The Kimberly Trip

The Kimberly Trip was a pop band from Sacramento, California.

Prehistory

The Kimberly Trip started with founding members Jeffry Wynne Prince (guitarist) and drummer/keyboardist Dave "Bractune" Meyer. The two began playing in bands together in junior high school, such as Thin Ice, a progressive rock band influenced by groups such as Marillion and Rush. Thin Ice survived through two full-length releases, 1994's Breaking the Elements and 1996's Love is Murder, before the band dissolved. Prince and Meyer then went on to form Roy's Love Virus. The band hired a backing and harmony vocalist named Kimberly "Kimberlina" Prince for their live shows and began building a following in Sacramento. Prince and Meyer began working with Kimberlina on an unnamed side project. During a discussion between Meyer and Prince, Meyer suggested they disband the Virus and pursue the side project with Kimberlina as lead singer full-time. The three recruited programmer and bassist John Facundo and started writing songs geared specifically toward Kimberlina's voice and personality, and began playing shows as The Kimberly Trip in 2001.

Not Compatible with My System

The album, Not Compatible with My System (2002), was called an "album of demos" by guitarist, Jeffry-Wynne Prince. Following the album's release, the band immediately began writing material for their next album, but ran into a snag when Facundo eventually parted with the band. He went on to provide technical assistance and programming for the band's next album, and continues to work with the band on the graphic design elements of their CD booklets.

Catastrophic Behavior

The Kimberly Trip hired bassist Sierra Kempster and a second guitarist and programmer, Colin "Misha" Davis (both formerly of Sacramento-based RazorLily) to fill out their lineup. This new lineup completed the band's second album, Catastrophic Behavior. Catastrophic Behavior was released to laudatory reviews, and four songs from this album were subsequently picked up by the ABC Family Network for use in their programming, including the track "Just What I Wanted", which was featured on the teen decorating show Knock First. In the wake of Catastrophic Behavior, the band recorded an acoustic "house party" concert, which was then released under the title Mimicking the Cool Kids, in November 2004.

You'll Get Nothing... and LIKE It!

In January 2005, the band began recording their third studio album, entitled You'll Get Nothing... and LIKE It! The album was completed in May, and released on July 23. The first single from the album not only received airplay on the alternative, ground-breaking stations Live 105 in Orange Co, and KWOD 106.5 in Northern California, but found a home on terrestrial radio in Great Britain and the Philippines. This led to a publishing deal as well as distribution of "You'll Get Nothing...and LIKE it" in Asia on the band's own "Glitter Kitty Records". This brought the attention of Sutton Music Group in Seattle Washington, who then signed the band to a 5-year, 2 album contract for distribution through Sony/BMG Worldwide. 2005 saw a very busy year on stage for the band as well. They performed in excess of 90 shows that year, including headlining concerts @ Caesar's Tahoe in Nevada, and the infamous Crest Theatre in their hometown of Sacramento, Ca.

Popularity Contest

2006 would be a year of writing and recording for the band. The success and impending release of the next album on a major-label, had the band feeling their first bit of pressure. Initially, the label wanted to take 6 songs from each of the last 2 albums and release that as the debut record. The band really did not like this idea, and suggested if they liked the old songs so much, why not just expand the deal and put THOSE albums out? Eventually, an agreement was made that if the new material was better than the last 2 CDs, they would release that. With a sarcastic nod towards the concept of the label wanting to do a 'greatest-hits' album for a band with only independent releases, and no real 'hits' The Kimberly Trip decided to call the record "Popularity Contest". The album was ready to go in late 2006, but financial problems @ Sutton Music Group prevented a 2006 release. The date kept getting pushed back until the band decided to release the album on their own label, just as they had on the previous 3 studio albums, and on May 15, 2007 it was released to critical acclaim and very encouraging sales. The subsequent singles "Not the One" and "Second to Fade" both charted in Brazil, with "Not the One" cracking the top 10. While on tour, long-time studio keyboardist and live second-guitarist, 'Misha' came down with severe tendonitis. It became chronic and his injury forced him to leave the band. The Kimberly Trip decided not to replace him, and continued on as a 4 piece.

Generation Stereotype

It has been said by the band that this had been the fastest album to write, and the longest to record, and had been quoted "it will be worth the wait, and will either put The Kimberly Trip on a whole new level, or will completely kill our career." Released Oct 10th, 2009, and was awarded the "5 Carrot Award" and listed in the top 10 albums of 2009 by The Blues Bunny in Glasgow, Scotland. The Kimberly Trip signed a worldwide limited distribution deal with Sony/RED that coincided with them acquiring a management contract with Jeffrey Keller. Sierra left the group in November 2009 to pursue non-musical interests. The Kimberly Trip has since stated that this was difficult point in their career. Generation Stereotype was removed from distribution channels and re-released on Glitter Kitty Records in February 2010.

Unicorns, Glitter, & Heartbreak

Released in August 2012, The Kimberly Trip tied the CD release in with a special concert event to raise money for a longtime friend who was battling with cancer. The subsequent tour took consisted of 36 shows, mostly centered around the West Coast, which included stops in California, Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho. The Kimberly Trip was intentionally silent about the bass role that was not permanently filled after Sierra's departune in 2009 until they revealed in an interview in Eugene Weekly that it "had been a battle to continue without her until Michaelandrew joined the band". Michaelandrew is a lifelong friend of Bractune and Jeffry-Wynne. Kimberlina has been quoted in several interviews that with his addition, she seems like "the new girl".

Hold up the Sky

Their last CD Hold Up the Sky was released in 2013.

FINAL lineup

Kimberly Prince, a.k.a. "Kimberlina" - lead vocals
Jeffry Wynne Prince - guitars, harmony vocals, programming
Dave Meyer, a.k.a. "Bractune" - drums, percussion, keyboards
Michaelandrew - bass

Former members

John Facundo - bass, programming Simon Ennis - bass Colin "Misha" Davis - Programming, live guitar Sierra Kempster - bass Nolan - bass

Discography

Not Compatible with My System, Dimm Records, 2002
Catastrophic Behavior, Glitter Kitty Records, April 2004
Mimicking the Cool Kids (LIVE, Acoustic recording), Glitter Kitty Records, November 2004
You'll Get Nothing and Like It, Glitter Kitty Records / Mondo Distribution, July 2005
Popularity Contest, Glitter Kitty Records / Mondo Records / SONYBMG Distribution May 2007
Generation Stereotype, Glitter Kitty Records / Sony RED distribution, Oct 2009
Unicorns, Glitter, and Heartbreak, Glitter Kitty Records, August 2012
Hold up the Sky, Glitter Kitty Records, November 2013

Influences

The Kimberly Trip cites a diverse array of bands and artists as influences on its sound and style, including Tori Amos, Garbage, The Go-Go's, Cyndi Lauper, Nerf Herder, No Doubt, Rush, The Smiths, and Sugar Ray.

External links

• Official website