Kirin J. Callinan


Kieran John Callinan, known by his stage name Kirin J. Callinan, is an Australian singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Best known for his solo career, he is also a founding member of Mercy Arms and has played with the Night Game and Jack Ladder and the Dreamlanders.

Biography

Kieran John Callinan was born and raised in Sydney. In 2005, he formed indie rock band Mercy Arms with fellow guitarist and vocalist Thom Moore, bassist Ash Moss, and drummer Julian Sudek. Callinan and Sudek had lived in the same area: "We played soccer against each other and with each other as kids, so we go back to when we were fourteen years old or so." In 2008, he released his first solo album, Am I a Woman, Yet?.
After Mercy Arms broke up in 2009, Callinan released three more solo albums: Embracism, Bravado, and Return to Center. Bravado reached No. 5 on the ARIA Hiseekers Albums Chart. His track, "S.A.D.", was provided with a music video directed by Danny Cohen, which was nominated for Best Video at the ARIA Music Awards of 2017.
Referred to as the enfant terrible of Australia's underground rock music scene, Callinan is known for his flamboyant public persona, confrontational live shows, and diverse musical output in which, according to Spin, "the distinctions between talent, irony, and genuine bad taste bleed together until they’re indistinguishable." Callinan said that his primary motivation as a musician is to "excite and confuse,... But you can't do that for any length of time without having sincerity."
Callinan has collaborated with a wide range of musicians, including Mark Ronson, Jimmy Barnes, James Chance, Alex Cameron, Connan Mockasin, and brothers Neil and Tim Finn. Barnes and Cameron feature in Callinan's 2017 single "Big Enough". Barnes' distinctive screaming cameo became an internet meme.
In 2017, Callinan was cast by Jane Campion in the second season of Top of the Lake. "Kirin was a joy to work with because he was imaginative, playful and exploring," said Campion. "He seems somehow to push the limits of human being in the biggest sense, like he might have been raised by unicorns."

Personal life

Callinan's father is Brendan Callinan, former keyboardist with Australian pub rock band The Radiators.
In February 2018, Callinan received a 12-month good-behaviour bond after being charged with willful and obscene exposure in a public place. He lifted his kilt on the red carpet at the ARIA Music Awards of 2017, briefly exposing his genitals to press photographers. Following the incident, Callinan was dropped from the lineup to the 2018 Laneway Music Festival.

Discography

Albums

Mercy Arms