Kim Anna Bingham,[1] 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.
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 where she formed the project Mudgirl with drummer/vocalist Glenn Kruger (Carly Rae Jepsen, the Paperboys, Bloody Chicletts), bassist/vocalist Russell Less (Innocents Abroad, the Ground), and guitarist Lucas Truman. Her moniker "Mudgirl" was chosen based on "the title of a short story she wrote about a 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). She also produced a handful of popular videos featured on MuchMusic,[2] and performed on some dates in the U.S., including a July 1996 performance with Mudgirl at Lilith Fair.[3]
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," which 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.
From 2005 to 2009, Bingham composed the soundtrack for the TV trilogy Les Invincibles with three seasons on the original Canadian TV 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 TV show, Bingham performed and produced the soundtrack album "Les Invincibles" with the support of Warner Music Canada.
UP! and single releases 2010–2020
L–R: Jayne Hill, Sara Johnston, Gary McKenzi, Nick Hynes, Kim Bingham, Stephane Moraille, at the Bran Van 3000 Concert @ Montreal Jazz Festival 2008
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 TV series "Good Trouble". In summer 2019, Bingham released her first single, performed in both English and Italian, the upbeat pop song "Beppe Green".
^Jennings, Nicholas (28 July 1995). "Front and Centre Stage". NicholasJennings.com. Archived from the original on 25 July 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
