Vinnie Penn Meets Myles Kennedy

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Miles Kennedy, are you out there?

Speaker 2 (00:01):
I'm here.

Speaker 1 (00:02):
One of the loudest voices in rock and roll, Well,
I don't know, loud doesn't sound as complimentary. One of
the strongest voices in rock and roll.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
I don't know about that. I try.

Speaker 1 (00:13):
Oh you are yes, you are me. I spent the
last couple of days listening to the Art of Letting Go,
the latest record and just it's powerhouse. I was actually
seeking out a ballad. That was actually my first question
for you, Miles, and I've been a big fan for
a long time. But you're not necessarily a ballad guy.

(00:37):
It doesn't and I mean when you do acoustic versions
are slow, Like, there's not even a ballad on the
Art of Letting Go?

Speaker 2 (00:45):
Is there?

Speaker 1 (00:45):
Did I miss it?

Speaker 2 (00:47):
Well, there's a there's a song called Eternal Allah by
which it's kind of I mean, it's slower, you know,
but it sure kind of has an anthemic thing. You know.
What's funny is that it's amazing to hear you say
this because for a long time, I'm really my only
I thought it the kind of the strong suit of
a songwriter was ballads. That this was twenty twenty five

(01:09):
years ago when I was writing early on, and and
so as the years have gone on, i'd become more
of a rock you know, But it used to be
if you would listen to a lot a lot of
the songs I'd written, and there were ballads everywhere. But yeah,
I just want to rock the older I guess.

Speaker 1 (01:24):
Oh. I mean the thing was, you know, was blasting
my ears. I was listening with my eighteen year old son,
whose tastes are very interesting these days, and a bid
all over the road and it's He's like, this is
just a hard rocking a record. And it was interesting
too because it was only about two years ago. We

(01:45):
were watching rock Star and I told him the whole story,
you know, I told him the whole story because I
think that's just a great little story there. You know,
I thought that was urban myth for the longest time,
that that was actually Miles Kennedy already. Yeah I did.
I didn't believe that that was actually you, and I

(02:05):
wonder you never tried out. Your set lists are always fantastic.
I love that you'll throw down a little, you know,
something from the Mayfield for we might get something from
alter Bridge. I mean, you're a hard working guy in
rock and roll. It's like one tour ends, the next
record comes out with the with Slash the Conspirators. You're
on the road again. But you never you never do

(02:28):
stand up and shout. I bet do you? Why not? Miles?

Speaker 2 (02:31):
No, I just kind of someone would occasionally scream it
out and I'll play like, you know, I'll just do
this stand up and shock.

Speaker 1 (02:38):
I would love that. I would love to Was that
you doing it in the movie or was that yeah,
that was you doing it? Huh?

Speaker 2 (02:47):
It was me doing it? Yeah? And when so when
you see my character everything that you know, when you
see my lips move, that's that's I'm singing. But it
is interesting to me how many people have said, is
that you actually singing? That was how I got the
part because they wanted somebody who could actually sing it,
and also, I guess play the character. But it was
the only time I've ever acted when I really enjoyed

(03:10):
the experience. But I discovered that actors get up way
too early, or a musician. Yeah, but it was cool
to peek behind the curtain and see how they do
things in Hollywood.

Speaker 1 (03:19):
Well, two things, One, I think that movie gets kind
of a bum rap it's a great I really believe
it's a great movie, and it got a bit of
a bum rap. And the other thing is you did
act because I mean i've seen you in concerts. Although
I've never seen you solo, I've seen you with Alter
Bridge several times and once with Slash, and I mean

(03:41):
you're a badass front man. The guy in rock Star,
he's kind of a goof did you do that? I'm
pretty you just kind of your body language was all
sort of like get out of your dude. You were
totally not Miles Kennedy in that movie.

Speaker 2 (03:55):
You know. You know what's funny though, one people who
know me might argue that's actually.

Speaker 1 (04:00):
More than yeah really, oh that's cool.

Speaker 2 (04:04):
Oh yeah, I'm kind of a I'm kind of a dork.
I always have been. I'm a fall nerd and I
own it.

Speaker 1 (04:10):
Yeah. Well, yeah, I brought you up to uh a
buddy by you know, I'm talking to Miles Kennedy this week.
He's playing UH in town. I can't believe the wolf
Don too. I don't know if you've ever played there before.
It's such a person.

Speaker 2 (04:25):
With Slash play great.

Speaker 1 (04:28):
Yeah. I feel so lucky though, Yeah that I'm getting
to see you in there. Yeah, I guess Slash wasn't
there before, so I do with Slash in the Dome
at Oakdale, Uh okay, or that could have been alter Bridge,
but I saw Slash in the dome too, which is
an interesting space. I don't know how many of these.
You know, you can remember you've been touring for.

Speaker 2 (04:48):
I can remember the dome yeah very well. Yeah yeah yeah,
unique venue, so you can I forget it.

Speaker 1 (04:55):
Yeah, these are intimate spaces. I mean the wolves added
really uh intimate space. Uh. And I was telling wild
Yeah it is, yeah, a wild.

