Biography

Recalling the wittier and more sophisticated side of 1970s rock along the lines of Steely Dan and Todd Rundgren, onetime Kids These Days member and established sideman Liam Kazar (Tweedy, Steve Gunn) released his first solo album, Due North, in 2021. Among its contributors were Spencer Tweedy, Ohmme, and Sam Evian. Liam Kazar (aka Liam Cunningham) co-founded the playful, genre-bending hip-hop collective Kids These Days in 2009 with Macie Stewart, Lane Beckstrom, Vic Mensa, Greg Landfair, Jr., Nico Segal, J.P. Floyd, and Rajiv Halim. They won the Next Big Thing competition that year at hometown Chicago's Congress Theater and made their debuts at South by Southwest and Lollapalooza in 2011. Amid some short-form releases, in June 2012 the group performed live on TV's Conan during a week of broadcasts from the Chicago Theatre. That October, Kids These Days' debut album, Traphouse Rock, appeared on the Save Money label. It was produced by Wilco's Jeff Tweedy and partly recorded at the Wilco Loft. The eight-piece disbanded the following year. Kids These Days members Kazar (vocals, guitar), Macie Stewart (keys, vocals guitar), and Lane Beckstrom (bass) went on to form the indie rock group Marrow with drummer Matt Carroll. They issued their debut EP, Two, in December 2013. The full-length The Gold Standard followed in September 2015. Meanwhile, Stewart formed Ohmme with fellow singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Sima Cunningham, Liam's older sister. Sima and Liam also served as touring members of Tweedy (Jeff and son Spencer Tweedy). With artists ranging from Chance the Rapper to Steve Gunn and Daniel Johnston also on his resumé, Kazar continued to work as a sideman while putting together his first solo release. By that time, the Chicago native had relocated to Kansas City, Missouri. Due North's backing band included Beckstrom (bass) and Spencer Tweedy (drums), co-producer James Elkington (pedal steel), and Dave Curtin (keyboards), along with background vocalists Ohmme and Andrew Sa. Mixed by Sam Evian, the debut arrived on Woodsist/Mare Records in August 2021. ~ Marcy Donelson, Rovi