“One of the best little bands in Las Vegas” – Whitney Pastorek, Entertainment Weekly

“Kid Meets Cougar are the furthest thing from the flashing-light glitter of the Vegas Strip, and their DIY aesthetic and irresistibly adorable electronic-fed indie pop has the two set as indie rock’s next buzz couple.” – Best New Band in Nevada 2010, 50 Bands in 50 States Summer Feature. – The Boston Phoenix

“The ideal combination of humility, vulnerability, melody — and grooves that make you wanna wiggle — is hard to achieve, but Las Vegas’ Kid Meets Cougar is on the right track. The band’s songs also branch off from cute: some go all raw-and-screamy, while others get oblique ‘n’ funky. Expect earworm choruses and pristine harmonies — and expect this band to go somewhere.” -Ian S. Port,The SF Weekly

“For Carroll and Bolton, a real-life couple who make up the electro-pop duo Kid Meets Cougar, the do-it-yourself ethic isn’t the usual artistic dogma, but what gives their act its charm and uniqueness — and KMC has charm and uniqueness in spades. It’s why their enthusiastically delivered live performances have become talk of the downtown music scene. It’s why people stare so attentively at their stage set-up, an complicated network of hardware and instrumentation that somehow produces such humanistic bliss. It’s why they can talk talented local filmmakers like Jeremy Cloe and Mike Thompson… into producing accompanying shorts for their live show. And it’s why, even in a year already crowded with local releases, For Breakfast is one of the best Vegas albums of 2009.” – Mike Prevatt, Las Vegas City Life

“Best Local Band” 2010 – The Rebel Yell

“So it’s just after 10 on a Friday night. You park, stroll up to the Bunkhouse, open the door and catch sight of … a dude in a Viking helmet holding a guitar and rapping? A chick in a wife-beater with fake tattoos running up both arms, banging on drums … and rapping? The video for Dr. Dre’s “Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang”—the song the duo is covering in semi-serious fashion—rolling onscreen in the background? You’ve just witnessed Kid Meets Cougar. And yeah, that really happened.” – Laura Davis, The Las Vegas Weekly

“Kid Meets Cougar’s indie dance pop is a hit among robots and hipsters alike” – Jason Bracelin, Las Vegas Review Journal

Entertainment Weekly

Full Article Here: http://music-mix.ew.com/2010/03/22/kid-meets-cougar-sxsw/

SXSW Q&A with Kid Meets Cougar, one of the best little bands in Las Vegas

Image Credit: Corlene Byrd

Another SXSW has come and gone, and now that we’re all battling post-festival pneumonia, it’s time for one last post. Over the past five days, we brought you coverage of Muse and Smokey Robinson. We battled crowds and climate to see moonlighting Dixie Chicks and surprising visits from Snoop Dogg. We witnessed the returns of Hole and Stone Temple Pilots. But what about the other 2200+ bands playing in Austin without publicists or managers or major label deals?

Kid Meets Cougar is a lo-fi, high-tech duo from Las Vegas, with no publicist or manager or label deal. They drove to Austin in their 1995 GMC Safari conversion van, nicknamed “Yo Yo Ma,” which features a teal carpeted and wood paneled interior, complete with VHS player. They arrived in town with no badges or wristbands, and only one show to play. When I sat down with Courtney Carroll, 29, and Brett Bolton, 23, on Saturday and offered to buy them a drink, they opted to split a Guinness. They are, in a word, adorable.

You can visit Kid Meets Cougar on the web at www.kidmeetscougar.com, where you can stream their debut album, For Breakfast, in its entirety. I’ve also embedded their video for “Hey Hey” after the Q&A below. The first time I saw it was on a friend’s cell phone. I’d estimate I’ve watched it 40 or so times since. I find it freeing. Viva new music!

Entertainment Weekly: You two seem to be the poster children for the point of SXSW: to discover great bands and give them the chance to gain new opportunities and exposure. Do you think this experience was worth it for you guys?
Brett Bolton: Originally we were just going to come out here and have fun and check it out. But then we got on a showcase at the Palm Door, and then this Epicsauce.com/Neon Reverb show last night. It was awesome. We talked to Kevin from Epicsauce when we got there, and he was like, “Hey, if you want to play inside, there’s a PA in there.” And it was one of the best shows we’ve ever played.
Courtney Carroll: We got to do our own sound!
B: It was a small room. Probably about 50 people inside. It was packed.
C: It had a real house party feel. Everybody was dancing.
B: We had our videos going behind us. We were pretty much given free rein. It was one of the best shows we’ve done. The first couple days we felt kind of like little fish, you know? There’s this many bands, and you’re like, “How can I do anything?”
C: Yeah, how do you even go about it? But last night, there wasn’t anyone who knew we were going to be there.
B: We weren’t promoted at all. And we ended up getting there, playing for a packed room. C: It felt really friendly.
B: They took a lot of CDs.
C: We gave them out for free.
B: We want to be heard.
C: I would rather 100 people have our CD for free than five people have it for $5.
B: We have download codes, too.
C: We can sell our CDs later.
B: The show last night turned my world upside down. I have so much energy and so many good contacts now. I think SXSW has a certain magic to it.

