Based in New York City, Karina Rykman has captivated audiences with her energetic take on rock music. Her bandmates round out the instrumentation and arrangements, but the emphasis of the music is her bass and vocals. And in a live setting together they expand the material with jams that push the envelope.
On Friday, Rykman and her band will be performing at the Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts in Westport. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and it’s free admission, so it’s a great way to have a night out while saving a few bucks.
We talked ahead of the performance about growing up in an inspiring environment, playing bass, the upcoming anniversary of her debut album, and new music that’s on the way.
RD: You had a unique upbringing while growing up in New York City due to being raised by two professors at Columbia University, with your mom being the Head of the French Department and your dad teaching Philosophy. How would you describe being raised in this environment and has any sort of philosophy affected the way you currently approach music?
KR: Both my mom and my dad worked while I was growing up, and just watching a person who was so invested and interested in something, whether it was philosophy or almost anything, I feel like I saw someone who valued ideas. I feel like I found watching my dad work really inspiring in a sense that when I found my thing that I was so interested in, which is music, it looked sort of like a mirror image regardless of subject matter. These days, a lot of people think it’s so different that I was raised by academics and now I’m into rock & roll, but I don’t think it’s that different because I was lucky to be raised by two people who have an insane passion for what they do and interest in what they do. What I found is that it was sort of a layup there in the sense that they respected it so much and they saw that I had a passion for music. I’m super grateful for growing up in that way, and I feel that my parents’ values, thoughts, ideas and their search for truth and beauty in the world isn’t dissimilar from what I do as a musician.
RD: It’s awesome that you had that upbringing. You play bass, so what initially gravitated you to playing the bass more than other instruments? Do you feel that it makes it easier for you to perform live on stage and sing versus guitar or keyboards?
KR: Playing bass and singing is way harder than playing guitar and singing or playing keyboards and singing, so that’s definitely my challenge. I started on guitar, and I still play guitar as part of the 8G Band for “Late Night with Seth Myers” and stuff. I’ll play either guitar or bass depending on what they need, and I’ve done several guitar gigs over the years and what not. Bass started to become my primary instrument when I joined Marco Benevento’s band in 2016, and that was a huge honor of my life. It made me buckle down on bass, so I became known for that and it became my main thing, but before that, I was playing guitar in three bands, bass in two bands and whatever was needed.
I was in five bands that were going nowhere for a long time and I was playing whatever instrument was needed for the particular project. I love the bass, I’ve really, really embraced my role as a bass playing frontperson and I think my years of playing guitar have shaped the way I approach the instrument. A lot of the time, I’m playing a lot of lines that are melodic from a different perspective than a traditional bass player. I take lots of lead fuzz solos and things like that while also being very invested in holding down the groove.
RD: That’s a very cool and unique approach. We’re coming up on the two-year anniversary of your debut album “Joyride”, so in reflection, how much has the experience of making that record contributed to how you handle the songwriting and recording process these days? When it comes to your evolution as an artist, where do you put the full-length?
KR: It was my first record, so I put it right at the top of the totem pole because that’s what we have. (laughs) Right now, I’m working diligently on number two, and I do feel like I’ve set an awesome bar for myself with “Joyride”, both the song and the record. When I think about the song, it’s such a benchmark for me as something that every time I write, I think about whether it’ll be as good, better than or different from “Joyride”. It’s a real cross to bear for me, which I’m so proud of and I feel like even just subject matter wise, I found the word that encapsulates my essence. It’s just so me, so every time I’m searching for the next “Joyride” and the next word, feeling and situation that encapsulates my essence.
Looking back, I can’t believe that it’s almost two years since “Joyride”, and if I only knew then what I know now, I’ve been taken around the world and back. I’ve played with my heroes and I’ve done stuff I never would have thought. To hear “Joyride” being played during NFL games is just insane, there’s so many things I never thought would see the day. It’s inspiring, it makes me want to be better and it makes me want to hone the craft of songwriting to keep it going, so that’s my main situation right now and I’m working through it.
RD: It’s great that you have this perspective and congrats on all the success you’ve had over the past couple years. What are your thoughts on coming to Connecticut to perform at the Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts? It’s an outdoor venue, so when it comes to this type of atmosphere, do you approach it differently than you would a club?
KR: I’m really excited. It’s gonna be our fourth year in a row playing the Levitt Pavilion, which I don’t think I have with any other venue. I haven’t played anywhere else for four consecutive summers, so that feels really special and it’s become a home away from home for us. It’s a beautiful environment, I love being on the water, and it’s so close to New York City so it’s an easy commute for us. It’s close enough that my parents even come, which is awesome, and the setting is so gorgeous.
I love that it’s going to be a nice, hot summer night on the water outdoors in Connecticut. It doesn’t necessarily change my approach, but it certainly gives me a ton of joy and it’s exciting. I’m really looking forward to being back there and it’s cool that there’s a place where we just feel like it’s our Connecticut summer home.
RD: You mentioned how you’re working on a sophomore record, so what can you say about it? Is it still in the early stages? Have you already been in the studio, or are you still fleshing out ideas? What can we expect?
KR: You can expect the sophomore record, baby. (laughs) It’s one of those things, we haven’t fully recorded it yet, but the writing process is almost done. This summer, I’ve played every single weekend, except for one, and that will go on until September 20, which is my last festival weekend. Then after that, I’m ready to become a complete studio rat and finish this thing up, which will be really exciting. It’s been cool because I’ve been able to debut so many new tunes live this summer and really work with the band, really work with Gabe Monro, who is like the fourth hidden member of the band, my songwriting partner and my producer.
We made “Joyride” together, we’ve written almost all of my songs together and we’re diligently writing more, more, more and more. I feel like I already have my nine or 10 songs, but you never know, so we’re going to keep going and maybe we’ll usurp another. It’s an interesting time and I’m excited to keep new music flowing into the ether. It’s been a while since I’ve put anything out, and that’s by design, because I want the next thing to be awesome. I assure you that it will be, at least to me, and I’m wildly proud of this sophomore effort.