http://hitsdailydouble.com/news/newsPage.cgi?news08848m01

January 30, 2012

I’m excited by this mostly because I did not know that Kinney was still in the game and that his band drivin’ n’ cryin’ had released records as recently as 2009. I was a genuine obsessive about the band’s 1987 “Whisper Tames the Lion” LP which was produced by the Golden Palamino’s Anton Fier. So this callabo sort of highlights the songwriting, production, and optimistically melancholy vibe of a record that I listened to a thousand times. “a good country mile” is an album of new and old songs that would appease country, southern rock, indie rock, guitar geek, Americana, 60s country rock, and singer/songwriter fans, all of whom would feel like they understood it better than all those folks in the room with different haircuts than them.

http://roctoberreviews.blogspot.com/2012/01/kevn-kinney-and-golden-palominos-good.html

by Anais Mitchell for Songs: Illinois

January 30. 2012

There used to be a time in college radio in the late 80′s and early nineties that a Golden Palominos record was a big deal. REM were usually involved in some way and of course so was drummer Anton Fier – also folks like Syd Straw, Richard Thompson, Peter Holsapple, Bob Mould, and NYC improvers like John Zorn, Bill Laswell, Arto Lindsey and Fred Firth. The Palomino records that were produced with varying guests over a decade were eclectic ranging from rock to industrial.

It’s been awhile since I heard from the group but I just learned Anton Fier has teamed up with Drivin n Cryin alum Kevn Kinney to record a new Palomino record called A Good Country Mile. In fact there is a song called “A Good Country Mile” on here and it’s one of my favorite Kinney tunes. But here is “Challenge” from the new record. It’s more muscular than a typical Kinney solo outing but this is no ordinary Kinney solo outing. This will appeal to fans of Drivin n Cryin.

http://www.songsillinois.net/2012/01/kevn-kinney-the-golden-palominos-a-good-country-mile/

A Good Country Mile

By David Luhrssen

Thursday January 5, 2012

As a teenage novice in Milwaukee, even before he lost the first i in his name, Kevn Kinney already had a gift for fashioning stories to simple but moving rock melodies. After leaving for Atlanta, he absorbed the Southern setting through his skin, moving back in time from the punk rock of his early Milwaukee ears to embrace a wider, more expressive palette of American music but without losing the youthful energy.

On A Good Country Mile, Kinney collaborates with drummer Anton Fier and his band, the Golden Palominos, to produce a powerful, deeply felt, hard rocking album. “A Good Country Mile” and many other songs are inhabited by characters that could have come from the pages of Flannery O’Connor and are given dramatic life from guitar solos raging over a solid, four-square Southern rock beat. “Gotta Move On (Again)” recalls the late 1960s and early ’70s—as if Alvin Lee had fronted a raging garage band from one of the Nuggets compilations. Much of the album is grounded somber but rollicking blues-rock as Kinney and company kindle the controlled fire of their music.

http://www.expressmilwaukee.com/article-17313-kevn_kinney.html

01/06/2012

“Challenge” hails from forthcoming album a good country mile.

By Fred Mills

A couple of weeks ago the news arrived that Drivin N Cryin mainman Kevn Kinney had teamed up with Golden Palominos mainman Anton Fier to cut a new Kinney album. Titled a good country mile, it sees a full national release on Feb. 21 via Almost Loaded/Redeye (it can also be ordered directly from Kinney’s website,www.KevnKinney.com). The guitar-heavy rec is his first new solo platter since 2004’sSun Tangled Angel Revival and the first time Fier has attached the Golden Palominos name to a recording since 1996’s Dead Inside.

So we’re pretty stoked to unveil the first single from the album. Titled “Challenge,” you can check it out right here. Enjoy! (Photo credit: Brittny Smith.)

http://blurt-online.com/news/view/5852/

by Jared Booth for the Charleston City Paper

December 19, 2011

Drivin’ N Cryin’, Josh Roberts and the Hinges
The Pour House
Dec. 17

The Pour House was packed to the gills on Saturday night as music fans gathered to see the prodigal son return. Sadler Vaden, formerly the frontman of Leslie, rode back into town with his new band, the legendary Atlanta country-rockers Drivin’ N Cryin’.

