10 Most Innovative Rock Acts Of The 2010s
4. Kirin J. Callinan
Innovative musicians are, by their nature, odd. If you're going to reinvent the mould then you're going to need an ability to think outside the box without being afraid to explore some pretty weird territory. Kirin J. Callinan is the embodiment of that sentiment.
Callinan has been knocking around on the peripheries of the indie rock scene for a number of years now. He's collaborated with the likes of Marc Ronson, Mac DeMarco and Kevin Parker, notably contributing guitar on the track Daffodils.
Callinan's whole deal seems to be about subverting just about every convention in the book when it comes to how he presents himself.
He plays around with ideas of gender and masculinity, and adopts a fashion sense that looks like he ran into a vintage fair and grabbed the most outrageously ill-matching items available. But, somehow he has enough charisma and sense of humour to make it work.
And his music is much the same.
Tracks like Bravado play up to the conventions of cheesy '80s pop hits, but his vocal delivery comes across so sincerely that you end up loving it. His albums are nothing if not experimental, but if you get the chance to see him on the guitar, you should take it.