Hunter Valentine

The lessons Hunter Valentine talks about on its new EP Lessons From the Late Night are ones you aren’t likely to hear in any classroom.

The band’s Tommy Boy EP, which comes out Saturday, is a collection of seven coming-of-age songs at a time when identity, sexuality are major issues.

“These are lessons we learned from making mistakes, staying up too late, drinking too much,” the band’s face and voice, Kiyomi McCloskey admits. “They’re the lessons you learn when you grow into an adult, even when you’re trying to stay young.”

The timing of the new EP was inspired, in part, by the sudden death of a close friend, says the 24-year-old McCloskey.

“It was a big wake-up call,” she says. “It taught me I have to live every moment to the fullest and not take anything for granted.

“I used to write mostly about love, sex and relationships, but I’m growing up and seeing more of life. I liked hard rock like Nirvana and Green Day when I was young, but now I’m listening to Neil Young, Janis Joplin and Chrissie Hynde for something a little deeper.”

Best known for his dirty, raw rock and roll sound, producer Ian Blurton was the ideal person to produce Lessons From the Late Night, which the band played extensively on their recent tour of Germany, an experience that McCloskey found “amazing,” for all the right reasons.

“They don’t care what your gender is there, it all depends on who’s playing the music and the emotion. As long as you fill the hard rock quota, they don’t care. When I sing about love, I have to feel it in my gut. That’s all that matters.”

Together since 2004, the band’s debut album, The Impatient Romantic, set tongues wagging south of the border in 2006 about their rough Runaway sound and fluid sexuality. They recently moved to Brooklyn, N.Y., so that they could further concentrate on building their American fan base.

“I was craving a change from Toronto only because it’s a buzz to play to a new audience. I’m completely inspired by New York. I feel jet-powered, but I have no idea where I’ll be in a year. Life is moving so fast now.”

But that’s another one of life’s lessons.
- Ottawa Sun

Girls Will Be Boys - The L Magazine

They’ve rocked their way through Canada—now they’ve set their sights on conquering Brooklyn and the world. Fresh off their win at the Readers’ Choice Nightlife Awards, Hunter Valentine share their secrets for stateside success.

Originally from Toronto, pop-rock-punk trio Hunter Valentine could best be compared to Janis Joplin and David Bowie doing a cover of the Ramones. They were recently named “Best Local Band” at GO’s 4th annual Readers’ Choice Nightlife Awards, and are now preparing to take New York City (and the entire U.S.) by storm. In the wake of their sophomore release, Lessons From the Late Night (Tommy Boy), lead vocalist and guitarist Kiyomi M, bassist and keyboardist Adrienne Lloyd, and drummer Laura Petracca talked with GO about their DIY philosophy, their move to Brooklyn, and labels telling them to tone down the whole gay thing.

GO: First, tell us how the band came to be.
Kiyomi: When I finished high school, I knew that all I wanted to do was play. I convinced Laura to attach herself to me and I think by now, six years later, I’ve shown her that everything is going to be ok.
Laura: So far! We played for a year with another band, then we became a two-piece, then we met Adrienne.
K: I think it’s been an increasingly serious commitment, like a relationship. Moving in comes first, then getting married, then having babies. Except instead of babies it’s albums.
L: We’re on our second baby right now.

That would be your latest, Lessons From the Late Night. What have you learned?
K: To take everything as a lesson, and never have regrets. To turn each experience into a positive one. “Je ne regrette rien,” as Edith Piaf said. We try to live that way.
L: Don’t feel guilty. It’s a waste of time. Whether you have a one-night stand or do three shots in a row and put your head in the toilet…
K: … Stand behind your choice! Next question!

How would you describe your sound?
K: Edgy pop-rock, with a punk twist. It’s hard, driving, has a lot of energy. But we still love a cheesy ballad, so you never know what’s going to happen. That’s what makes our band unique: it’s sort of difficult to place us in a genre.

Do you think mainstream pop fans are ready for the hard stuff?
Adrienne: We don’t really spend time thinking about what “mainstream pop” fans want, but I hope they're ready.
L: It’s time for a change. I’d like our style, and female-fronted bands, to be the next mainstream.
K: Breaking into radio is difficult for every rock band with a female vocalist. There are few woman rock singers and there is hardly any good music on the radio. But we’re not going to shy away from doing what we love. If anything, we’ll push harder. If they play us on the radio, great. If they don’t, it’s ok. The most important thing is for people to come to our live shows.
L: KRS-One said it back in the 90’s. You can sell a million records but if you can’t do a live show, you’ll never make it.

Some of your themes pretty dark. Take your songs “The Stalker” and “Revenge”…
A: Love and heartbreak aren’t always light and easy, right?
K: “Revenge” and “The Stalker” actually have themes of empowerment. “Revenge” is about a girl seeking revenge on her rapist. There are all different kinds of heartbreak, and that’s what our more serious songs talk about. “The Stalker” is about a guy who showed up at my house after finding my address on the Internet, trying to talk to my mom and calling me on my personal cell phone. It’s about reclaiming my personal space.

