KOI are a progressive rock band who formed in 2012 in Brakpan, South Africa. Initially they would just get together every few weeks and just jam all day and have a braai, there was no structure to what they were doing, everyone would just go and pick an instrument when they saw fit and create some improvisational tunes. The inspiration was purely just the want to play some music together, no specific goal or sound, just whatever transpired organically. Initially the session became known as the KOI sessions, an acronym for the Kings of Improv, more of a jam session than a specific band. After about a year there was eventually a solid lineup and after a few changes, before they knew it songs were forming which eventually led to the release of their debut album “Henosis” which comes out May 20th 2018. We caught a few words from guitarist Lloyd Mckeen to discuss the debut album and the story behind the band.
Tell us about the process of writing and recording the new songs.
In terms of the writing process we follow a simple and organic formula whereby we all get into a room, throw our riffs and ideas in the ‘pot’, and start piecing the puzzle together as a collective to formulate structures and set tracks. After gigging these tracks for over a year and also changing drummers during that time we eventually got to start laying down demos for recording in 2015. By that stage we had a good nine or ten tracks to choose from, but stuck to a solid 6 we though best ready for recording. By mid 2016 the recording was done and dusted. Our very own Byron Muller recorded and produced the album. Being an independent undertaking we made sure we were all there for every step of the process, so for each mixing session we were all a part of the process, making sure everyone’s voices and opinions were heard and expressed. Being a part time endeavour and with day jobs getting in the way, the whole process from start to finish did take a lengthy amount of time, and the final mixing process and adding of segues was a long process. In the end we were extremely happy with the final product though and were ecstatic to release a selection of songs we were proud of, knowing how much we had put into it!
What were some of the things you wanted to achieve with the release?
Our main objective with this release was to get the music we’d been gigging for over three years out to the listening ears of the prog rock world. And with it hopefully gain some more followers and fans in order to help get bigger gigs and festival slots, both locally and possibly abroad. In the end so long as the music is available for the right people to find, we consider the undertaking a massive success!
We completed this undertaking completely independently without any financial backing but our own. We wrote, produced, recorded, mixed and designed the album independently, the only process we left up to someone else was the final mastering, which was done by Larry DeVivo at Silvertone Mastering, NY. And he did a stellar job, putting the final touches onto the album that really made it pop.
What were the main inspirations and lyrical themes of the songs?
Main inspirations were just four guys, playing their hearts out together week in and week out, and creating music that felt right and natural to us, that we enjoyed listening to and playing back.
Being an instrumental band there were no sung lyrics, but we did indeed have a concept though and short story to accompany the album (The Cornerstone – by Dylan Doyle) which is printed within the album and can also be downloaded via our website. The concept follows the story of a character called Kai who leaves work and his mundane existence on a Friday Afternoon, fed up and tired, overworked and underpaid. His journey takes him on a weekend of chaos and debauchery, a road trip to nowhere, but in the end he’s battled his inner demons, talked with strangers, done lots of inner reflective soul searching, and come out the other side somewhat renewed, or hoping to be.
The Segues at the end of each song reflect the character’s mood or the space he finds himself in at that point in his journey. A journey of spiritual enlightenment which leaves him ascending into the cosmos. Within the story at the end of each chapter are poems/lyrics what he would have voice noted down during his trip, summing up the chaos and inner thoughts of his most recent experience. We created the album and song logos as amalgamations of our logo and the platonic solids, each one representing our own interpretation of these sacred geometrical shapes. The album names derives from the greek origin of oneness and unity. The song names each have a reference within the story and it’s up to the listener to see the songs through the story or through their own story. Without vocals or lyrics the songs are open to the listeners own interpretation.
Any favorite moments or songs on the release?
Enigma will always be a special track as it’s the first full track we came up and played together as KOI, even referring to it as KOI 1 before we had the official titles.
Do you enjoy the process of creating? Are you someone who continually writes or does the best come out under a little gentle pressure?
We love the process of writing and creating music together as four like-minded individuals with a common musical ear and shared love of an array of varying types, subtypes, and genres of music. I think we feel most at home writing and creating new songs, blending ideas together that bring out the KOI sound so many people are becoming familiar with now.
What does it feel like as an artist waiting for the songs you’ve lived with for some time to get released to the fans? Is there a sense of excitement or a little panic in there too?