Also on the bill were semi-locals Josh Roberts and the Hinges, who delivered a full-on guitar assault as the opening act. Vaden joined them for a monster jam, trading licks with the leather-jacketed, hillbilly-bearded Roberts.

Led by frontman Kevn Kinney, Drivin’ N Cryin’ played a few acoustic songs early into their set before delving into serious rocking territory. On the pretty “Let’s Go Dancing,” Vaden got his first solo, and the place went crazy.

Kinney’s unique voice, although not as strong as it once was, still possesses the strangled emotion it had in days of yore. He seemed to fight against invisible demons in order to get the words out. The first real rocker of the night of the 1989 classic anthem “Honeysuckle Blue.”

At one point, Kinney stood out center stage, shredding his guitar while standing almost above the crowd. The whole place loved it.

While a large portion of the crowd came to see Vaden, older die-hards were also out in force, singing along, nodding their heads, and smiling. The adrenaline coursed through the whole band, from drummer Dave Johnson and bassist Tim Nielson to Vaden and Kinney up front. The audience absorbed it with glee.

After another classic, “Look What You’ve Done to Your Brother,” Kinney sang what might be a good theme song for the Occupy Movement. “Pre-approved, Pre-denied,” off 2009’s The Great American Bubble Factory started off with Kinney softly singing, “Dear Bank of America/Fuck you/How stupid do you think I am?” before delivering a full-on rant worthy of a homemade sign in Zucotti Park.

Vaden’s youthful energy definitely added a spark to the band. He ran around the stage, delivering solo after solo, mouthing lyrics, and singing harmony with Kinney all night. The band still had the soul, and certainly the material, but Vaden’s stage presence gave the performance a jolt.

After touring for 25 years, it’s hard to imagine having much left in the tank, but with Vaden’s help, they played through the night, delivering a hard-rocking set that was met with complete satisfaction from the full house.

http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/video-sadler-vadens-energetic-performance-reinvigorates-drivin-n-cryin/Content?oid=3662142

Q&A with Drivin’ n’ Cryin’s Kevn Kinney

by Brian Tucker

December 13, 2011

Drivin n’ Cryin’ is a band that has never exploded and never quit, continually making great American music.

Formed in 1986, their music remains timeless, from great albums like “Scarred but Smarter” and “Mystery Road” to their most successful “Fly Me Courageous” and the underrated gem “Smoke.” The band has frequented Wilmington for years, bridging punk and folk with rock and roll. Drivin n’ Cryin’ plays the Brooklyn Arts Center this week and here’s more of my interview with singer-guitarist Kevn Kinney.

Starting out in 1985 did your sound happen organically or did you go in with this idea of mixing rock and punk and folk and country?

We were doing the best we possibly could. There was a time when Americana was just starting, there were bands like Rank & File and The Longriders. There was Husker Du and The Replacements and Bad Brains. It was kind of cool to do punk rock and then do country. The Replacements were punk rock but they would acoustic stuff, and Bad Brains were heavy metal and then they did reggae, they did both. We were like if they can do it we can do it.

You’ve said that the band’s music was like a mix-tape.

To this day, even with this EP I just put out (“A Good Country Mile”), I just write songs that are singles and somehow I try to get them to fit together. Its one tough hard rock song like from the 70’s, one is a country song, one is a tribute to REM. They all sound totally different. That’s just who I am. That’s how I grew up, with a huge variety of influences. Like Elvis had some gospel and blues and the Beatles had Elvis, the gospel and blues. They had that bossa nova beat. I’m just influenced by tons of different stuff. It is very organic but its more of a I don’t care, whatever. We’re all stealing. Its all derivative. Country and rock and roll are not that far apart. It’s all pretty much American music.

