A Short History of Kenickie

Kenickie were a pop-punk band from the north east of England and released a number a great 'sneeze and you'll miss it' pop singles in the late-ish nineties. The four members of the band were all friends from Sunderland. Lauren Laverne, Marie du Santiago, Emmy-Kate Montrose and Laverne's older brother Johnny X, who played drums. Rumor has it that they were asked if they were in a band by a local record label after they were all overheard singing along to pop records whilst in high spirits at a party. By the end of the night they had a record deal after they had pretended they were in a band.

This all happened at the same time that the Spice Girls were being molded into pop stars. But there was another type of pop band around at the time. Bands like Dweeb and Bis, and of course Kenickie, added extra energy, vitality, wit and playfulness to a rather stagnant pop scene.

The three singles that stand-out as great pop songs are 'Punka', 'In Your Car' and 'Come Out 2Nite'. None of these were hits and none of them were widely known at the time. Yet they all had everything that a hit single needs. Witty lyrics, optimism, energy, bounce, a bit of an edge, and they were all chock full of hooks and catchy lyrics. They should all have been hits, there's no doubt about it. Check them out on YouTube if you haven't heard them, or have forgotten about them. You won't be disappointed. But Kenickie gave pop something which is, maybe, more important than the songs themselves. They assumed that the kids had brains and could think for themselves. Something which bands like the Spice Girls failed to acknowledge. They were sassier than the Spice Girls too and knew their own minds. After all, Kenickie turned down Alan McGee of Creation and signed for Fierce Panda instead.

Their debut album was called 'At The Club'. It's energy is reminiscent of early Buzzcocks stuff. The songs and overall tone of the album was that of sarcasm and camp. It was new-wave heaven with added strings and brass and a myriad of other electro sounds thrown in for good measure, all played by the band members themselves. None of the singles taken from the album broke into the UK Top 20, which in hindsight is truly amazing. Especially the track 'I Would Fix You' which is a nailed-on cert for a summer anthem. It has everything. Vibraphone, sing-a-long chorus, cheeky words, energy, hooks galore, and the all important ba-ba-ba's on the fade-out. The radio playlists ignored it. Why? Who knows.

Kenickie sadly split in 1999 having written and recorded some really great slices of punk-pop. Emmy-Kate Montrose and Marie du Santiago went on to make music with the band Rosita as well as doing some club night DJing. Drummer Johnny X changed his name to J.Xaverre and has concentrated on experimental stuff. And Lauren Laverne has made a successful career out of a little radio work and some excellent presenting for arts-based programmes for the BBC.