Only seven years after he was discovered Ben Kweller has come into his own. After being the opening act for such The Strokes, Kings of Leon and My Morning Jacket his latest album, On My Way is an indie hit.
At the age of 15, Kweller and his band Radish signed with Mercury Records. But their album came and went and so did the band and their relationship with the major label. In the past few years Kweller has put out three solo albums and toured constantly. Many critics have called On My Way his best and a growing number of fans seem to agree.
I got a chance to talk to Kweller on the phone right before he started eating lunch.
Check out this website for more information on Ben Kweller .
Daniel Robert Epstein: Where are you?
Ben Kweller: Im in San Francisco and I just left the Apple Store.
DRE: Did you get anything?
BK: Yeah I got one of those pink iPod minis for my sisters graduation present.
DRE: Are you going to put all your music on the iPod before you give it to her?
BK: [laughs] No Im going to give it to her fresh.
Can you hold on while I figure out what I am going to get to eat?
DRE: Sure.
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BK: Alright Im back. Im starving, I havent eaten all day. Ive just been walking around this crazy city.
DRE: Have you been there before?
BK: I was born here but I didnt spend any time here because my parents moved to Texas when I was two. Ive been back here on tour about ten times.
DRE: Do Texans know you arent a real Texan?
BK: Well Ive been in New York for the past five years. We just played at Trees in Dallas and The Dallas Observer gave us such a great review. I think theyre real proud of me. Texans can be real harsh if you're perceived as a traitor. I didnt even know how they would feel when I moved to New York. But theyve been really cool about it. They have looked at it more like Im the boy thats moved on and done good for himself. I still love Texas so much.
DRE: How was doing the album cover shoot with the wolves?
BK: Aw man it was so scary dude. My photographer and I were in a bar and I said The album cover should be me in the woods with a pack of wolves. So we started looking for wolves. We started calling all these places and they kept telling us we were crazy. We called this place in upstate New York and the lady said, Wolves are not domesticated dogs. Theyll eat you. So we called the New York State Preservation Society and they were all offended by the idea. They said, Human interaction with wild animals is the antithesis of what we believe. So we had to go to Hollywood. We found this place that specializes in animals for movies. They handle the hairless cat from Austin Powers, Mr. Bigglesworth. I actually got to pet that cat, it was so weird.
DRE: So in New York they would never do that but in Hollywood theyre willing to rip all the hair off an animal.
BK: Thats it man [laughs].
DRE: Thats a good metaphor for New York and Hollywood in general.
What made you decide to call the new album, On My Way?
BK: Im just talking about life. I wrote the song On My Way and it ended up being my favorite song on the album. So I just wanted to name the album after the song so people would focus on that track. The album goes from being a murderer to a thief to a friend and then a lover. Its all about change and different moods so its more like we are all on our way to something.
DRE: What was going on in your life while you were doing the album?
BK: I got married last September after being together for five years so that was a big life change. Also my grandfather passed away last year and he was the first person close to me that ever died. That really had an affect on me. So those two things just made me think about the most important things in life, which is friends and family. Just trying to keep that as close to me as possible and I think a lot of those songs talk about that. Like following your heart and not forgetting about people.
DRE: Do you consciously think about those things or does it come out in the process?
BK: It comes out in the process subconsciously. Sometimes I sit down with a lyric in mind that I really want to use. I used to sit down with an idea and write a song based around it but now what I do is sit down with a chord progression, a melody and freestyle to let my subconscious do the talking.
DRE: What made you want to get married at the age of 22?
BK: Im kind of old fashioned. Ive lived a pretty crazy life since I was 15, Ive been through a lot and Ive been with lots of girls. Ive just experienced a lot more than most people by the age of 22. I just have met a lot of people and I feel like I have to have something stable in my life. Shes been such an inspiration to me since we met five years ago. I became a solo artist when we were together and shes always been there for me. It was something we had to do. There is also something beautiful about getting married really young. Like having a long life with kids will be great. My grandfather got married at 22.