For a band gaining traction in the late 80’s you were in the middle of pop music and hair metal that was followed by grunge music. Still, you carved your own path.

I hated hair metal but I loved metal. I like Motorhead. I think Motorhead is one of my gods. The Ramones. Motorhead. I hated Whitesnake. I like Aerosmith. Hank Williams. I was this funny sounding Hank Williams guy doing Aerosmith. We were like, Oh, well. Every time I made a record the amount of reviews were never more than 50/50, love it or hate it. I just got used to becoming…I was never a critic’s darling. Drivin ‘N Cryin was not in a category anywhere. We weren’t punk, grunge, metal, post punk, post Americana punk. No one will claim us so we had to claim ourselves.

The band never exploded, just like The Ramones. Only now are The Ramones “big.”

The Ramones, they never did. Motorhead didn’t either really. It’s weird because now they’re huge. The Ramones are much bigger now than they ever were. I travelled with The Ramones for years. We never had that many people come, 1000 at the most. It was very frustrating for the band. They were not a happy camper really. They felt they deserved more. Everyone wears their t-shirts now.

I remember them arriving at The Mad Monk in a van back in the 90’s. The Ramones, in a van.

They only travelled in a van, never in a tour bus. They were aware of their money. They made good money but they didn’t make that much money. They were a frustrated that they never went on tour with a big band or no one asked them to tour with them. Yeah, they were a little frustrated actually. They saved their money. They made their money in the merchandising booth. They were very military, very serious about what they did.

A week on a tour bus together is not something they would ever do. Because they hated each other. They needed those hotel rooms to keep apart from each other. It’s what trained me too. We only tour in a van, not in a tour bus anymore. It’s a waste of money, $5000 a week.

You’ve written songs and mentioned record stores. You’ve worked in them. Is there disconnect between fans and bands because lack of record stores now?

No. The record companies ran the record stores out of business by raising prices a long time ago and making (albums) hard to get. With the return policies (stores) could only return so much. I worked in record stores for a long time – One Stop, Record Warehouse’s, things like that. I know how the record return policies are and how much it is to buy an LP that you sell. If you wanted a copy of (Drivin ‘N Cryin’s) “Whisper Tames the Lion” or “Mystery Road” you had to go find it. You to drive around and find it or get it on eBay.

But that music can be downloaded digitally today.

Eight years ago, maybe five or six, I was totally forgotten. I wasn’t on iTunes. I love the iTunes generation. I find myself communicating with people at concerts. If we go to see Ryan Adams or whoever, you talk to people and share ideas about bands you like. I think it’s great you can buy one song.

The thing is I’m never going to be forgotten now. I’m stuck out there in the cyber world or whatever it’s called and it’ll always be there and that’s a great felling. Ten years ago all of my records were cut out (the record label stopped pressing new copies of DnC albums). You were never going to get a copy unless it’s used. That might be cool for collectors but it’s not a great way to build another audience. Now I can tell people at shows go to iTunes. It’s on there. I’m not interested in being the most collectible person I the world.

Do solo albums allow more for you creatively – working with other musicians or exploring new ideas musically?

I kind of get to do what I want. DnC is me and (bassist) Tim (Nielsen) basically. (With making music) There’s a certain amount of – do you like that? Should we do that? It’s good to have that partnership that you’ve maintained twenty years or whatever that you started with. Then there’s just feeling like doing what I want and do it fast and on the cheap. A lot less pressure.

Did you ever grow tired of playing “Straight to Hell”?

