The Pierce Kingans — Heartbreak, Humour & Lo‑Fi Survival

Since launching in 2014, The Pierce Kingans have steadily carved out a unique space in Vancouver's indie underground. Blending lo‑fi production with emotionally raw lyrics and absurdist wit, the band—now fronted by Pierce Kingan, with Jay Slye, Josh Gatien, and Ian Browne—offers a discography that feels both deeply personal and unpredictably playful. Here, Pierce reflects in detail on the band’s origin, mental health struggles, creative process, and how humour anchors everything.

Genesis & Grounding

"The Pierce Kingans started in 2014 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada when I was 24 years old. Before this, I’d cycled through countless other bands and projects. I was always the writer and de facto leader—but I wanted every member to have equal creative input. It was emotionally taxing, literally draining me. Eventually I thought, ‘if I can’t please everyone, I’ll just start fresh.’ So I put my name on the band. That way, if someone disagreed? Tough—they joined a project called The Pierce Kingans.

It began as a solo bedroom project—just me, an acoustic guitar, and a desire to record. We then got Ian Browne on drums—who’s still part of the core group. Over the years, Jay Slye (guitars), Josh Gatien (guitars), and I (on bass) became the longest-lasting lineup. It’s a very DIY collective now—fluid but grounded."

Heartbreak Chronicles

The recent EP is a brutally honest deep dive into a fleeting—but intense—relationship with someone with Borderline Personality Disorder.

Hold Me Owner:

Context: Written around day 15 of the relationship, when Pierce was desperately trying to bond.

Sound: Upbeat jangle-pop with a desperate undercurrent.

Detail: “I wanted to feel like part of a team, but it felt like I was just someone’s accessory.”

Means to Your End:

Realisation moment: Written when Pierce first recognised the pattern.

Tone: Lingering chord progressions with sudden lyrical jolts.

Detail: “That was me figuring out why it felt like I was a tool—someone’s means to an end.”

Being Loved By:

Nostalgia track: Chronicling the gaslighting cycle.

Sound: Hypnotically looped, almost hazy.

Detail: “I purposely forgot the bad parts—fell back under their spell.”

Emotional Whiplash:

Closure: Final track and EP opener—the breakup song.

Sound: Acoustic tension, dynamic ebbs and flows.

Detail: “I came home one night—and realized it was over. This was my defiance anthem.”

Creative Evolution & Ambitions

“My songwriting never stays still. Whenever I discover a ‘formula’, it fizzles fast. At its heart, my work is always about emotion—whether heartfelt, absurd, or existential weirdness. Right now I’m fixing on a working title: ‘Gynecological Experience’. It’ll either be profound or hilarious… time will tell.”

Titles as Themes

“Titles come first about 89% of the time. The song’s identity, direction, and emotional parameters all hinge on that title. Once I have one, I have a compass; the rest becomes a journey.”

Song Length Philosophy

“Someone once said 2:30 is the perfect pop length—I used to chase it. But now? If a song moves you—takes you somewhere—length isn’t a constraint. It’s like life: quality matters more than quantity, right?”

Band Relationships

“Originally? My way or the highway. But that was unsustainable. Now? It feels collaborative. Bandmates invest their energy in learning the songs, recording them, performing them. Ian Browne is basically my co-captain—though I’ll never say that out loud. I’m grateful for smart, passionate people refusing to back out.”

Conflict and Growth

“Me and Ian butt heads—excited arguments, fiery disagreements. Jay and Josh are chill. In earlier projects, if conflict stirred, I’d implode the band. Regretfully so. I’ve hurt those people. That’s not the case now. We’ve matured. We’ve learned. We’re still messy—but in a healthier way.”

Personal Struggles

“Music is the only constant. I’ve had a hundred odd jobs, moved nine times, been diagnosed bipolar at 21, dealt with substance abuse, and been in psychiatric hospitals—four times total. In the depths, I faced this truth: either write a song… or end it all. Music saved me. It’s the art form I’ve clung to for expression, survival, truth, and sometimes—dark humour.”

Why Humour Matters

“Life is suffering. Death’s inevitable. If you take yourself too seriously, you become tragic. Good art? It must be all things—funny, scary, sexy, solemn, absurd, emotional. My favourite art works like that. My bands feel the same way.”

Lo-Fi Roots & Studio Reality

“Lo-fi was born of necessity—I wrote relentlessly, but studios cost money I didn’t have. Now? We’ve got Fresh-Air Sounds, our own rehearsal/recording space. We kept the name from the defunct air conditioner store below. Ian and Jay invested so much—gear, soundproofing, recording tech—it’s mid-fi now. If a track sounds crappy, it’s because I recorded it in my bedroom.”

Audience Connection

“Do people really get us? My bandmates don’t fully get me—but some fans do. Some adore the love-song melancholy. Others appreciate the humour or musical craftsmanship. I doubt anyone ‘gets it all’. More people in the UK seem to ‘get us’ than in Canada/US—and that feels okay. I cherish the mystery.

Fan FAQs

• “Who’s the female singer?” → Me, in falsetto.

• If they were a food? → A jar of rollmops—pickled herring wrapped around a pickle.

• Party anthems? → “Hands Up” by Ottawan and “It’s Raining Men” by The Weather Girls.

• Hidden fact? → I’m a cyborg—I have a pacemaker and defibrillator.

  
  

Ultimate Performance

“Dream gig? Time-travel: the world ends. Robots crush the survivors. Nukes detonate—and right in the middle of our first song.”

Why This Matters

Pierce’s story isn’t just about raw emotion—it’s about mental illness, resilience, messy relationships, and finding survival in art and humour. The Pierce Kingans don’t just write songs—they catalogue living for the broken, the bizarre, the everyday survivors. That’s why this interview lands: it’s not polished—it’s pulse-ready.

Music & Merch

• EP on Bandcamp: Sadly Taken, Happily Mistaken (stream & buy)→ https://thepiercekingans.bandcamp.com/album/sadly-taken-happily-mistaken

• Merch store: T-shirts, stickers, physical media→ https://thepiercekingans.bandcamp.com/merch

  
  

Social Media & Contact

• Instagram: @the_pierce_kingans — with 1.4K+ followers, band updates, rehearsal and recording shots

• X (formerly Twitter): @PKingan — genre-fluid updates, gig info, and band chatter x.com

• Facebook: The Pierce Kingans Page — band announcements, links, and show info

Final Thoughts

Interviewing Pierce Kingan is like jumping into the middle of a song already in progress—wild, honest, hilarious, and deeply vulnerable. Beneath the humour, rapid-fire ideas, and bedroom-pop sparkle is someone who truly lives for music. It's not just expression; it's survival, community, and rebellion rolled into tape hiss and chorus pedals.

From heartbreak epics like “Emotional Whiplash” to deadpan brilliance like “Pierce’s Love Café”, the band proves again and again that you don’t need polish to be profound—just guts, honesty, and a four-track mindset.

Whether you're a longtime fan or brand new to their sound, The Pierce Kingans are one of the rare bands who can make you laugh, cry, and wonder what the hell just happened—all in under three minutes.

And if you're still unsure what they're all about?

"I'd be really surprised if anyone got it all," Pierce told me."That being said, I think the UK likes us more than Canada or the US... I’ll gladly keep the mystique."

We’ll take it.

Jack - Tilley's Music Guidance