The video for “The Stalker” won MTV-U’s “The Freshman” contest. Did the Heath Ledger/The Joker references have anything to do with it?
K: That’s just because of my mouth. I just have that natural creepy vibe.
L: You have Mick Jagger lips, but not Mick Jagger looks, don’t worry.

As a band of queer women, some of your videos include hetero love scenes. What’s up with that?
L: Are you thinking about “Typical?” Can I give you the behind-the-scenes answer to that? We actually really wanted to have two girls run into each other’s arms, but not a single one of our extras would do it.
K: There’s some straight content, and some gay content. We don’t ever want to cut anybody off from listening to our music.

Do you feel pressured to play straight in the music industry?
A: I once read an interview with Canadian musician Owen Pallett where he said something like, "I find the politicization of my sexuality boring." And I remember feeling almost offended and disappointed in him, but now I'm a little closer to understanding what he meant. When you've put so much into making a record and questions about whom you sleep with come up more often than the actual music, it's easy to grow despondent. But rock has always exuded sexuality and fans have always interpreted what that sexuality means to them.
L: For us, because we are openly lesbian, it’s obvious. So why should we be less lesbian? I’ll be honest: we’ve been told to be less gay, but it hasn’t changed us.

You’ve relocated to NYC. You know what they say: if you can make it here...
K: This city is work-obsessed, so having a New York-based team has pushed us in ways we would never have imagined in Canada. We need to stay on top of social networking online, especially keeping content up to date, because there’s so much competition.
A: It’s been especially interesting working in an industry that has swallowed and destroyed the old business model of how to make money. There's no way you can depend on “the way things are done.” It just doesn't exist anymore.
Why Brooklyn?
L: Brooklyn has some really influential music coming out now: Matt and Kim, MGMT, Yeasayer, Grizzly Bear. Part of the reason for moving here was to be around that.

How do you keep your DIY work ethic while signed to a label like Tommy Boy?
A: I think any musician, signed to any label, would agree that it is more important now than ever before to keep the DIY ethic.
L: Actually, one of their mottos is “Don’t lose yourself.” They’re going to help you, but the only way to get ahead is to believe in yourself and not leave it up to anyone else to do things for you.
K: If you continue to work the way you did as a band before being signed, it’s just that much more people power. Since the beginning we’ve been printing our own flyers, hitting the streets promoting for shows, and we’re not going to ever feel like we’re too big for that.

You’ve mentioned honesty when talking about music. What makes music honest or dishonest?
K: If we’re writing about a bad breakup or a friend’s addiction, every time we go on stage and perform that song we try to put ourselves in the place we were in when we wrote it. And what makes music dishonest is when you’re singing about something that doesn’t affect you, and you’re doing it because you think it’s a hot sell.

You have a big following in your hometown, Toronto. How often do you go back to Canada?
K: We go quite often. We have both American and Canadian management. And both of our teams are all female. We call them “Team Lady Killer.”
L: It’s like our band, we had no idea it was going to be all women. We were a four-piece with two guys, and when that didn’t work out we weren’t specifically looking for a female bass player.

Did you play any Hunter Valentine music before your current lineup?
K: No we didn’t, “Staten Island Dream Tour” was the only song.
L: It was the second song that Kiyomi ever played for me.
K: I met her at a bar when I was 17…
L: Her friend said “She’s the best singer in the world” and I said “Uh huh.” I had been playing music with other bands for seven years, but when I sat down and listened to her sing she blew me away. My parents thought she was a 40-year-old black soul singer on the demo she gave me.

I guess you’d never been to Staten Island before you wrote that.
K: No, I just thought it sounded really magical. And when I finally went I was like… “Wow, I don’t think they have a dream tour here.”

The ferry’s a bargain, though. How do your NYC fans differ from your Canadian fans?
A: I'd say that our Toronto crowds tend to be very mixed, in age, gender, socially. I have a feeling our New York base will diversify.

What are your favorite venues to play in NYC?
A: We played the Stonewall Inn on the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots. That was pretty amazing.
K: Arlene’s Grocery let us play when we’d never even played in the States. I wish other venues would help bands grow like that.

To celebrate the release of Lessons, you played 13 shows in one day. Was that a world record?
A: I think so, but what seemed even more significant was proving to ourselves that we could pull it off.
K: The only other band that’s done it was an L.A. band that did 9 or 10 shows. I don’t know if any other band has. I don’t imagine why they would want to. We just thought it would be a cool idea on the day of our release to play in as many venues as possible. It wasn’t about breaking a record, but we found out that we could. And I’m still tired.

You played a few parks and subways. Did the cops give you a ticket?
K: We had battery-powered amps we could pick up and run with if the cops came. We were chased out of the Lorimer stop, ran onto the subway, and said “let’s do a show here.” We had a good following off the street that came with us. And you can find their videos and photos on YouTube and random blogs.

