Soundtrack got the opportunity recently to bring up-and-coming duo Cardiknox in to the MTV offices for an acoustic performance and then sat with Lonnie Angle and Thomas Dutton to ask them some questions. Take a look below to read more about this exciting act:
ST: How did you two come together as a band?
Lonnie: We initially started working together to develop a musical called Razia’s Shadow. While working on the musical, Thomas was producing bands in a studio and he brought me into the studio to mess around. I sang on a little ditty we wrote, and something kinda clicked. A (very early) incarnation of Cardiknox was born.
ST: How did you go from classical piano and punk music to electro-indie-pop? Have your respective backgrounds in music
impacted your sound?
Lonnie: While I grew up playing classical piano, my biggest musical ‘influencer’ was my dad. He has
a massive collection of LPs, CDs, and crazy tube amplifiers and I grew up listening to everything from blues to jazz to classic rock to pop. I developed an early appreciation for great music, regardless of genre. (In fact, when I was a baby, my dad discovered
that the easiest way to quell any tears was to turn on some music … and like magic, I’d stop crying.) Over the last couple years, I’ve fallen in love with electropop and the reemergence of 80s synths and beats. So naturally, that’s what I wanted to write.
Thomas: My younger brother Paul got a Stratocaster for his 11th birthday and our dad starting teaching both of us to play. I wrote my first song a few months later. I was big into skateboarding and punk and rock music growing up, but like Lonnie, my dad raised me on classics like The Beatles, Prince, Dire Straits, Bonnie Raitt, The Band, The Kinks, so I had a really deep appreciation for songwriting above genre. Great songs can be great songs regardless of the arrangement and musical trimmings. It’s all about the bare song.
ST: Is your first single “Hold Me Down” a taste of what the album will be like or should we expect
to be surprised?
Lonnie: “Hold Me Down” does a nice job whetting your palette for our album. Though you can expect to be served a wide range of tasty delights.
Thomas: It’s definitely on the edgier end of our spectrum. Other songs are softer, more somber, while others still are optimistic. But there’s a self-reflective thread weaving everything together.
ST: What other electronic bands are you listening to right now?
Lonnie & Thomas: Kate Boy, Kid Astray, Niki & The Dove, St. Lucia, Superhumanoids, CHVRCHES, Daft Punk, Active Child,
alt-J.
ST: What advice can you give to young fans who are trying to break into the electronic music scene?
Lonnie: Make music that you want to listen to and believe in. Work hard at it. Then work a little
harder.
Thomas: From my own version of Glengarry Glen Ross, always be writing. There’s so many different ways to get similar results in electronic music. There’s so many tools at our disposal. New ones every day. Finding new ways to make music and to express that thing inside you that’s waiting to get out is my favorite part of electronic music. Start writing one song on the guitar, start the next with a drum machine.
ST: Any upcoming tours + dates?
Lonnie & Thomas: We’re playing with Com Truise on October 3rd at the Paper Box in Brooklyn and then have a couple
of great shows at CMJ lined up, including the Windish Showcase and BMI.
ST: Where can your fans go to access new music and updates about Cardiknox?
Lonnie & Thomas: Like our Facebook page for updates on shows, announcements, etc. You can also visit www.cardiknox.com.
ST: The question on everyone’s mind: who will “never hold you down”?
Lonnie & Thomas: Now that would just ruin all the fun, wouldn’t it? ….
Tags Cardiknox, Interview, MTV, Music, New York, Songs from the Show, Soundtrack
