Wednesday, June 30

Presentmagazine.com article re: new EP and lineup change


The Sexy Accident - Change and Consistency
New EP Shows Band's Summery Sound

...Kates’ songwriting changes and adapts to the band’s lineup changes (more details below) and the ability to arrange music in fresh ways. He says, “My songwriting, for better or worse, is also quite autobiographical, at least in an emotional sense. Sometimes the facts are twisted around significantly (or not that much,) but there's always a germ of truth. As a result, I have to wait to see what happens to me before I know what songs will come out.” ...

Read more at presentmagazine.com!

- Jesse Kates / The Sexy Accident - Download our music for FREE


Wednesday, June 23

Interview @ The Buddha Den

Kyle Melton of the Dayton City Paper and the Buddha Den interviewed me right before we took off for the Unintended Acceleration Tour!

You can read the complete interview here. An abbreviated version ran in the Dayton City Paper.

Thanks, Kyle!

- Jesse Kates / The Sexy Accident - Download our music for FREE


Tuesday, June 8

Tour Dates!

The Sexy Accident - The Unintended Acceleration Tour

Kansas City, MO - recordBar (Electric)
Wednesday, June 9 - 9pm
w/The Bizmarks & Box the Compass

Carbondale, IL - Longbranch Coffeehouse (Acoustic)
Thu, June 10 - 7pm
100 East Jackson Street Carbondale, IL 62901-1503
ALL AGES

Carbondale, IL - PK's (Electric)
Thu, June 10 - 9:30pm
308 South Illinois Avenue Carbondale, IL 62901-2811
w/Swamp Tigers

Pittsburgh, PA - 31st Street Pub (Electric)
Fri, June 11 - 10pm
3101 Penn Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15201-1421
w/Karl Hendricks Trio, the Kyle Sowashes and Thee Shopkeepers

Brooklyn, NY - Don Pedro (Acoustic)
Mon, June 14 - 7pm
90 Manhattan Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11206-2501

Brooklyn, NY - Don Pedro (Electric)
Tue, June 15, 7pm
90 Manhattan Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11206-2501

New York, NY - Lit Lounge (Electric)
Thu, June 17, 9pm
93 2nd Avenue, New York, NY
w/Movement, Toy Train

Dayton, OH - J. Alan's (Electric)
Fri, June 18 - 9pm
121 North Ludlow Street Dayton, OH 45402-1703 (937) 222-4811
w/Kris N., Enlou, Wes Tirey

East Moline, IL - Mixtapes (Electric)
Sat, June 19 - 9pm
830 15th Ave East Moline, IL, 61244
ALL AGES

Des Moines, IA - 4th St. Theater at Java Joe's (Electric)
Sunday, June 20 - 6pm
214 4th Street Des Moines, IA 50309-2206
ALL AGES


- Jesse Kates / The Sexy Accident - Download our music for FREE


Friday, June 4

Responding to criticism

If you do anything creative, from time to time you will be exposed (or you'll expose yourself!) to criticism. Sometimes that criticism can be upsetting or frustrating, or even downright mean.

I thought I'd share a process that I picked up from Julia Cameron's book The Artist's Way. I've used it once or twice when I am particularly upset by a bad review or whatnot, and I find it incredibly helpful in letting go and moving on, so I thought I'd share.

Here it is, step by step:

1. Receive the criticism all the way through and get it over with.

2. Jot down notes to yourself on what concepts or phrases bother you:

3. Jot down notes on what concepts or phrases seem useful.

4. Do something very nurturing for yourself - read an old good review or recall a compliment.

5. Remember that even if you have made a truly rotten piece of art, it may be a necessary stepping-stone to your next work. Art matures spasmodically and requires ugly-duckling growth stages.

6. Look at the criticism again. Does it remind you of any criticsm from your past - particularly shaming child-hood criticism? Acknowledge to yourself that the current criticism is triggering grief over a long-standing wound.

7. Write a letter to the critic - not to be mailed, most probably. Defend your work and acnowledge what was helpful, if anything, in the criticism proferred.

8. Get back on the horse. Make an immediate commitment to do something creative.

9. Do it. Creativity is the only cure for criticism.

- Jesse Kates / The Sexy Accident - Download our music for FREE


Tuesday, June 1

New EP out now, tour!

The Sexy Accident Release new EP, Now That She's Gone, and Embark on First Tour



Kansas City, MO-based quintet The Sexy Accident announce the release of their new EP, Now That She's Gone (available here), a perfect-for-summer collection of three songs encapsulating the band's ability to make music with something for everyone--complex yet accessible, mature rock and roll with brains and heart.

The band continue to showcase the careful songwriting of frontman Jesse Kates, whose storytelling, at turns thoughtful and sarcastic, is often lauded for its honesty and real-life relatability. Kates' lyrics once again come packaged in a passionate power pop swagger that ranges this time around from Motown-inspired riffs and rhythms to melancholy, aggressive alternative rock to quirky, surf-tinged anthems.

Now That She's Gone was recorded live, with minimal overdubs, to 2-inch tape, allowing the band to achieve a clean, precise sound while holding on to their raw energy. The tracks were mixed by Steve Fisk (Nirvana, Soundgarden, The Wedding Present), who previously produced The Sexy Accident's well-received 2009 full length, Mantoloking. Line-up changes since Mantoloking (a new bassist and an added female vocalist/keyboardist) also afforded the band an opportunity to create more tightly layered arrangements and expand their range of performance abilities and sonic influences.

In support of the new EP, The Sexy Accident are embarking on their first tour. The “Unintended Acceleration Tour” will reach Midwest and East Coast cities June 9-19, 2010. Each night promises entertaining and sophisticated pop perfection as the band deliver songs that are ironic and sincere, smart and catchy, and that audiences can’t help but sing along to.

Additional information on The Sexy Accident, including a full bio, tour dates, photos and free music downloads, can be found at sexyaccident.com.

- Kate Smith