Kandy Face

How volatile can you be to yourself and how can you remedy it? Hamilton four piece DIY rock band Kandy Face targets this discussion with their thought provoking video for "STIK ME." The video abstractly depicts a a vicious loop of self conflict and the need to break through it, think Breaking Bad meets Memento. The Canadian band's sophomore album Stupid Famous was released just this September that's well rounded, fun and in your face. Listen to their single "STIK ME" from Stupid Famous in the video down below. - Noisey

This week on the Indie Show, Flamborough’s own KANDY FACE stop by the Y108 studio for a chat + live performance! Their new record STUPID FAMOUS is out now, and they’ll be celebrating with a CD Release show at Club Absinthe on Sat, October 10! Check out their interview and performance below, and then on with this week’s playlist! - Y108 Rock's 107.9 FM

Hamilton, Ontario’s indie rock quartet Kandy Face released the incredibly nostalgic Stupid Famous on September 20, 2015, the band’s second studio album following their 2013 debut Farewell Flamboro. My musical tastes range from grunge legends Alice in Chains to death metal bands like Feared, and Kandy Face’s unique blend of soothing vocals reminiscent of Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell all the way to the silky smooth delivery of the instrumentals makes it so deliciously chaotic.
Less theatric than Dave Matthews Band, but way more more rock ‘n’ roll. A few surprises get me throughout Stupid Famous from the growling at the end of “Oh God Please” and “Milk Belly” to long, drawn out vocal melodies on “No Room Left” and “I God Syndrome”. Fortunately, the majority of the songs are bangers with the exception of most of the intros revolving around the same opening chord.
My favourite thing about Kandy Face is the upbeat, dancey rock vibe on all the songs, “Rag Girl” being the perfect example of this. From the whomping bass to the groovy guitar interludes, the track would be excellent for throwing down or chilling out. I will admit I was lounging quite contently while listening to this album, which everyone should do.
For a band that appeared on my radar from nowhere, I am pleasantly relieved that Stupid Famous is as grooving as it is. I usually receive lots of weird styles of music, and Kandy Face definitely fits the bill in the best 90s grunge throwback way possible. - The Scene Magazine

Hamilton’s got talent: local band Kandy Face have released a self-produced record, Stupid Famous, that will surely please fans of 90s grunge.

The first track is “Derty,” a psychedelic tune that gently rocks you through jammy, acoustic, and ambient sections. Frontman John Pegg sounds like a mix of Eddie Vedder and Chris Cornell, while the band sounds fantastic thanks to excellent production handled by Jordan Viaene, the band’s bassist. Self-producing a record is a ton of work and these guys pulled through, creating a record that sounds great from start to finish. “Rag Girl” follows with a funky vibe that brought me back to early Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam. It’s a song that’s chock full of tasty riffs from guitarists Pegg and Evan Sagar. “Butterscotch” is next, and brings vibes of Deconstruction, thanks to interesting arrangements and all those clean guitar tones. “Bog” begins with some sweet riffing on the guitars, which power up for the choruses. This song reminds me of the Foo Fighters – it’s a catchy and energetic track that continually ramps up until its end. A ballad-like intro launches “Oh God Please,” and it’s here I must mention that I wish the vocals were a little louder in the mix. The song also showcases some growling vocals, which added diversity and energy to this track’s punchy ending.

Fans of slap bass should take a listen to “Stickme,” a funky track that sees frontman Pegg half-singing, half-rapping through the song’s choruses and verses. Also worth noting are the crisp, punchy, huge sounding drums which embellish the album from beginning to end. Kandy Face recorded the drums for Stupid Famous in a barn; how DIY is that! The playing is also on point, courtesy of Jesse Rose. During “Seven,” a breakdown leads to a sweet, albeit brief, guitar solo.