DRE: Is the album that you did with Ben Folds and Ben Lee called The Bens?
BK: We just recorded four songs. We havent made a whole album. So I dont know if there will be a full record.
DRE: How did you all meet?
BK: Ive known Ben Lee the longest and then he introduced me to Ben Folds and we hit it off. Ben Folds was in Nashville recording some songs for his new album. He was bored one week so he called me and Ben Lee and said we should come down to write some songs. We flew down.
DRE: Did the engineer in the studio ever get confused?
BK: Not really because we call each other by our last names.
DRE: The EP you guys did became a top download worldwide. What does that mean for you exactly?
BK: I havent really thought about it. Its the only number one anything Ive ever done so Im proud of it. it definitely turned my music onto other kids I wouldnt have gotten to otherwise.
DRE: How did you guys work together?
BK: We would just sit there with each other with a guitar, drums and piano and just jam. Then we would write lyrics as we went. I freestyled a lot. Ben Folds was really amazed that I wrote my lyrics by just freestyling and then honing it down. Ben Folds sits down with a pad and paper and really sketches it all out. It was cool to see the different dynamic among us. We all mesh together well.
DRE: You have a lyric that says, Sex reminds you of eating spaghetti. Why is that?
BK: There is this director named Greg Araki and in his movie, The Doom Generation, this girl is smoking a cigarette while lying in bed. She says, Sex reminds me of eating spaghetti. I didnt get it but it was strange so I wrote a chorus with it.
DRE: Have you ever met him?
BK: No I havent but I wonder if he knows about my song.
DRE: Are movies a big inspiration for you?
BK: Not a huge one but I watch them. I keep falling asleep during The Godfather so Im not an aficionado. I do like certain ones like Rad, Back to the Future, Forrest Gump and fucken Memento. I like psychological and freaky movies.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
At the age of 15, Kweller and his band Radish signed with Mercury Records. But their album came and went and so did the band and their relationship with the major label. In the past few years Kweller has put out three solo albums and toured constantly. Many critics have called On My Way his best and a growing number of fans seem to agree.
I got a chance to talk to Kweller on the phone right before he started eating lunch.
Check out this website for more information on Ben Kweller .
Daniel Robert Epstein: Where are you?
Ben Kweller: Im in San Francisco and I just left the Apple Store.
DRE: Did you get anything?
BK: Yeah I got one of those pink iPod minis for my sisters graduation present.
DRE: Are you going to put all your music on the iPod before you give it to her?
BK: [laughs] No Im going to give it to her fresh.
Can you hold on while I figure out what I am going to get to eat?
DRE: Sure.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BK: Alright Im back. Im starving, I havent eaten all day. Ive just been walking around this crazy city.
DRE: Have you been there before?
BK: I was born here but I didnt spend any time here because my parents moved to Texas when I was two. Ive been back here on tour about ten times.
DRE: Do Texans know you arent a real Texan?
BK: Well Ive been in New York for the past five years. We just played at Trees in Dallas and The Dallas Observer gave us such a great review. I think theyre real proud of me. Texans can be real harsh if you're perceived as a traitor. I didnt even know how they would feel when I moved to New York. But theyve been really cool about it. They have looked at it more like Im the boy thats moved on and done good for himself. I still love Texas so much.
DRE: How was doing the album cover shoot with the wolves?
BK: Aw man it was so scary dude. My photographer and I were in a bar and I said The album cover should be me in the woods with a pack of wolves. So we started looking for wolves. We started calling all these places and they kept telling us we were crazy. We called this place in upstate New York and the lady said, Wolves are not domesticated dogs. Theyll eat you. So we called the New York State Preservation Society and they were all offended by the idea. They said, Human interaction with wild animals is the antithesis of what we believe. So we had to go to Hollywood. We found this place that specializes in animals for movies. They handle the hairless cat from Austin Powers, Mr. Bigglesworth. I actually got to pet that cat, it was so weird.
