Finding Joy in Explorative Collaboration: Kissing Other ppl releases first album

PHOTO BY NATIA CINCO

There’s magic in the movement of a song, a certain charm in the way that folk music is passed from person to person— stories written, and rewritten, to foster a continuous sense of connection. Modern folk music honors this tradition through the connection of humanity, both past and present. The roots of folk run deep, but people continue to explore new ways to tell their stories. 

Durham-based folk duo Viv and Riley (Vivian Leva and Riley Calcagno) and Nashville-based songwriter Rachel Baiman delve into the impact that comes from telling a good story, creating inspiration through interpretation with their latest project, Kissing Other ppl. 

While on tour back in 2022, Calcagno, Leva and Baiman were on the road, listening to the artists they’d been into recently and discussing the new music they’d been obsessing over. Halfway through their conversation, Leva brought up the album Three. Two. One. by Canadian pop songwriter Lennon Stella. 

The trio mulled through the album of breezy-toned tracks, full of the heartache and big emotions that come with the hope of new beginnings. “Kissing Other People” was one of the songs on the album that really jumped out to Calcagno, Leva and Baiman, and the trio became so enthralled by the song that they wanted to create their own version of it. Hence, Kissing Other ppl was formed. 

“We just got so obsessed with that song,” Baiman told Pleaser at a coffee shop in East Nashville. “When we started talking about band names, we wanted to incorporate that song because it kind of set the tone of the album. It was the first one we recorded, and we also were playing around with the meaning of the song. Obviously, she’s talking about kissing other people after a breakup. But there’s a play on non-monogamy with this band that’s a duo (Viv and Riley), and then I’m like the third coming in. It’s the idea of collaborating outside your own project, so it’s kind of like band monogamy.” 

PHOTO BY NATIA CINCO

Kissing Other ppl’s 8-track album fully consists of cover songs, largely to differentiate this project from other projects the band had been a part of. Both Rachel Baiman and Viv and Riley’s projects lean heavily on delicate lyricism and story-dense songwriting. It’s exciting to take a song in its original form and transform it into something totally different, and that’s what Kissing Other ppl does, through covering a variety of songs as an acoustic trio. 

Cult Classic tunes such as Dr. Dog’s “Where’d All the Time Go” and Dee Messina’s “Lesson in Leavin’” are featured on the album, but they are recorded with an entirely new sound. The songs in their original form have huge productions, but it’s refreshing to hear them stripped down and played in a new light. 

“We didn’t do a ton of production outside of what we could do live on this. It’s all quite small,” Baiman said. “I think for this type of project, the cover is really magical because a lot of times when you hear a cover, you’re hearing both versions at once. You’re hearing the version that’s playing, but with reference to the original. I think a great cover really does matter, like you’re saying two things at once.” 

Apart from the more popular songs on the album, Kissing Other ppl  extends nods to some well-kept secrets they’ve been listening to for a while. Songs like Ain’t No Easy Rider by Australia-based singer-songwriter Dan Parsons made its way onto the album. While people in Melbourne might be familiar with the song, it hasn’t quite made its way to the States. According to Baiman, Parsons is “world-class.” 

There’s a boisterous undertone to every track on the album. Even the visual artistry associated with Kissing Other ppl is unserious, but in the coolest way. The album cover features them dressed up in Goodwill night gowns, hair rollers and silk bows; the trio plays up a vintage sleepover vibe. 

“When we were doing the concept for the cover Riley was like ‘I’m thinking vintage sleepover,’” Baiman said. “And I was like ‘yes!’ So I went to Goodwill and got us nightgowns, and when we were trying them on, Riley was like ‘I’m doing it.’ He was fully committed to it.” 

When the trio recorded this album, a majority of the songs were recorded by just playing the songs and setting microphones in front of the musicians. It’s refreshing to remember that music is fun, and it doesn’t always have to be an incredibly serious feat of intense lyricism and outlandish meaning. Music is meant for enjoyment, whether you’re on the receiving or giving end of the song. 

“I think it’s definitely a fun project. I think we’ve tried really hard to keep this project fun,” Baiman said. “We had a very special recording process for this. Greg, our producer, was really enabling this project. He was like, come to my studio, hang out for however long, and we’ll just record whatever. And so the whole environment was zero pressure. That is such a rare gift, because generally you’re investing a lot of money.” 

Kissing Other ppl is truly a fun project that delves into the pure joy of collaboration in music. With the pressures to act a certain way as an artist, it’s a beautiful and rare occurrence to find a project that leans into the exhilaration that comes from playing music with your friends. Kissing Other ppl has wrapped that joy and hand-delivered it to us in the form of an 8-song cover album.