Mike Kinsella

"Rather than someone cutting themselves off from or invalidating their own teenage feelings, Kinsella’s just outside that time frame trying to figure out how the emotions and music that moved him during his formative years figure into his current life. That’s why, as self-identifying emo bands are making music that’s more mature, refined, and exploratory than anything that came before it, American Football is currently the most influential album in the genre.”
– Pitchfork

"That familiar combination of confessional tone and obtuse imagery finds its match in the instrumentation’s ability to bounce between meandering exploration and punchy, fist-pumping moments. Mike Kinsella’s tight drumming does a fair amount of the stitching.”
– Consequence of Sound

“Don’t wait up / ’Cause I’m not coming home / Until these demons get born,” sings Mike Kinsella on “Too Many Moons,” the opening track of Ghost Town. His sixth solo album under the name Owen, Ghost Town is awash in many such moments: snapshots of apparitions, refrigerator-magnet confessionals, memories made spectral. It’s not a marked deviation from past discs, but it does show signs of Owen’s gentle, stately erosion."
– The A.V. Club

"The gentle, unadorned acoustic guitar is plucked with gossamer delicacy, sounding almost harp-like as it trails beneath these seven songs dedicated to disaffection and self-doubt. While five of the songs run more than five minutes, Kinsella’s compositions don’t strictly adhere to a verse-chorus-verse structure and as a result don’t seem particularly indulgent or padded.”
– Metro Times

"The Chicago band Their/They're/There fuse punk, prog and indie into a distinctive new hybrid. Members Evan Weiss, Mike Kinsella and Matthew Frank – all veterans of other indie-rock groups – show off their sharp dynamic with the tough vocals and interesting ska-meets-metal guitars…”
– Rolling Stone

"Comprised of Mike Kinsella (Owen), Steve Lamos, David Johnson and Allen Johnson, The One Up Downstairs recorded three songs in 1997. But, before they could be released, the members parted ways -- Kinsella and Lamos went on to form American Football, while David and Allen established Very Secretary. For years The One Up Downstairs was discussed on message boards and became the frequent subject of questions sent to the Polyvinyl info e-mail account – were they actually a band, did they sound like American Football, did they ever record? The answers to all of these questions are a resounding “yes.”
– Polyvinyl.com