Tiny Masters of Today - K.I.D.S.

You all know my style by now. Throw away the packaging, listen to the music. I loved this CD from cut one all the way through 3 times non-stop. It’s truly great playing. The only thing throwing me off was the voices. I figured it to be a coupla adults who figgered out a way to synthesize their voices to sound like kids. I didn’t have a problem, because the overall energy affected me like other major life-changing albums have done for me. I can tell you exactly where I was sitting when I heard those albums for the very first time – the tingles that went through my body when I heard them are not tingles that happen every day. Well, this album caused those tingles, even when I thought it was adults.

Excitement gets to me, so I did a little research on these guys. It’s still tough to believe. I work with kids their age every day, and in 27 years have never pulled of a decent political discussion with any of them. Once in awhile I can find a kid who can offer a real decent challenge in chess. But politics? These are some rare kids, I tell ya.

After accepting that this wasn’t a cartoon, but real life, it was doubly hard to think these kids were playing. Their ages are 12 and 10??? It takes most people 3-4 years to sound this good on one instrument, much less all the instruments they profess to play. I’ll have to accept that people have seen them play live, and they are apparently this good. I read one note that said they are influenced by White Stripes. Well, that’s easy to say – the White Stripes are especially unique, and no one else I’m aware of has been able to pull off a two person group this loud and energetic, much less kids this age.

Okay, I’ve accepted this is real, back to the music, the main thing. Yes!!! This music is great energy, great fun, and a lot of times very political. "Kids don't make no atom bomb, Kids didn't start no Vietnam." + “Kids don’t run the government, kids don’t run for President. Kids don’t run the government, kids don’t like the President!” Then there’s a verse that implies they know if they talk this way that the government is going to find them and shut them up. Luckily for us, even with all the censorship in the major media (do not show caskets coming home, etc), that people aren’t yet put away for speaking their minds. Squelched a bit maybe, but not put away. Yet. The kids are feeling that time coming, and that’s eerie, because kids have a way of sensing the truth that adults are blinded to.

Do yourself a favor. This album is set to be released next week. Buy one & enjoy the music, even if you’re not a political person. These are some special kids. Not your garden variety Disney-fed kids, but talented, extremely talented kids who are far beyond the “high-school musical” world America lives in. And, to be quite honest – I wouldn’t be surprised someday to find out the kids didn’t really play the instruments on the album. I’m feeling this – if they did, great for them! If they didn’t – still great for them. It’s a great album either way. No one got upset when it was revealed that Ringo didn’t play the drums for the Beatles early records or that the Byrds didn’t play the instruments on their records or that the Monkees weren’t playing the instruments on their first few albums. It’s still great entertainment, and Tiny Masters of Today is truly great entertainment. Shoutouts for Hey, Mr. DJ & Hologram World. Plus, you can bet I’ll be talking about other cuts from this album in the weeks to come. Fantastic job, and kids – if you ever get to read this – don’t let your high school teachers squelch you. That’s their job, but you do not have to submit! Tiny Masters of Today