This band knows how to arrange their parts: the opening riffs on “Milk Belly” perfectly exemplify what I mean. However, there is something I feel the need to mention: around this time in the track list, I started to guess where the song was going to go. Unfortunately, the song’s structure followed what I heard before on this album’s previous tracks. Of course, this is a matter of personal preference, I just wish this album could surprise me a little more. “No Room Left” is next, and started with powerful strumming on the guitar. We hear the return of the growling vocals for the bridge, adding more power to this great rock song, which is followed by a sweet guitar solo before abruptly ending with the first line of a verse. “Free” opens with a string section adding lushness to an acoustic/electric guitar intro. The chord changes during the verses were interesting and unexpected and the harmonized vocals were also a nice touch.

“Grey” is a sweet song that has feel-good vibes aplenty, along with a catchy guitar solo counted in by (I suspect) bassist Viaene, who is credited with background and growling vocals on the album. It was nice to hear the bass begin “I God Syndrome,” as the majority of the tracks start with guitar riffs. The song’s bridge is packed with energy, and took a turn towards metal territory with its growling vocals and overall evil sound. The intro of the next track “Sad Girl” summons Pink Floyd thanks to psychedelic phasers swirling through echoed guitar riffs and gradual fade out. “Aller Control” is the last track on Stupid Famous, and it’s a trip.

Overall, this album is solid. It sounds great, it’s very well arranged, and the songs are jams that I’d love to see live. Kandy Face may be a relatively new band, but you can tell these guys know what they’re doing, and they do it well. - Bucketlist Music Reviews

Flamborough rockers Kandy Face have released their second album, Stupid Famous.

The group – bassist Jordan Viaene, vocalist and rhythm guitarist John Pegg, guitarist Evan Sagar and drummer Jesse Rose – recorded the album from March 2014 to August 2015.

Viaene noted the record was built around a big drum sound that they recorded in a refurbished barn near Milton.

“The sound the room gave off kind of gave a nice blanket for the album to build off of,” he said. “The drums sounded great to begin with, so we knew at the get-go we were going to have a great sounding album.”

Rose said the band recorded the drums for its first album Farewell Flamboro, at his old apartment in Freelton.

He noted the difference in drum sound on the new album is huge.

“It has that unique kind of sound,” he said, noting the band was looking for a sound like Led Zeppelin’s “When the Levee Breaks,” which was famously recorded in a stairwell at Headley Grange.

“We wanted the biggest, open-sounding drum tone we could go for and that was the closest thing we could get, other than spending boatloads of money on an actual studio,” Viaene added. “It’s rare to find a tone like that.”

The band was trying to make the 14-track Stupid Famous sound like the big-sound rock bands of the ‘90s, said Viaene, referencing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots and Queens of the Stone Age as the album’s influences.

“They all have the big rock band sound and we wanted to go for that sound,” he said.

“We’re very happy with how things turned out.”

Pegg noted the album is about aliens and questions about where the future is going.

The album was produced, engineered and mixed in Kandy Face’s home rehearsal space and makeshift studio by Viaene, who studied recording engineering.

The group has been together for seven years, although Sagar just joined this year. They practise three times a week.

“It takes a lot of dedication to do this full-time,” Rose noted.

Viaene noted the band worked together to arrange the instrumentals specifically to the taste of each song.

He added the band enjoys the creative control to be able to have 100 per cent say over every facet of the album.

“There’s not a lot of bands that do what we do – the whole process of everything,” Viaene said. “Writing, recording, producing.”

Pegg noted the band is really honing their craft in the studio.

“We’re getting pretty good at it,” he said of recording albums. “We can build them pretty fast now.”

The band hosted an album release party at Hamilton’s Club Absinthe Oct. 10, which Viaene said went really well.

“We had a great reaction from the audience, everyone was very involved in the performance,” he said of the crowd. “Everyone was locked in to the performance, which was pretty cool.”

Moving forward, Kandy Face will attempt to promote the album as much as possible, Viaene said.

“Play as many shows as possible and continue writing and furthering the band,” he said. “We want people to really start taking us seriously and we want to show them that we have what it takes to be a big-name rock band.”

“Because we do,” Rose added. “That’s not an ego thing – it’s more that we have the passion and drive to do it.

“We’ve played in the gutters quite a few times to get to where we are now, but it’s definitely all worth it.”