Courtney, I originally know you from a great Vegas-based alt-country band called the Clydesdale. How did that band get started?
C: I used to work at a bar with an open mic night that I hosted, and when that bar closed, they moved the open mic night to a bar behind the Double Down. And Paige and Andrew, who are in the Clydesdale, used to come do open mic night there. They stole me from my old band, the Swing Bastards.

How did you and Brett meet? How long have you two been going out?
C: Two years.
B: She was in another band called Love Pentagon. It’s like an all-girl, tech-spacey-retro rock band. They were having a CD release party, and I had another band called Jr. Anti-Sex League, and we played the party. We kind of had a band date night, to hang out and get to know each other, and that’s where I met her.
C: We started hanging out all weekend and playing music together for fun, just to do something. I don’t think it started off as a plan to be in a band.
B: We’re both drummers.
C: He’s the really good drummer. I’ve learned more in the two years that we’ve been dating than I learned the whole other 10 years I’ve played drums.
B: But we started writing some beats, and then picked up some guitars, played some keyboards, had fun with it. Eventually we had enough songs to make an album. We recorded it pretty much over the course of a year.

Did you record it yourself?
B: Yeah, on LogicPro. It’s Apple’s version of ProTools. Learning how to play music, make music, and record it all at the same time is a really fun experiment.
C: That’s kind of how we make our songs. We record something, and then add stuff. And then figure out how to play it live. [laughs]

How would you describe your music to people who haven’t heard it?
B: [to Courtney] That’s you.
C: Someone told me that we sound like a mix between Dr. Dre and Belle and Sebastian. [giggles]
B: Like electro-acoustic…
C: I like saying we’re “organic electronic.” It’s organic because we’re still playing real instruments.All the stuff in our music that’s electronic sounding is stuff that he plays organic and records, and then chops it up.
B: I play guitar, but now I have 18 drum pads. I used to just trigger things with my laptop…
C: And if he would hit the pads too much, sometimes it would crash the laptop.
B: But then I was like, Hey, we’re drummers, we can have fun with this. So we got 18 drum pads lined up right next to me that I can sit there and trigger a song or a piece of a guitar part, and play it almost like a drum part. She plays keyboards. And we both sing.
C: The type of music we play is mostly the type of music we listen to.
B: Minus the Bear is one of my favorite all-time bands. We waited three hours to see them at the day party on Cedar Street this week. It was amazing. And there’s this whole label called Morr Music, based out of Berlin. Early in college I started getting into this label, and all the bands are so weird. They’re electronic-y, but they still have an organic feel to them. They’d take samples of like them hitting tables, or them snapping and doing stuff, and chop it up and make these electronic beats out of it. So it had this weird vibe to it. I really got inspired by that kind of stuff.

What were your plans for the record once it was done?
B: We didn’t know. We just liked doing it. We had a big CD release party at this warehouse.
C: That was crazy. It was a new place that no one had ever used for a show, because it was just a warehouse where his other band practiced. We named it “Whiskey Wolf Warehouse,” and I think just the name alone, people were like, “What is this ‘Whiskey Wolf Warehouse’? I’ve gotta go there!” We had like 200 people.

Do you think people know how big the independent art scene is in Vegas?
C: I was actually talking to a guy last night and told him we’re from Vegas, and he was like, “There’s a music scene in Vegas?”
B: Wasn’t that Paul?
C: Oh yeah!
B: We met the owner of Manimal Records last night. He was super cool. We were playing with [Vegas band] Afghan Raiders, too, and he was like, “What? Vegas? You guys are having a showcase here?”
C: I feel like our music scene is getting really friendly and tight-knit.
B: It’s exciting.
C: Everyone is supporting each other. I feel like it’s a really good place right now.
B: There’s a couple more scenes that we’re not really familiar with. Like the whole screamo scene.
C: One Pin Short is here. They’re from Vegas. But I think they’re ska. I don’t know anything about that.

