A long distance relationship

When a man falls in love, that man’s life is given the opportunity to spin into an ecstatic mess where dreams are granted. 

When a man falls in love musically, his dream of quitting school at IU to form a band and tour with an adoring audience awaiting every rhythm that flows through his fingers is also granted.

Guitarist and senior psychology student Kevin Pariso had such an experience and now maintains a long-distance relationship with fellow Kid Savant band members between the cities of Bloomington, Indianapolis and Brooklyn.

“It just seems like it would be a waste of time and money that I’ve put into my school to drop out now,” Pariso said about being the youngest member of Kid Savant. “I remember in high school, my dream was to find a band at IU rather than graduate, but I have good grades still, and I’m almost done.”

Musically falling in love

Finding a band seemed unchallenging for Pariso. During his sophomore year, he jammed with a friend, current Kid Savant frontman Ryan Weisberger, and they musically fell in love.

“We jammed on the same level,” Pariso said.

Weisberger had plans for their friendship beyond just jamming when he introduced Pariso to drummer and high school friend John Sullivan.

“The first thing I noticed were his salmon-colored knee-cut shorts,” Sullivan said in an e-mail from Brooklyn. “In retrospect, this fits in to the prep-chic style he’s brought to the band, which the ladies seem to love.”

Beyond that, Sullivan said Weisberger was such an astute guitar player in the band’s first jam session that he knew he would fit in well.

“He’s proven to be a great composer and a guitar player that understands what Miles Davis once said: ‘Don’t play what’s there, play what’s not there,’” Sullivan said in an e-mail.

In summer 2009, the trio, newly named Kid Savant, packed for three months in Montreal to face the “vibrant arts community the city is known for,” Sullivan said in an e-mail.

Sullivan and Weisberger had spent the previous summer in Montreal establishing themselves in the music community. With Pariso in tow, they finished seven or eight tracks in two studios in Montreal.

Upon returning to the States in August, Kid Savant added bass player Andrew Wendahl, who is now working and living in Indianapolis.

They opened for Melissa Auf Der Mar soon after in Brooklyn’s Knitting Factory.
One particularly memorable moment for Pariso was when the band played at the bar Pianos in New York City. Pariso said there was a lot of press at the bar, and when the band went on stage, people stopped talking.

“They were waiting to hear us play, wanting to hear us,” Pariso said. “It was a defining moment for me.”

Long-distance relationship

Pariso said the band’s sound is a hybrid between alternative, electronic and rock.
“It’s almost a joke now because some songs are more dance-y or piano-heavy. Some are guitar-heavy,” Pariso said. “Our manager says we are dream-rock. I don’t know what to think of that, but our differing sounds appeal to different people.”

Distance has only paused the growth of Kid Savant.

“We could be touring and doing shows now, but it’s always been understood that it would be this way until I graduate in May,” Pariso said.

The band sends pieces of songs back and forth between cities on a regular basis.
“When we get together in December, everything will fall into place,” Pariso said. “Time won’t have stopped.”

Kid Savant plans to meet in December in Brooklyn to record a few songs. Manager James Galus has arranged for a few well-known producers to hear their music.

“We’ve had some offers already, but our manager wants us to wait,” Pariso said. “Ideally, I’d love to have Dave Friedman, who produces Flaming Lips, but that’s a long shot.”

Despite the big names the band will be bumping elbows with, Pariso is humble about his future, focusing more on his music than name recognition.

“It seems like there’s a disrespect for some mainstream bands, so I’d love to be in the middle and just somewhat mainstream. We don’t know what will happen though,” he said.

Even though the future is unknown, Sullivan said he knows this is what’s right for
the present.

“We’re at a juncture in our professional lives as musicians where I feel no guilt for not continuing school,” he said in an e-mail. “Indeed, this is the only thing I could be doing, and the time is right.”