Artist Information

Instrumentation
Kent-Rhythym Guitar/Vocals
Nick-Lead Guitar/Vocals
Alex Feldman- Bass/Vocals
Kaleb Barkely- Percussion/ Drumset

Biography
Kent and Nick both grew up in Batavia, IL., a suburb of Chicago. Influenced by a wide variety of music such as Neil Young, Dave Matthews, Mason Jennings, James Taylor, Trey Anastasio, ect., Kent With Peoples push themselves to write thoughtful meaningful music. Kent and Nick both have a keen sense for music. Kent With Peoples strives to be a successful, but not always crowd pleasing band. They play from their hearts for themselves, then for others. Alex and Kaleb both teach for a living and play music in their spare time.

DK: When did you form the band?
Nick Peoples and I got together and started making music in High School, but it wasn’t until January of 04 when we felt we had something and decided to put it out there. We couldn’t think of a good name for an acoustic duo, so it just came to be Kent With Peoples.

DK: Kent and Nick, why and when did you decide to play guitar?
Kent: My mother has played guitar since she was very young, and she encouraged me to be active in music at a young age. I played piano and percussion in grade school and then I settled with guitar when I was about 13 years old.
Nick: 8 or 9 years ago I got a guitar, and music has been my life since. I never put it down. Its just beautiful.

DK: How old are all of you?
Nick and I are 21, Alex our bass player is 24, and we really have no idea how old our drummer is.

DK: How long have you known each other?
Nick and I have known each other since we were 11. We have been playing music together since we were 16.

DK: What is your favorite place that you've played so far and why?
On December 22, 2005 we played a show at Silvie’s Lounge. That is our most memorable show thus far. It was our first show with a full band, and a bunch of friends and family showed up. It was just a good night.

DK: Have you performed outside IL?
We have not performed outside of Illinois yet, but we are working on it. We would like to get together with another band and tour, but it is just a matter of time. We are going to finish our first album before we make any plans to hit the road.

DK: What are your goals for Kent With Peoples? Do you intend on continuing with the full band or staying acoustic?
It seems to me that it is difficult to be successful when you only play acoustic. Therefore we have already formed a band. This is kind of a secret, well not anymore, but all of our upcoming shows will be with the full band. We have a very talented bassist named Alex Feldman, he really adds a lot to the mix and makes it flow better, we like that. Our current drummer has no name, he is like Prince, you can call him, The Guy. Recently, electric guitarist Phil Alley has been sitting in with us, and he is just awesome.

DK: What do you think are the qualities that make up a great rock album?
Lyrics seem to be important to us. So many groups write good music, but the lyrics suck. We like to think that our music will mean something to whoever is listening. In order for it to mean anything, the lyrics have to be something that you can relate to. Also, it is easier to write quality songs when you feel that you have solid lyrics. Some of our favorite albums, such as Mason Jennings “Simple Life”, and Dave Matthews “Live At Luther College” are simple when it comes to music, but so much more in terms of lyrics. We really take time and think about our lyrics. Ask me about any lyric in any song we write, and there is a story behind it.

DK: Kent, are you still in Columbia College?
Currenty taking the semester off, but yes, Columbia rocks.

DK: Do you also work a 9-5 in addition to school and the band?
I work as much as I can. I currently work at the Black Orchid in Pipers Alley, and I work in Production at The House Of Blues. Working in the industry is great, but it makes it hard to find time for my own music. It has influenced me in many ways, and I think will help us in the future when it comes to dealing with touring and the business aspect of music.

DK: How much time do you spend on practicing or writing songs a week/month?
Nick practices around 3-4 hours a day. I wish I had that much time a day, but I always get a hour in. I am always thinking of tunes in my head though, and going over songs, so that is kinda practicing. Some of our best stuff we have written was first played in our heads.

DK: Are you going to put out a full length studio album this year?
Yes, for heavens sake, yes. Soon, I promise, and it will be lovely.

DK: What have the greatest challenges been in being in a band?
We all have lives outside the band, so the toughest part is getting everyone together. But when we do, it makes it all worth it.

DK: So, Kent and Nick, you both keep your musical options open when it comes to jamming?
More open than anyone we know. That is the great thing about Kent With Peoples, every band member puts in his own thoughts and ideas. I will never tell Nick or Alex, “hey, play this there, and this there,” and so on. It is always, “this is what I came up with, now you come up with something to make it sound better.”

DK: Do you believe you'll always have that open kind of musical relationship no matter what Kent With Peoples is doing?
Definitely, we were friends long before the music, and we will be friends long after our fingers fall off and we can’t play anymore.

DK: How many songs do you currently have in your repertoire?
We have about 25 songs that we can play as a duo, and about 15-17 with the full band.

DK: What has the band got going on this Spring?
We are opening for Jack Straw at the Cubby Bear on Thursday, March 9th. And We will be opening for Matthew Santos Trio on May 6th at Silvie’s Lounge. We are also working on booking a gig in Champaign/Urbana before the end of the semester.

DK: Anything planned thereafter?
Not as of right now. We are hoping to get some gigs at summer festivals around Chicago, such as Rock Around The Block and Retro on Roscoe, but that is still in the works.

DK: Anything else you care to share with our readers?
Nick: Save the Whales. Kent: Thanks for reading the whole interview.

www.kentwithpeoples.com
www.myspace.com/kentwithpeoples
www.artistsforharmony.org

Discography
Live Demo 8/11/04