For more information on Kandy Face, or to hear or buy the album visit www.kandyface.bandcamp.com. - The Hamilton Spectator

Kandy Face is John Pegg on lead guitar and vocals, Brandon Morgado shredding rhythm guitar, Jordan Viane slapping bass and singing backup and Jesse Rose banging the drums. The small town four-piece is kicking down doors and stealing stereos with a big city sound. With one album in the bank and another in the making Kandy Face is proving that they are not capable of slowing down. The debut album Farewell Flamboro, released in July 2013, was produced by bassist Viaene and released through his DIY label Lost Rockstar Records. The next record Stupid Famous is scheduled for release in spring of next year.
In this candid interview Viaene talks about the recording processes and methodology behind the Kandy Face tunes.
Lost Rockstar Records Kandy Face Jordan Viaene interview Grunge Flamborough Farewell Flamboro 90s
Rose (left), Viaene (top), Pegg (middle), Morgado (right)
How has rock music changed in recent years and how does Kandy Face fit into the genre?
Rock music hasn’t only changed with the recent years but ever since the ‘90s music has become more and more processed and plastic. A band with true talent nowadays sounds just as skilled as a band with poor instrumentality due to the tools used in recording music digitally. There is no set genre for rock music now; all you ever hear is reiterations of music that has already been popular.
Our main focus is to give people true rock music that comes straight from our insides, music that we feel in our gut, music that will hit you in a way that the old bands once did. We do this and we incorporate a new age sound, that helps us fit in, but much more than just fitting in we want to stand out and bring back that true rock sound that all rock music lovers can say they miss.
Your debut full-length “Farewell Flamboro” touches on themes of nostalgia and angst, how has growing up in Flamborough influenced the band?
Flamborough has been like a pit of despair for all of us, and we still live here. Growing up in Flamborough with friends and the community definitely had an effect on us. The parties we used to have, the people we used to know, and the shenanigans we were once encompassed by all had an effect on the music. “Used to” is a key phrase there because we all want out of this small little spinning circle we call our home. The music will allow us to reach our goals and move on, not to say we won’t ever return, but we need to expand our horizons. Flamborough has affected us as people and our passions which has turned us into who we are and in turn what reflects upon our music. I guess you can say we portray the sound of our upbringing of a true hardcore Flamboroughian.
Lost Rockstar Records Kandy Face Jordan Viaene interview Grunge Flamborough Farewell Flamboro 90s
How did the band start and where did the name come from?
The music started over a decade ago, Jesse, Johnny and I met at a New Years’ party when I was 18, so going on six years now from when I first joined these crazy people I call my partners and best friends. Kandy Face however, started when we decided to move on from our party days and become truly serious as a band. I was going to school at Metalworks Institute when I first started recording bed tracks for drums on Farewell Flamboro. I recorded Farewell Flamboro completely by myself over the course of two years, and I gotta say for a first ever complete project, it turned out pretty damn good. As for the name we didn’t have a name for the longest time, until the album was nearly finished and around the time our second guitarist Brandon joined us. Johnny’s 10-year-old daughter actually came up with the name strangely enough. She suggested we call the band “Candy Face” because it was a cartoon character in a show, we figured Kandy Face was a very memorable name first off, and that it’s meaning could be taken different ways. I like to tie it to the way we used to be; we we’re party animals shoving whatever “candy” into our faces as we could, whether it be alcohol, drugs, or women. You know that whole “sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll” mentality. I like to assure you we aren’t so much partyers anymore; we drove that liveliness into the creation of our music. Also the name just sounds and looks cool, especially with a K; we think it can be very strongly marketed.
What is the most important part of writing an album?
The most important part I’d say is to have the songs as entirely planned out as possible. Knowing as closely as we can exactly what part to play, what tracks need to be recorded and overdubbed, how the songs will be arranged, how I will go about engineering the sessions to get the sounds I am looking for, etc. The more prepared you are, the easier recording sessions are, and it makes everything go a whole lot smoother instead of guessing and finding out things through trial and error before hitting the studio. Some things are done on the fly but the more you have prepared, the easier the recording process becomes.
What are some of the benefits of being on your own label, Lost Rockstar Records? Disadvantages?
Being on our own label ultimately lets us be in full creative control of our writing and recording/production. We don’t want outsiders to influence our music. Because we have been playing for so long together and we don’t do things that are traditionally done with a rock band, we know better than anyone else how we want our songs to be. We are always open to ideas but when it comes down to it we have complete creative control. Now disadvantages? Well we don’t have proper marketing, distribution, promotion, merchandise, or support because for one we aren’t wealthy people… we’re musicians, and two we need to connect with the right people. That is one of the main things I am working on is the networking aspect and filling in our missing gaps. It’s a lot for one person to handle and we are definitely in search for any assistance we can get. Getting our music to the masses is the toughest part, and that is ultimately our biggest goal.
