Kisses is a Los-Angeles based disco project featuring Jesse Kivel and Zinzi Edmundson.
Though primarily inspired by long-format, instrumental disco (Cerrone, Gino Soccio) Kisses has developed a uniquely concise songwriting style that is equal parts FM radio pop and expansive four-to-the-floor.
Early in life, Kivel developed a friendship with venerated cult disco producer Alec R. Costandinos, who rose to prominence in the late 1970s on a wave of ambitious concept albums and club singles. As Costandinos made available his knowledge and a healthy vinyl collection, the seeds for the Kisses album were sewn -- the Kisses name chosen as a nod to Costandinos' erstwhile 'Love & Kisses' project. As this creative relationship blossomed, Jesse took a day job as a travel writer to help makes end meet. His editors asked him to review hundreds of exotic hotels and resorts, many of which he had never seen or heard of before. The imagery used to write these reviews wove itself through the lyrics of songs like 'Bermuda' and 'Women of the Club', as well as the overall sound of 'The Heart of the Nightlife'.
Nine songs were composed for the project, each exhibiting a refined pop sensibility evocative of Arthur Russell's later-period romantic works. There is a subconscious embrace of simple emotions and sentimentality on this record. It is a minimalist approach to pop music that revels in the celebratory moments of life, those fragments of time that we only remember in postcards or faint recollections. 'The Heart of the Nightlife' takes these elusive moments and celebrates them openly, without fear of scorn.
Kisses vient de Los Angeles. C'est le projet disco de Jesse Kivel et Zini Edmundson.
Initialement inspire par la disco instrumentale et long-format (Cerrone, Gino Soccio), Kisses a developpe un style d'ecriture unique et concis qui reunit le son FM pop et le beat "four-to-the floor" chaleureux.
Tres tot, Kivel a forge une amitie avec le producteur culte et venere de la disco Alec R. Costandinos, qui est monte en puissance a la fin des annees 70 au son de concepts albums ambitieux et de singles tailles pour les clubs. Lorsque Costandinos a mis a disposition sa connaissance et sa collection de vinyls en parfait etat, le sillon de l'album de Kiss etait trace. Le nom de Kisses est lui meme un clin d'oeil a l'ancien projet "Love & Kisses" de Costandinos. Alors que cette relation creative bourgeonnait, Jesse avait demarre son job de journaliste de voyage. Ces redac-chefs lui demandait d'evaluer des centaines d'hotels et lieux de villegiatures exotiques, dont il avait pour la plupart jamais entendu parle. Les images utilisees pour rediger ses critiques se revelent dans les paroles de "Bermuda" et "Women of the club", ainsi que dans le son de "The Heart of The Nightlife".
9 morceaux composent le projet, exposant chacun une sensibilite pop raffinee, evocatrice de l'oeuvre romantique d'Arthur Russel. Il y a dans ce disque, une etreinte subconsciente des emotions simples et de la sentimentalite. Il s'agit d'une approche minimaliste de la musique pop qui revele ces moments de joie, ces instants que seuls des cartes postales ou des souvenirs vagues nous rappellent. "The Heart of The Nightlife" prends ces grains de temps insaisissales et joue avec deliberement, sans peur du mepris.
- 2014
