Keith Slack – Mother Road – Uber Rock Interview Exclusive
Written by Rob Watkins
Sunday, 01 June 2014 03:20
Back at the start of May I got to review ‘Drive’ the debut album by Mother Road, a band who produced a set of quality songs that I called the sound of classic rock, revisited and reinvented. Hot on the heels of this review came a request to URHQ from the band’s American singer Keith Slack who wanted to tell me where that sound actually came from. So a few weeks later and through the wonders of the interweb, here’s our resulting conversation, totally uncut.
Hi Keith thanks for taking the time to talk with Uber Rock. OK… for the benefit of all those who may be unaware of Mother Road…..would you tell us the history of the band?
Sure Rob; Mother Road came about when Chris Lyne was looking to put another band together after his previous band Soul Doctor had parted ways. His close friend and now our manager, Birgitt Schwanke mentioned my name as she had known of me from Steelhouse Lane and my stint with MSG. I wasn’t really looking for a band at the time since I was busy doing my own original material, but after talking to Chris and listening to the first few song ideas he sent, I knew we were on the same page stylistically and that we should give this a try.”
I feel your debut album ‘Drive’ has an obvious classic (British) rock feel but I also hear the likes of Kings X too within the influence gene pool…. Would you agree with that?
Well, I have heard one other comparison to Kings X already, and I must admit I’ll take that all day long. Doug is a very close friend of mine. I used to rehearse next to them in downtown Houston back in ’89, before I moved to L.A. They’ve influenced me quite a bit. I’ve also heard the Whitesnake comparison over and over as well. Those are incredible bands, so it doesn’t bother me at all. We never set out to sound like any one and or style. We are all a product of our environment and upbringing.
The bands and artists that I listened to the most growing up were bands like; Jimi Hendrix, Crosby, Stills, Nash And Young, Sly And The Family Stone and of course Zeppelin, Bad Co. ZZ Top and a lot of Southern blues.
As you’ve already mentioned your main Mother Road partner in crime is guitarist Chris Lyne; how does the songwriting process work with you two (what with one of you based in the US and the other in Germany), and are the tunes you compose personal stories and tales?
To answer the first part of your question; the songwriting process works quite smoothly whether we are in different countries or in the same room actually. The reason is that Chris and I have a great songwriting chemistry. We both have pro-recording equipment with years of experience running it. So it’s not difficult or hindering in the least.”
Now to answer the latter part of your question. When I set out to write lyrics and melodies I never have a pre-conceived idea of what I’m going to write about. Some people can write a book of lyrics and then start hammering them into place. That’s not the way I do it. I always go for melody first since it is the most important thing of all, and then lyrics. I always take in the world around me and put that through somehow lyrically. Whether that happens to be world events or just listening to a friend’s conversation, I really like to write about real life and events….. I tried to keep this record tongue- in-cheek fun for the most part. The music just lent itself to that direction. There’s nothing wrong with having a little mindless fun sometimes. Plus the fact that the more prolific and deep I get with my songwriting, the narrower the audience becomes. (laughing)
‘Drive’ has quite an album cover too…what`s the story behind that?
I’m not quite sure to be honest, (laughing). Birgitt set us up with a friend of hers, named Ralph that agreed to help us with the artwork for the record. He, Chris and I went back and forth with ideas and Ralph came up with the cover. I couldn’t believe how well it fits the record! It’s chaotically beautiful!”
Tell us about your own label Road Songs; how did that come about?
Road Songs is our own personal label; we started it after seeing that this was the best route to take basically. We had plenty of offers from other labels but they were ridiculous. When you take into account the time, effort and money that it takes to make a great sounding record these days, it’s crazy to think that any organization can call themselves a real record label and want to throw a band a few measly grand…, or less! After doing most of the work, we were not going to give our brand to any label or persons to just exploit us and make all of the money. This a business and musicians have to start realizing this or you’re doomed. I personally would rather just be creative and churn out music without having to deal or worry about the business side. But that’s how you get screwed. I had two great records with Steelhouse Lane and never saw a damn penny from it.That’s NEVER going to happen again in my lifetime! You can take that to the bank, mate!
So building on my last question…. Do you have a vision of what the future holds for the music industry here in 2014?
I don’t. All we can do is be hopeful. The great thing about the current state of play is that a new band or artist can do a lot for their own career with social media and such. I think the days of big labels are gone. The ones that keep re-hashing old bones for cash and comfort will be gone soon as well. I just hope that when it’s all said and done, and the playing field is level, that the artist will be able to be creative and fairly compensated. I know that’s a far out concept but it’s my little dream anyway.
Would you say Mother Road are more at home in the studio or out touring? Plus with regards to the latter will the UK, Europe, etc get a chance to catch you guys live any time soon.
Mother Road is definitely a live band. We are comfortable in either the studio or live mind you, but live is where it’s all going to come together for us. The UK and Europe will definitely be able to see us, as I believe that that market is more suited to a band like Mother Road.
And what does the future hold for Mother Road in terms of your musical aspirations and goals?
Our main goal is to get out on the road as per the previous question. However, while there is time in between the release and booking a tour or tours, we will be writing more material and keeping busy.
With you and Chris being the main focus of the band there`s certainly experience and talent abound, but what do the rest of the guys in the band bring to the equation?
Alessandro, Zacky and Frank bring a lot to the band. We wouldn’t be Mother Road without them. It is their sound, personalities and passion that helps make the record what it is. This is a BAND and NOT a project. It’s impossible to think of this record existing on any other terms without them.
Of course Keith you yourself were once a member of MSG. What was that time like, and do you ever look back and wish you’d had the chance to record a studio record with that band?
I NEVER look back! MSG was great for the live experience and I am grateful for that. However, with the exception of a few songs, MSG is not my bag. I think of Michael as an instrumental guitarist because that’s where his strengths are. After a so called band goes through twenty-something singers, and has no vocal identity anymore for fans to relate to, then what’s the use? At that point you’re almost like the backing band for American Idol. A different singer every song? That’s no longer a real band. So yeah, instrumental guitar music.
You got a hell of a lot of praise for your live work with MSG so I was wondering who (as in which band’s musicians) would you heap the same praise on right now in the world of rock?
There are so many great talents around that it’s hard to keep up. You have the great warriors, who have seen and conquered the mountain like Doug Pinnick, Glen Hughes, Chris Cornell, Dave Grohl, etc… There’s also some amazing newer artists like Dirt River Radio, Blackberry Smoke, Rival Sons, well they’re new to me anyway…(laughing), that are keeping it alive as well. Too many to mention.
And finally two questions to finish on a slightly lighter note: Mother Road are headlining a major festival… Which five other bands…, alive…, dead or dysfunctional, would you put on the bill?
(Bursts out laughing) Dysfunctional? That’s funny. I assume you mean disbanded? Well, I would like to see us with some bands, who are maybe not our same sound but in the same class. So: Zeppelin, Hendrix, Crosby, Stills, Nash And Young, Free… And The Who! Ha dysfunctional, that is priceless (laughing)
And 2) what would you have on your rider?
If you are referring to a show with the artist that I chose above, then it would have to be one hell of a rider. Could you imagine? (still laughing at the previous question)
Keith I’d just like to thank you from all of us at Uber Rock for taking the time to do this interview and the best of luck for the future.
Thanks for all of your support Rob. To all of the wonderful fans out there we truly thank you. God bless you, and hope to see you soon!
http://www.motherroad-band.com/Mother_Road/Home.html
https://www.facebook.com/themotherroad
