The classic rock band Sunflower Fox and the Chicken Leg are bringing back the unpasteurized rock and roll sounds of the 1970’s. Sunflower Fox & The Chicken Leg is Kaity Heart (vocals), James Gross (guitar), Mike Schmidt (guitar), Craig Holets (bass), Kyle Primus (drums), and Al Berg (keys). The band takes its cues from 1970s arena-rock behemoths such as Heart, Bad Company, and Thin Lizzy who specialized in imaginatively-arranged, tough-but-catchy tuneage played with swaggering virtuosity.
They’ve made it their mission to visit as many iconic studios in this great land as to bring back the magic of real studio recordings. They want to bring back the glory of the 1970s rock in the most exciting way possible.
Their new song, “Breathe It In” is a breathe of nostalgia and fresh air. Immediately upon listening, you are pivoted back to the good ole days of classic rock, reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac meets Pat Benatar. From the soaring guitar riffs to the powerful vocals, every element of the song captures the playful and fun spirit of classic rock.
We interview Sunflower Fox and the Chicken Leg about their upcoming project, their music, and what inspires them.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
What can you share with readers about your new project?
Kaity: This is a throwback to all things 70’s rock. A respite from the nightmarescape that our world has become. We have made it our mission to visit as many iconic studios in this great land as to bring back the magic of real studio recordings-all together in a live room. We want to bring back the glory of 1970s rock in the most exciting way possible: dripping in ringer tees and jumpsuits. It’s the unholy love child that every rock fan has been waiting for.
How does this project compare with your other projects you had in the past?
Al: A major difference is how collaborative the entire band has been in the writing and recording process. Previous projects have been driven by a singular focus, often from a producer or band leader, which is great when there is a cohesive vision but can lead to creative tunnel vision for the musicians. Sunflower Fox is the complete opposite of that, we mesh exceedingly well when shaping music and building out new songs. The above is driven by the mix of band members and how well we get along. There are no giant egos in the group, everyone has been doing this for long enough that we all “get it”, which is very refreshing compared to other projects. We can drive nonstop across the US spending 24+ hours in a van after doing weeks of pre-production, crush out an amazingly productive recording session, and drive back home without any major arguments or blow-ups. While it may not be surprising for a band to do that once, to do it repeatedly is exceptional.
Kaity: Totally agree with what Al said. It’s so nice to be with a group of people that are writing for the music and not for their own egos. We have joked ‘we’re a cheap beer band’ because we don’t fight, there aren’t any egos and we’re all pretty down to earth. There have been no fights. No real disagreements in about 2 and ½ years now. Pretty amazing for a band.
What about this project makes you most proud? Was there a specific goal you were trying to accomplish with this release?
Al: What makes me the proudest is that our music is completely different from what most people expect out of new music. The way we are recording, by tracking together as a group and doing minimal overdubs, makes it much more “live” and conveys that we are truly playing together as a band.
Kaity: This is completely collaborative. We’re working with studio owners, engineers, producers and each other to make the songs the best that they can be. We’re completely open to ideas, criticism or whatever it takes to make these the best ‘new’ 70’s rock songs.
Al: When it started, the goal was to record a few great songs at world class studios with some excellent musicians. If it came to nothing more than that it would have been worth it. But once we heard the results from our first foray at Pachyderm studios, we were so excited about the product and the process that we didn’t want to just stop there. We’ve decided to push as far as we can with the group and see where we can go.
Kaity: This started as something so small and fun. Just a couple of working musicians that never get time off to write going to some cool studios to make great music together. After Pachyderm, it was an absolute turning point. We realized we may have something special, not only with us as a band…but so many engineers and studios were excited to work with us because of the style we were doing this in. Going in totally rehearsed, recording everything live and keeping the ‘live magic’ of the performance. The other thing that we are really excited about is bringing back the ‘studio experience’ to the forefront of people’s minds. It’s one thing to go record in a home studio when you get off of work…it’s a whole other thing to go with your band out of state for a whole week and try and record an entire record.
What inspires you to create music? What motivates you to keep going?
Al: Even though we all have “day jobs”, we are all working musicians and most have been doing it professionally for a long time. While that provides the opportunity for lots of stage or studio time, you’re almost always playing someone else’s music. For me, I tend to see my role in the creative process as an arranger, so constantly playing other music creates a bit “jealous” tension in that I start to hear variations and extensions that develop into brand new ideas that need an outlet! Sunflower Fox, due to our collaborative writing process, provides that release where I get to bring my ideas about chord progressions, form, instrumentation, etc. into the mix to help shape the final product. This is extremely rewarding and is a rare opportunity.
Kaity: A couple of us in the band do music for a living. And with that comes the inevitable barrage of songs you don’t want to perform, or you’ve performed a million times but you do it because you love playing. But with this-playing and recording music that we are genuinely proud of is a whole other sensation. Yes we love to play anything…but it’s so great to perform music that you feel great about. We are going to keep going with this band until we cannot stand. The collaboration with the band is awesome, working with people like Ron Nevison, the engineers at all of these studios is a damn treat, being able to be with a group of people who aren’t judgemental and putting out music to people that love this style is pretty damn fantastic.
If you could collaborate with anyone – dead or alive, famous or unknown – who would it be and why? If it’s an indie/DIY artist, please include a link so readers can check them out.
Al: Allman Brothers band, no question. To collaborate with that breadth of talent from the ‘70s, what could be better for a band like us?
Kaity: Heart. Fleetwood Mac. Seriously…any rock group out of the 1970’s. It would be amazing to work with people we look up to!
What was the last song you listened to? Favorite all-time bands/artists?
Al: Last song listened to was Charley Crockett’s version of “Silver Dagger”, which has an amazing groove and showcases how the right instrumentation (in this case, Bari sax) can really “make” a song. Favorite all time bands is a hard list to define, it really depends on the day and the mood. Lately I’ve been listing to the classic ‘70s album Tres Hombres by ZZ Top, which everyone knows for “La Grange” but has some fantastic songs like “Have You Heard” and “Waiting for the Bus/Jesus Just Left Chicago”. For more modern music, artists like Jason Isbell and the Twin Cities’ own Cory Wong are currently on steady rotation.
Kaity: Oh man-something that I was trying to play on piano for a gig…(that doesn’t count). Favorite bands…man there are too many to count-but Heart, Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, The Runaways, The Ramones…for the old school bands. New School: The Pierces might be my favorite group-their spooky atmospheric music and tight harmonies are amazing. I think they’re one of the coolest groups to have happened to the 2000’s.
Where is the best place to find you and stay connected?
Kaity: You can follow us on all streaming platforms (especially spotify!) and all of our other links are here on our Linktree!
https://linktr.ee/sunflowerfoxandthechickenleg
I really appreciate your time. Is there anything you’d like to share before we sign off?
Al: Thanks to our family and friends who have been so supportive of this project!
Kaity: Thanks SO much to everyone who has streamed, liked, and followed us. And a big thank you to all of the studios (Pachyderm, Studio in the Country, Sonic Ranch) and all of the amazing engineers Jay Wesely, Nick Tveitbakk, Matt Kirkwold, Felipe Castaneda and Natalia. A crazy thank you to Ron Nevison for taking a chance on us.