Are you looking to get signed? Are any of your other bands on a label?
B: No. We’ve been close a couple times, but it’s kinda scary.
C: His old band almost got on Columbia. But there’s too much small print.
B: We have a good lawyer now. I’m not afraid anymore.

Happy 2010 everyone!

We just found out our debut album, “For Breakfast” was chosen as one of Las Vegas CityLife’s top 10 albums of 2009! That’s a pretty nice way to end an awesome year….

Can’t wait to see what 2010 has in store!

Here’s an excerpt from the article:

Kid Meets Cougar

For Breakfast (self-released; www.myspace.com/kidmeetscougar)

“One of Las Vegas’s 2009 breakouts fast-tracked a full-length just as its word-of-mouth factor spiked. The band had been known for its energetic live shows, where duo Brett Bolton and Courtney Carroll were instrumentally multitasking to the point of exhausting even their audience. That experience has now been formatted for your headphones with For Breakfast, which hones in on the duo’s particular brand of tuneful, loop-friendly electro-pop. And, as if the rhythms didn’t liven things up enough, the playful lyrics and irony-free delivery — even during the rap exchange attached to “Dr. Dre” — ensure fun is had for all. M.P.”

Link to Full Article

Sep. 17, 2009

Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Link to Actual Article

Kid Meets Cougar explains robot attraction

By JASON BRACELIN
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

Kid Meets Cougar’s indie dance pop is a hit among robots and hipsters alike. The duo includes Brett Bolton, left, and Courtney Carroll

..

DIRECT LINK TO ARTICLE

Vegas’ underground music scene comes full storage, er, cycle

Spencer Patterson

Thu, Jul 23, 2009 (midnight)

Kid Meets Cougar packs the ‘house.

Photo: Corlene Byrd

I’m daydreaming about Pinollas’ legendary Dead Kennedys ’83 show as I hunt for the site of Kid Meets Cougars’ Saturday-night CD release party. In Las Vegas’ punk-rock heyday, warehouse shows weren’t so much the exception as the norm—with kids and cops regularly butting heads over the legitimacy of such underground music gatherings. Hmm, I wonder as I finally stumble onto the Whiskey Wolf Warehouse off Polaris between Sirius and Desert Inn, will the cops bust up tonight’s indie bash?

More importantly, I wonder whether the show will be air-conditioned, considering 8 p.m. temperatures are hovering near an unusually sticky 100 degrees. A quick inspection of the facility—more storage unit warehouse, really; apparently Bee Movie the Band practices here—reveals the presence of a couple of oscillating fans offering little relief even before the windowless room fills with bodies. It’s gonna be an oven in here.

I’m amazed as car after car pulls up over the next hour; soon there are close to 100 people milling around outside, some drinking, some wishing they were. Maybe the cops really will show.

Nah, the closest we come to reliving Pinollas’ iconic moment—when Metro swooped in but allowed the DKs to finish performing to avoid a riot—is an announcement from electronic opener Ex-Dinosaur: “Everybody should come inside, because technically, we shouldn’t be doing this here, and apparently there are some cops rolling around.” Cops never materialize, but the ploy works all the same, packing the “venue” as Pan de Sal hits the “stage,” a stack of wooden pallets topped with carpeting.

Sonically, the tight quarters work far better than I expected, thanks to ceiling insulation and clever speaker placement. “We set it up in surround,” Kid Meets Cougar’s Brett Bolton explains. The beat-happy Pan de Sal gets the crowd—filled with local musicians—moving pretty vigorously to set up Kid Meets Cougar’s similarly high-energy set. Birthday couple Bolton and Courtney Carroll coordinate their electronic pop concoctions—from new disc For Breakfast—with videos projected onto the wall; the live debut of Mike Thompson’s “Hey Hey” is, in the words of its proud director, “a moment.”

Close to midnight the show nearly does get shut down, without help from law enforcement. Pan de Sal’s Jeff Madlambayan starts spraying champagne on Bolton, Carroll and everything else on or near the stage. Bolton’s mic is toast, but quick-thinking buddy Vincent Campillo of Afghan Raiders helps KMC avoid further damage, ripping off his shirt and toweling off the band’s laptop. Now that’s punk rock. Jello Biafra would be proud.

