Exclusive Interview with Folk-Rock Band Kane Incognito

Hailing from Edmonton, Alberta, Kane Incognito is the dynamic brainchild of Eric Kane Cherrington. After the loss of his brother and No Heat Tomorrow bandmate, Keeth Cherrington, Eric Kane turned to music and formed Kane Incognito with his cousins, Austin and Braydon Shaw, and childhood friend, Stephen Schoenthaler. They just released their new single, “The Breakaway”, which is a heavy hitting rock song with a country twang and bluesy vocals.

I got the chance to talk to Eric about the music scene in Edmonton, the writing process for “The Breakaway”, what they are currently nerding out about and so much more. Keep reading to see what he had to say!

For those who might not have ever heard of y’all, can you give us a brief history of the band and how it culminated into what it is now?

Well the idea of the project started as a solo project after my brother, Keeth Cherrington, passed away. I wrote a tribute song that went viral and touched a lot of people. [I received] hundreds of messages from strangers and it was just so surreal. I then went traveling and realized that I wanted to focus on music. When I returned, I asked my cousins Austin and Braydon [Shaw] and my friend Steve [Schoenthaler] if they wanted to form a band with me and Kane Incognito was born.

Where did the name Kane Incognito come from?

Kane is my middle name – Eric Kane Cherrington – and the incognito just seemed to flow well. Also, there was this inner-vision and passion that was always hiding under my skin and until my brother passed, I never really showed anyone.

You guys are based out of Edmonton, Alberta — what’s the music scene like there? How much does it play a role in the music you create, whether it be references in the lyrics or just the overall sound of your music? 

The music scene in Edmonton is alive and well, although it really isn’t really run or influenced as much by the big wig industry people. The artists here are nothing short of amazing. [I] just attended the Edmonton Music Awards and it really shows how talented this city is. Our influences are so vast that the sound honestly doesn’t come from here, but many places’ artists and emotions.

I’m always genuinely curious about what artists want to convey to listeners with their music. Your music would be classified as a mix of folk and rock, but if you had to describe it without using genre names, how would you describe it?

I would say it is an emotional roller coaster that pushes emotion and tugs on your heart strings, inspiring in ways and just will make you feel something. Catch a live performance [of ours] and you will understand.

Kind of going off of that, who are some of your musical influences?

To name a few: City and Colour, Mumford and Sons, Kaleo, The Beatles.

Let’s talk about the new single, “The Breakaway”. What was the inspiration for that song?

Again, with the loss of my brother, I almost had a spiritual awakening you could say. My whole being was re-wired. What really mattered, how I spend my time, and who I spend it with became very clear. I had to “breakaway” from all of my vicious cycles, negative people, and things that were bringing me down regularly so I could find my way. “The Breakaway” was born [after that].

I always love hearing about the songwriting process so I was wondering if you could give me a glimpse into what it was like specifically for this song. 

I wanted to write an upbeat song that made you move. Whether the lyrics made you feel something or the song itself, I think we accomplished that. It all started with me and my acoustic guitar on my bed. Then [I brought] the song to the boys in the jam spot, [and] it transformed into the bluesy rock song it is now.

Was there any major changes to “The Breakaway” that happened once you guys got into the recording studio, whether it be in the lyrics or something sonically?

Ummm yes actually, mainly the bridge. We kind of cut it down to shorten the song and make it more “radio friendly” and just to flow better, I suppose. There was an extended acoustic part that was there prior.

I know this single just came out, but are there any plans for a new EP or full length project to come out anytime this year?

Well, we released “Fall-In” on May 17th and “The Breakaway” on June 14th, which is the tilte track off The Breakaway EP that’s coming out in September and will include 2 more songs that no one has heard before. On August 12, which is my brother’s birthday, we will release the 3rd single off the EP called “Sing it out Loud”. After my brother passed, I wrote him a letter on his first birthday he wasn’t with us, which I turned into this song. Finally, [we are releasing] an acoustic version of our song “Diagnose Me”, which has already been released online. [I’m] really excited to release the music to everyone and start recording new tunes that have been in the vault for awhile now.

You guys are still relatively new to the music game. What are some music industry-related goals or benchmarks that you’re aiming to reach in the next couple of years?

We are most definitely new so it has been quite the learning curve with this project, but essentially [we] just want to continue to grow. We are branching out from Saskatchewan to Vancouver Island this summer with 17 + dates . We would love to head east this coming year and just keep building and putting out content. One of the biggest things is creating and finding the right people to join the K.I. team to make it all happen.

Last question — we’re called Talk Nerdy With Us because we all have an inner nerd so what is something that you’re currently nerding out about?

Well all of us in the band have quite the nerdy side to us for sure, and as a whole, the last thing we were all really into was the Game of Thrones train [laughs].

For more information, make sure you visit Kane Incognito’s website and follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!