Texas band The Unlikely Candidates have done what few groups in their genre can do these days. They’ve managed to grow and consistently tour with huge acts like The Offspring, The Dirty Heads, and Fall Out Boy. At a time when many are claiming alternative rock is dead, TUC are proving the complete opposite.
Their track “Novocaine” skyrocketed them to a level I’m sure they didn’t expect at the time. The song currently holds almost 23 million streams on Spotify alone. The band had their song get placed in major television shows like Veronica Mars and media outlets like The New York Times and Alternative Press. Even at a time when the industry is at it’s strangest, The Unlikely Candidates are embracing the changes and refusing to slow down.
I spoke with Kyle Morris about their success, the music industry in 2020, and much more:
TC: I know you had mentioned the Unlikely Candidates started nearly 10 years ago. How did the band originally form?
KM: “Cole and I grew up in the same smallish Texas town and there really wasn’t much to do except hang out in strip malls or go to the high school football game. Neither of us had been in a band or written a song, but one night at a small he played a cover song and I sang to it. I’d never sang in front of anyone, but for some reason something clicked. The next day I asked him if he wanted to jam and we never stopped. I think we liked that we could create something of our own and avoid the boredom.”
TC: I hear influences from Fall Out Boy to AWOLNATION. What artists would you say influence your sound either directly or indirectly?
KM: “We all love the Gorillaz and The Strokes. We try to bring a spontaneity to our music and not stay on one sound. Also, we love a good crooney song so I think those two influenced that. We like to keep our ears open and follow whatever catches them mostly.”
TC: How have you guys adapted to life during a pandemic? How have you been able to shift fan engagement without things like meet and greets and concerts?
KM: “It’s been rough. We did a weekly stream series called Flatten the Hump Day for 20 weeks and that was cool. We would play some songs and talk to the fans every week. We had never done anything like that before so we got a lot closer to the fans from it. That ended up being pretty cool.”
TC: What sparked the decision to record “High Low” in your closet?
KM: “Lack of a studio really. I probably would have recorded it in LA at our producers house, but because of the pandemic that wasn’t an option. So I set up in the closet. Worked out fairly well.”
TC: What other DIY methods have you used in the past to set your sound apart?
KM: “We’ve always been pretty DIY. At least a quarter of the songs were recorded in one of our rooms and many of the productions as well. I’m sure in some of them you can faintly hear the train next to our house pass by.”
TC: Was there a specific loss that sparked the writing of “High Low” ?
KM: “I think just coming home from tour and realizing most of your friends have moved away, had kids, are in relationships, or are busy with jobs. The time they had for your friendship has diminished because we have been gone for so long and people move on.”
TC: What was the first moment you realized how successful “Novocaine” was?
KM: “Probably when the video was getting almost a million plays a day. Most of our videos that had been out for years didn’t have a million views so that was pretty bizarre and let us know the song had some legs.”
TC: I hear that when you were writing “Novocaine” you had a run in with Busta Rhymes. Can you elaborate?
KM: “He records in the same building in New York as us and I have ridden in the elevator with him a few times. Last time I saw him we were going up and I realized I didn’t have the key card to let me on to the floor my producer’s studio was on, so I knew I’d just have to go to the top and back down to call someone. Turns out he was working on the top floor so I went all the way up with him and his bodyguard. At the top they both looked back at me like “what are you doing?”, and I just stood there looking back at them nodding and smiling awkwardly. They exchanged looks and got off, then I rode down a bit embarrassed.”
TC: The band has gotten so many placements and opportunities like Ray Donovan and Jimmy Kimmel. Which has been the most surreal?
KM: “Probably the Veronica Mars “Novocaine” one. I am a fan of Kristen Bell from watching The Good Place, so it was crazy to see the song playing behind her.”
TC: Could you give a few words of advice to aspiring musicians?
KM: “Keep writing religiously and learning your craft. Talent is a big part of this, but hustle and smarts will take you much further. It’s a marathon.”
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