Lost Rockstar Records Kandy Face Jordan Viaene interview Grunge Flamborough Farewell Flamboro 90s What are some of the difficulties of starting your own record label in today’s industry?
A difficulty of starting a new label is that there are so many people trying to do it! I meet people everywhere who claim they are some “producer” or “engineer” and they have this “sick studio” and they have these “connections.” Whatever, that’s one thing. The hard part is getting all the divisions to function equally. I focus mainly on the recording aspect for now because we need to continually produce music but everything else seems to take a hit. I wish I could clone four or five of me to send out and finish the tasks I don’t have time to do. It is impossible to successfully start a label by your lonesome, but one thing I can say is that having a solid plan together, knowing your goals, where you want to be, and devoting yourself to slowly getting closer to those goals bit by bit without trying to let anything sit idle is the key. You can’t wait for others to do work for you. Sure if help comes along then take it, but I already realized long ago that in order for anything to happen, I myself must take the action.
If you could play a show with any musician/artist/band dead or alive, who would it be?
Nirvana, Soundgarden, Zeppelin, Queens of the Stone Age would be high up on the list. Any good grunge band from the ‘90s I believe we’d fit in great with. Just thinking about it now, I think a back-to-back show with us and Nirvana would be pretty kickass if Kurt was alive. Although playing a show with Zeppelin would be cool, they would put us to shame. As of today, I think QOTSA would be the number # 1 for us.
What was the first band that really made you fall in love with music?
When I was younger I never really had a set band to listen to. I remember listening to, if anyone knows still, the Big Shiny Tunes compilations? I used to rock out to those hard! First full album I was addicted to was Dookie by Green Day. From there my dad would show me stuff he’d listen to. As I picked up the bass guitar and learned to play for the first time I was getting really into Zeppelin, Sabbath, Deep Purple, Rush, and The Chili Peppers. Those bands had a massive influence on my playing style. What helps with us too is that we all have a very similar music tastes.
Lost Rockstar Records Kandy Face Jordan Viaene interview Grunge Flamborough Farewell Flamboro 90s
How is Kandy Face different from other contemporary bands?
We are different from other bands because, well this is supposed to be a secret but I don’t think people will start copying us because other guitarists look at us like were speaking Chinese, but we write and play in Open D Major tuning, on everything! It gives us this sound that you just can’t get in standard tuning. And speaking of the word standard, we refuse to become the standardized rock band that is expected nowadays, we want to bring back that true edgy sound that rock music had in the ‘90s. We like to think we aren’t at all the same as other bands because we more so influence ourselves and try not to allow other new music to influence us. Another thing to that makes us unique is that we are all 100 percent self-taught musicians and none of us use any theory at all during the writing process. In fact, I am the only one in the band who really knows the laws of music.
What’s next? What do you want to have accomplished by the end of 2014?
By the end of this year we will have finished the physical recording process for our second album, Stupid Famous, which is by far the highest point we have reached as a band. The songs are undeniably good, and we all can’t wait to see the reactions people have. This next album is like Nirvana’s Nevermind. We are aiming to have a master version of our album ready to release for Spring 2015.
Lost Rockstar Records Kandy Face Jordan Viaene interview Grunge Flamborough Farewell Flamboro 90s What was the best show you have played so far?
That’s a tough question. The best shows we’ve played are our local shows; the ones we promote long ahead of time and when our true fans show up for us to melt their faces off. One in particular would be our first CD release show at The Casbah in Hamilton last July 2013. The place was packed and the energy was incredible. The most entertaining show this year was a local show in Waterdown at Bo’s bar where we had all local acts playing. This too was one of those packed nights with tons of energy. Playing at the Boston Manor in Burlington and Stonewalls in Hamilton were two very enjoyable shows with nice stage setups and acoustics. It’s nice to play at a venue where we don’t sound mash-y, because we are so loud we usually need a bigger space with a nice PA system to really put out our sound in a clear fashion.
Anything else you want to say?
Umm… well, get ready! What we have coming up is definitely something to be excited about. This next album is truly incredible and I can’t wait for everyone to hear the finished product. We have it embedded in our minds that we will make it to the top, and if this album doesn’t do it for us, then well, there is literally no hope left for modern age rock music. Aaand ya, support us, like us on Facebook, listen to our debut album at www.kandyface.bandcamp.com, and watch our newly released music video for our song “Grave Place” on YouTube. Other than that, I want to thank you very much for this opportunity and for those who will read this. Kandy Face is happy give you our music to enjoy. Cheers! - The Scene Magazine

