Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Yeah, hither Detroit Wheels. Hey, it's Kenny, Kenny, Kenny Olson.
How the heck are you, buddy.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
I'm doing all right, just getting ready to leave on
a tour that's going to be coming back through Detroit
here in another week or so.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
Yeah, I'm looking forward to it. We got Kenny Olsen
on the line today. Of course, many many many many
years guitar player for the Kid Rock Band and also
the Hendricks Experience, but now going to be doing a
little bit of a Pink Floyd experience, I guess, is
that right.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Yeah, it's a very very cool supergroup. I've been playing
with all dear friends from LA for many years. But
it's like Scott Page from Pink Floyd on sacks, ROBERTA
Freeman who also toured with Pink Floyd, Steve Perkins from
James Addiction on drums, go with Fisher from Fishbone on bass,
(00:53):
you know, as my old brothers. We've been playing together
many years. And we got Derek Day, who is awesome
to be in the band as well. It was an
amazing star out there right now, will blow people's minds
and Will Chaplin as well. And it's just a really
(01:13):
awesome band that we put our own pin on what
we do with the music. Though it's not like a
tribute band. It's more of an experience. We started doing
this years and years and years ago at the Wisdome,
which was like the Domes with the AMMSE experience things
like they had at Okay. So that was how it
(01:35):
all kind of started. We've been over to we went
overseas and did some stuff, but coming through to Detroit
the Token Lounge, I love that. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
October the twelfth, and there are still some tickets available.
It is a Sunday night, and I understand that they've
they've made special arrangements to put in some extra television
sets at the Token Lounge so people can experience Pink
Floyd and also experience it's our Detroit Lions on Sunday now.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
So that's pretty cool. It is awesome because we love
our Lions.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
You know, Kenny. One of the things I wanted to
ask you about this Floyd experience, I guess is whether
it was a note for note type tribute band, or
whether or not you guys were kind of interpreting the music.
But as you mentioned, you obviously are kind of doing
it like the Hendricks experience. Right where you know, you
(02:31):
come up and you just kind of play the songs,
but they come from your heart and your guitar and
your fingers. So what made you guys decide to pick
Pink Floyd?
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Well, I think it, you know, like Norwood and from Fishboune,
Steve Perkins and Jane's back at the years. You know,
we've known each other for a long time. We were
working on a project, you know, with some other guys,
and then Scott from Floyd. You know, we did this
whole Immerse thing and based around you know, with the
(03:04):
Floyd stuff and him being a member and along with
Roberta and we even had a few other members at
the time, and we started doing that Immerse experience thing.
But like I said, it's our everybody in his band
has got such a legendary unique sound about them. You know,
you got Steve Perkins. You listen to what he does
in Jan's Addiction all these bands, it's like you got
(03:26):
his his way of you know, doing the songs with
a percussive just awesomeness that he does. And nor Would
is one of the true OG's of the true soulful bass.
You know, you just ask any the legends that preceded him,
and they'll all say that Norwoods the torch has been
in his hands for a while. So it's uh yeah,
(03:49):
and we stretched things we h we don't, we don't.
You know. It's like it's like any great man you like,
you think about someone like you mentioned, you know, like
Hendrix or all these uppelin or all these amazing bands,
and you go see them live and none of those
bands were playing their songs the way they played them
on the album. You know, it's that's more of the
(04:10):
cover band thing. This is more like, you know, we're
just taking what's there, and we've been playing together so
long that it's just it's just it's in one of
those magical chemistry bands. We don't really over nitpick and
rehearse things to the tea where they're just how they're
supposed to be in the record. We rehearse things to
(04:30):
where we just play together and feel the you know,
where we where it's supposed to be.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
Well, I've seen plenty of contra dates with Kenny Olsen
to know that if you're gonna get one guy to
stretch things out, it's going to be you.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Yeah, I get a little long winded I'm a little
you know. You know, that's what I love about music.
You know, it's like you know, talking with Tfi Carson.
You know, it's fun, but I can get a little
long winded or take a minute to have to gather
my thoughts. But you know when it comes to the
music and you're calling on that, you know, you know
(05:09):
that it's just that outer body experience and that powers
from above. You know, it just kind of channels something
where you're you know, that's you know, a big reason
why I do what I do, you know, to have
those feelings, because there's no high like it.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
You know, well, you certainly have assembled an incredible array
of musicians, There's no doubt about it. Scott Page alone
played sex for not only Pink Floyd but also Toto
and Super Tramp. You got to be pretty good to
you know, handle it, to handle that, and just everybody
in this band is is really a superstar among themselves.