You have some Pride events coming up on the west coast. Do you have other U.S. tour dates planned?
K: We’re doing a national tour in early fall with The Cliks and Killola, and shooting a video for “Revenge,” which will probably come out in late summer. The album is out now on iTunes, and available in stores worldwide. - Go Magazine

Best Dinner/ Cruising -- Cowgirl

Most Romantic Dining -- One if By Land

Best Cuisine -- Beast

Best Drag King -- Switch N' Play

Best Comedienne -- Poppi Kramer

Best Emcee -- Sarah Jenny

Best Go-Go Dancer -- Amber Star

Best Burlesque Performer -- Bianca Dagga

Best Spoken Word Performer -- Dred

Best Cabaret Performer -- Melody Sweets

Best Lounge Act -- Murray Hill

Best Local Band -- Hunter Valentine

Best Bartender/Therapist -- Lisa G

Best Bartender/Mixologist -- Kristine Bungay

Best Bartender/Eye Candy -- Maritza

Favorite Door Person -- Patrizza Jimenez

Favorite Bouncer -- Dot

Best House Music DJ -- Kim Dazy

Best Alternative DJ -- SheRock

Best Latin DJ -- Culi

Best Hip-Hop DJ -- Mary Mac

Best R&B DJ -- Missy B

Best Dance DJ -- Lisa G

Best Chill Spot -- Stonewall Inn

Best Pick-Up Spot -- Henrietta Hudson

Most Romantic -- RF Lounge

Best Drink Deals -- The Cubby Hole

Best Billiards Spot -- Stonewall Inn

Best Karaoke Night -- Metropolitan

Best Music -- Drama

Best Ambiance -- Eden

Sexiest Vibe -- Stiletto

Hottest Go-Gos -- Anything Goes

Best Annual Event -- Diva Dodgeball

Best Latin Music -- Tocame

Best Alternative Party -- Snapshot

Best Hip-Hop Party -- Lovergirl

Best House/Dance Party -- Drama

Best Play Party -- Lisa G's Birthday

Most Eclectic Crowd -- Choice Cunts

Best Bar: Queens -- Bum Bum Bar

Best Bar: Manhattan -- Henrietta Hudson

Best Bar: Bronx -- The Gallery

Best Bar: Brooklyn -- Metropolitan

Best Bar: Staten Island -- QSINY

Best Bar: New Jersey -- The Cage

Best Party Citywide -- Stiletto

Best Bar Citywide -- Henrietta Hudson
- Go Magazine

Kiyomi McCloskey, lead singer and guitarist of recent Freshmen winning band Hunter Valentine tells us what college class she’d like to take, why she loves NYC, and about the first time she went crowd surfing in this week’s Hot Seat.
1. Tell us about your craziest touring experience.
Touring across Canada in a white, soccer mom, minivan in s***ty weather was pretty intense and crazy. That and coming close to killing ourselves when we almost hit a giant deer in that very same mini van.
2. What type of college class would you’d most want to take and why?
Anything around graphic design would be pretty amazing. I am all ideas when it comes to merch design stuff, but i can’t draw to save my life. I love exploring design. I would also love to take a marketing course.
3. What city in America is the most fun to visit and why?
New York City! Luckily we live here now! There is so much inspiring creativity in this town that it makes you feel like you should never sleep.
4. What’s some of the best advice you were ever given?
Fight for what you believe in and follow your passionate little heart.
5. What’s in heavy rotation in your MP3/CD player right now?
Phoenix’s latest album, St. Vincent, Against Me and The Distillers
6. The last good book you read or TV show you’re addicted to.
The last good book was called “Invisible” by a painter named, Hughes De Montalembert. This book will change the way you look at life. It reminds you to take in all life’s great moments and not take anything for granted. The TV show I am most addicted to would be “Breaking Bad”!
7. What’s the first concert you ever saw - how was it?
The first rock concert I went to was Offspring. It was before they went super pop and had that hit "Bad Habit". That was the first time I went crowd surfing too.. I felt like such a badass!
8. What are three items you can’t live without on tour?
My guitar, my journal and my Flat Iron!
9. Who are your major musical influences?
I love this Canadian band called The Weakerthans. The lead singer is a real poet and they pair that with loud punk rock. For me that’s the perfect combination.
Any random messages or tips you’d like to give to mtvU watchers?
We can’t wait to rip your heart out at a live show near you! - MTVU

It was ladies’ week on the Freshmen, with the women of Hunter Valentine winning by a wide margin of votes. Their video “The Stalker” will be placed into regular on-air rotation next week. Congratulations to the group. It was rather a quiet round in the comments, so there’s not much else to say! Check back in on Monday for new artists and a new chance to vote. In the meantime, you can follow me and mtvU on Twitter for musical updates. - MTVU