Kevin Beadles lives in Berkeley, California with his wife & 3 kids. Recent highlights include getting two cuts on Sinclair's "Montage" EP and having Capp Records sign Kevin's entire catalog for film & TV placement. Vibey guitars, a chill track, and a perfect balance of contemporary country & classic rock. “Coming Home" should fit in well on a road/driving playlist. A bit of swagger mixed with patient yearning. "Coming Home" is the lead single for the artist's upcoming "Beautiful Bastards" EP.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Kamil) Hey Kevin Beadles, super nice to have the chance to chat with you. What first got you into music?
Thanks, Kamil. It’s great talking with you.
I got into music when my mom bought me a used piano for $100. I was 10 years old and took to it right away. Three years later I bought a guitar with my paper route money and then joined my first band at 15. By the time I was 19 or 20, we were opening for a nationally known act that had a #4 hit on the Billboard charts.
What is your creative process like?
It's a rare day when I don’t jot down an idea or sing something into my iPhone. But nothing comes of most of them. It’s the bits that keep turning over in my head for days or weeks that eventually become finished songs. They might start out as a chorus melody or lyric couplet, chord progression or guitar riff, or sometimes nothing more than a topic I want to write about. I figure if a song can’t capture my interest for an extended period of time, there’s little chance anyone else would want to hear it.
Your latest song is 'Coming Home'. Can you tell us more about the making of it and if there were any unusual things happening during the process?
Oh yeah, I had some adventures with this one. 11 tracks of guitar were recorded with the plan being to keep the best 2 or 3 takes. But I made the mistake of listening to several guitars at once on playback and realized that it almost worked. Something was definitely there but in rough form, like looking at jigsaw puzzle when you’ve only finished the border and a few islands of connected pieces. So my job became figuring out where all those pieces belonged. And it took me nearly a 100 hours to assemble this 4-minute song.
What was the most difficult challenge you faced?
Besides the technical challenge of mixing a dense arrangement like this, the hardest part was resisting the temptation to cut corners and just get it over with. 100 hours is a lot time to spend editing and mixing. But when you listen to the intro of this song, you’ll hear something close to the happy accident that inspired me that first day. And that kept me motivated to keep at until it felt done.
What is the biggest mistake you have made within your career to this point?
Well, it was more a missed opportunity than a mistake. I got signed by a great indie label, Ripple Music, back in 2010. Back then, they were a new label and my debut CD was their second release. At the time I had three children under the age of five and going out on an extensive promo tour was not something I could do. But I did play at South-by-Southwest Festival three years in a row and received some nice reviews and press coverage. The CD never took off and Ripple Music quickly evolved into a metal label, which was not a good match for my blend of contemporary country and throw-back pop. Still, I’m truly grateful to the owners for believing in my music and giving me that opportunity.
How do you know when a work is finished?
I’ve gotten to the point with my writing where I have a good gut sense of whether a song is working or not. Feedback is really critical, especially from live audiences. You always know if a song is connecting live.
If I believe in a new song but don’t feel like it’s all there, I keep at the parts that bug me until I find the answer. Sometimes it comes in days, and sometimes it takes years for the Muses to decide they’re done messing with me. Deciding when a recording is finished is a whole ‘nother matter and I’m not sure I know the answer to that one.
What are your long term goals?
I’ve been lucky enough to check off several boxes already. I was signed by an indie label, won the Great American Song Contest, got publishing contracts, and had a fairly well-known artist who I really respect record a couple of songs we collaborated on. So I feel like I’m playing with house money at this point compared to what my expectations were when I set out as a singer-songwriter. But I’d really like to see my songs reach a broader audience. And I want to feel like I’m continuing to grow as an artist, hopefully the rest of my life. For me, the ideal would be to go out like David Bowie, dropping a brilliant new album practically the same day he died.
Do you have a mentor or coach?
If I was giving an acceptance speech at some major award ceremony like the Oscars, they’d have to drag me off the stage and I’d still be shouting out names of people I need to thank for helping me. But if I had to choose one person, that would be Steve Seskin. Steve’s written seven #1 hits, been nominated for a Grammy, and I feel very fortunate to call him my friend and songwriting guru.
What memorable responses have you had to your work?
I remember playing a new song a few years back and some drunken guy in the audience shouting out, “That sounds like Tom EFFIN Petty!” My whole band started cracking up as we debated on stage whether that was a compliment or not. We quickly decided that saying we sounded like “EFFIN Tom Petty” would have been a serious insult but saying that we sounded like “Tom EFFIN Petty” was high praise indeed. Syntax matters, my friend!
Where is the best place in the world you’ve ever been to?
Paradise Bay in Antarctica and the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro are definitely the most adventurous places I’ve been. But if I was buying a vacation home, it would probably be somewhere along the Mendocino Coast of Northern California. Rugged coastline, gorgeous hikes, vineyards, picturesque towns, and great restaurants. But when I’m tired of travel, by far the best place is… [prepare RIM SHOT]… “Coming Home”. Sorry about that--management keeps telling me to pitch the new single!