I did. I did grow tired of playing it and now I resolve myself to put it in the right spot so I’m not intimated by it anymore. But I was intimated by it. I’m more sick of “Fly Me Courageous” I think. We play songs from every record. We try to. We do stuff from “Smoke” – “Patron Lady Beautiful,” “Smoke,” “All Around the World.” We do all sorts of stuff. Like I said, we created our own world and we’re comfortable in our own world.

http://wae.blogs.starnewsonline.com/22082/more-with-drivin-n-cryins-kevn-kinney/?tc=ar

Two Parts Kick-Ass

by T. Ballard Lesemann for the Charleston City Paper

December 14, 2011

One year ago, Sadler Vaden was super busy with studio and road work with his longtime rock trio Leslie. As the long-haired, bright-eyed frontman and main spokesman for the band, Vaden and Leslie were practically synonymous. But these days, when the guitarist and songwriter talks about his band, he’s referring to veteran rock group Drivin’ N Cryin’. It’s weird to hear him say “we” and it not mean the rock band with drummer Jonathan Carman, and bassist Jason Fox.

“Things have been particularly busy for us this season,” Vaden says, speaking of Drivin’ N Cryin’. “We just had a great run of Memphis, Nashville, and Athens, where we played at the new Georgia Theatre to a slam-packed room, which was a blast and an honor for me. The whole experience has been a good feeling.”

Much to the surprise of many local fans and supporters, Leslie disbanded this past August due to personal and creative differences. Leslie had released a much-anticipated studio album titled Lord, Have Mercy, which the band released in April.

As news of Leslie’s breakup hit the Charleston scene, Vaden packed his gear and relocated to Nashville, where he started collaborating with a handful of musicians and friends on a variety of rock, soul, and Americana projects.

In early September, Vaden began regularly filling in as the lead guitarist with Drivin’ N Cryin’ alongside guitarist/singer and main songwriter Kevn Kinney, longtime bassist Tim Nielsen, and drummer Dave Johnson.

“I got a call from Tim one day, asking me for a ride to Asheville,” Vaden says. “He told me to bring my guitar and amp so I could sit in. I played the last half of the show. Afterward, Kevn said, ‘Hey man, what are you doing the rest of the week? We’re heading up to New York.’ So I ended up jumpin’ in the van and going.”

Vaden barely had a chance to learn many of Drivin’ N Cryin’s songs before hitting the road with them. There were no late-night rehearsals or headphone sessions with old recordings. No time for any it. The band simply enlisted him as lead guitarist on the eve of one if their fall road trips with no worries at all.

“I was literally learning new songs on stage,” Vaden laughs. “That’s how it worked. Luckily, I’m a fan of the band and I already knew a lot of their songs, but not all of them. Kevn never writes a setlist before a show, so that’s a cool and challenging thing.”

Vaden mostly learned on the fly, on stage, during the sets, night after night. Two months into his new duties, he’s still learning. According to him and his new bandmates, everything’s cool.

Nielsen was very impressed with Vaden’s quick transformation from new-guy guitarist to fully fledged bandmate. “Sadler does his homework, and he’s got a good ear, too,” he says. “It’s a really great fit. His enthusiasm is just awesome. We’ve been having fun doing this for years, with five or six of us on the road, traveling around like family. With Sadler being in the band, it’s even more fun. He’s a joy to be around.”

On Oct. 27, Drivin’ N Cryin’ posted an announcement on their web page declaring the installment of Vaden as an official member. “Sadler is one part guitarist-extraordinaire, one part talented songwriter, one part soulful singer, and two parts kick-ass,” read the post. “Stay tuned for news about new D’N'C recordings with Sadler to be released soon.”

Drivin’ N’ Cryin’ have been laying down roots since they formed as a trio in Atlanta in 1986 and developed a reputation in the Southeastern club circuit for rockin’ hard with a guitar-based sound. The band’s most recent studio album, 2009’s The Great American Bubble Factory (their first official studio album in 12 years) displayed more confidence and depth than much of their mid-period work.

Vaden replaced guitarist Mac Carter, a 10-year member of the band. According to Nielsen, Carter couldn’t commit to some of the tours he and Kinney had planned for the late summer and fall. Carter quietly stepped aside just before Vaden officially joined.

