Today we’d like to introduce you to River Valley Kids
Hi River Valley Kids, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
River Valley Kids is a 4 piece indie band from with folks from all over the country finding themselves settling in Cincinnati, Ohio. Mike Trimpe (guitar/lead vocals) and his colleagues Matt Field and Allison Howell(keyboard/vocals) were on a photoshoot for a project they were working on and Mike started talking music. Allison casually brought up her piano skills and then they roped Matt in and set up a jam session. It was just 3 people dusting off their instruments and seeing what might happen. Around February 2024, Maria Alexander (violin/mandolin/vocals) put out a post on a forum for musicians asking if anyone wanted to play music and Mike reached out. She showed up with a violin, viola, mandolin, and a melodica and River Valley Kids was formed.
The name comes from our roots of loving the outdoors as well as being from the Ohio River Valley area. We all found commonality in our love of the outdoors- particularly the Red Rive Gorge and even have written a song about our favorite place. Performing mostly originals and a few beloved covers, RVK has played is several local establishments in Cincinnati and is looking to expand as well as preparing to record an album as well. We are eager to connect more the the Cincinnati music scene by booking local shows and sharing out music with our community.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Arranging and developing original music is a big group effort; it takes a village to raise a song.
The biggest challenge is finding time. Between our busy lives with work and family, life can sometimes get in the way our our passion projects, but we seem to always make it work. We started this band wanting to have equal say in what happens from shows to songs to even the the purchases we make. We make a conscious effort to be as transparent with each other as we can as well as respectful with as little ego to meet each other where we are at. So far, it has worked out pretty well for us.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
What sets us apart from other bands is the three-part vocal melodies and a somewhat unique end of instruments. We are new to the scene so we are eager to find out what we will be known for!
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
Mike- Work ethic. We do what we say, we show up and put the work in. I’ve always admired U2 because none of them were individual virtuosos. But they stuck together, outworked everyone else, and managed to develop a truly unique sound that wrapped around simple, heartfelt songs.
It also helps that we enjoy hanging out with each other; there are no egos to manage.
Maria- an essential quality is patience and to come to band practice with an open mind and be open to criticism as much as possible. When we all have an understanding that we respect each other, we all know that any sort of criticism of our performance is for no other reason than wanting the band to be better.
Pricing:
- negotiable as of now
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/therivervalleykids?igsh=OHdjNmJzZ2R1azlv&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/19oWht1xuJ/?mibextid=kFxxJD
- Soundcloud: https://on.soundcloud.com/2to8EjXuHSvrxBw76
