MYLES KENNEDY of Alter Bridge: Society’s Hero – does he still exist?
An interview by Sarah Kidd.
Some days it seems that the world has been led astray. People are disillusioned with the leaders who are failing them, and what exactly is the message that we should be giving our future generations?
‘The Last Hero’ the fifth studio album from Alterbridge, released late last year on Napalm records, addresses some of these themes. We spoke with lead vocalist Myles Kennedy in regards to the state of play in his home country, the role of social media in the music industry and their upcoming tour of New Zealand.
First single off the new album ‘Show me a Leader’ was obviously written before the US elections in November – has the track now taken on a new meaning since the election of Trump as POTUS?
“I think that was one of the questions when the song was written was whether it would continue to have any relevance after the election cycle was over; I think what we’re seeing is that its maybe more relevant now. Our country is so divided and I think that the song is a reflection of those emotions, so people are gravitating towards it. I guess that’s the power of music. You have something that can sum up how people feel and it’s a manifestation of that. Whether they find solace in it, or whether they just feel that it’s compelling for whatever reason, it’s good to know that it’s at least resonating to some degree.”
Many have said that America seems to have lost its way in recent times, as an American (Kennedy was born in Massachusetts and raised in Northern Idaho) does he feel the same way?
“I think that we are in the midst of a bit of an identity crisis, I mean I’ve certainly never seen it quite this polarized before. You know frankly I think it’s just a reflection of the fact that our middle class has been disappearing and that that there is a group of people that feel like they have been forgotten about. But then there are also a lot of people that live on the coast, [they] have a very different philosophy on things and yeah it’s just very interesting. People just don’t agree and they don’t know how to compromise right now”.
Second single off the album ‘My Champion’ lyrically is very inspiring – a track perhaps that speaks to the younger generation? Or are there messages of encouragement for us all to be found within those words?
“Growing up as a child, I lacked self-confidence and I was kinda a late bloomer, smaller than the rest of my peers, so you know it wasn’t always easy. But whether they were parents, teachers or people I looked to for direction or inspiration, there was a lot of things that that song takes on lyrically that are essentially manifestations of those philosophies of how to persevere. It just seemed like a very universal theme, something that I certainly connect to; even as an adult I can still remember all those painful emotions and how to navigate through that. So this song hopefully offers some words of wisdom to help people in their own lives”.
Musicians have a very powerful platform from which to speak from – should more artists use said platform to address some of the major issues in the world today?
“Some musicians do that very well, I think that all the guys in Alter Bridge would agree we don’t necessarily feel comfortable being that band. We don’t really have any sort of agenda, but with that said I guess as a writer, there’s a certain amount of honesty that I always try to approach something with. Something that I can relate to or a place I psychologically have been or am at, at that point in time. I guess for me it’s really a matter of cloaking the emotions that I feel in an ambiguous act, so that’s it not an obvious agenda or statement because I just don’t feel comfortable doing that, I feel like that can polarize. Rage against the Machine, they clearly had things that they were trying to say and they did it brilliantly and they weren’t afraid to stand up for those things. But for us, it’s a little different, especially with a record like this. This record is very politically charged, [and] you run the risk of alienating your fans as much as galvanizing the fans. So we chose to just take the approach of ‘look this is how we feel, these are the emotions that we feel you know the frustrations we feel but were not going to tell you who to vote for or whether to be liberal or whether to be conservative’. It’s really more from an emotional stand point for us”.
So what are Kennedy’s views when it comes to social media and the part it plays not only in the music scene today but the world overall?
“Yeah it’s massive right? It’s been a real game changer not just with music but with everything, anything; especially anything subjective you know because everybody has an opinion and they hold onto their opinion dearly! Everybody has their opinion and they have the right to that, but not everybody is gonna like what you do! And even if people do like what you do, if you believe the hype I feel like that can sometimes mess with your head as well. Some guys and girls get addicted; they wanna know what people are thinking about them [all the time] like our president [laughs]. I don’t know what it is, they have that need to kinda put their ear to the ground and know what the world is saying about them, which isn’t healthy. But as far as a median to get people exposed to your music, yeah absolutely it’s a new frontier; without a doubt, it’s very necessary”.
While some people are indeed consumed by social media and the need to feed the ego, Kennedy is instead consumed by music. But when creating, does this become a hindrance?
“What hinders me more than anything is that perfectionist tendency; I mean that really is my Achilles heel! At the same time it is what’s helped me to develop my craft because I’m so obsessed with it. I know people who don’t let that little voice in their head mess with them as much, I wish I could shut that little guy off; believe me [laughs] because he can be a bit of a hindrance!”
Alterbridge will be performing at Auckland’s Powerstation later this month with support from New Zealand’s own Like A Storm, so is Kennedy looking forward to being down this way again?
“Yeah definitely looking forward to it; it’s been a few years but we’re always anxious to get back down there. Some of the best rock ‘n’ roll fans in the world you know, so we’re grateful to be coming back!”
Alter Bridge will be performing live at Auckland’s Powerstation next Friday, 31st March (With support from ‘Like A Storm’). Both regular and VIP Tickets are still available from AAA Ticketing (But get in quick as they are selling FAST)!