Beyond the Record: A Conversation with Kiefer
When we reviewed FATHERS, we found ourselves returning to one word more than any other: flow.
Not simply because the music grooves so effortlessly, but because it never appears to force anything into existence. In a culture that often mistakes complexity for depth and volume for significance, FATHERS reminded us that there is another way to create.
But what creates the conditions for work like this to exist in the first place? Is it talent? Chemistry? Experience? Luck?
Or is it something less tangible—a way of seeing the world that quietly shapes every creative decision long before the first note is played?
Speaking with Kiefer, what stood out wasn't simply what he had to say about music, but what his answers revealed about his approach to creating. Throughout our conversation, there was a practicality to the way he spoke about creativity, collaboration and the making of FATHERS. An honest perspective on the environments, relationships and instincts that allow meaningful work to emerge.
Finding the room that expands your imagination
We’re all different, some people discover themselves in isolation and enhance their understanding of themselves by interacting with the world. While others discover themselves because they walk into a room that expands their imagination of what's possible.
For Kiefer, that room was Low End Theory.
When asked about the experiences that shaped his musical identity, he talks about a place. A weekly gathering where jazz, hip-hop, electronic music and experimentation existed without asking permission from one another.
Your music draws from jazz, hip-hop and contemporary production. Looking back, was there a defining moment, or perhaps a series of experiences, that helped shape the way these influences came together to form your unique musical identity?
A series of moments which comes to mind is my attending Low End Theory, which was an amazing weekly music series in LA. LET brought together various genres of experimental music (electronic, hip hop, rap, jazz) each week with a lineup of 5 or more acts. Guests included Flying Lotus, Earl Sweatshirt, Thundercat, Knxwledge, Tyler the Creator, Louis Cole - it was truly an insane time. That mixture of musicianship adjacent to insane and forward thinking production was what my jazz education encouraged me to make - stuff that pushes the music forward. The first night I went to LET I saw MNDSGN play and I knew that was the scene I wanted to be involved in. It was loud, aggressive, hypnotic, and the crowd was insanely into it. It was where I wanted to be.
"I knew that was the scene I wanted to be involved in." stands out as something profoundly human. Finding community, and a sense of belonging. Perhaps it’s what we are all looking for when we seek to find ourselves.
We often underestimate the influence of the environment. Yet whether in music, sport, business or life, the people and places surrounding us shape the boundaries of our imagination. They influence what feels possible before we've even attempted it ourselves.
When nothing competes for attention
One of the qualities that makes FATHERS so compelling is its clarity.
The musicianship is exceptional, yet it never feels excessive. The production is rich, yet never distracts from the performances themselves.
According to Kiefer, it wasn’t particularly complicated.
One of the things that stood out to us on FATHERS was how naturally jazz musicianship and modern production coexist. How did you approach finding that balance without one overshadowing the other?
In the case of FATHERS, the production was entirely handled by Kenny Beats, and so achieving that balance on this album is totally attributed to him. That said, I don’t think modern production and jazz musicianship are mutually exclusive to one another - I think that great production should always punctuate, enhance, and make clearer what the music is doing. I think Kenny did that expertly. He’s truly one of the best in the world right now at doing that, as evidenced on the recent Geese, Fcukers, and Weezer records. He’s on fire.
It's a simple observation, but one that says a great deal about the record itself and Kiefer himself. Rather than seeing modern production techniques and traditional musicianship as being difficult to coexist, he speaks about them as complementary, each making the other more complete.
Pictured (left to right): Kenny Beats, CARRTOONS, Kiefer and Nate Smith. Photograph by Aidan Cullen.
Trust changes the way we create
There's a quiet confidence running throughout FATHERS. Every musician arrives exactly when they're needed, then leaves space for someone else. That kind of togetherness doesn't happen by accident, it usually arrives through trust.
Throughout the album, every member has moments to shine, yet the music never feels overcrowded. How did the four of you approach serving the collective sound while still bringing your individual voices to the project?
