Artist Interview: Preacher Boy

What first got you into music?

Being born?

Seriously, as far back as I can remember, I was just absolutely obsessed with music. And by the look of the old family movies my parents still have, I was into music before my memories even began.

There’s a video of me runnin’ circles around a little inflatable kiddie pool in the back yard when I was about two with a little white plastic guitar, and I was making up songs. I guess you could say my first original song lyric was “I’m the cool fool/by the swimming pool”—because that’s what I’m singing in the video!

Honestly, I was pretty lucky in terms of how I grew up. I had really young parents who were basically still coming out of the hippie era, so we had amazing vinyl in the house. I was listening to music from Motown, British Invasion, Greenwich Village folk scene, blues, jazz, soul, you name it, from a very early age. And my Grandpa was a bluegrass musician, so I saw some of his shows when I was pretty young as well.

Basically, I was thoroughly surrounded by solid evidence that music mattered.

How would you describe your music to someone who hasn’t heard it before?

Hyphenated?

Rootsy-bluesy-swampy-folky-gritty-rock and roll.

As a convenient shorthand I actually do kind of like “alt blues.” A reviewer hit me with that term decades ago, and I always thought it was actually kind of apt. And a writer recently referred to me as “the godfather of alt blues,” which makes me seem pretty important, right? There’s a certain gravitas that comes with being the godfather of something!

Was there a defining moment when you realized music was your calling?

Not really, no.

But I say that only because I don’t really think of music as a “calling.” It’s a craft, and you work hard at it, and you try to introduce things of beauty and solidity and intention into the world. I think it’s a bit over-inflated to suggest that you’re “called” to music, as if some divine power has singled you out for a special greatness that you’re duty-bound to fulfill.

Where do you find inspiration for your lyrics or melodies?

Well, for lyrics, I’d say … everywhere?

Songwriting is kind of an awareness ritual for me. It’s about being present in life. I think of songwriting as something you train for—you learn to internalize a process whereby you’re always resonating with the world around you, always taking it in, always processing it. Lyrics are the byproduct of that process.

As to melodies, I don’t have a particularly good voice in any conventional sense of the word, so I don’t really have the luxury of exploring melodies the way a more traditionally gifted singer might. For me, my voice is a storytelling instrument; it’s a means to convey a vibe, to create and evoke worlds and characters and narratives. My tastes also really run to the rustic when it comes to melody; I couldn’t care less about The Beatles, or anyone else who gets held up as a master of melody. I’d rather listen to Bukka White.

I do think a lot about phrasing, and I think the rhythmic cadence of how I phrase is a big part of my songwriting process and vocal delivery. If I do really dig into a melody, it tends to be in direct relationship with the guitar; I’ve always loved the way Mississippi Fred McDowell sang, where the guitar and the voice are almost just one entity together; sometimes the guitar talks, sometimes the voice talks.

How do you balance personal expression and creating something your audience will love?

Well, I’m not sure how to answer that question as phrased, because I don’t necessarily believe that songs are vehicles for “personal expression.” Also, the question asks about “my” audience specifically. I like to think my audience—whoever that may be—is willing to go along wherever I’m going.

I think maybe what you’re getting after here is more about, how do I balance writing what I want to write, versus what I think will be “successful,” or what will appeal to a broader audience. If that’s the case, then I guess I’d answer that I don’t really balance it at all, because I don’t really think about it that much.

Oddly enough, having said that, I guess you could say that my most recent album, Ghost Notes, may be a bit of an exception. Not to say that I deliberately tried to write something I thought people would love, or that would be popular or successful. But I did try to write something where I endeavored—probably more so than I’ve done in the past—to take the audience into greater consideration; meaning, I tried to work with a set of components and building blocks that were maybe a little more familiar; images in lyrics that are less obscure or insular, rhythms and chord progressions that are a little more straightforward, instrumentations that are a little more conventional—you know, drums, bass, guitar, organ, vocals. It’s really a heartland rock vibe, with an infusion of country blues grittiness. My inspirations throughout were pretty classic: Exile on Main Street, Music from Big Pink, Green River, John Wesley Harding, Darkness on the Edge of Town, Damn the Torpedoes, that sort of thing.

What has been the most rewarding moment of your career so far?

That I still have one!

How do you prepare for a show or tour?

By giving my inner critic complete free reign to churn me into a nervous and self-loathing wreck.

What’s the most unusual or memorable thing that’s happened to you on stage?