There is most definitely a sense of both. Excitement that people will finally get to hear the songs and result of your endless hours of work in and out of the studio, but also panic that perhaps they won’t like it as much as you do, or that maybe they are disappointed that the studio release doesn’t live up to the live shows. Or just that people actually don’t like it. These are always gonna go through your head just before releasing. But I guess that’s a part of it, the anticipation of release and how it will be welcomed or scrutinised, but also the sense of accomplishment and fulfillment once it’s out there for all to hear and enjoy if the music sits well and fits in with their musical inclinations.
Did you imagine how these songs would play out in a live situation?
We gigged these songs extensively so knew exactly what kind of crowd reactions we would get and how they would all play out live.
How has the experience of playing live been like for the band so far? What can people expect at your live shows?
We are a live band first and foremost, giving the audience an entrancing experience of beautiful melody mixed with foot stomping grit and chaos once the distortion and fuzz pedals kick in. We are all about engrossing the audience with an eclectic experience where-in they don’t know what hit them, but go home talking about the gig to their friends and family. We want to entertain and enlighten at the same time, give people an hour or more of something they haven’t seen before.
Our favourite venue to play is Railways café in Irene, Centurion, Pretoria, South Africa. It’s a unique gem of a place, a diamond in the rough with more personality, charm and charisma than Kermit the frog playing the banjo. It’s always fun for us to be there, crowds are always brilliant, vibe is great, just an all-round well run gigging venue with great food and people, from the patrons to the owners and employees alike, we always feel at home there.
We had a fantastic album launch, at Railway café as mentioned above. Packed venue, eager crowd, awesome acts playing alongside us. To release the album there with that crowd was a momentous occasion for four small town dudes from the east rand of Johannesburg, it was a dream realised after years of hard work, toil, blood, sweat and tears, and many beers, a special moment for us indeed. A moment to release to the world our thoughts on a canvas of our own making.
How did the band form and get started?
Byron invited a whole host of us to his place for a jam session back in early 2012, all mates from high school days and from Benoni and Brakpan. We’d all jammed with each other officially and unofficially since teenagers in varying projects and bands and jam sessions, so it was a bringing together of like minded individuals just keen to get their jam on, already comfortable with each other’s musical tendencies and ideas, and all good mates from the start, it was a great mix of people willing to bring their A games to the jam sessions. We ended up doing this at his place every six to eight weeks. Just a bunch of mates, braai’ing (BBQ’ing) and picking up instruments and jamming away. The name KOI got thrown around as an acronym for the Kings of Improv, which is what the jam session came to be known, I.e the KOI sessions.
After about a year the same four of us (Byron, Chad, Stefan and myself ) seemed to be the last ones left coming back repeatedly, and subsequent to that songs started forming, the jam sessions had moved from just mere spontaneous gatherings to a more formal band setup. Things became more structured, and at a point I guess we just realised, hey we’re a band now, with actual songs not just random musings, and we figured we should flesh them out further and take them to the stage and see how we do on the gigging circuit. We played our first gig in 2014 as KOI and carried on jamming and putting ideas in place for demos and recording, to ultimately record our material down and have something for the archives. Stefan left the band in late 2013 and that left a hole to fit with a new drummer. It took a couple months to regroup but in May of 2015 Slade joined the fray, and as a fresh start with a new drummer we decided to change the improv to improg, just because, we liked the way it rolled off the tongue, the uniqueness of the name and the slight reference to the progressive style of music we play.
What have been your greatest challenges to date, and your favourite moments musically?
Biggest challenge I guess would be the general music listening public and industry at large, especially in South Africa, not taking us seriously, especially the first four years before the album came out. Venues ignoring us, Festivals not booking us, just trying to prove to the Industry our worth, that has been a difficult challenge, and still proves to be. Things are slowly changing, and hopefully more people are taking notice. We don’t expect accolades and praise, but we would like to know that the festival organisers take care to at least hear us before making a judgement call, but being a niche genre of music in an already small underground rock and metal industry locally, there’ s always gonna be some challenges, comes with the territory. Either way we ain’t stopping for anyone, we’ll carry on doing what we do cause of our love and passion for it and will strive to keep pushing the boundaries, our own and the industries.