“It’s a recent thing and it’s still not completely resolved emotionally for all of us,” Nielsen says. “It just seemed like Mac wasn’t having fun anymore. He’d been working for Apple on and off, and he’d been applying for another job that would have prevented him to tour. Kevn and I encouraged him to do what he wanted to do. From the outside looking in, this change might seem like a conspiracy or some sort of switcheroo, but it wasn’t planned at all.”

According to Vaden, the band has welcomed his musical input. He seems to be able to match the appropriate lead and rhythm parts to songs with ease, and there’s room for his personal style as well.

“None of them have told me what to do, you know?” Vaden says. “The only thing Kevn has said was, ‘Don’t be afraid to chuck [a percussive, muted style of strumming] from time to time,’ so I’ve mostly been on my own with the guitar parts.”

Vaden’s expressive fretwork features a Southern-tinged quality, so it naturally complements much of D’N'C’s material, from the acoustic strummy stuff to the power-chord anthems.

“Somehow, it just worked out where we needed some new blood and he was available,” Nielsen says. “We kind of tricked him into being in the band. He’d jammed with us before, and Leslie had opened for us a number of times, so we knew each other pretty well. I think he’s enjoyed focusing on just being a musician in a band. He doesn’t have to drive the van, handle the merchandise, or book and promote shows.”

Vaden, for one, likes not having to be a bandleader or de-facto manager, and he’s excited about the on-stage musical chemistry between him and his bandmates.

“I think I might bring a more organic sound to the stage,” he says. “I enjoy not having to handle lead vocal duties for a change, too. I get to play guitar and sing backups a bit. I get to play with Kevn’s songs, so that’s really cool.”

Vaden’s love of live performance goes back to his teenage years. No matter the band or the style of music, connecting with musicians on stage is a skill that comes naturally to him.

“I kind of feel like I’ve gotten back to my roots when I was in high school, punk-rockin’,” Vaden says. “I’m learning how to blend in, and I’m also learning how to just turn my brain off in the right way.”

The current four-man D’N'C’ formation ventured into Sonica Studios in Atlanta earlier this month and cut nine new songs. They plan to release four of them as an EP this winter, including an R.E.M. tribute (simply titled “R.E.M.”), a 30-second punk tune, a heavy-rocker, and an anti-new country country song. A proper full-length is in the works for early 2012. Vaden’s guitar work will be on all of the tracks.

“We’re trying to write, tour, record, and work,” Nielsen says. “We have fun doing this and we have a lot we want to do. With Sadler in the band, I think we’re going do some great stuff.”

http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/sadler-vaden-lands-a-gig-with-drivin-n-cryin/Content?oid=3659836

by Sarah Richter for the Wilmington Encore

When asking someone their favorite musicians, peppered in with the Billboard Top 100 hits are always artists and songs from the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s. A sense of nostalgia exists in holding on to the purity and novelty of the emergence of folk music and rock ‘n’ roll. Things are no longer shocking to our generation. The drug references, the flagrant disregard for authority of any kind and the conventions of propriety that dictated social codes disrupted the foundations of Western society.

The hip-swinging of Elvis that incited a raucous generation would be child’s play today. In fact, music today has lost most of its shock value. From Madonna and Britney Spears’ lip lock at the 2003 VMA’s to more disheartening news, like when Chris Brown was arrested on domestic violence charges against Rhianna in 2009, society seems desensitized. Why people always find a connection to the iconic musical hits of the ‘60s and ‘70s is because they were revolutionary in their message, their legacy and their place in culture, all of which remains comforting in nostalgia.

Drivin’ N Cryin’ is a band that embodies many peoples’ favorite rock outfits. More importantly, they carry on a legacy of monumental influence. They can easily make up a compilation of musical sounds found in standard favorites.
“We are a band that’s like your record collection,” Kevn Kinney, founding member, vocalist and lead guitarist, says of the Atlanta-based rock outfit.

