IE Rewind: Myles Kennedy at Concord Music Hall
Myles Kennedy
Myles Kennedy & Co. brings the Year of the Tiger Tour to Chicago’s Concord Music Hall on Tuesday, November 13, 2018. This IE Rewind interview first appeared in our January 2017 issue when Kennedy was on tour with his band, Alter Bridge.
Myles Kennedy & Co. Appear at Concord Music Hall, Tuesday, November 13
After a decade of playing together in Creed, guitarist Mark Tremonti, bassist Brian Marshall, and drummer Scott Phillips formed Alter Bridge in 2004 with ex-The Mayfield Four singer Myles Kennedy. The band has gone on to create five albums, the latest release The Last Hero. “We were integrating a lot of the new material into the set (in Europe), which was a lot of fun,” Myles Kennedy told IE. “Prior to that, we’d been in the States for a good part of the year, but we didn’t play a lot of new material because the record wasn’t out. So now that we’re coming back and doing this January/February run, we finally get to put those songs in for the American audience.”
Speaking of the new tracks, Kennedy said they’ve been getting a tremendous live response, especially to the new single “Show Me A Leader.” “We try to put in between four to six [new tracks] a night because we’ve got five records to pull from,” he said. “As far as the response goes, definitely with the singles, they get an equal response (as the older tunes) because people will be familiar with them.”
One thing fans might not know about Kennedy is that he’s a huge architecture buff. Playing in Chicago gives him plenty of unique buildings to study. “I think it’s a beautiful city, one of the most beautiful cities in America,” Kennedy enthused. “Chicago certainly appeals to the architect geek in me because there’s a lot of really cool architectural history in that area, especially pertaining to modernism. If we have a day off, I’ll go out and look at some Frank Lloyd Wright houses or some other buildings.”
Kennedy has had some fantastic opportunities come his way over the years. Back in 2001, he received an unexpected request – a call to appear in the film Rock Star, starring Mark Wahlberg and Jennifer Aniston. “I was just hanging out in my house in Spokane and my manager calls and said I might have this opportunity,” Kennedy reflects. “They were looking for somebody to come in and act and do the role of this “Thor” guy and also to be able to sing. I never acted before, so that was kind of an intimidating adventure. And on top of that, wearing a wig with a leather outfit, because it was a period piece essentially. It was really fun, but it was something that I’d never experienced.
In 2002, after playing for years in bands such as Cosmic Dust, Citizen Swing, and The Mayfield Four, Kennedy was offered an audition for the vocalist spot in Velvet Revolver. Ultimately declining, he joined Alter Bridge the following year. “The first time they reached out there were just other things going on in my life at that point, and I didn’t really think I was up for the job,” Kennedy said. “It wasn’t that I didn’t want to join, as I was beyond honored that they called, but I just didn’t want to waste their time.”
After that initial offer from Slash to audition for Velvet Revolver, Kennedy’s next Slash encounter was during the making of his 2010 eponymous solo album. “The first time I officially met him face to face was right after we put “Starlight” together, essentially through the mail,” Kennedy said. “He reached out to me in the fall of 2009 and asked if I’d be interested in throwing something over the top of this riff he had. Then I sent it back, and it became “Starlight.”
Another incredible offer also occurred for Kennedy in 2008. No big deal, but he was almost the new singer for a “new” Led Zeppelin! After the 2007 Led Zeppelin reunion at London’s O2 Arena with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham (original drummer John Bonham’s son), the three (minus Plant) wanted to do a little writing and jamming. And since he and Bonham had both worked together in Rock Star, Kennedy got the call. “It’ll probably be something people discuss when I’m on my death bed – as I’m taking my last breath and just savoring those moments!” Kennedy exclaims. “Was it going to be called Led Zeppelin? No, but if it worked out, it would have been a project with some other name. To even sit in the same room with those guys for the week we did that is still hard to fathom.”
-Kelley Simms
Category: IE Rewind
