MYLES KENNEDY (SEPTEMBER 6TH, 2024)

We had the chance to chat with this hyper-talented workaholic. An intimate encounter with a sincere and peaceful artist who talks to us about his third solo album, ‘The Art of Letting Go’, in between his contributions to albums by Slash, Alter Bridge...





What's the question you've been asked too many times that you're sick of answering?

Myles Kennedy: I haven't got to that point in the promo yet: it's the end of the first week and everything's still very fresh. I'm not yet at that point where you're trying to give different answers to the same questions...


But in general, in your career?

I don't really know, I don't want to sound like a wet blanket but I appreciate that you care. But I'm cool, you can ask me any question you like.


So let's talk about your new album, which justifies your presence here. The cover has an attractive and frightening side to it, like a representation of death and hell but in a flamboyant, almost festive spirit, like in Mexico in fact, was that the idea behind the design?

It was my manager who found this artist and we really liked his approach. We wondered if he could incorporate things from my career and my life to tell the story and show the transitory nature of life - birth, death... As for the octopus's tentacles, they simply come from my love of octopuses, which I have a tattoo of on my arm. Then there's a little door that refers to The Mayfield Four's first album. There's also the tiger skeleton which refers to the ‘Year of the Tiger’ album...


But with all these albums, do you have any space left on your body?

Yes, fortunately I still have some (Laughs)! And I'm still planning to release other albums, so I've still got room to cover.


When you look at this album and its cover, you wonder if the record isn't partly conceptual, based on the departure of a loved one, given the cover and the title of the album, which can be read on several levels and also on some of the tracks?

You know, you can see it that way. There are two songs in particular that evoke loss, ‘Eternal Lullaby’ and ‘Miss You When You're Gone’, which are quite ambiguous songs that can evoke different feelings. But for me, ‘The Art of Letting Go’ is also about learning not to be attached - not just to people - but to things that you think are necessary in life, or things that you idealise, and just learning to be able to adapt. I see it like when you drive and let yourself go and shout and sing... This album is a kind of journey to try and evolve and just stay present.


Still on the subject of the cover, it reminded us of the world of Mark Lanegan's album ‘Blues Funeral’ and its themes around death in general. Could this album and this singer have been influences?

I've never thought about that, but I loved Mark Lanegan, who is one of my favourite singers on the Seattle scene. I still remember my friends telling me about The Screaming Trees and their singer Mark Lanegan, who had a superb voice. I loved what he did with his solo work and also with Queens of the Stone Age. There was something special about him.
To be honest, I didn't even think about that album. But if I remember correctly, it was Alain Johannes who produced this album? He's another incredible guy.


There's nothing I like more in life than creating songs!




As always, ‘The Art Of Letting Go’ is another collection of excellent compositions. What discipline do you have - especially with yourself - to maintain such a high standard of songwriting?

I think it's one of the things in life that I keep coming back to... It could just be work, but there's no other thing in life that I like as much as creating songs.
I consider myself first and foremost a songwriter: it's the thing I spend the most time on. For me, songwriting is like fishing...


You need patience...

Yes, but apart from time, I heard a quote from Tom Petty who said that a songwriter doesn't catch a big fish every time. As far as I'm concerned, it must be one idea in ten...


But even if an idea is less interesting, you can make it grow...

That's true! But it's all about getting the hang of it: it's all about learning. And these solo albums are real exercises for me. For example, when I write with Slash or with Mark (NdStruck: Mark Tremonti) for Alter Bridge, I know immediately whether I'm going to like it or not, whether I've caught a big fish... On the other hand, when I compose for myself, I don't get that immediate feedback but I'm starting to get used to it and even appreciate it, because it helps me to develop this ability to project myself, to move forward. I've developed this algorithm in my brain to be able to listen to something and tell myself that it could become a big fish... And that's the case with the first single ‘Say What You Will’: I was in a hotel room with no one around, I played the intro again and I knew I had something that could become something big! Mind you, I'm not saying I had a ‘Hey Jude’, but a song that was good enough for me (Laughs)! But yes, that's it, it really helps me because when I go back to my writing partners, I feel I'm coming up with better ideas and I'm not wasting their time.


The album sounds a lot more rock and even metal than its predecessors, and in the end it's not so far removed from what Alter Bridge has to offer. Can we assume that with your solo album we have what could have been, in part, the new Alter Bridge album?

There are two songs on this album that I presented to Alter Bridge: ‘Eternal Lullaby’ - but we recorded another ballad - and ‘Miss You When You're Gone’. I think these songs would have worked with Alter Bridge, especially on the third album, ten years ago, but we've changed and we sound heavier now. And for that reason, I felt it was safer to do it that way.
In the solo context, there are moments when the music gets fuzzier, heavier depending on the riff, but I don't think it goes into totally metallic territory where there's no groove, no blues base... And that's important to me. There's a moment on the album on the track ‘How The Story Ends’ where there's a break and the riff in particular could have worked in Alter Bridge. In fact, when I suggested this riff in the studio, the producer and the band told me they really liked it but I thought it sounded a bit too Alter Bridge and they said it didn't matter because they loved it (Laughs)!


