Artists:Kieran Kane, Kevin Welch & Fats Kaplin

To say that Kieran Kane, Kevin Welch and Fats Kaplin are a band might seem like a simple, straightforward statement. Far from it. It’s nearly written into the collective consciousness that individually successful artists group themselves into bands loosely, with an air of impermanence. Needless to say, these three—accomplished in their own rights as artists, songwriters and musicians, wholeheartedly casting their fortunes together since 2003—don’t fit the profile.

Then there’s the fact that Kieran, Kevin and Fats fool freely with the organic properties of band-dom. Where simple musical math dictates that adding a band member will increase how loud and busy you sound, they add a fourth (Kieran’s son Lucas) and simplify. Add to that refreshingly unorthodox, unscripted instrumentation (i.e. no bass or piano and Fat's tendency to play whatever’s lying around) and two distinct songwriting flavors (Kieran's and Kevin’s) united by a fluid, rhythmic pulse that give way to an intoxicating oil-and-vinegar-like effect.

In a loud-and-clear reassertion of band cohesion, the third Kane Welch Kaplin album is self-titled. "Pretty clever huh?" says Kevin. "We want people to finally understand that we're a band, not just three solo artists playing for the hell of it." More