Speaker 2 (05:05):
Space because it's in the middle of the casino, right.
And the funny thing is is I will be doing
some slur so I'll be doing some a handful acoustic
songs and there's this one slurs home me doing it.
We're and we're walking around just kind of susting it
out with the love it, you know, the the engineers
and whatnot. And they're like, well, when that wolf does
the howl. Every every time someone I think wins something
to have the wolf howl, Yeah, like that's gonna happen

(05:26):
during one of these ballads.

Speaker 1 (05:28):
Yeah, I don't know if that if that carries over
I don't know if that rises above the din of
all the slot machines being played. I don't think I've
ever heard of it in there before. I can't wait
to see you, uh in the space like that. But
I was was telling a buddy of mine, who's the drummer,
and I said, yeah, I'm talking to Miles Kennedy this way.
I'm excited in advance of the show. First of all,

(05:50):
I thought you were like a Seattle you know, boor
on the other side of the country. You're a Boston guide.
Never knew that. Yeah, you know, you don't hear it
in your voice remotely, you know. So I'm like Matt
Damon to me any Okica, Yeah you know that old stick,
And he said, because he's been a drummer his whole life.

(06:11):
You were a guitar teacher. Is that what you did
at first? You were actually a guitar teacher?

Speaker 2 (06:17):
It was. I So, I've lived in Spokane, Washington most
most of my life. Oh, we left the East Coast
a long time ago and ended up in Spokane.

Speaker 1 (06:26):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (06:26):
I started teaching guitar as a teenager just for like
this money for gasoline, you know, so I could get
from point A to point B, and I did that
off and on for years, and I enjoyed it. You know,
I liked. I just liked. I liked seeing people light
up the same way I lit up when I first
learned songs and how to play. Just how empowering that was. Yeah,
I love I love conveying, you know, any knowledge I

(06:49):
can to somebody who's interested in music.

Speaker 1 (06:51):
Yeah, it's an interesting start. And the Spokane part I knew.
I just I guess I didn't know the Boston prior
to that, and that's why I knew you were a
Washington guy. Do you have a a It's it's got
to be tough. I mean, you've got the regular gig
with SLA, actually got the regular gig with alder Bridge,
you got your own music. Is there a favorite? The
probably not?

Speaker 2 (07:10):
Yeah, I'd be like, you know, asking somebody with three kids,
which you know child is their favorite.

Speaker 1 (07:15):
I have a favorite, Miles. I don't know if I
can get to you. It's my daughter Stella. My daughter
Stella there you go, absolutely my favorite. But I hear you,
I hear you.

Speaker 2 (07:28):
Yeah, it would be hard. They're all different. These projects
are you know. They allow me to stretch out in
different areas and kind of you know, just try new things.
And so I feel really incredibly lucky that I have
all three to skip around from. You know, it's it's
it's a pretty If you'd have told me twenty five
thirty years ago that this would be my life, I
would be like, no way, because I mean I would

(07:49):
have been grateful just have one band that did well
enough to be able to tour. But somehow I've you know,
managed to lock in this really awesome existence and I'm grateful,
and you know.

Speaker 1 (08:00):
And you and Tremonti seem to have a lot in
common because if he's not coming, I just saw him
with Creed this past summer, right, which I never thought
I'd be able to do. But my son was going
through a Creed saying, not that I don't love Creed,
he's got Tremonti, he's got so you guys got seemingly
have the same work ethic. Is that something you saw
in each other slash too.

Speaker 2 (08:21):
Yeah, Yeah, I think that's why. I think that's why
all three things have worked out so well with with
no drama, because we're all hardwired the same. Yeah, all
of us just want we just want to play more
than anything. Yeah, yeah, exactly.

Speaker 1 (08:37):
Uh, And I love I want to just want to
tell you I love the title the Art of Letting Go?
Where did that come from? I just think that's a
great title.

Speaker 2 (08:44):
Thank you. I you know, I think it just came
to it as the years have gone on and I'm
a little older and hopefully a little wiser. You know,
you just learned to not ruminate as much, not stress
as much, and and just learn, you know, to just
kind of things, you know, role as they may. And
it's been very helpful. In fact, just the title that reckon.

(09:06):
There's a song, the title track is the are letting Go?
It is I'm singing that night after night. It's just
a good reminder for me anything that might be percolating
inside that might be bumbing me. And I said, just
you know, let it go, man, it's not worth stressing about.

Speaker 1 (09:18):
That's funny you should say that too, because the Art
of Letting Go title wise, when I first queued that up,
I thought, all this one is going to be probably
a seven and a half minute long slow build. This
this is going to be the epic ballad on the record.
The title track, like it couldn't be farther for the truth.

(09:39):
Once I saw that it was the first song, I'm like, well,
there's no way he started. It's a punch in the
face the title track, It is a stone cold punch
in the face.

Speaker 2 (09:48):
Yeah, yeah, coming out of gates swinging.

Speaker 1 (09:50):
Yeah. But I love the record. I can't wait to
check out the show, looking forward to some of the
slowed down those stuff. Not to sound lame, but I
just love that voiciars man. So I'm glad there's a
couple of acoustic numbers if you will, if you want
to put it that way. And I'm a big fan.
I appreciate you taking the time to come on, and
I can't wait to see you do your thing in

(10:11):
the Wolf time.

Speaker 2 (10:12):
Well, I appreciate you it, Bennie, thanks for taking your time.
I've enjoyed this