Up and coming Canadian artist Darryl James, a.k.a Close Kicks, crafts powerful songs infused with inspiring themes. While spending the past 10 years writing and performing with The Strumbellas, Darryl has also been honing his craft as an artist that can record, produce, mix and collaborate across genres. Coming off of the massive success of his EP Dreamers, and first two singles “The House We Built” and “You Made It Home”, he has garnered over 250,000 streams worldwide and sync placements with major brands like the MLB, NHLAA, and Toronto Blue Jays. His next single, “Coming Up” is just another example of his drive and diversity as an artist.
Where are you based?
Lindsay, Ontario
How long have you been making music?
I’ve been making music since I joined The Strumbellas in 2008. The top secret information that only you will know about is – The Strumbellas is my first band, and the first time really playing bass. Alright, the secret’s out of the bag! Before then, I just liked to jam on two chords and play a few covers around the campfire. So, I’m definitely a late bloomer to making music, but better late than never, am I right? With that said, over the last 5-6 years I’ve been honing in on the skill of becoming a one hundred percenter. That is someone that can write, record, produce and mix a song. Essentially, build a song from start to finish. Without the lockdowns, I don’t think I would have had the time to think as much about that skill set. I’ve taken a bunch of online courses and done so much of the practical work during that time. If the pandemic didn’t happen, I would have always been touring and finding it hard to finalize this kind of work. So, in many ways, I was very lucky because before the pandemic, I had already built up an inventory of songs I’d co-written with different songwriters around the world. I would pitch the tunes to the band or to my publisher. If they didn’t make sense for either of them, I started performing and producing them further on my own. That’s when the excitement really sets in. You start to show them to your friends and family and get some great feedback, and then it slowly becomes a reality that you’re going to start releasing music into the world!
What genre would you consider your music to be?
Alternative Folk, Indie Pop
What inspired you to pursue a career in music?
I’ve always loved music with such passion since a young age. I was drawn to anything that caught my ear, and in all honesty, I was 30 years old when I joined The Strumbellas, and I would have never thought of music as a career. I really do feel fortunate! I did dabble as a DJ, mixing up some hip hop music when I was 15 or so, but the gig never left my bedroom. Best part of that is I still have all those vinyl and I still listen to them! When the band started playing live shows like small markets etc, I thought of it as just a hobby. Something to just make the jamming more official, but there was always something special when we performed, and the feedback we got when we finished a show. There was an energy and dynamic in the band. Some sort of magic, and that always drove me to keep pushing us forward.
What are your biggest musical influences?
Everything and anything! It’s true. My musical taste has always moved around. As a kid, I loved the Oldies. My Mom would always play them on weekends, and that has always stayed some of my favourite music. As I got into my teen years, I loved Hip Hop and Reggae. In my twenties I really got into Canadian alternative music like Our Lady Peace and I Mother Earth, but also loved Pearl Jam and Tool. In my twenties, I really got into indie/folk/alternative music like Arcade Fire, Beirut, Edward Sharpe and Iron and Wine. More recently, I’ve fallen in love with New Orleans Jazz, especially Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Ultimately, I would say at this point in my life, I’m a lover of all music. Anything that’s got a great melody. Music just makes me feel good, and it can be from any genre or style. One of my favourite things is to go into a record shop and just explore and try to find something unique and outside of what I’ve been listening to. With that said, I do love the album format. Listening to an album from front to back really helps you understand the album, and I always find that some of the less popular songs on an album become my favourites.
Are you signed to a label or are you an independent artist?
I am signed to Glassnote Records from NYC to a licensing deal. It’s basically an extension from my deal with the band.
What have been the biggest challenges in your music career?
Being late to the music industry. Starting so late with no formal training always made me feel like I was playing catch up! Everything just takes me longer to get the idea in my head, but I’ve always had a good work ethic and that keeps me from giving up. Also, being older when I started, I also had a family. I’ve got really good at juggling lots of roles to keep the creative side afloat.
How many songs or albums have you released to date?
I have released 4 singles and an EP in just over a year with Close Kicks.
Can you tell us a few things about your latest release?
“Coming Up” is a song about perseverance. It’s a song about picking yourself up even when everything around you feels like it’s collapsing. This song was written back in 2018 and it was a time in my life when I was feeling like I was being dragged down. I had flown to Los Angeles to do some writing and this was one of my first sessions. Cary, Cazz and I met at a beautiful home studio in Laurel Canyon and the three of us hit it off right away. As we got to know each other, it became clear that we were all having some difficult situations to overcome either personally and professionally. With that sort of connection, the ideas started flowing quickly and we put the finishing touches on the song in just a couple hours. Then, over the course of the last few years, we all produced and performed the song remotely. I started by building out some of the drums and percussion along with bass. With such a HUGE chorus, I recruited a group of talented singers from my hometown of Lindsay, Ontario (including my wife, Robyn) to support it. I rented a local church for a few hours where I recorded the group vocals along with stomps and claps to bring a real collective feel to the choruses. Then, Cazz and Cary took the reins by adding the remaining instrumentation and vocals. Once completed, we felt like it needed something else in the bridge. Cary’s wife, Jessica Weiss (who co-composed the new Cinderella) did the string arrangements. That was the icing on the cake! And last, but not least, Cazz took on mixing the song and gave it that warm and fuzzy, yet powerful feeling! “Coming Up” was a song built through our common struggles, and was completed by us all coming together to do something great!
Any plans for new music or upcoming projects we should know about?
I’ve always wanted to release music every few months so I’ve got some songs almost ready to go and I’m so excited to share them. In addition to that, The Strumbellas are really ramping up with songwriting, demos and some shows in 2022, so I’m fortunate to get to be so creative over the coming year!
FOLLOW ON: FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | WEBSITE