More

From the Archives

Happy birthday, Kid Meets Cougar (07/16/09)

60-second video critic: KMC (06/25/09)

Band Guide

Kid Meets Cougar

Pan De Sal

Ex-Dinosaur

D.I.Y. love

PHOTO BY BILL HUGHES
Brett Bolton and Courtney Carroll of Kid Meets Cougar

Boyfriend/girlfriend duo Kid Meets Cougar revels in doing everything themselves

Mike Prevatt, mprevatt@lvcitylife.com

Courtney Carroll and Brett Bolton need no prompting to rap and beatbox. Sitting in the rear lounge portion of Downtown Cocktail Room early one Saturday evening, the duo is already giddy to discuss its new album, For Breakfast. Upon mention of one of its songs, “Dr. Dre,” which ends with the two on rhyme and rhythm detail, acapella style, Carroll perks up. “Let’s do it!” Bolton smiles and counts down the beat. “1. 2. 1-2-3-4….”

And the two begin trading short verses and oral beat blasts. Carroll offers a line while Bolton boom-chik-booms, and, without missing a beat, the two swap duties, the words and voices changing but the human beatboxing sounding undisturbed and consistent. What began as a casual experiment in the car one day became a defining segment in a song, sans any instrumentation. Why rely on computerized beats when their own voices will do?

For Carroll and Bolton, a real-life couple who make up the electro-pop duo Kid Meets Cougar, the do-it-yourself ethic isn’t the usual artistic dogma, but what gives their act its charm and uniqueness — and KMC has charm and uniqueness in spades. It’s why their enthusiastically delivered live performances have become talk of the downtown music scene. It’s why people stare so attentively at their stage set-up, an complicated network of hardware and instrumentation that somehow produces such humanistic bliss. It’s why they can talk talented local filmmakers like Jeremy Cloe and Mike Thompson — the latter directing the captivating video for KMC’s “Hey Hey” — into producing accompanying shorts for their live show. And it’s why, even in a year already crowded with local releases, For Breakfast is one of the best Vegas albums of 2009.

A personal courtship that began in November 2007 developed into a casual musical foray in January 2008. There was no intent to start a serious musical project — especially given that both already were in Bee Movie the Band, and Carroll was also a member of The Clydesdale and Love Pentagon. “I never had a girlfriend who was into music, let alone playing music,” says Bolton. “It was cool just to experiment. After awhile, I said, hey, we have some pretty cool stuff we can do right here.”

At first, the two percussionists would face off with their respective drum kits and whatever else they could play simultaneously. But then they got creative with their ever-growing analog/digital arsenal — especially Bolton, a builder and manipulator of noisy gizmos. He installed drum pad on his guitar so his fingers could make beats. Carroll gets particularly excited about this. The pads not only trigger rhythms, but video clips (all stored via the Resolume Avenue 3 VJ program). This, on top of the conventional drum pads he also plays. And the other trigger pedal he uses. And whatever other rhythm Carroll the drummer provides, too.

You see, KMC is all about taking two or more pieces of machinery, regardless of their standard function, and — with the help of MIDI technology — making them complementary. Some samples and pre-recorded bits can’t be avoided. But there’s so much going on that it all looks and sounds live. And despite the occasional misstep in their multi-instrumental choreography, they thrive on being in control of the musical performance. It’s akin to driving stick as opposed to coasting on automatic transmission. And they modestly credit their relative mastery of musical multitasking to just being drummers.

Even when it came to For Breakfast, Carroll and Bolton ultimately decided to mix and master it themselves. It turned out to be just as well, too. “Everything came out better than we even thought it would,” says Carroll. “I feel the songs made themselves. We would come up with a little part and think, oh, that sounds cool. And then it would expand both ways from that. Like, how did this come from that?”

After the band plays its all-ages CD release party this Saturday, it hits the road for a week with pals Pan De Sal and then concentrates on more music/video synergy for the ever-developing live show, undoubtedly the primary builder of KMC’s fanbase.

“We’ve been pretty overwhelmed with the reception so far,” says Bolton, who cites their friends in Uno Momentum and Macro-Fi as their biggest motivators. “We just belonged to this group of supportive musicians that didn’t care what you did as long as you did it and loved what you did. That’s when we started making out music and not caring what others thought. So it’s all been positive.”

It is here Carroll acknowledges the limits of KMC’s appeal. “But I think if we played the Double Down, I don’t think we’d go over so well!”

Kid Meets Cougar plays its CD release party with Pan De Sal and Ex-Dinosaur 8 p.m. July 18 at Whisky Wolf Warehouse, 310 Polaris Ave. Cover: $5.

LINK TO ACTUAL ARTICLE

Kid Meets Cougar: Courtney Carroll and Brett Bolton

Photo: Corlene Byrd

Direct Link: http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/news/2009/jun/25/60-second-video-critic/