interview with Mike kerr
How was the band formed? Hello, my name Mike Kerr, for years I did demos for companies that sponsored me such as planet waves, d'addario, Eventide, voodoo Amps and others. I was a solo artist for years playing songs from my album the love of playing that and the fire. In the year of 2012 I decided to ask my good friend and great drummer Joe Bertola if he wanted to work with me and he said yes! After that I asked Kumary Miker if she wanted to play bass, she said yes but she wanted a rhythm Guitarrist to join us and that's when we got in touch with Ven Thangaraj. We played our first show at michaels in Plymouth dec 30, 2012.
Can you tell about your band? What can I say? We are a group of good friends! We have just as much fun playing or having a barbecue or having cocktails. We went thru a few changes and now we stand as a power trio: me on guitar, Joe Bertola on drums, Ven Thangaraj on bass. Formers players are the 2 bass players: Kumary Miker and Andrew Dezarn.
Where are all band members from?/Who does what in the band? Mike kerr and Joe Bertola: Brazil and Ven Thangaraj: India
What was the ambitions of the band when you started? We just wanted to play very well but most have a great time doing what we love! We are all passioned musicians.
Could you explain your music to someone that haven't heard you? I would say: instrumental hard rock from the 80's
Where was your first gig? Michaels Plymouth, MA
Where was the latest gig? At the convention center in Anaheim , CA
Who writes your songs?/Who writes the music who writes lyrics? I write all of my music and Jota Vox is my producer and manager
Who has the best since of humor in the band? Joe Bertola
What's good/bad with the band?/What genre do you feel you are? Good is that we kick ass together, bad: I live in Martha's Vineyard and the other 2 band members live in Boston so that's always a pain to rehearse. Hard rock
Why did you pick that particular style?/What are your songs about? I didn't pick the style, the style picked me. My songs are inspired by life events
Do you write your own material or mainly covers? All originals
Have you made any albums?/If yes what are they? Yes! The fire was released in 2012 and the love of playing is almost done!
Do you have any clips on YouTube? Www.youtube.com/mikekerr
How old are you?/What got you started in music? I'm 30 years old, I started playing because of my dad, he used to play songs for me to sleep when I was a baby.
At what age did you start playing? Around 9 I started playing acoustic at church and at 17 I switched to electric
How old were you guys when you first stood on stage? If church events count 12 I would say, if we are talking about a club then 21 years old
What year was the band started? 2012
Best/worst gig you've played?
Best: Whisky a go go CA and sharing the stage with Dr Sin and Joe Stump in Cambridge, MA at the elks lodge. Worst: 5 star bar, LA
What places will you be playing in in the imidate future? I'm taking a bit of a break now to spend time with my family but I intend to start playing with in the next couple months
Witch band is the best you´ve seen? Van Hallen, Dr Sin, malmsteen and Stryper
Is it always the same songs live? To a degree yes! They always play the good old ones!
Have you had any bigger tours from start to now? We had a west coat tour on the beginning of 2014 and we had the pleasure to have a special guest singing for us, her name is Ashley Yarnell
How big crowds do you usually play for? It varies from place to place
What are the plans for the rest of the year? Get back on the road and kick some butt
Where do you usually play? Even during this break I'm still playing locally from time to time. It hard to ignore the guitar after such a long term relationship
How do you get psyched up for a gig? I'm always psyched when comes to play, even after so many years I still have that cold feeling till I play for a minute and I notice that they like it
What are your goals with your music? Get signed
When did you decide to go all in for the music? When I was a kid
Is it easier to get your inspiration from older bands or from bands more modern? Older bands for sure.
What are your sources of inspiration? My family and friends
What's the first step when making a new song? There are no rules for me, I just follow my heart. So I guess the first step is to try not to mess it up the pure inspiration coming straits from my heart? It's so easy with all the technics we have to forget about the music and what the music is calling for and just show off. That's unacceptable for me.
How do you feel about the downloading of music instead of buying albums? It's wrong.
What would be your dreams for the band? To be able to keeping having a great time when we play for years.
Besides your own music, what genres and bands do you listen to? Salsa, some rap, funk, etc. of its good music it's good music no matter what genre. Recently I got really hooked on Lionel Ritchie
When you are on stage, what do you fear most then? After 2 min playing I dont fear anything.
Have you been part of any other projects? I played on Jimi Mitchell Cd on a song called epic struggle
Have you been in any other bands? The mercy beat, forsaken, money shot, boogies, 1NS
What would you do if there was no music? I'm I would figure something out
How important are your fans? They mean the world for me
How often do you rehearse? Alone; if I'm giging, everyday. If not once a week. With the band couple days before a show
Name 2 of your own songs you like at the moment? 45 days of summer and the fire
What do you feel is the best live band you've seen? Van Hallen
What drives a band that isn't all that famous and renowned to try to make a living on their music and to keep playing? The fire that burns inside
Do you have any webpages? Www.mikekerr.net
Any pearls of wisdom for all other bands out there? I would say don't give up, there are no great victories without a great battle. Good luck