Dave Chamberlain

They say that long-distance relationships don't work.

That may be true in most cases, but the two members of The Kills aren't most cases. Riding a current wave of hype thanks to their two records, "Keep on Your Mean Side" (Rough Trade) and the five-song "Black Rooster" (Dim Mak), The Kills hail partially from England, partially from Florida. The American half of the band, VV (nee Alison Mosshart), met the British half of the band, Hotel (nee Jaime Hince), in London when she was still part of Florida-based punk ramblers Discount. Hotel's London flat served as an informal band hostel, but The Kills were hardly a band at first sight.

"We're both very shy to start with," explains Hotel, speaking on the phone from Los Angeles. "And for a long time she was being really sexually awkward, so we didn't really speak. Then I saw her perform, and I'd never seen such a transition from this very awkward person to such a totally confident person on stage. It really felt like she was born there."

Rock rumor has it that the two began making tapes of music for one another after VV returned to the States, which in turn led to the formation of The Kills. Like most rumors, it's only partially true. "We were really just writing to each other and sending tapes to each other of all sorts of things," says Hotel. "Like once I sent her a tape of me drumming on this rooftop, because it was such a great sounding thing. And she'd send back things that she'd recorded on the radio, like edited weather programs. Some were songs, some were just sounds."

Eventually, VV moved to London, and The Kills were born. The resulting product made as sexy a rock record as any that's come out this year, an effort equally rooted in dark country blues and the Velvet Underground. Alternating vocals and riffs with enormous depth work side by side with the band's other forté: a natural sense of style and rock 'n' roll attitude. The argument could be made that The Kills sound blends the pair's sense of place--bloody American rock mixed equally with the Brits' sense of tunefulness.

With the full-length record locked and loaded, VV and Hotel have come to a sort of continental compromise, spending part of the year in America and the rest in England. Both have even obtained necessary work permits, though Hotel's wasn't easy to come by in the States. "Right up until the last minute I was told I may not be able to get a visa because I had a conviction. It was a stupid thing--they get really heavy about drugs, but it wasn't anything like that. It was a kind of assault on a police officer. The statement said it was assault on a police officer, but what actually happened was more like breech of the peace. I was trying to stop someone else being arrested. The statement said I had a police officer in a headlock, but it didn't happen."

The Kills ably separate the two most important parts of rock: the live show and the recorded product. While the records speak for themselves, on stage VV and Hotel perform with a sharp, albeit somewhat untraditional flair that often finds them playing to each other. It's a persona that led Timeout London to claim that The Kills don't like their audience. "They came to one show and drew the conclusion that we didn't like the audience," Hotel explains. "There are so many reasons why that came about. It's not like it was totally made up--I can see the link, but to draw that kind of conclusion, it's ridiculous."

And how did they draw that conclusion? "We don't communicate with the audience--we rarely say anything to the audience. We're not really an audience interaction band. It's not through arrogance or anything--it's just that I think part of the performance of any band comes from nerves. That's why VV is the way she is on stage, and why she is so confident. We're pretty shy people, and it's really kind of awkward to stand in front of a room full of people. Especially like at a festival, which was where the Timeout people saw us. Half the people aren't really there to see you specifically, and there's a whole row of industry people, who I have no desire to play for really."

After The Kills first American tour last year (just five shows) and with the promise that "Black Rooster" suggested, the industry people offered a much-higher-profile swing through the States as openers for The Vines. The Kills refused. "I don't feel like we refused, because that feels sort of adamant," says Hotel. "We knew they were a huge band, and we went out and got the record, but we just didn't like the band. We just don't want to play with people we don't like."

Hotel takes a momentary pause. "I mean, I'm sure they're really nice people, it's nothing personal--I just don't like their music."

The Kills play March 28 at the Empty Bottle, 1035 North Western, (773)276-3600.

(2003-04-22)

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