Category: Interviews

To have people sing-a-long to your music is one thing, to be influential on their life is another.

Take Colin Louis Dieden, vocalist of The Mowgli’s. On top of providing a great dance party at their shows, he looks to fill an open void in peoples heart.

“I originally wanted to be a writer and write books, and then I realized I don’t have near much of an attention span to do that,” said Dieden, who started writing when he was 11-years-old.

“So I turned to songs and found out I could tell the stories I wanted to tell in three- minutes and 20-seconds. I am able to get out what I need to get out and portray the messages that I feel is important.”

The Mowgli’s are an eight-piece alternative rock-based band out of Southern California. They are named after a former band member’s dog Mowgli, itself named after a character from Rudyard Kipling’s novel “The Jungle Book.”

Dieden is originally from Kansas City, Missouri and hooked up with group-mate Michael Vincze when he moved to Los Angeles and started writing music.

Out of the eight-members in total, five of the members are from the Calabasas area of Northern Los Angeles.

The group is best known for their single “San Francisco,” which reached No. 11 on Billboard’s alternative chart.

The single was inspired by Dieden ‘s and Vinczen’s “wild adventure in the city. The song has been included on all three of the groups projects, including their major label debut “Waiting for the Dawn.”

“Every single show their are more-and-more kids that are singing the words to every song on the record, its a wild thing,” he said.

“Before when we first looked out into the audience, we seen kids singing the lyrics to ‘San Francisco’ and that was a trip. But now they’re singing the words to every song and it’s one of the most beautiful and humbling things I’ve ever experienced.”

The Mowgli’s previously toured with Walk Off The Earth, and are currently headlining “The Random Acts of Kindness Tour.”

“What we try to do is have people leave our shows happier than they came in,” said Dieden.

They will also be performing on both dates at the Coastline Festival in Tampa and Jacksonville.

By OBK

South African born musician Jean-Philip Grobler, who goes by St. Lucia is set to perform at the first ever Coastline Festival presented by Live Nation.

Only Black Kid Channel editor caught up with St. Lucia to discuss his newest album “When the night,” touring with Two Doors Cinema Club and performing at outdoor festivals.

OBK: How and where did the name St. Lucia come about?

St. Lucia: One day, out of frustration, I took a map of South Africa and a pen,closed my eyes, put the pen down on the map a few times, and the fifth try was St. Lucia. In that moment, everything made sense to me about the project.

The South African St. Lucia, similar to the Caribbean St. Lucia, is a sub-tropical coastal area, and I used to vacation there as a child. The fact that the music I was developing has this hazy, nostalgic, melancholy feeling to it, and most of my memories of St. Lucia were the same made everything fall into place for me.

OBK: You grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa, and then moved around to Liverpool and Brooklyn. How has your times in different parts of the world influenced your music?

SL: I think that being fortunate to not only visit but to actually live in all of these different places has afforded me a fairly unique perspective on the world of music, and to not beholden to one scene or style.

All of the places I’ve lived have contributed amazing things to the world of music, but I noticed that often people who were a part of those scenes, or who had only ever experienced that one scene had a fairly narrow view of what music could or should be. Sometimes that approach turns out really well, but I’ve always been attracted to broader musical horizons.

OBK: What type of reception have you been hearing on of your newest album “When the Night?”

SL: From what I’ve read the reception has been good, but I try not to put too much credence into what other people think about my work. That being said, I’m fully aware that without other people liking my music I wouldn’t really be able to make it, so, of course I’m happy that people are enjoying what I’m doing and that I’m able to continue doing what I do.

One of the things that keeps coming up is that people seem to think that the album seems to get better with each listen. I’m glad that it has that effect because my favorite albums are ones that grow and reveal themselves over time, as well as being satisfying on the first listen.

OBK: Is there anything on “When the Night?” that you wish you could go back and change, and how will you incorporate that into your next project?

SL: The fact that the album was made over such a long period of time means that there are inherently things that I would have done differently if I’d recorded all the songs at the same time.

That’s not for better or worse, it’s just that my tastes have shifted slightly and my knowledge of certain instruments has grown over that time period. I do think that the songs being recorded over such a long time serves the album because it gives it a broader sonic palette.

OBK: Your touring with Two Doors Cinema Club, how has that been? Any stops you remember most?

SL: It’s been great! These kinds of tours are always whirlwinds for us because we have such long distances to drive each day, and so we can’t stay up or out too late each night. It’s kind of like getting a little sampler of each city that you’re in, but to me that’s better than not seeing the cities at all.

I think that one of my favorite parts of the tour was driving from Calgary to Vancouver through the Canadian Rockies. Probably the most dramatically beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen on tour.

OBK: Have you ever toured in Florida, and what do you expect coming in?

SL: We played in Miami and Orlando on our tour with Ellie Goulding, and both stops were a lot of fun. I always love getting to the South because of the weather and how good it smells. Hopefully we’ll get a chance to go to the beach as well.

OBK: Which do you prefer, indoor shows or outdoor festivals?

SL: Both types of venues can be great. However, there is something to be said for an outdoor stage in front of a sea of people in the perfect weather as the night is rolling in.

By OBK STAFF

As the “Journeys Noise Tour” looks to get over the halfway mark, electronic-rock duo 3OH!3 makes their way to Orlando.

3OH!3 is made up of Sean Foreman and Nathaniel Motte — natives of Boulder, Colo. — the band is named after the city’s 303 area code.

Best known for their 2008 single “Don’t Trust Me,” which reached No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. The group’s commercial success has garnered them song placements on “The Real World: Cancun” and the opportunity to write an anthem for MLB’s Colorado Rockies.

“In the end of it we are not trying to ride the trend wave; we are just trying to write music we like, that has a lot of energy,” said Foreman in a recent interview with the Voice.

“Hopefully it’s a good song at the end of the day and you can listen to it five- years from now and not just be like ‘oh that’s just some dubstep song’ but instead be like ‘oh that’s a 3OH!3.’”

3OH!3 released their fourth studio album “Omens” this year under Atlantic Records imprint Photo Finish Records.

The “Journeys Noise Tour” is the first opportunity the duo has had to tour the album.

“We play a handful of songs off the album and people know the words so that’s always a good test,” he says.

“I think for us it’s all about the energy of the show and having a good time. I think that happens when we perform stuff all the new album as well as the old.

The duo is at the half way mark of the tour and not looking to slow down. They makes their way to House of Blues on Thursday, Nov. 7 and can not wait to perform in Orlando.

“We’re just kind of got over the half way mark, and still feeling good. We’re having a good time but we’re just excited to get back down to Florida.”

30h!3 will be supported by some of their favorite bands; The Summer Set, Wallpaper and New Beat Fund.

“The worst thing about a band that you like is that they suck live. These bands are all incredible performs; so if you haven’t heard any songs from these guys, when you come to the show you are going to be wanting more,” he added noting 30H!3 personally selected the groups to tour with them.

All acts have recently collaborated on a track entitled “Turn the Night On.”

“It’s something about our fans that are great. They are always the fans that show up and check out all the other bands,” said Foreman who saw Wallpaper perform at Warped Tour and got stopped and his track because they put on that good of a show.

Tickets are still available for $27 via Live Nation and the House of Blues Box Office.

3OH!3 will be posting updates throughout the tour on their Facebook and Twitter social media sites.

By OBK