DRE: So in New York they would never do that but in Hollywood theyre willing to rip all the hair off an animal.
BK: Thats it man [laughs].
DRE: Thats a good metaphor for New York and Hollywood in general.
What made you decide to call the new album, On My Way?
BK: Im just talking about life. I wrote the song On My Way and it ended up being my favorite song on the album. So I just wanted to name the album after the song so people would focus on that track. The album goes from being a murderer to a thief to a friend and then a lover. Its all about change and different moods so its more like we are all on our way to something.
DRE: What was going on in your life while you were doing the album?
BK: I got married last September after being together for five years so that was a big life change. Also my grandfather passed away last year and he was the first person close to me that ever died. That really had an affect on me. So those two things just made me think about the most important things in life, which is friends and family. Just trying to keep that as close to me as possible and I think a lot of those songs talk about that. Like following your heart and not forgetting about people.
DRE: Do you consciously think about those things or does it come out in the process?
BK: It comes out in the process subconsciously. Sometimes I sit down with a lyric in mind that I really want to use. I used to sit down with an idea and write a song based around it but now what I do is sit down with a chord progression, a melody and freestyle to let my subconscious do the talking.
DRE: What made you want to get married at the age of 22?
BK: Im kind of old fashioned. Ive lived a pretty crazy life since I was 15, Ive been through a lot and Ive been with lots of girls. Ive just experienced a lot more than most people by the age of 22. I just have met a lot of people and I feel like I have to have something stable in my life. Shes been such an inspiration to me since we met five years ago. I became a solo artist when we were together and shes always been there for me. It was something we had to do. There is also something beautiful about getting married really young. Like having a long life with kids will be great. My grandfather got married at 22.
DRE: Is the album that you did with Ben Folds and Ben Lee called The Bens?
BK: We just recorded four songs. We havent made a whole album. So I dont know if there will be a full record.
DRE: How did you all meet?
BK: Ive known Ben Lee the longest and then he introduced me to Ben Folds and we hit it off. Ben Folds was in Nashville recording some songs for his new album. He was bored one week so he called me and Ben Lee and said we should come down to write some songs. We flew down.
DRE: Did the engineer in the studio ever get confused?
BK: Not really because we call each other by our last names.
DRE: The EP you guys did became a top download worldwide. What does that mean for you exactly?
BK: I havent really thought about it. Its the only number one anything Ive ever done so Im proud of it. it definitely turned my music onto other kids I wouldnt have gotten to otherwise.
DRE: How did you guys work together?
BK: We would just sit there with each other with a guitar, drums and piano and just jam. Then we would write lyrics as we went. I freestyled a lot. Ben Folds was really amazed that I wrote my lyrics by just freestyling and then honing it down. Ben Folds sits down with a pad and paper and really sketches it all out. It was cool to see the different dynamic among us. We all mesh together well.
DRE: You have a lyric that says, Sex reminds you of eating spaghetti. Why is that?
BK: There is this director named Greg Araki and in his movie, The Doom Generation, this girl is smoking a cigarette while lying in bed. She says, Sex reminds me of eating spaghetti. I didnt get it but it was strange so I wrote a chorus with it.
DRE: Have you ever met him?
BK: No I havent but I wonder if he knows about my song.
DRE: Are movies a big inspiration for you?
BK: Not a huge one but I watch them. I keep falling asleep during The Godfather so Im not an aficionado. I do like certain ones like Rad, Back to the Future, Forrest Gump and fucken Memento. I like psychological and freaky movies.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
VIEW 18 of 18 COMMENTS
jaggy:
natural talent, great music. i saw the video for 'wasted & ready' on austin music network a couple years ago, i had to check the rest of his stuff out. a good find
ehma:
I'd been a huge fan of Ben since my friend introduced him to me in 2003, and On My Way helped me get through my best friend's moving away. I never got to see him in concert until last October, and I told him about how much that album helped me out and he shook my hand and said "thank you." He's such a heartthrob.