I've got so many ideas that will never see the light of day...




But why did you feel the need to toughen up your solo music when Alter Bridge is already a very heavy project?

I've got so many ideas that will never see the light of day... I love Americana music, I love acoustic music, I love country music and maybe I'll revisit these genres again. But in the end, I'm a rocker! I love swimming in its waters, but I'm not Sturgill Simpson. I enjoy playing this music but I always feel the need to return to a place where I'm more comfortable...
It's the experience of playing live that's influenced everything, especially since there's now three of us. I rearranged the songs to make them sound a bit more rock and to be able to work on them in a live context: I simply decided to record these songs as they were going to be played live...


In these conditions, a first solo acoustic album, a second blues album, a third rock album, the fourth will be a metal album?

No, I think I can assure you it won't... Even though I've said in the past that I probably wouldn't do a solo hard rock album, I think if I were to do a solo metal album, I think it would be too close, really too close to Alter Bridge and I'd feel it would be redundant, especially as a singer.
But it's a real challenge to do metal and I love it! I hope I'll be doing it again soon, or making a polka album (Laughs)!


The dynamism and directness of the album are particularly noticeable on tracks like ‘Say What You Will’, ‘Nothing More To Gain’ and ‘Saving Face’, which have a real live feel to them. Was it important to keep the rock freshness in the lyrics, to keep things simple and have fun?

It's all about having fun! And it's funny, when we started recording - and during pre-production to be precise - my guitar tech told me it was a fun record, not that there aren't dark moments, but it contains elements that are fun to play that the first two albums didn't have.


A few tracks like ‘The Art of Letting Go’, ‘Behind The Veil’, ‘Mr. Downside’, ‘Saving Face’, ‘Dead To Rights’ can be reminiscent of Wolfgang Van Halen's Mammoth WVH in terms of guitar tone, riffs and solos. What do you think of this idea of virtuoso solos with a catchy, almost pop feel?

I've never thought about it that way, but I'll take it because I have great respect for my friend Wolfgang. I love Wolfgang. But it's funny because there's a song I wrote years before his first album came out. We recorded it recently and I realised it was really similar. I called him to tell him that, but that wasn't my intention, knowing that I'd written it before I'd listened to his first album (Smiles). But I think we have the same taste in music and under those conditions, things like that can happen. But I'll take your comparison as a compliment.


On this album, you go from classic rock on ‘Miss You When You're Gone’ to more modern alternative rock on ‘Nothing More To Gain’. Do you think rock can still speak to the younger generation?

I really hope so! I'd love to know that kids are still discovering this music...


At this stage of my life, my favourite singer is probably Ella Fitzgerald!




In that respect, you're one of the greatest singers on the rock scene. What's your relationship with your voice and have you ever considered singing in styles other than rock?

Absolutely! In fact, I spent a lot of time going round in circles at home singing something other than rock. At this stage of my life, my favourite singer is probably Ella Fitzgerald! I listen to her a lot and I sing along to her songs, or I sing Gershwin classics.


And do you plan to make an album in the vein of Ella Fitzgerald?

Maybe, maybe one day...


I was perfectly aware that nobody expected me to do an acoustic album, but I had to do it!


Are you worried about the reaction of your audience?

Of course I am! But the thing is, it's something you have to take into account, especially when you're doing hard rock. When I released my first two solo albums, I was perfectly aware that no-one was expecting me to do an acoustic album, but I had to do it! And ultimately the question is - especially when you release a solo album - do you do it for yourself, your fanbase or a compromise that keeps everyone happy? So maybe one day I'll do an album like that, I'd really like to, but the fact is that Ella was so good that I'm hesitating: I'm afraid I'll come up against a glass ceiling!


In any case, let us know the day you embark on such a project: we're very curious to hear it...

OK, maybe I'll do a few songs or something just for you (Smiles)...


As well as being an extraordinary singer, you're also an excellent guitarist. Is going back to a trio format with this album a way of demonstrating that?

I've said it a few times, especially on this album but also a bit on the last one, that it's an excuse to dwell on the guitar because you have to realise that I started out as a lead guitarist...


In fact, in all the bands you play with, you rub shoulders with guitar heroes like Slash, Mark Tremonti...

Yes, that's right! I'm not going to get up on stage with my guitar and look at Slash and say: ‘It's my turn to do a solo! First of all, the fans probably wouldn't want that and it wouldn't do any good. But I love playing guitar and after writing songs, the thing I do most is play guitar. I play almost every day but it's calmed down, there was a time when that was all I did. But in fact, it was Mark Tremonti who got me interested in playing the solos on Alter Bridge, even though people don't know that it's me playing the solo in question. Mark was the one who pushed me to do it, even though it's a challenge. I really appreciate his work and who he is, because he could have considered that it was his territory but that was never the case.