They’re a band of young Flamborough musicians who share a common goal and an insatiable appetite for playing, recording and writing good music.
“We want to be Canada’s next big band,” said Kandy Face’s John Pegg, who at 39 is the most senior member of the grunge/alternative rock band that launched its debut album in Hamilton early last month. Pegg, a Freelton resident who has played in nine bands all over the world and recorded with the likes of Jeff Martin from Tea Party and Mike Turner from Our Lady of Peace, insists that he and the other band members all have “the drive and the passion” to realize their dream.
“Every one of these guys is an amazing musician; they all have soul,” said the lead vocalist, who also plays guitar in the band.
Providing backup vocals and playing bass is 22-year-old Jordan Viaene of Mountsberg. An audio production/engineering graduate of Metalworks Institute in Mississauga, he produced the recent album, Farewell Flamboro, adding his professional touch to the recording, mixing and editing of its 14 songs. “I was recording my own songs at (age) 15 and 16,” Viaene said, adding that his interest in music motivated him “to make a career out of it” and go to school to learn audio production.
Copetown resident Jesse Rose, 24, is the band’s drummer. He remembers “sleeping on the couch in the jam room” as a youth while his dad’s band performed various gigs. A member of a punk band during his high school years, he began playing drums about 10 years ago and says his playing technique is “100 per cent better” since becoming a member of Kandy Face.
Pegg, Viaene and Rose formed the band five years ago after meeting at a party. Guitarist Brandon Morgado of Waterdown, 22, joined the group last October. Like Rose, he has seen his music abilities improve since becoming a member of the band.
“I’ve learned a lot from others I play music with,” Morgado said. He said he’s moving up and down his guitar’s fret board a lot more and his strumming, timing and rhythm have all changed for the better.
Morgado’s dad, Jorge, also plays guitar and Brandon, like the other members of Kandy Face, got an early introduction to music. He was just 12 when he started playing classic rock songs on the guitar.
All of the Kandy Face musicians are self-taught. They collaborate on writing the music for their songs and Pegg provides the lyrics. While Led Zeppelin is the band’s biggest influence, Kandy Face has its own distinctive sound. “There’s not a band from the area that has the sound that we have,” Rose declared.
Pegg, who has signed with two different labels – EMI and Roadrunner – during his career, says being Flamborough residents has impacted Kandy Face’s brand of music. “I’ve left this place so many times, but I always end up back in Flamborough,” he said. All band members agree that Flamborough is home and where they want to be.
To hear the group’s music, visit online at http://www.kandyface.bandcamp.com or come out to the Casbah on Saturday (Aug. 17). The downtown Hamilton nightspot is also the site where the band launched its debut CD on July 5.
It took two years for the band to complete their first album and they are already starting to record another. Right now, they’re working on building name recognition and getting their music “out there” by playing as many gigs as possible.
“We want to succeed,” said Pegg, adding that the band has the passion and drive to achieve their goals. - The Flamborough Review