Kim Anna Bingham, also known by her stage names Mudgirl and The Kim Band, is a Canadian singer, guitarist, composer, songwriter and musician. She is known for her musical collaborations with Nelly Furtado, Bran Van 3000, and David Usher.
Career
1990–1994: Me Mom and Morgentaler
Bingham began her career in music as a member of the Montreal, Quebec, third-wave ska band Me Mom and Morgentaler formed in 1990. The band became known for elaborate live performances and spectacles of vaudevillian-styled performance art. With the band, Bingham recorded three works: Clown Heaven and Hell EP (1991), Shiva Space Machine (1993), and Live We Are Revolting: Live & Obscure 1990–1994 (1994).
1994–1999: Mudgirl In 1994, Bingham left Me, Mom, and Morgentaler and moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, where she formed the project Mudgirl with drummer/vocalist Glenn Kruger (Carly Rae Jepsen, the Paperboys, Bloody Chicletts), who enlisted bassist/vocalist Russell Less (from indie bands Innocents Abroad, the Ground), and upstart ingenue guitarist Lucas Truman. Her moniker "Mudgirl" was chosen based on "the title of a short story she wrote about a young waif made of mud" intended for children. She stated, "Mudgirl is an extension of myself where I get to be cartoony and a bit surreal." In 1996, Mudgirl released their debut five-song EP First Book which included three Canadian radio hits "This Day", "Adjusted", and "Contact" (written by Russell Less). Kim also produced a handful of popular videos for those single which were featured on MuchMusic, and performed some dates in the U.S., including a July 1996 performance with Mudgirl at Lilith Fair.
1999–2006: The Kim Band
After five years as Mudgirl, Bingham decided to change the name of her collective to "The Kim Band". Under this moniker, she released the album Girlology (2001), produced by Steven Drake (The Odds, The Tragically Hip). The album featured the radio singles "What A Drag", "Valentine's Day", and "Quel Dommage". Her French version of "What A Drag," reached No. 1 on the French-Canadian radio charts.
Collaborations with David Usher, Nelly Furtado, and Bran Van 3000: 2000–2003: Touring, bands From 2001 until 2003, Bingham worked with Canadian singer David Usher as a guitarist and backing vocalist. "Black Black Heart" is a song written by Usher and Jeff Pearce and for which the operatic female vocal is provided by Bingham, while the chorus samples The Flower Duet (Sous le dôme épais), a duet for sopranos from Léo Delibes' opera Lakmé, as a hook. "Black Black Heart" won two MuchMusic Video Awards for Best Post-Production and Best Pop Video in 2002.
In 2003 and early 2004, Bingham toured Europe and the U.S. with pop singer Nelly Furtado as a guitarist and backing vocalist in Furtado's band. Bingham also collaborated with Bran Van 3000 and is featured on the albums Rosé and The Garden. Bingham also toured in Canada as part of Bran Van 3000, including a concert as the main act at the Montreal Jazz Festival in 2008.
Les Invincibles 2005–2009
From 2005 to 2009, Bingham composed the soundtrack for the television trilogy Les Invincibles with three seasons on the original Canadian television production (broadcast on Radio Canada) and two seasons on the reprised European versions, a Franco-Belgian-German production (broadcast on Arte). In 2007, Bingham's original music for the Canadian series was nominated for Best Original Score at the Prix Gémeaux television award; Bingham won the Best Theme Song award with the theme song "The Heroes Take", shared with co-writer and show creator Jean-François Rivard. Also in 2007, at the request of fans of the Canadian television show, Bingham performed and produced the soundtrack album Les Invincibles with the support of Warner Music Canada.
UP! and single releases 2010–2020
Bingham's next work, the full-length album UP!, was recorded in Los Angeles over the summer of 2010 with co-producer John Kastner (Doughboys, All Systems Go!) and with members of bands such as Queens of the Stone Age, Jellyfish, Blind Melon, and Masters of Reality. The album was released in May 2012 under Bingham's longstanding indie label, Mudgirl Music Group.
The stop-motion animation video for the single "UP!" won the Best Video award at the 2013 edition of the Independent Music Awards. The French version of "UP!" and the sole French single on the album, a song called "Party Girl", were once again radio hits for Bingham in French-speaking parts of Canada. In January 2019, "Bel Ami" was chosen as the theme song for the US television series Good Trouble. In the summer of 2019, Bingham released her first single, performed in both English and Italian, the upbeat pop song "Beppe Green".
Style According to The Spokesman-Review, Bingham "plays a musical style modeled after the eclectic pop of The The."
Personal life Bingham was raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and presently lives in France.
Awards YearAwardNominated workCategoryResult2007Prix GémeauxLes Invincibles Best Original Score"The Heroes Take" Best Theme Song2013Independent Music Awards"Up!" Best Short Form Video
Discography
With Me Mom and Morgentaler Albums 1991: Clown Heaven and Hell EP 1993: Shiva Space Machine 1994: We Are Revolting: Live & Obscure 1990–1994 (live)
Solo material
Albums + List of studio and live albums by Kim Bingham Year Album title Release details1996 Released: 1996 Label: Mudgirl Music Group Format: CD, digital2001 Released: 2001 Label: Mudgirl Music Group Format: CD, digital2007 Released: 5 June 2007 Label: Warner Music Canada Format: CD, digital Released: 27 August 2007 Label: Musik2Musik / Mudgirl Music Format: CD, digital2012 Released: 22 May 2012 Label: Mudgirl Music Group Format: CD, digital
Singles + Selected singles by Kim Bingham Year Title Album Certifications1995"This Day"First Book EP "Adjusted""Contact"2001"What a Drag!"Girlology No. 1 in Montreal"Valentine's Day""Girlology"2003"Cœur de sable" French single Top 40 in Quebec2007"The Heroes Take" Les Invincibles Prix Gémeaux: Best Theme Song2008"Ticket pour l'amour" French single 2012"Party Girl" Promo single "Up!" Up!
TV scores 2005–09: Les Invincibles (Canada) – composer 2008–10: Les Invincibles (France-Germany) – composer 2019: Song "Bel Ami" used as theme music for Good Trouble (US) – composer
Guest appearances + Selected guest performances by Kim Bingham Year Single name Primary artist(s) Album1999"Our Generation" (add. vocals by Bingham) Marcy PlaygroundShapeshifter2001"Black Black Heart" (ft. Kim Bingham) David UsherMorning Orbit2008Various tracksBran Van 3000 Rosé
See also List of musicians from British Columbia List of Canadian musicians
References 2013 Independent Music Awards Winners Announced
External links
KimBingham.com