Yot Club is a lo-fi bedroom pop project from Hattiesburg, Mississippi. The band is twenty-two year old Ryan Kaiser, writing and recording everything. Ryan’s sound has been consistent since he began releasing music in 2019… distorted vocals, lo-fi beats, guitar tracks running through a chorus pedal, warm guitar leads, analog synth melodies, mixed with light pads. He’s had a great reception to his music, with over two million streams on Spotify. This year, Ryan signed with Nice Guys, a record label out of Paris.
Ryan released Nature Machine through Nice Guys in July, a five track album that has some of Ryan’s strongest songs yet. Go Away has a rich chorus rhythm guitar, a lead guitar that really hooks, and subtle layers that we really love. Spiral Stairs has an analog synth that brings you in right away. “It’s already been done before,” he sings. “So what’s the point? Let’s just have fun.”
Ryan started releasing music in 2019, putting out three EPs and a total of twenty-six tracks. Impressive! That’s an average of over two songs per month. And in 2020, he’s released one EP with Nice Guys, Nature Machine, and eight additional tracks (including covers of The Smiths and Mountain Goats). Aside from singles he has released on SoundCloud, Ryan has been taking his time on a new project since he released Nature Machine.
Puddlegum talks with Ryan about his new project
“I’m finishing up working on a whole new project for Nice Guys currently.” Ryan shared. “It’s another Yot Club project. Im excited for it to be out because I feel like it’s better than anything else I’ve made.” He added, “I’m not really in a rush to get it out. The last project was in July so it hasn’t been too long.”
Ryan takes a simplified approach to recording, intentionally working within his restrictions of owning one microphone. He elaborates on how these limitations encourage creativity.
“I’ve never been big into buying new gear and I’m also a really cheap person in general, which is why I’ve used the same gear for a while now. Sometimes working with restrictions can force you to think more creatively, and you try things you wouldn’t normally do.”
He explained his recording process, which we’re always curious about.
“I do all the recording here at my house. Most ideas usually start on guitar and then I’ll add onto it from there with other instruments. I record guitar and bass direct just because my microphone isn’t the highest quality and it sounds better that way. For the vocals I’m forced to use the mic but I layer it with clip distortion and reverb to make the rough tone sound more intentional.”
Since we talked, Ryan released a downtempo instrumental on SoundCloud, called Ceremony. The mix utilizes space well, with well thought out layers, while retaining the feel of a slow jam.
Yot Club links:
Featured image: Ryan Kaiser, January 13, 2020 (Instagram).
