10 Most Creative Rock Bands Of The 2010s
1. The Reign Of Kindo
This criminally underknown New York project – led by vocalist/guitarist Joseph Secchiaroli and presently recognized as simply Kindo – explores a vast range of styles with unequaled classiness, personability, and malleability.
Although 2008’s Rhythm, Chord & Melody was a terrific entry point into their elegant mixtures of funk, soul, R&B, jazz rock, and indie rock, both 2010’s This is What Happens and 2013’s Play with Fire inarguably bested it in terms of scope and quality. Denser and more dynamic, they found Kind traversing lovely singer/songwriter piano ballads (Symptom of a Stumbling, Battling the Years), eruditely feisty jams (Out of Sight, Out of Mind), and hypnotically catchy and energetic opuses (The Hero, The Saint, The Tyrant, & The Terrorist).
Actually, 2013 brought two versions of that third full-length sequence: the original Play with Fire and then an 8-bit/Chiptune reimagining called Play. Granted, none of the versions on it outshine their more traditional and developed counterparts, but they certainly represent a profound and laudable attempt at reinvention.
Kindo modified their DNA once again with 2018’s Happy However After, a magnificent journey that leaned toward smoother and freer vibes (synth pop, Latin influences, etc.) without losing sight of what’s made the band standout all along.