Speaker 2 (05:46):
So yeah, everybody's resumes from like Scott just goes is
one is just endless. You know, those are just the
name of you and you, Roberto without Guns n' Roses
and Cinderella, but then a lot of R and B
stuff too. And blues. She's like, you know. And then
obviously Stete Perkins with James Porno's and all the other
(06:07):
artists and albums that he's been asked to play on,
and he's obviously a drum legend of you know, to
be praised there. And Norwood, like we were talking about,
it's just on so many levels, has played with so
many amazing people. And Derek who is like, you know,
he's proven his you know, he's one of the younger
(06:30):
guys in the van, but really came in and he's
been doing amazing things in the universe. And we all
just have fun playing together. Really, that's the thing. It's
one of those things where you know, we just know,
we all just have a lot of fun together.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Now the band, the band is called, by the way,
sink X for everybody, and once again that's going to
be a Sunday, October the twelfth out there with King
Youngblood and our buddies whole shot. I got to give
those guys big shout out too, because they're opening up
and uh and we love those guys by the way,
(07:06):
so you'll love them too, Kenny.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
I'm excited and they're gonna I mean, I'm excited to
see them, and then King Young budd of these guys
are a great band too that are from the West Coast,
northern West Coast, and they're doing some really cool stuff too.
But having our you know, you know, just it's always
just so great. I mean, I think of all the
years coming through and or even just living growing up
(07:32):
in Detroit and just there's nothing like playing a show
at home, especially with something that's you know, some guys
that are from other places and bringing it home and
sharing it here. Yeah, of course, you know, whether it's
been the Silver Dome or the Palace or Pinea or
you know whatever, or you know, I mean, the Token
(07:54):
Lounge is always a legendary place to see some great shows. Yeah, yeah,
I always has been. And I think that everybody that
comes out will be very happy that they did, and
those who don't will be disappointed because they're gonna hear
what a great time yep.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
And I know, I know, I know you'll be showing
off a little bit out there. So Kenny, what's the
set list like for this Pink Floyd experience? The early
stuff all the way to the end, or just mixed up?
I mean, how does that? How do you guys sit
down and come up with what you're gonna play.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
It's mixed up a little bit, but some of the stuff,
you know, obviously when we do stuff from the Dark
Side of the Moon, and you know, like the way
a lot of stuff segues and other songs will, we'll
group things together, you know, just to take advantage of
those awesome segues that Pink Floyd was notorious for, but
putting our own spin on it might eve't be our
(08:52):
own segue that we do, but it's kind of you
know how sometimes you know, like you know, you and
I and a lot of you know, we grow you
grow up listening to that stuff and you lay back
in bed or whether you're at a party, whatever, but
you like the way it plays down sometimes is when
we're talking about timeless music, it's cool to to let it,
(09:14):
you know, do the segues it does because you look
at you know, Pink Floyd albums, there's like a different
song title for a thirty second segue and people go,
what song of that again? Oh, I thought that was
part of that song, you know, but it's, yeah, we
we don't overlook those little spots because those are little
gems that knit things together. You know.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
So the name of the band is Think X. Now
is that a significant uh you know, little tidbit of
pink Floyd that I'm not picking up on or where
is that coming from?
Speaker 2 (09:47):
Yeah, it's kind of like I think experience, you know,
pink Floyd Think okay, right, or just an experience because
we don't really you know, with that fan you know, everybody,
we're more than capable overall. I mean, songwriting and doing
my own music is my first and foremost, but in
the same with everybody else in this band. They're all
(10:08):
great songwriters. So we're you know, we've written got great
stuff and it kind of just evolved into that name.
It's more just like a Think experience because of the
thing we were doing at the time with those domes
from Coachella. They were downtown LA and they so it's
just kind of like a Think experience because we do
(10:29):
other you know, other songs as well, you know that
we've paid tribute to or you know, we've done soundtrack
stuff and a bunch of cool stuff on our that
we've written. But you know, what we'll do in the
set is kind of going to be you know, they
it varies a little bit every night, but for the
(10:51):
most part, people will be getting a good dose of
some very cool variations of Pink Floyd's songs.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
Okay, So that was one of my questions, was with
so many of these great people who have been in
so many of these incredible bands, do you throw in
a Toto song or a kid rock song or a
GNR song or is it just Pink Floyd tonight that night?
