Until recently, Kai Slater was sneaking into his own shows.
The 21-year-old indie rocker, who began making music at around 13 or 14, doesn’t look any older than he is. He’s got frazzled dark hair, a slender frame and, as someone recently pointed out to him, “dark rings under [his] eyes.”
While standing atop the fire escape behind Gabe’s, following his Saturday afternoon set at Stop/Time Festival, something in the wind transported Slater back to a dive in San Francisco.
“I booked a show,” said Slater. “At the time, they didn't ask me if I was 21 or not. But then I got there, they asked for my ID and I gave them my ID. I had a fake ID and, stupidly, I gave them my real ID. They were like, you just gotta sit outside, kid. And so, I sat out with a blankie and a water bottle outside the show, and tried to listen to the openers.”
Now of-age, Slater can legally enter the clubs, many in Chicago, that he’s been playing for years. When he does have a rider, Slater simply requests bread and wine.
“Can’t beat that,” said Slater.
Sharp Pins, Lifeguard & Silver Dolls
Slater’s three primary bands — Sharp Pins: his own '60s-inspired solo endeavor, the insurgent Chitown rock trio Lifeguard and Silver Dolls: a high-concept collaboration between Slater and his girlfriend, Grace Conrad — are all wildly different projects.
With Sharp Pins, Slater is throwing it back several decades. He's a one-man argument for the mop-top, jabot collars, reel-to-reel tape and the sha-la-la sounds of the Civil Rights era.
“I was naturally just drawn to '60s and psychedelia from that time. It was just such a wellspring of an era,” said Slater. “I'm really inspired by a lot of '60s movements — not just the British invasion, that's an obvious one — like Tropicália. I feel like that's kind of the peak of music for me. I think it has a lot of parallels to America right now. Just this bright music in the face of a dictatorship and stuff like that.”
In the digital age, Slater’s solo project might feel like an anachronism. His sound is jangly and nostalgic, layered underneath grainy and crackling fuzz. The Zombies, Troggs, Monkees, Kinks and even Beach Boys all come to mind when playing through Sharp Pins’ three albums, but especially his latest, Balloon Balloon Balloon, on songs like “I Don’t Have The Heart” and “(I Wanna) Be Your Girl.”
If Sharp Pins is a '60s flower child, Lifeguard is definitely an '80s baby. Together with vocalist Asher Case and drummer Isaac Lowenstein, Slater formed Lifeguard in 2019, providing abrasive guitar and occasional vocals for the gritty noise rock threesome. In 2023, the band signed to Matador Records, joining the ranks of David Byrne, Spoon, Kim Gordon and more.
Silver Dolls is the newest of the three groups. With his partner Grace Conrad, Slater has found someone to match his freak. Conrad has worked with Slater many times before behind the lens, as photographer and music video director for many of his visuals.
According to Slater, the two perform as “cybernetic synth pop musicians” that get enslaved by a rock venue operated by mutant slime creatures. Trapped on a moon colony, they’re forced to create what would become the band’s self-titled debut album. They also manage to squeeze in a chipper cover of Iggy Pop and James Williamson's "Consolation Prizes," for good measure.
Together, their music is spacey, synthy and cinematic. On-stage, the pair turn the sci-fi all the way up, sporting sequin-festooned silver jumpsuits.
Hallogallo zine
For seven years, Slater has been a key participant in, and chronicler of, the city’s independent arts and activism scene. With Hallogallo, his renowned underground publication, Slater has sought to capture the essence of the times, which he felt was done no favors by the facetious, hyper-online “repost chain culture.”
“I couldn't have any bit of it,” said Slater.
Hallogallo’s print editions and handmade cassette tapes (not exactly financial goldmines) were stitched together out of love for DIY culture and belief in the youth and their voices. The zine pops with rising artist profiles, art collages, and submissions, plus interviews with impressive gets, such as Mac DeMarco, GONG GONG GONG and (most recently) Robyn Hitchcock.
Hallogallo, now in its 12th issue, was created during the pandemic. While also a response to the abrupt ceasing of all live music and community, it was really an outlet for a cooped-up musician desperately wanting to express himself.
“I started music,” said Slater, “and then COVID hit pretty soon after I got really serious into it. I dropped out of high school pretty soon into the pandemic, and was like, 'I'm gonna do music.' And that’s parallel to this giant burst of creativity and inspiration and energy. I couldn't do anything. I couldn't meet new people or play shows. And zines seemed like a really natural way to communicate to people and talk about what people in Chicago were fighting for and thinking about and the art we were making. And we were really young, you know? Some of us were like, 12, 13, 14, making art and really excited about it, but without a platform.”
Slater knew that folks were starved for connection, so he made a zine you could feel and hold in your hands. With Hallogallo, Slater bypassed the algorithms and became a tastemaker of all things trending, independent, emerging, experimental and out there.
Those earliest pages of Hallogallo were some of the first to spill ink about now-mainstream Windy City indie acts such as Friko, Horsegirl and Free Range.
Slater continues to operate the Hallogallo.rocks site and publication, which remains dedicated to whatever the young folks got going on.
What’s next for Kai?
Sharp Pins is currently on tour with Snail Mail, opening for his fellow Matador labelmate on her Ricochet tour.
All of Slater’s bands (and zines!) are available for purchase on Bandcamp.
