Kuinka at the Raccoon Motel -- August 17.
Wednesday, August 17, 7 p.m.
Raccoon Motel, 315 East Second Street, Davenport IA
A gifted quartet that, according to Vanyaland, “laces modern folk and Americana with an electronic jolt, waltzing along the grooved edges of dream-pop, synth-pop, and Brooklyn's mid-aughts guitar-rock revival,” the musicians of Kuinka headline an August 17 concert at Davenport's Raccoon Motel, their performance sure to demonstrate why NPR raved about the ensemble's “joyful noise” and “joyous organic sound.”
Kuinka artists Miranda Zickler, Jilliam Walker, and brothers Zach and Nathan Hamer came together in 2014 determined to form a unique breed of string band – one that, as is explained at KuinkaTheBand.com, is “proudly defiant of preconceived notions of what fits under the label 'Americana.'” Their 2014 debut The Wild North was followed by 2016's breakout LP The Heartland (both recorded at the famed Bear Creek Studio in Woodinville, Washington), which led to Kuinka being featured at dozens of national festivals and headlining several national tours.
With the Seattle Rock Orchestra's John Benefiel joining the quartet on clarinet and saxophone, Kuinka released its EP Stay Up Late in 2017, the songs created in the midst of major life changes as the musicians moved out of the house they'd shared for two years and moved into separate homes in separate cities. Consequence of Sound called the work “a vibrant EP maintaining Kuinka's roots in Americana while still pushing their sound forward,” and Zickler stated that the musicians' life changes were at the roots of the EP's success. “We'd love for our music to be a soundtrack to adventure,” she said. “Our biggest goal as a collective is to fight the trend of apathy – to infuse everything we do with a sense of joy, and to affect positive change in the world to the best of our ability.”
Since then, the musicians have released two additional albums, both of which have continued the group's tendency to amass rave reviews. Debuting in 2019, Landlines was described by The Idaho Press as "satisfying, until you realize it’s all gone. Then you just want more." And with Kuinka currently touring in support of last year's album Shiny Little Corners, Atwood magazine raved that its dance anthem "All Mine" was a "roaring, stunningly sweet revelry" that's also "a dazzling dose of sunny indie-pop bliss."
Kuinka headlines their Davenport engagement on August 17 with sets by Good Looks and PR Newman, admission to the 7 p.m. concert is $15, and more information and tickets are available by visiting TheRaccoonMotel.com.
