studio and the songs were simply "Sunday afternoon demos".

Sanctuary were impressed by the standard of the performances and didn't want to re-record the songs, but we asked for them to be re-mixed to improve the quality of sound. This happened in October 1998. However, we wanted to achieve a more contemporary sound on 'Sweet lick of fire' and the songs leant themselves to more experimentation.

There is a song to compliment every mood and emotion - if you want to "rock out" then turn an ear to 'Inhibition', or title track, 'Sweet lick of fire', but if you require a gentler vibe, then listen to 'Time' and 'Where I belong'.  The songs work very well live too and have been going down a storm on recent outings.

MM - Do you have a release date for it yet and will you be doing a full UK tour when it is?
Unfortunately, there is no release date for 'Sweet lick of fire'. We are hoping that we will be able to come to an agreement with Sanctuary as to its future very soon. However, even though it was finished nearly a year ago, we are still very keen to get it out there and into the market place and hopefully we'll be back playing live too.

MM - The Japanese market has certainly seemed to have taken the band under its wings. Why do you think this is and how do they differ from the US and European market?
We are fortunate that Masa Itoh of Burrn! Corporation, who is somewhat of a guru in rock terms out there, is well into the band. He has included our songs on numerous occasions in his play-lists, which appears monthly in Burrn! Magazine. He has a considerable influence over the readers and also has a radio show.

There is a huge rock following over there and it isn't uncommon for a pop fan, perhaps into Britney Spears (for example!) to be into heavy rock too - they simply love western music! We also have an unofficial web-site over there, set up by the fans and we are always in touch with them! Incidentally, we were voted 9th in Burrn's Top Ten Bands top look out for in 2000! I believe Buckcherry were number one in the list.

MM - In the past the band have played with some pretty big names in rock. Can you tell us who you've appeared with?
We began gigging as support to German band, Helloween at the LA2 in London. Our debut gig was in front of 1000 people, who were incredibly receptive to the band and we won a great deal of respect from Rod Smallwood (manager of Iron Maiden) and other big wigs at Sanctuary!

We then did a club tour with Bob Catley and Tony Clarkin (of Magnum fame) as support to their band, Hard Rain in April 1999. In October of '99, we played with Mike Peters (The Alarm) and Billy Duffy (The Cult) with their project, Colorsound. A day later we were off to Germany to support Bonfire on their 'Fuel to the flames' tour. However, our tour with Thunder was the highlight of a cool year. We played to very large audiences and made a lot of friends!

Last year we did a tour with Danny Vaughn (ex-Tyketto) which was our most consistent outing to date and again we proved we could mix it with the best of them.

MM - If you could play support to any band or artist, past or present, who would you choose?
We were put up for the Bon Jovi tour last year, but Jon wanted chart bands to support him, which was why The Dum Dums and Toploader got the nod.  I'm not sure that a stadium venue is the best place to check out a new band, with the terrible sound/views etc., but personally I'd like to support Def Leppard, Bryan Adams or even U2!!!  Slash has a great band too - I love his recent album and he's one of my favourite guitarists.

MM - What bands/artists have influenced the band the most over the years?
Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, U2, INXS, The Scorpions, UFO, Rush, Queen, Mettalica, Bryan Adams, Dokken, Kiss, Skid Row, Aerosmith.....etc..etc.. the list is endless...errr...Alice Cooper, Michael Schenker, Randy Rhoads with Ozzy, Journey, Foo Fighters, Extreme, Thunder...(do you want anymore?)

MM - For those people who haven't already got your debut album 'Consider this....' from where can they obtain a copy?
Good question! Virgin in the South East stocks the record (there's one in Croydon!) There are various independent rock stores around the country that stock the album too.  They could also try mail order companies. However, when we were on the Thunder tour we were asked the same question countless times, as the shops the CDs were supposed to be stocked up, but clearly there weren't enough on the shelves. It appeared a bit farcical at the time and we weren't very happy!!!!!!

MM - What do you feel has been the band biggest accomplishment so far?
From a professional standpoint, I think we continue to prove that we are one of the best live bands in Britain and we will continue to deliver whenever we get the opportunity.

It is very important to be consistent in performance and to maintain discipline. We are continually knocking ourselves into shape. We have gained a great deal of respect from the likes of Luke Morley, Danny Bowes and Danny Vaughn, and from their fans - that's a good feeling!

