By ERIC SCHELKOPF
Sav Buist and Katie Larson – who co-founded the band The Accidentals – first met at age 16 in high school orchestra.
So it only makes sense that The Accidentals would want to collaborate with the Kaboom Collective Studio Orchestra, a Hollywood-style studio ensemble made of students between the ages of 15-25. The band gave the orchestra 11 of their most popular songs to score and arrange, resulting in the aptly named album "Reimagined."
The 40-student orchestra is currently on tour with The Accidentals. The tour kicked off Wednesday at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and will make a stop at Gallagher Way at Wrigley Field at 7:30 p.m. Friday. The Accidentals will be back in the area when it plays at The Venue in Aurora on Sept. 9.
I had the chance to talk to Buist about the show.
Q – Great talking to you. I understand the tour will kick off on Aug. 3 at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. That seems like a great way to kick off the tour.
Katie and I have a very loving history with The Rock Hall, we’re part of the EDU program there. They have an online resource guide for teachers and parents, they offer free lesson plans, artifact images and materials, videos, playlists, and writing prompts.
Some of our videos and curriculum that we use to teach workshops in the schools are on the site and they have been incredibly supportive as we have grown as a band and as individual musicians.
Q – The both of you met in high school orchestra. Was working with the Kaboom Collective kind of a surreal experience?
Working with Kaboom has been inspirational. If there had been a program like this when Kate and I were in school, we would have moved mountains to be a part of it.
To be able to learn how to score and arrange for all types of projects in a safe, supported environment would have been incredible. Touring the project you created would have been the icing on the cake.
I mean, learning to tour healthy isn’t something anyone talks about but mental, physical, and emotional health is a big deal when you decide to do this full time.
Q – When you first heard that female string duo in high school, what struck you about their music and how did they inspire you?
We immediately felt empowered. Sometimes you have to see something to know it's possible. They showed us that a cello and a violin make a band.
Katie and I had a "How many women do you see shredding a guitar?" moment. Not enough.
It’s not that we can’t, it’s that we don’t know we can. That’s the goal of Kaboom – and frankly, The Accidentals – to empower this and the next generation.
We want them to know they can play multiple instruments, collaborate in multiple ways, and develop multiple skill sets and multiple revenue streams within the music business (and without) that allow us to be sustainable and thrive.
Q – How do you hope to inspire the members of Kaboom Collective?
By showing them that they can inspire the world. Music gets in your blood. It’s an exchange of energy that you can’t get anywhere else.
It’s the ultimate collaboration. It’s that moment when you fit, you feel supported, there is camaraderie, family.
We want them to see what is possible and what is realistic. We want them to set realistic goals and expectations so that they always feel successful.
We want to change the idea that healthy touring isn't cool and share strategies for maintaining that grind.
Q – What made you want to work with the Kaboom Collective and did the group exceed your expectations?
Liza Grossman made us want to work with Kaboom. She is one of the founders of Kaboomco.
We had worked with orchestras before and had difficult experiences with conductors, or trying to score and arrange music on our own without much guidance, so we had decided that wasn't for us.
She changed those negative feelings into a really empowered, positive experience. She showed us that not only could we score and arrange and write music, but that we deserved to do so in an environment that would be collaborative rather than competitive.
Truly, she changed the way we imagine the future.
Q – What did you think of the Kaboom Collective's arrangements of your songs? Are there any tracks on the album that especially stand out for you?
They are riveting. When we first ran through the score for “Crow’s Feet,” I couldn’t stop the tears.
It was just so beautiful, standing there, surrounded by this lush bed of emotion, all these talented players giving themselves to your song, your memory, your experience – changing something dark into shimmering ethereal emotive light with their whole selves.
It was life-changing. Music can be like that. It can be so giving and comforting.
This whole album is just the best of what music is. It’s people giving to one another and receiving one another.
You look around the room and everyone is in the feel of the song. That is what we envision an orchestra to be.
Not just reading from a page, but embodying the music because you were part of creating the music. You’re invested in the music – it's no longer my song, it’s ours.
Q – What would you like the members of Kaboom Collective to get out of this experience?
Hopefully, they come out of this experience inspired, empowered, and experienced, with realistic expectations and coping skills that will last their career. They will have new friends and see what it is to be a part of a community that supports what you do.
We cannot wait to introduce them to our FAMgrove, Patreon, our team of promoters, and agents – all the people that make it possible.
Q – What are you getting out of this experience?
It’s been such a gift to hear these songs reimagined. Some of the songs feel like they were meant to be recorded this way.
Most of these songs were written early on – when we were younger and there was a lot of healing in hearing them now, being able to sing them again with more mature voices, being able to let go.
It’s been an incredible project and we’re looking forward to the tour. We can’t wait for our fam to experience the full immersion of these songs.
We are purposely doing this show on the ground in a circle at several venues so people can experience it up close and personal and get the full surround sound of being a part of the concert. We wouldn’t miss this for the world.
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