Favourite moments musically, probably when writing and creating together, and two riffs just end up working perfectly beautifully together, or a lead guitar line harmonises just right with the perfect interlude, it’s those moments that are pure magic and make all of it worth it for us. Musically, those are the moments that keep us doing what we do, week in and week out, seeking out those perfect instances when the stars align and everything just fits into place.
With technology changing so much over the last few years and seemingly not slowing, and TV force-feeding us the lowest common denominator, what hope is there for rock & metal music?
That’s a difficult one to answer, no doubt, it’s a double edged sword, with technology comes both pros and cons. Of course the dumbing down of the musical ear of the average folk by bombardment by popular TV and radio stations, makes our job of getting appreciation for our art that much harder, but at the same time, the advances with the internet and online platforms have made the big world a global village where people from all over the planet have access to your music without the need for big corporate labels to push it down their throats. I firmly believe there will always be support for Rock and Metal, hardcore truth seekers not blinded by the bullshit being sold to them by the powers that be, but genuine lovers of music looking for the extraordinary, seeking out the kind of music that speaks to them. Of which Rock and Metal plays a massive part, for people all over the world from all walks of life. We see it in the crowds at the big rock and metal festivals worldwide, we see it in the amount of independent platforms and radio stations online. The future looks bright, if we can just wade through all the bollocks, and encourage others to do so too.
From what you’ve learned so far what is the most valuable advice you’ve been given so far as a musician?
Don’t stop. Never stop, keep playing until your hands bleed and your arms and legs become lame. If you enjoy doing what you doing, no matter the response or achievements or accolades, do it for you, and if you believe in it enough, eventually others will catch on and follow. But be true to yourself first, if you want any modicum of respect from the people that actually matter.
Who are some of your main influences?
Definitely old schoolers such as Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, King Crimson, Pink Floyd. Then the Prog Rock/Metal bands such as Tool, Mastodon, Karnivool, Opeth have played a big part in shaping our approach to writing. Being an instrumental outift obviously the likes of Animals as Leaders, Russian Circles, Plini, Cloudkicker, all make their way onto our respective playlists. We all enjoy varying other genres that make their way into our music as well, too many to mention.
Who or what inspired you to be in a band and play music?
Growing up with the grunge movement with bands such as Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Nirvana, at the height of their respective fames, was a huge factor in wanting to be in a band and play music, for me personally, idolizing these true legends who made real music outside and against the mainstream. Byron and I have always shared a common interest in a lot of the music we listen to, stemming a lot from 90’s scene. Early Incubus, System of A Down, Rage Against The Machine. We shared these common interests in music and made us both want to be in bands and play music. Chad comes from a blues background, learning to jam the blues with his dad at a young age, music and guitar was always a passion for him and when we all came together as KOI, that passion worked perfectly for the KOI sound. Slade is a big Metal and Prog fan so it goes without saying that his work on the drums and his sound are fully expressed in the Henosis album. He did his schooling and studied music at the National School of the Arts (NSA), and has always been passionate about music and his craft.
How do you feel about the current music scene right now?
We are positively optimistic that there is a need and want for good, real, raw and honest, heartfelt music, away from the poppy and mindless crap that’s being pushed normally. There’s enough of a scene to keep people interested and enough musos out there adding their amazingness to the collection of rock that will be archived forever, and in that pursuit, if more people catch on and become converts to the real music that’s happening out there, we may just win the cold war of music just yet and have more future generations of rock ‘n rolla’s to keep the dreams alive. It’s not all sunshine and roses obviously and in general we’re up against it. If the venue owners and station owners’ hearts were in the right place we might be in a better position as a scene, as opposed to the majority running these places with no real interest for the musicians who make up the scene at all. But we fight the good fight and keep pushing on. Can only really speak for the local SA scene right now so perhaps opinions will change if we get to cross the shores with our brand of instrumental and eclectic post pop rock.
Do you believe music can still change the world?
100 percent yes, it’s changed mine, ours and so many others, it can definitely change the world if enough people are willing to just sit back and listen. Pun intended.
If you could be a fly on the wall for the recording of any album in history, what album would it be?
Pink Floyd – Dark Side of The Moon
What is the meaning of life?
Experience shit, as much of it as you can, enjoy as much as you can, see as much as you can, embrace as much as you can. In the famous words of Bill Hicks (very much paraphrased), “The world is like a ride at an amusement park”, “It’s just a ride”. The meaning is yet to be discovered in all of us, and it’s the journey that’s the best part of it.