And an excellent record collection they are. Drawing inspiration from The Ramones, The Clash, psychedelic bands of the ‘70s, Iggy Pop, Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Rolling Stones, Thin Lizzy and R.E.M., their influences run the gamut. Formed in Atlanta in 1985, Kinney met local rocker Tim Nielsen who was playing with a popular band, the Nightporters.

“When I moved to Atlanta, I was working at a sewage plant, and Tim tried to help me find a band to join,” Kinney says. “After a few months, we said to hell with it, and just got together and formed our own band.”

They started playing together in local venues, most notably the 688 Club in Atlanta, named themselves after a song written by Kinney, “Drivin’ N Cryin’.” The 688 Club was so impressed they quickly signed Drivin’ N Cryin’ to their label, 688 Records. The band recorded their first album, “Scarred But Smarter,” in only five days. A combination of rock and bluegrass, in 1986 it became an instant success, particularly on college radio stations, because it was devoid of much of the processed production styles released during the late ‘80s. Although the album was successful in garnering Drivin’ N Cryin’ a considerate base of loyal fans, they were a few years away from achieving wide commercial success.
Some of their most well-known songs were released on their 1989 “Mystery Road,” including “Honeysuckle Blue” and the title track, which situated them as a standout in the music world at that time. The band would later define their musical direction, but was reflective of their influence as an emerging Southern band. With folk music’s influence on the South, alongside the radicalism of rock, much like the Rolling Stones and the rebellion of the punk movement inspiring them, DNC seamlessly fused their 1991 record,“Fly Me Courageous.” Certified gold, videos of its title track, along with “Build a Fire” and “Straight to Hell,” received extensive play on MTV. “Straight to Hell” gained widespread popularity among soldiers heading out on missions in Desert Storm.

While they never received celebrity on a national level, they have reigned supreme locally and most notably in Atlanta. They have come to epitomize the alternative music scene that emerged in the 1980s. Manager Ken Green states that most alternative punk and country bands likely would cite Drivin’ N Cryin’ influential in their musical maturation.

“Although their name doesn’t resonate highly on a general-public level, they have influenced so many musicians and have developed a devoted following in their 25-year career,” Green says. “They’re a genre-bending band Part of the reason they were never over the top is that they are well-versed in country, pop, folk [and] punk. They began crossing music in the mid-’80s before anyone else. They established the genre of alt-country before anyone else.”

Drivin’ N Cryin’ has lived the rock-n-roll dream: Selling out shows and breaking fire codes, the band has toured with legends like The Who and Neil Young. Having almost all but been ignored by the 20th century, DNC continue to practice no-frills rock and to perpetuate guitar tones and monster drums set to overdrive.

Twenty-five years since the release of their first album, the band is not slowing down. Having just finished a tribute to R.E.M. on a four-track EP, featuring Kinney on guitar and vocals, Nielsen on bass, Dave Johnson on drums and their newest member, Sadler Vaden on guitar, it will be released over the summer. They also are the focus of a documentary appropriately entitled “Scarred But Smarter.”

After almost three decades in the music biz, these guys are just enjoying what it is they do and reaching fans, new and old. Playing music inspired by every conceivable genre, they pay homage to the greats while staying outside of the lines of nostalgia. Listening to the musical stylings of Drivin’ N Cryin’ reminds us that rock-n-roll isn’t dead, and we don’t have to turn to the past to retrieve it. In a culture where top artists are rappers or pop stars whose most insightful lyrics discuss the party they attended the night before, DNC’s music utilizes lyrics that are relatable across the ages and remind us of youth, emotional obstacles and the simple joys of an epic rock album. Isn’t that what rock ‘n’ roll is about anyway?

DNC will take over Brooklyn Arts Center in Wilmington, returning to the local stage for the first time in 10 years, on the 16th. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets for the floor are $15 in advance and $18 the day of; balcony seating is $25 in advance and $30 the day of.

http://www.encorepub.com/welcome/?p=12366