Breaking the Rules: How Wild Child Refuses to Conform

True to their name, Wild Child refuses to run with the pack or worry much about the traditional business side of music. It doesn’t jive with the Austin-based indie-pop band’s artistic process – so they go their own way. 

“When it comes to that side of the music industry, we all just kind of freeze up,” said Kelsey Wilson, lead vocalist and violinist of the seven-piece outfit. “We can write a song a day and play a show a day for the rest of our lives, but the other side of things is just so foreign.”

The band wants to bring back all of the artists and producers they’ve met over the years – what Wilson calls the “Wild Child family” – and collaborate with them on new material for this project. But instead of sitting on the songs until they’re all ready for an album, the band wants to release new songs every month throughout the year.

“We’re going to try this new thing where we just keep releasing new material as we travel,” Wilson said. “The whole two-year album cycle seems outdated. We’re pretty prolific writers, so we’re going to get them out there as we go.”

At the end of the year, Wild Child is leaving it up to fans which tracks make it onto the vinyl.

“We will have much less to do with it than everyone else, which is cool,” said Wilson. “I’m excited to see what happens. It’s a totally random experiment that we feel really good about.”

Fortunately for the group, they’re signed with a label that’s willing to work with their less-than-conventional methods and let them focus on creativity. According to Wilson, Dualtone Records out of Nashville is a large enough indie label to help make things happen, but small enough to understand what’s driven Wild Child’s success.

“[We’re] not a radio band, we’ve never been a radio band, and I don’t think that’s going to change,” Wilson said. “We’ve done well solely because of our fans and our live shows, so we might as well keep that going.”