Kids Table Invites Listeners to Join the ‘3AM Club’ with Indie Pop Charm
Kids Table. Photo by Tomás Tarnopolsky.
Kids Table’s debut LP starts with the perfect blunder. A flubbed guitar riff sets up a full-bellied laugh from the band members in this voice memo tag-on to the front of “White Flags.” Before a single serious note is played on the record, Kids Table beckons listeners to pull up a chair and become a member of the friend group for 32 minutes on 3AM Club.
You may know them from viral videos where they perform “Come On Eileen” from a Washington, D.C. front porch to a street packed with bobbing heads, but Kids Table’s steady output of original singles has helped them become a staple in the capital indie scene. Their debut record builds upon the mix of quintessential light indie rock, jazz, and pop the six-piece has been producing since 2024, and elevates their foundation to a bar of sophisticated playfulness. 3AM Club is a cohesive lineup of tracks made for the 20-something-year-old teenagers who fall hard, feel intensely, and cherish the good.
Found halfway through the album, at its heart, “Play Pretend” is a prime example of this sentiment. “We’re fading out / Breaking down / Taking bows,” lead vocalist Amy Smith sings in the pre-chorus as rumbling tom drums, repetitive picking, and an anxious trumpet countermelody build tension behind her, peaking with a sudden silence. Yet when the band returns for the chorus, unison two-note hits and a time-keeping hi-hat immediately — and almost comedically — lighten the mood, making way for Smith to ask, “But can we just play pretend for the day / We can act like the end is far away?”
“Us and the Moon” and “Two Step!” act as smooth easy listens that offer early adult takes on teenage fantasies. The former is a swung track with lyrics like, “And if I was able / I’d skip ahead to where we can meet / Where the time gets carried away / And there’s no running out of something to say,” while the latter is a short, impish jaunt featuring effortless vocal inflections and themes of throwing caution to the wind.
Watch the music video for “Killing Time” on YouTube.
3AM Club also relies heavily on introspective reflections of love’s woes, and these moments provide some of the strongest melodies on the record. Standout track “Where You Shouldn’t Be” is perhaps the hookiest example, its catchy chorus, layered vocal harmonies, and steady groove punctuating the fears of jumping into the unknown of a new relationship. Single and closer “Killing Time” is another track rooted in solid, poppy hooks emphasized by Smith’s impressive vocal flexibility and a cinematic outro.
Questions of doubt creep in to craft the most poignant moments on the record as it nears its end. “Ready, Steady, Wait” — an acoustic song I can’t help but imagine being performed while sitting lazily on a curb — features lines like “Count my blessings on the good nights / Face my demons on the bad / Both are putting up a good fight” and “I’ve been trying to be great / But it seems I hesitate / Going higher than the stakes.” It’s an understated track, but details like slight vocal cracks and a simple instrumentation that leaves you literally waiting for more showcase the band’s thoughtful production.
Similarly, archetypal power ballad “The Glow” sees more somber musings and clever sonic flairs ensue, like trumpeter Ryan Thomas entering at the line, “So take my hand, start the band” and guitarist Mike Weaver filling the bridge with a high-register solo.
Through the record’s nine tracks, it becomes clear that the 3AM Club is not one of exclusivity. Kids Table have carefully fashioned their debut album to exude the qualities that unite us, from yearning, to regret, to the love of an undeniably danceable hook. All you need to do to join the club is hit play, and embrace your membership.