It’s not very often the next big indie band slides in my email inbox.It’s a strange thought that just two short weeks ago I had never heard of Dutchkid. Upon the very first listen, I innately knew these guys were going somewhere, and soon. After conducting extensive research (read: googling them), I realized the group is already well on their way to stardom. From being dubbed Apple Music’s favorite new artist, to a feature on Spotify’s popular “Fresh Finds Poptronix” playlist, Dutchkid is spiraling towards fame. But enough praise, time to get to know more about our favorite newcomers.Tell us Dutchkid's story. (how did y'all meet, how did y’all decide to form a band, all that jazz)Dutchkid was created in London, UK in late 2017 as a collective, with our members being:Jordi van Dyk | Vocals & BassPete Coggan | Vocals, Keys, & Video DirectorChris Smyth | Samples & Synth, Graphic DesignJack Kircher | Drums & Video DirectorJosh Hailes | Live, Tech, & Video DirectorJordan McGregor | Manager & BookingsIt all started when Jordi moved from Durban, South Africa in early 2017 and was quickly introduced to Pete through Chris. I (Jordi) quickly realised that we all shared a common love for the same artists and so Pete and I started songwriting together. Originally, Dutchkid was actually just going to be a songwriting project, but eventually we decided that we needed to do take it further! We knew we needed a live drummer in our show, so we invited Jack (who is also an epic mixing engineer, which really contributes to our “in-house ethos”). Around the same time Jack joined, Josh came aboard as the member responsible for bringing everything together from a technical and live aspect. Lastly, Jordan was brought on to help form our strategy and help us make the best group decisions as our manager.What’s it like being a new indie band on the scene?In one word: exiting! We really think our sound is resonating with people around the world, and so many other bands in our genre are succeeding at a high level which is massively encouraging. Being based in London is also a massive opportunity for us, as we are constantly exposed to fresh ideas and other artists that we dig. We also pride ourselves on doing as much as possible in-house, including all of our recording, videos, songwriting, and graphic design. It feels like this model really works well for indie bands like us right now, so we are giving it all that we have.Recently, you have started getting traction for your single “Wildflower” -- features on Spotify’s Fresh Finds Poptronix, praise from Fickle Friends, and Apple Music – what has that been like?Yeah pretty average… haha, nah it’s been insane! I think it’s just reminded us how the power of having a good song cuts through all the noise. Like if you’ve really got something really good and genuine to offer people as an artist, then people will listen to it and share it.Check out Dutchkid's hit song "Wildflower" here:If the band was on the TV show Survivor, who would be voted off first? Who would win the whole thing?We don’t know who would be voted off first, but Jordan would win. We don’t really know why, but he would win.Are there any plans to tour in the future?Yes! We’ve just announced our debut headline show at The Sebright Arms on Thurs Jan 24th, 2019. We’ve been rehearsing, buying gear, crafting together a live show and playing supports for over a year now, so it feels amazing to finally have a show of our own and we are crazy excited.If you could describe the band dynamic in one word, what would it be?Viiiibe!Has being from the UK influenced your sound?Although we are based in the UK, we are actually comprised of members from three countries (UK, South Africa, and USA) which we think really adds to the diversity and uniqueness of our sound. The blend of electronic and indie music is really strong in the UK, so I think we’ve been able to capture the local essence in “Empires”.What’s your dream venue to play?Ah there’s so many to choose from! I (Josh) feel like I’ve seen amazing shows in so many different types of venues. I remember seeing Oh Wonder’s first gig at the ICA in London - they’d booked this tiny venue way before all their songs became huge, so you were in a room with the people that had found out about them before they got massive. I just remember thinking how cool it would be to have huge success and then play to people that were your very first fans.If we had to pick one venue in the UK though, we would say the beautiful Royal Albert Hall in London. It was really the world’s first “modern arena” and means so much to UK culture and music history and would frankly just be an honour to be able to play it someday. In the US, a cool, summer night at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado in front of a sell-out crowd would be hard to beat!Got any of those sick wildflower shirts for your favorite Texan/music blogger? (insert praying emoji)Yes! Jordan, our manager, is actually from ‘round those parts (Dallas) - he’ll hand deliver you one next time he’s over ;)Where do you see yourselves in five years?Five years feels like a long time, who knows! But then again so much has happened in this first year of Dutchkid. For us festivals are really where we feel our music fits best so hopefully packing in as many of them as possible around the world and hopefully playing over 100 shows a year and having a few more EPs out!If you got arrested what would it be for?Excessive vibing…When y’all are hung up at the studio, what’s your go to snack?Chris and Jordi are suckers for proper coffee. Josh is happy as long as it’s got syrup or something in it. Jordan is all about that Cinnamon Toast Crunch life (although hard to find the UK) and Pete and Jack are typically British with their cup of tea.If you could only listen to three albums for the rest of your life, what would they be?Digitalism - “Idealism”, which reminds us of some of our best gigs growing up and a first introduction to electronic musicRadiohead - “Hail to the Thief”, their best album!Dutchkid - “Empires”, of course Check out the killer "Empires" here:Whose late-night comedy show would you be on?Letterman if he was still on TV. He just had so much genuine interest for people, whilst also knowing very little about what they do! It’s amazing to watch. If it had to be somebody currently on TV, then probably fellow South-African Trevor Noah of the Daily Show, so that Jordi could speak Afrikaans to him and feel right at home.Who designed your killer insta aesthetic and wanna take over mine?That would be me (Chris) and glad you’re digging the DK vibes. We have just launched a new digital ID and are excited about where we can take it in the future. I was a designer before a musician so for me the Dutchkid visual experience is just as important as the audio one.And sure, if Dutchkid bombs then I may have a bit more time on my hands ;)So next time I'm searching for the next big thing, I'll be looking no further than my inbox. Who knows I might even stumble upon something as surprisingly refreshing as Dutchkid.Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | SoundCloud | Spotify | iTunes/Apple Music | Website

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