From a personal point of view, I'm glad that the band has stuck together through a difficult year or so. There is more to come, believe me!

MM - How has the music media in general responded to the band?
The media has also been very receptive to the band. The reviews for 'Consider this....' were extremely encouraging and we achieved top marks all over Europe and Japan. Spain, Italy and Germany were most impressed by our debut album, but Greece didn't get it at all and gave us zero out of five!!!!!

You have to learn to take the rough with the smooth! Our live reviews have been excellent too, although we were criticised for having a drum solo in our Thunder support slot. But then we play all our shows like we're headliners and it fitted the occasion in our eyes! Many of our press 'cuttings' can be found at our official web-site at www.kick-uk.com

MM - Have any of the band members played in any other bands apart from Kick?
None of us has ever played in a band at the level that KICK has achieved thus far, apart from our drummer, Benjy. He's played in Debbie Bonham's band (she's John Bonham's sister) and also with Ted Nugent in America.  Chris and I have had a few projects, including XL and Freefall.  Nick had a local band in his home-town and Olli continues to do a lot of session work, including a lucrative gig with 70s dance band, Hot Chocolate!

MM - What was the first rock concert you ever went to?
My first taste of a rock concert was back in the 80s, when I was still at school. I went to see Krokus at Hammersmith Odeon and loved the venue.  Bands were touring every year back in those days and Chris and I saw UFO, The Scorpions and Michael Schenker in their prime.  Def Leppard on the 1983 Pyromania tour stands out in my mind and then I was hooked into the idea of trying to make a career out of music!

MM - Do you consider yourselves a fan orientated and accessible band?
We are forever in contact with our most loyal fans and a couple of them have constructed web-sites to which we send up-to-date information. We have four that I know of, including one in Japan and another in Denmark.  It is important for us to keep our ball in play, and it is a pleasure speaking with people who are interested in KICK. I think we are very accessible and I know the other guys enjoy the attention as much as I do!

MM - What goes through your mind when you are onstage?
The reason one joins a band is to play live and to get the immediate reaction. It is a very rewarding experience. But you have to maintain a high degree of concentration and be aware of the other members of the band to give a good performance.
Once you relax, perhaps after the first couple of songs, then all you'd like to do is enjoy yourself!

MM - Who writes the songs that you perform? Is it a solo or joint effort?
I (Mikey) write most of the KICK material, although Nick and Chris have made a couple of contributions to both albums. I have a great deal of music that I've recorded at home and it is an on-going process. There are a dozen songs written for the third KICK album and probably another dozen sets of riffs ready to be matched with words.  Much of the production and musical arrangement is carried out by all of us.

MM - Where did the band's name 'Kick' come from? What made you decide to use that as the name?
Chris chose the name at the end of 1997. Michael Hutchence had just died and the break-through INXS album, 'Kick' was being mentioned a lot at the time. It also tells you something about the musical style, but without suggesting that we're any particular style of rock.

MM - When you're not touring and living the life of rock n' roll rebels, what do you do for a living?
We all have vocations outside of the band. Olli and Benjy play in covers bands, or do session work. Chris, Nick and I do full-time jobs, but we're self-employed and try to be as flexible as possible because we need to keep the demos coming through.
Of course, we'd like to be doing the band full-time, but it hasn't worked out that way - YET!

MM - What bands are you listening to at the moment?
I've been listening to 'Nine lives' by Aerosmith - their new single, 'Jaded', is cool! The Foo Fighters album, 'Learn to fly' is another corker.  In my view though, U2s latest album is the most out-standing release of the past six months. I've also been told to mention Creed!

MM - What phrase best describes the band and it's mood right now?
The band is still very positive and active. I think the SAS motto, 'Who dares wins' (although an age-old cliché) is apt at the present time.  Also, I wrote a new song recently called 'The power within' and the first line sums up my personal feelings - "Remember the dreams you have, don't let them slip through your hands"!

MM - Lastly, is there anything you would like to say to your fans out there?
WE WILL BE BACK (BUT THEN WE'VE NOT BEEN AWAY!) We appreciate their support tremendously and I hope that they can remain patient for a little while longer until things are resolved with regard to the future of the 'Sweet lick of fire' album!

 

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