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Mostly these Pink Floyd. I mean, I think, you know,
once in a while we do well, Like I said,
we'll insert different things in there, and there will be
you know, but for the most part, it's what people
are gonna get besides just paying trivia to something so
(11:35):
iconic is the way we do it. And then you
know you love James Addiction, or you love fish Pone
or you love you know, and you're gonna hear that sound. Okay,
band sound This band sounds like every individual that's in
this band. So it's like we don't really you know,
even the people full you know, members of Pink Floyd
(11:58):
and have like legendary you know, the original members have
heard what we've done and love what we've done with
it and has a blessing from a lot of the
people from the Pink Floyd Cruise of the years, because
they no one feels threatened that we're like some kind
of or thinks we're just some kind of trivia band.
They yep, I think that we just we get up
(12:19):
there and we groove and and get out there and
do some crazy I mean that's the ability of people
in the band to play and be improvised and be
themselves is so strong that we don't I don't think
we know how to sound like it like a tribute band.
Speaker 1 (12:35):
Gotcha. Well, I don't think anybody can get too tired
of the Pink Floyd sound or somebody as great as
yourself interpreting it. So I think it's going to be
a great experience out there once again. It's October the
twelfth at the Token along with King young Blood, Whole Shot,
and the Detroit Lions will be up on the big screen.
(12:57):
So that's a lot of fun too. So I understand
that you know now that you're back home here in
Michigan for most of the time you've put together and
are still working on a new studio for yourself in Southfield.
Can you reveal a little bit about that where it's
going and what's going to be coming up.
Speaker 2 (13:20):
Yeah, yeah, it's been. Obviously, it's the motive behind a
lot of you know, in first Aslee to have a
It's an amazing creative playground that we've created, you know,
a lot of vintage equipment that you know, going back
to how we really are supposed to make music and
not you know, in computers and AI and all this stuff,
(13:41):
and you know, it's more focused on that kind of
a vibe studio, although there's a lot of hybriding of
all genres of music, whether it be old school rock,
b lose jazz to hip hop, beats, a country, whatever,
anything is. It's a beautiful creative zone. And obviously I'm
like not, I mean, all kinds of music are it's
(14:05):
catered to there. But we have a lot of really
cool old instruments. I'm working on a new record for
myself right now, and I'm also got some documentaries and
we're producing a bunch of new, amazing upcoming talent. And
I can't tell you how happy I'm to be back home.
And I think the Detroit is like we are like
(14:25):
always ready to conquer. And right now the stars are
lining with the d and I'm there's no better place
I'd rather place be than here right now. And I'm
really excited about all the stuff I'm working on. And
We've also made the studio a vibe where I've got
people coming in from all over the place wanting to
(14:45):
be here, and and they're always so thrilled to come
to Detroit anyways because of the you know, just the
nostalgia just where Detroit. People from all over the world
want to come here and feel the mojo of what
we got here.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
I love that. Well, if anybody can deliver that mojo,
that's you, Kenny Olsen, So congratulations.
Speaker 2 (15:08):
Anybody who's made this mojo have been a big part
of it here in Detroit is you. And I can
never thank you enough for all you've done for me,
my Scorpio brother, and this h and everybody else in
this world, everybody that lives around here and around the
rest of the world. But what you've done for everybody
here and just uh, it's it's so appreciated, and you
(15:30):
are very love my brother. Well, and I thank you
for all of all the great years that we've we've
we've been on a mission to kelp you know, keep
the soul in substance that's going on on this especially
in this crazy world right now.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
Yeah, well, I can't wait to see you once again
October the twelfth, Sunday night. Should be a lot of fun.
By the way, go do thinkxofficial dot com. That's the
website you can find out more about this incredible band.
But I'm looking forward to uh a Floyd experience, especially
at the Token Lounge where you can kick back and
enjoy a couple of cold ones, watch the game, and
(16:06):
then get all that great music. So, Kenny, it's always
great to talk to you, my man, and we'll see
you there Sunday, October the twelfth at the Token Lounge
with Think X in this Pink Floyd experience. I think
it's going to be fantastic.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Well, thank you so much for all your support. Much
love and and much love to my fellow detroiter is
out there, and hope anybody that can make it makes
it and they won't be letting down. That's they're gonna
have a good time and hopefully our lions win that
night too.
Speaker 1 (16:36):
Oh boy, watch out then all right, Kenny Olsen, thank
you so much, my brother. I'll talk to you soon.
I'll see you there.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
Right down, all right, Thanks for much love, Thanks.
Speaker 1 (16:47):
All right, Thanks for rocking.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
BOBBYE.