I think all three of the musicians featured are good at this because we all produce. I think producing thousands of beats, songs, and ideas gives a person a bird’s eye view of all of the music. That experience helps you to discern what the density of the music is, and then to choose how much of your instrument is required in the music. At this point, I don’t think about it much while I’m playing.
Having a "bird's-eye view." is a beautiful phrase. Perspective influences how we participate.
Once we’ve learned to see a bigger picture, we stop trying to force the outcome. There's a lesson here that extends far beyond music, many of us spend years asking how we can do more; perhaps the better question is whether we understand what the moment actually needs.
Exploration isn't always intentional
One of the more surprising moments in our conversation came when discussing how cohesive FATHERS feels despite constantly introducing new textures, grooves and ideas.
An assumption might be that there was an understanding to explore different sounds while styling within a theme, but Kiefer suggests otherwise.
The project feels incredibly cohesive despite each track introducing something new. How conscious were you of maintaining that balance between consistency and exploration while making the record?
I don’t think this was intentional, in the sense that there was no discussion about this prior. I think we all instinctively like to groove, and we like to have diverse grooves and sounds, different keys, different meters. I listen to music that feels exploratory and challenges my concept of sound, and so when I play music I naturally gravitate towards that sort of musicianship. There were no conversations about being exploratory.
Sometimes cohesiveness within experimentations just happens. Never really trying to but instead by just being we find that all parts flow together regardless of the direction.
Effortlessness is rarely effortless
There is a tendency to mistake ease for simplicity. To hear an album like FATHERS and imagine everything happened exactly as it sounds. Smoothly. Naturally. Without friction.
But ease is often the visible result of invisible preparation—chemistry built over years and respect earned through consistency. A shared language developed long before entering the studio.
You've collaborated with some exceptional musicians throughout your career. What was it about this particular group that made FATHERS feel different from other collaborative projects you've been part of?
It was so simple. The three of us had already been playing together as part of Nate Smith’s trio, so we already had a working chemistry that makes it easy to work. Kenny handling the production in his incredible studio with his incredible team also made this extremely effortless. Nate is one of the greatest drummers of all time and he literally didn’t make a single mistake except for a one take when he dropped a stick. He literally didn’t mess up otherwise. Ben is a brilliant bassist who always comes up with parts that feel good, that are smart and fill in a perfect role, and brings an energy that makes us all play better. It was honestly just so easy.
Perhaps this is why the record never feels like they’re learning about each other in the moment, rather like they're continuing a conversation that began years earlier. We as the listener simply have the privilege of joining it.
Kiefer (centre) with fellow FATHERS collaborators. Photograph by Aidan Cullen.
Expanding the conversation
Towards the end of our discussion, we asked Kiefer what he hoped listeners might carry with them after spending time with FATHERS.
He spoke about expanding people's understanding of what a band record could be.
Now that listeners have had time to sit with FATHERS, what do you hope they take away from the album beyond the musicianship itself?
I hope the sound, the aesthetic, and the idea of the record expands their concept of what a band record in a studio can sound like. I think it’s awesome anytime you have multiple solo artists play together and do so in a way that is understated, grooving, and reflected in an ultra-high fidelity environment. It’s cool to see beatmakers and self-produced instrumentalists from the bandcamp/soundcloud era make a record together. It’s just a cool coming together of artists in a unique time, put together in a unique way. There’s no other album like it.
Kiefer's answer brings us full circle. FATHERS feels cohesive because it never asks genres, styles or individual voices to compete. Production never overshadows musicianship, and the idea of a band record is never confined by tradition.
Instead, it brings these worlds together with remarkable ease, offering a compelling bridge between musical heritage and contemporary sound while subtly expanding our understanding of what a modern band record can be.
Catch Kiefer performing at North Sea Jazz today (11th July 2026)
FATHERS is available now on major music services via Blue Note Records.
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