Kevin Steele – Too Cool For School
1. Your new solo album One Thing Left To Do feels like a culmination of your entire musical journey, did you approach it consciously as a “full circle” moment, or did it naturally evolve that way during the writing process?
Honestly, I had no intention of even making another album until I met Billy Summer. If it seems like a “culmination of my entire musical journey” it certainly happened naturally because that was never my intent. I guess it couldn’t help but reflect my influences from over the years but it wasn’t a deliberate statement. If it seems like a “full circle” moment, that’s just a happy coincidence.
2. “Sad, Sad Song” is described as deeply autobiographical and emotionally challenging to record. Was there a particular moment in the studio where the emotional weight of the song really hit you?
Yes, as I was recording my vocal track. There are several lines in the song that really hit home and I was surprised by how difficult they were to sing. I think it speaks to the trust I had in Billy (who engineered, co-produced the record, and played all the guitars) to be able to expose myself emotionally like that. People who are closest to me know I don’t usually wear my heart on my sleeve.
3. The album combines glam, punk, blues, southern rock, and even gospel elements. How do you manage to unify such diverse influences into a cohesive sound?
Well that’s the trick isn’t it? If you have a distinctive style—and I like to think I do—it makes things a lot easier. The Beatles and the Stones wrote and recorded songs in multiple genres and they weren’t criticized for it. Quite to the contrary they were praised for their ability to do so. I enjoy all kinds of music and I find it challenging to write and sing songs in a variety of styles. Too many bands these days put out albums where all the songs sound too similar. I’m not interested in that. I get bored very easily.
4. Your collaboration with Billy Summer seems almost telepathic, as you described it. Can you share a specific example from the studio where that “Cosmic Twins” connection really shaped a track?
I’m sure you’ve heard of twins who finish each other’s sentences. Billy and I shared a wavelength in the studio. We finished each other’s musical thoughts without verbalizing them. That’s why they call us the Cosmic Twins. I’ve never had so much fun nor made an album so quickly and naturally in my entire career.
5. Critics have noted a stronger influence of artists like the New York Dolls and Johnny Thunders on this album. What drew you more deeply into that raw, gritty aesthetic at this stage of your career?
I don’t pay much attention to what critics say. I’ve always had those influences. I guess it took them this long to figure it out. I’ve found that most rock critics aren’t the sharpest bunch.
6. Looking back at your time with Roxx Gang, how do you view the band’s role as a bridge between glam and grunge, and do you think that legacy is better understood today than it was at the time?
That’s rubbish too. Our glam image stemmed from my love of 70s glitter rock bands like T. Rex, Mott The Hoople and The NY Dolls. I never felt any kind of kinship with the Californian Sunset Strip glam metal scene. Roxx Gang was much darker than most of those bands. And we were in no way a bridge to grunge. That’s ridiculous! I don’t know where they come up with these things.
7. Things You’ve Never Done Before was a significant release for Roxx Gang, especially as one of the first rock acts signed to Virgin Records in the U.S. What are your strongest memories from that era, and how did it shape you as an artist?
The first hard rock act signed to Virgin Records in the U.S.. My best memories are of dreams that came true. Hearing one of my songs on the radio for the first time, seeing our album in record stores and seeing our videos on MTV. Intoxicating stuff for a young man. Of course I’d be lying if I didn’t say that the drinking, drugging and girls also factored into my fond memories. I don’t think any of those things shaped me as an artist. It was my life experience up to that point that did that. I lost my mother to violence at age 8 and as cliche as it might sound, music was my salvation. It was an escape from my shitty reality. I’ve always been motivated by the hope that in some small way I could provide that same escape for someone in their own difficult time.
8. With The Mojo Gurus, you helped keep a certain spirit of rock alive in the 2010s. How does the creative freedom of your solo work compare to your experiences in bands like Roxx Gang and Mojo Gurus?
Well Billy and I co-produced the record so there was no outside producer to butt heads with. My brother Brett who has managed my career since day one has his own record label. Releasing my album on Steele Records meant no label people to compromise my music or vision. And Billy and I were so simpatico that there were no bandmates to appease either. It was the most creative freedom I’ve ever experienced.
9. The album features an all-star group of Tampa Bay musicians. How important was that sense of camaraderie in shaping the final sound of the record?
Very important! Everyone got on so well and we had so much fun making this record, I believe that you can hear it in the tracks.
10. After everything you’ve experienced in your career, what does One Thing Left To Do represent to you personally, is it a new beginning, a statement, or something more reflective?
Not so much a new beginning as a return to form. Two years ago I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Benign thank God, but I still had to have brain surgery to have it removed. Scary stuff. Luckily I’ve had a full recovery. 100%! I thought I was done with all this but Billy convinced me otherwise. I didn’t realise how much I missed it. He’s a good friend and this record would have never happened without him. My whole ordeal has taught me not to take a lot of things for granted that I may have in the past.
