Four years after being formed, five-piece band KAVE (Kings Always have Veiled Egos) — Gaho, Kekinu, Jisang, Hyun, and Ownr — has finally put out a self-produced album filled with their stories, thus the title 'Flight of Ideas.' "We wanted to codify countless ideas through this album," they shared.

Aside from their respective positions in the band, the members are also hands-on in writing, producing, composing, and arranging music, which is evident in their first mini-album, containing variety of sophisticated tracks "Venom," "Legend," "Hurricane," "Dangerous," "Avant," "Crazy Crazy," and "Die For U" ranging from rock to R&B.

"'Flight of Ideas’ is an album that reflects our desire to showcase our different sounds and different stages to our fans," said the members. To commemorate their official debut, allkpop sat down with KAVE to talk about their inaugural project. Check out the full exclusive interview below!

KAVE's shout-out to allkpop:

allkpop: First of all, congratulations on 'Flight of Ideas'! Could you please introduce yourselves and give a TMI or a fun fact about yourself?

KAVE: We are the band KAVE! We are an all-producer and performer consisting of five members: Gaho on vocals, Kekinu on drums, Jisang on guitar, Hyun on piano/keyboard, and Ownr on keyboard/DJ. Frontman Gaho once topped the music charts with “Start” from the 'Itaewon Class' OST.

Ownr: Hello allkpop readers! I'm Ownr, the youngest member of KAVE! I was just going to take a 10minute nap, but when I opened my eyes, 2 hours had passed! I better get back to work on the song before my hyungs scold me!

Hyun: Hi there! There are good people, realistic people, and strange people in KAVE, and I'm Hyun from Keyboard, the most realistic T type among them... But I'm actually a weird person sometimes... I'm into quiet music these days, sometimes it's hard because KAVE music is loud.

Kekinu: Hi, I'm Kekinu, the drummer of KAVE. I've been running in the evenings lately. Running while breathing the cool evening air helps me organize my thoughts. The music I listen to most often these days is Leslie Odom Jr.’s “My Favorite Things.”

Jisang: Hello allkpop readers! In Korea, the Chuseok holiday has passed and we are already heading towards the end of the year. I hope you are always healthy and happy. For my own health, I've set up a barbell and a disc in my studio like a home gym so that I can work out in between album works. Let's all be healthy! Fighting!

Gaho: Hi! I'm Gaho, the vocalist of KAVE! I've been saying I'd be back with KAVE for a while now, and I’m glad to finally be conducting this interview! I've been eating marinated chicken for dinner four nights a week lately.

allkpop: It’s been a while since KAVE was formed, in 2020. It took you four years to release your first mini-album. How does it feel to finally debut as a band?

KAVE: We wanted to unleash new characters and sounds that we haven't been able to show in our R&B/K-pop image, including the youthful image that Gaho has been showing, and present them to you as the band KAVE. For four years, we've been writing songs, exploring new sounds, and practicing all the time, and we're really happy and excited to be able to release all that energy into the world.

allkpop: How long did it take you to finalize this album?

KAVE: We had prepared for KAVE for about four years, then the moment the decision was made to debut, the album production took about six months of hard work by the members and many employees of the company.

allkpop: What do you hope to convey through it? KAVE means “Kings Always have Veiled Egos.” What aspect or part of that meaning did you incorporate into this album? 

KAVE: 'Flight of Ideas' is an album that means “leap of thought.” Just as everyone has a myriad of mixed thoughts, we wanted to codify countless ideas through this album. “Kings Always have Veiled Egos” literally means we want to express the impulsive, desire-ridden nature of human nature in a vessel called the elixir of thought through fragmented images.

allkpop: Why do you think ‘Flight of Ideas’ is the best album to introduce KAVE to the music scene? What’s something in it that you think is unique and can stand out?

KAVE: 'Flight of Ideas’ is an album that reflects our desire to showcase our different sounds and different stages to our fans. We wanted to break away from the traditional band format and become a band that could show a variety of things to enjoy in one performance, and we would like to show our diverse performances on many stages in the future. Please look forward to it!

Also, what stands out the most is vocalist Gaho's new voice, and he tried to approach it with an experimental and new singing style that was different from the image of youth shown in pop music. The unique part is that the team has a DJ position, and when Ownr, who is in charge of the team's main producing, performs, he performs using a DJ set. It has been used in the nu-metal genre in the past, but we think we can show something different in our own way.

allkpop: Are there any memorable moments from the album preparations? What was your experience like recording the songs and giving the right vibes for the songs while in the recording studio?

KAVE: There have been many times when we made a storyboard and filmed a video, but we remember a lot of times when we spontaneously found a good location during our schedule and filmed a content video. In the case of the song melody, it was interesting that the demo was played in an unexpected place, such as in the car, so we took notes and recorded it separately. It was quite spontaneous.

allkpop: If you could exchange roles or positions with someone in your group for a day, which role would you choose?

Kekinu: I'd love to be a free guitarist and fly around the stage once because sometimes I get so excited in the middle of a performance that I just want to jump off the drums.

Hyun: I think I'm the worst at singing among my teammates. If I can get any better, I'd like to grab the mic and sing a chorus. However, there is a lot of pressure to be a frontman singer.

Jisang: Kekinu once told me that he can see each and every one of the members playing on stage, so I'm curious to know what it's like to play as a drummer. It must be very grand and fun!

Ownr: I've been taking drum lessons from Kekinu a little bit lately, so if I ever get the chance, I'd love to play on stage as a drummer. He said that I’m good at it, so I'm feeling pretty confident right now!

Gaho: I would like to be the piano or keyboard that Hyun plays rather than the other members. I would like to be a pianist and express the notes that come out when Hyun plays the piano and express each and every one of those sounds.

allkpop: Are there any bands you would like to collaborate with in the future?

KAVE: Maximum the Hormone, Oasis, MUSE, Coldplay, One Republic, Linkin Park, Twenty One Pilots, U2, Metallica, 5 Seconds of Summer (5SOS), Maroon 5, My Chemical Romance (MCR), Aerosmith, Queen, and Imagine Dragons!

allkpop: Lastly, please leave a message to allkpop readers and your fans!

KAVE: We're busy working on our second mini-album these days. We can't wait to jump around in front of our fans and the people who are reading this interview right now! We'll be back with some great songs. Thank you, allkpop readers, for your support!

Socials:

Instagram: @kave_official_
X (Twitter): @kave_official__
YouTube: KAVE