Well, it’s hard to say. I’ve been at this for a while! But, maybe one of the highlights is the first night of opening for Eagle-Eye Cherry on tour. He was huge at the time, riding high on the strength of “Save Tonight,” and I was given the opportunity to be his opening act for a 17-country European tour. At the time, my missus and I were living in a tiny little fishing village in the west of Ireland. The first day of the tour, I got up at about 3 in the morning to take a cab from our village to the little airport in Galway. From there, I took a puddle-jumper to London, and then from there, flew to Paris. I was doing the tour solo acoustic, so it was just me, my overcoat, a duffel bag, and two guitars. I arrived in Paris late afternoon, and went straight to the venue, the legendary Olympia Theater! I mean, this was where Jacque Brel recorded his legendary performance of “Amsterdam!” Anyhow, I got there, and there was no one really there yet, so I literally just sat on the floor with my bag and my guitars, waiting for someone to show up and tell me what to do and where to go. Well, finally, Eagle-Eye and the band showed up, and I got to meet everybody, and they sound-checked, and then I sound-checked, and then they headed off to their hotel, and I just hung out by myself backstage. Well, finally, it’s showtime, and the place is packed to the gills; thousands of people. And there’s a big curtain, and it’s down, and the lights in the theater went down, and everyone starts screaming, and I walk out to take my place behind the mic and to wait for the curtain to go up. Just me, myself, and I, all by lonesome. And here’s the thing: I’d been added to the tour late, so my name wasn’t on the ticket or the poster or anything, so no one knew there was an opening act, dig? So the curtain goes up, the lights go on, and about 2,000 people go from screaming their heads off to just total silence, in the space of a second, wondering who on earth I am. Man, I’ve never been so terrified in all my life. Well, it turned out to be one of the great nights of my life, the audience turned out to be fantastic, they loved my songs, and I even got an encore—as an opening act! Then, Eagle-Eye invited me to sit in with his band during his set, and the rest is history. An amazing tour, and Eagle-Eye and I would go on to write a bunch of songs together in New York and record them with Rick Rubin. And it all started in Paris!

Can you tell us about your latest project or release?

It’s a new album. 18 songs. Double vinyl release. It’s called “Ghost Notes.” It’s a huge record for me, something I’ve worked on for a long time. I wanted to create something really ambitious, something that would deeply honor all my musical heroes, but at the same time, really take my own work to a new level. It’s not for me to say whether I succeeded or not, but I genuinely tried to strive for greatness. I just wanted to make a great rock and roll record, a great songwriting record, something where I could feel like I’d done my inspirations proud. It’s just come out, and so far, the response has been really encouraging. I’ve published a 200+ book to go along with the record, full of songs and stories and pictures and lyrics and whatnot, and it’s been really gratifying to see that people are reading the book as well, and just really digging into the whole narrative of the album. The first reviews have been really positive, and the radio single ("Don't Know What To Think Anymore”) is already starting to get some traction with Americana stations, so all in all, it feels like people are getting it, and I’m just really grateful and proud that this album is finally out there. And it’s my first time on vinyl, and I just love the sound. It’s so organic and raw, and it’s just really the right format for this music and these songs.

Are there any collaborations in the works you’re excited about?

I do have my own little record label (Coast Road Records), which has actually been around since the days of physical distribution (we were lucky to start out in 2004 with RedEye as a distributor), and it’s been a nice home for a lot of different collaborations over the years. In terms of what’s coming this year, I’m looking forward to the release of a new album from The Alternative Zen Blues Trial, which is kind of a blues-rock power trio in the vein of Band of Gypsys and Johnny Winter’s Progressive Blues Experiment. And there will also be a new album from Comedy Why Scream, whose music is kind of a lo-fi take on late 80’s-early 90’s-style industrial.

What message or emotion do you hope people take away from your music?

I don’t think I have any hopes for what they take away. That’s a lesson I learned early in my music career—once the music is released, you’re not the boss of it anymore, and it’s for other folks to do with it what they will.

Who are you listening to right now?

I listen to music pretty constantly, so a full list would be a long one.

Certain things are pretty constant, though. Not a week goes by where I don’t listen to some country blues from the likes of Mance Lipscomb, Son House, Charley Patton, Mississippi John Hurt, Sleepy John Estes, etc. And I’m pretty regular with jazz as well—jazz is what I write to when I’m writing “for work.” (i.e. the writing that gets me health insurance!). So, Sonny Rollins, Miles Davis, Bill Evans, Thelonious Monk—those are probably the most likely to be on extra rotations.

As to what else I’m listening to, it’s usually a mix of rediscovering things I used to be really into, and new things I’m just discovering. Some old favorites that I’ve been reconnecting with include REMs great trio of Life’s Rich Pageant, Fables of the Reconstruction, and Document, as well as Black Sabbath’s Ozzy-era masterpieces, Jesus and Mary Chain’s Automatic, and some 90’s Big Beat heavyweights like Groove Armada, Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, Chemical Brothers, Crystal Method, and the like.

In terms of new stuff, my favorite new act by far and away is Big Special. “Black Dog/White Horse” was hands down my pick for song of the year in 2024.

One thing I’m digging into right now is kind of a great blend of the old and the new. Al Jourgenson just released a new album where he’s basically re-recorded a bunch of Ministry’s With Sympathy-era synth-pop stuff, and it’s an absolute masterpiece.

How do you see your music evolving in the next few years?

Hard to say. I’ve been releasing albums since 1995—almost 30 years. And every album has been kind of a world unto itself. I don’t really know what may happen with future songs or recordings. But given that I worked on Ghost Notes for such a long time, and with such an intentional process, I suspect that whatever comes next is likely to be a bit more … spontaneous!

How do you handle the balance between commercial success and artistic integrity?

Well, that’s pretty easy. You just choose integrity.

What’s next for you? Any upcoming projects, tours, or surprises?

Ghost Notes has only just come out, so I think for the foreseeable future, I’ll be busy as a Ghost Notes ambassador.

Anything You'd Like Your Fans to Know.

Just a big thank you, really, to anyone who decides to get Ghost Notes. It’s an album that means the world to me, and it would mean the world to me if it meant the world to someone else, too.

Link to Album or Other Media:

https://open.spotify.com/album/6I7PPspsJFJv8smDffuSwW