MCS Exclusive: Kyle Patrick on going solo, his fans, and his favorite Filipino memories

MCS Exclusive: Kyle Patrick on going solo, his fans, and his favorite Filipino memories 
Written by: Jamie Ortega

Kyle Patrick is a force to be reckoned with. In person, the tall, lanky and undeniably handsome musician could easily be mistaken for an Ambercrombie and Fitch or Calvin Klein model. But when Kyle hits the stage- it’s a different story altogether. Infused with energy, passion, and a gifted voice that never fails to touch the heart of his fans, the front man of the power pop group The Click Five has been an integral part of the Boston-based bands’s widespread and international success, with achievements like a well-received Sophomore album Modern Minds And Pastimes, a number one single (Jenny), and a highly-successful 2008 world tour to their name.

Following the band’s stunning announcement last December 2011 that they will be on hiatus, (although Kyle has repeatedly stated in media interviews that he has not permanently left the band),  Kyle has since embarked on a solo career to showcase his own brand of music. Last November 29, 2012 the talented musician flew to Manila to perform at the opening of the new and improved Glorietta  where invited media guests, VIP’s celebrities and lucky shoppers got a taste of choice cuts from Patrick’s second EP, Kyle Patrick. In line with this, Manila Concert Scene was given the great opportunity to sit down with Kyle and talk about all the amazing things happening to him.



You are back in Manila! When was the last time you were here?
KP: I was here last month I played in Dumagete and Davao, I haven't played in Manila for a while so I am very excited

What are some of your fondest memories of the Philippines?
KP: Eating balut, first time I was here, and also the very first time I played with The Click Five. It was very early on in the band for me, it was our first show in Asia, we came all the way here, we didn’t know what to expect, we thought we were going to play at a little showcase or something and we show up at Trinoma and it was like crazy pandemonium, we were blown away, and I think that was the thing like, “whoa, Asia’s crazy,” and just like Manila in crazy was just wild. And we kept coming back here since then and now I am here for my first solo concert and it is very exciting.

How would you describe your new record?
KP: Well, I would describe it as collaborative and upbeat, anthemic and pop. I made it alone and I mean when I made it alone I made it without a record label so I did it all independently but that doesn’t mean I did it by myself, I worked with tons and tons of people especially the fans. I worked on this website called Pledge Music and it was basically this platform where people could just pre-order my album and other pieces of my merchandise like hand-written lyrics from my album.

What made you decide to work with Pledge Music and to get your fans involved in the creative process?
KP: Oh, I don’t know, I think just in general I try to do things in just a new way with this new project and I just wanted to do it more collaborative like what I was saying, in the past it just felt like a lot more closed off and being creative is hard, especially as a songwriter it’s hard to show people things that arent finished yet. It is difficult for me to just kind of get out of my comfort zone and to show people things and to get feedback very early on in the process so basically I would post these rock versions of songs for people to hear and they were nowhere near finished, I would sit along on recorders like these melodies and not what and post them for people to hear.

And there is videos of me in pajamas in the studio just recording creative ideas and I got a lot of feedback from that. I got a feel of what people liked more than others and that helped me decide on what songs to record on the album it helped me on what kind of styles to do in certain sections of songs so it was just really collaborative and I loved how it happened and it was basically me and the band and all my friends that worked together, it was amazing.

How was it like performing with Gym Class Heroes and Panic At The Disco? 
KP: Those are a lot of fun, the Panic At The Disco show that was actually the MTV Asia Awards in 2008 so they were just one of many great artists. We were hanging out with The Script before they had done anything, they were awesome, so good, and we were like we knew your record is going to blow up, and probably like 6 months later they had the Man Who Cant Be Moved and they became big

Do you want to come back to Manila? 
KP: Of course, yeah, I look at this stop as more of a teaser and I will come back for another concert hopefully middle to late next year 2013, I will come back for a full concert and I will probably put out a few more songs if not another EP before then. I have this other crazy music video idea I am churning out right now so we are thinking about a lot of stuff and will probably put it out in the next six months or so and I  will come back.