Though Austin is widely known as a tremendous contributor of fresh new sounds, the emergent rock band dubbed Residual Kid is nonetheless unexpected. The pubescent teenage bandmates very well may be the rising stars of the latest generation of rockers. Residual Kid’s single “Friend” is surprisingly novel. This is especially astonishing considering the boys’ cherubic, innocent baby faces. At age 16, the singer and guitarist Deven Ivy is still sporting a set of braces. He jams alongside the two brothers 14 year old Max on bass and 16 year old Ben Redman on the drums.
After listening to their music, the one thing that does not come as a surprise would be their influences. In an interview with the Denver Westword, the youngest band member Max explained that their inspiration has largely consisted of some legends in grunge rock music. Of course, this includes Nirvana which they began playing as small children. According to the Denver Westword, they eventually progressed on to bands like Sonic Youth. Being just kids, these innovative pint sized rockers started out with performances at local rock camps.
While their origins may have been humble, it didn’t take long before they were landing serious gigs throughout Austin. One of which was the major music event of the city, 2013’s South by Southwest. As they began to rack up a bit of experience performing, the boys of Residual Kid garnered the attention of some alternative rock legends like Dinosaur Jr’s J Mascis who they would eventually start collaborating with.
Even the band’s manager was in awe the first time he watched a Residual Kid performance. Manager Bart Dahl recalls, “They played with incredible ease that was hard to wrap my head around.” Seeing the long haired young teen boys with their skater angst look, you would think they should be on their way to school. That being said, it isn’t surprising that so many seasoned professionals within the industry discovering Residual Kid find it to be a jarring (but enjoyable) experience. The sound that emerges from these baby faced boys is unexpected to say the least. In fact, a journalist with Vice upon initially seeing them reported, “What’s the deal? Is this some kind of child beauty pageant scenario for cool teenage boys?”
Despite their age, the talented band has managed to gain some very grown up attention. Residual Kid has recently caught the eye of the very founder of Sire Records and Warner Bros. 72 year old executive Seymour Stein has uncovered such legends in rock music as The Ramones and The Talking Heads. Sire Records has officially signed the rock trio and with their talent and the professional backing of Warner Brothers, Residual Kid is definitely worth paying attention to. The band is expected to release their debut album sometime next year to the anticipation of many. If you are like the rest of us clamoring to get a glimpse of Deven, Max and Ben, we recommend you check out their YouTube video for the track entitled “Friend” and prepare to be blown away.