The Unlikely Candidates are an indie rock band originating from Fort Worth, Texas, formed in 2008. It started as an acoustic duo between high school friends Kyle Morris (vocalist) and Cole Male (rhythmic guitarist). Throughout the years, however, they have grown into a full band, adding guitarist Brenton Carney, bassist Jared Hornbeek, and drummer Kevin Goddard.

They currently have three EP’s out, “Follow My Feet” (2016), “Bed of Liars” (2017), and “Danger To Myself” (2018). Just a few weeks ago, TUC released a new single called “Bells,” which has an incredibly cool and eerie sound but packed with profound lyrics. I had the chance to talk to lead vocalist Kyle Morris, and he explained to me the meaning behind the song. “The song is about this guy that already knows he’s damned. He’s lived a bad life and maybe now he’s regretting it because he’s coming towards the end of it … He’s actually starting to question his mortality, and basically what might come over.”

They also released a single a few months ago called “Best I Ever Had” which is definitely one my favorites.

The band is considered indie rock, but it is amazing how many other genres you could hear within their sound that has served as influences, such as their Texas roots, hip-hop, gospel, and even disco. “Style-wise we just jump from place to place,” Morris confirmed. “A lot of people, I think, want the kind of uniform sound where all the songs kind of fit in its own sonic world, which is cool, obviously, but honestly I would rather chase the song than the sound.”

TUC have collaborated with other artists, such as The Dirty Heads, and have toured with big names such as Sublime with Rome and The Offspring.

I asked Kyle who his ideal collab would be, and he told me, “I’d love to do a song with a female vocalist, I haven’t done that yet. It would be dope if it was someone awesome like SZA! But yeah, I think more like rappers honestly.” (Side note: I think a collab with Emily Haines from Metric would be fantastic.) The band has worked with hip-hop and rap producers before and it is something that they enjoyed. “I’m just kind of more interested in maybe blending that in. We’re definitely trying to get it closer to that– like, trying to find more of a medium between that world. Even if it’s not something that gets played potentially on alt radio because it’s too rap-centered, you know, that’s just something I’ve been interested in.”

Check out our full interview with Kyle Morris to hear more about this great band with great potential, The Unlikely Candidates.