But it's clear that the guitar is part of you when we see you on stage with a guitar in your hands...

You're not the first person to tell me that I'm more comfortable when I've got a guitar in my hands because it's part of who I am and having one is like a safety net. I'm also fine when I'm just in front of the band without a guitar but I feel like I've got no trousers on (Laughs)!


I don't really have a life outside music!




An album with Alter Bridge, an album with Slash, a solo album, all in the space of two or three years, what's your secret to being so workaholic?

In fact, I don't really have a life outside music! I'm in the process of developing other interests, but in the end, what I love most of all is making music...


Maybe that's too intimate, but in your private life...

... I have a wife, a dog and a cat...


In a way, my songs are my children...


... But you don't have any children?

No, because if I had children, I couldn't go on doing this. They'd wonder where their father was... But in a way, my songs are my children. That's really something I've realised because that's what I'm going to leave behind.


Don't you think you'll regret this choice one day?

Of course I do! It's true that when we made the decision, we were totally aware of it, especially as time goes by. I read an article today about people who don't have children and who are afraid because they don't know who's going to take care of them when they're old. I'm totally aware of that.
But we've made a choice and we accept it... People think we don't have any because we can't have children... No! I love children enough to have created this foundation where we try to give instruments to children.


Getting back to music, Mark Tremonti has relaunched Creed. With your solo albums, you with Slash, Mark with Creed, is it possible to keep Alter Bridge going at the same time?

I think it should be fine. We'll have to see how things go because it's true that they were incredibly successful in the States: at the time, they were a huge band, one of the biggest rock bands in the States... But it's also true that it's great, especially with this album coming out, because for the first time, I'm not going to have a pandemic to deal with (Smiles)...


You never know...

Yes, you do!


... Especially with this new monkey pox...

That's true! But my first two solo albums were sort of interrupted by situations and I only had a limited amount of time to promote and tour them. Today, with this album, it's the first time I've released something and the horizon seems clear. And for me, that has a very liberating effect, shall we say!
But I know it's going to happen... Look at what's happening with Linkin Park: when you've released so many great songs - which mean something to the public - you have to get together! People want to hear these songs...


Even though you answered in part by saying that this album is coming out without you having to worry about another pandemic, what are your expectations for this album?

Yes, and it's really great because it's what we love to do! Even what I'm doing today, I'm here in Paris with you who took the time to come and talk about this album... If someone had told me, thirty years ago, when I was in Spokane Washington that I'd be working on these albums, I'd never have believed it. I spent a lot of time working on albums that nobody ever heard of, let alone listened to, because I didn't have the opportunities that I'm happy to take now...


I'm at a point in my life where I feel much more at peace, I have a better understanding of who I am...



Before we parted, on the track ‘One Fine Day’ in ‘Year Of The Tiger’, you sang: ‘Through our tragedies, we found out who we are’. Have all those years spent on the road and writing songs finally given you the answers to who you are?

I'm getting closer. I'm not there yet. I've learnt a lot through writing, reading, exploring the world and meeting new people, and I'm a lot calmer now than when I wrote this album. When I wrote this album, I was still fighting my demons: there were still a lot of roads to travel and a lot of ‘healing’ to do. And writing helped me with that. But today, I'm at a point in my life where I feel much more at peace, I have a better understanding of who I am... I like that and I hope it will continue like that.


It's great to see that you're at peace with yourself, but that may worry your public, who may not be touched by more peaceful or happy songs...

It's difficult. It's very difficult. I spoke about it recently. When I met my wife in 2001, I was a totally different person. If you'd met me when I was 29, you'd have said this guy was dark. I was dark, very dark. And then I met Selena and everything changed... I couldn't write for about 18 months. I couldn't make anything understandable. I have a demo of something I did at the time and it was... it was amazing because the lyrics were so happy and it was fun, it was like a Disney album or something...
Even though I'm more at peace today, I don't know what's going to happen on the next album. Am I going to make an album inspired by this state of mind that's going to scare the public away? I don't know.


But you can't know that today, knowing that your music and your lyrics reflect who you are on the day you write them, and by then your state of mind may be different... We're evolving...

Exactly! And I might lose someone or something like that... but there will always be things to write about, and if not, a Disney album is coming (Laughs)!


We began this interview with the question you've been asked all too often. Instead, what's the one you'd like me to ask you, or the one you'd dream of answering?

Ooh, that's a good question!





The only one...

(Laughs) No, but it's a question I'd like to answer...
(He thinks) ‘What's my guilty pleasure?’


And what's your guilty pleasure?

I like to sit with Selena and our cat and watch weird films from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.


Not such a guilty pleasure...

It's true! But it's just to keep my mind occupied, to put my brain on pause and to relax...


"Merci beaucoup"

(In French) ‘Merci’


And thanks to Newf and Noise for their contributions...