Little Kid is a Toronto-based band led by Kenny Boothby that’s been working in various iterations since 2011, building up a cult following and sharing the stage with VSF favourites like Friendship, Fog Lake and Keaton Henson. Now consisting of Megan Lunn (banjo, keys, vocals), Paul Vroom (bass, vocals), Liam Cole (drums) and Brodie Germain (drums, guitar, percussion) alongside Boothby, the outfit have signed with New York’s Solitaire Recordings in preparation for the release of their sixth full-length album, Transfiguration Highway.
As the title suggests, the record is at least in part inspired by an enduring interest in Christian mysticism, and themes of epiphany and revelation allow Boothby to explore his own growth—both personal and metaphysical. Because, while Little Kid are certainly not a Christian band in the traditional sense, they do not shy away from spiritual themes. Their use of religious imagery is therefore multiplicitous, ironic and playful in ways that subvert the dusty conventions of Christianity but engaging with questions of spirituality in a manner that is fundamentally sincere too.
The self-deprecating lead single ‘Thief on the Cross’ makes this apparent, positioning Boothby as the man crucified alongside Jesus, asking to be remembered in heaven when all is said and done. The situation is repurposed for the careful balance between humiliation and desperation that is the music scene, where successful artists transcend their mortal bodies and rise to some higher plane. They might, just might, have the power to take others with them, if only they have the humbleness to ask.
Praying
You’ll remember me
When you finally reach
The entrance to eternityI played in
That old three-piece
We opened for thee
Oh way back in 2015But I’m not implying
You owe me some kindness
Can’t get nothing by you
So why would I try?