[00:00:00] Speaker A: You was born on a Saturday in 73 in the park. Right. Music on the fifth guitar with the short wind radio.
It's motherfucking Andy calling. Look at my fucking cup, here we come. Andy calling wearing his orange hat.
[00:00:27] Speaker B: Welcome to unsigned five one eight. I am here with Alec Lewis. How's it going, man?
[00:00:33] Speaker C: So good, Andy. How are you?
[00:00:34] Speaker B: I'm fantastic. And we have a bunch of stuff to talk about. Like, not only last year did I declare your ep as my favorite of the year, but you have a highest praise.
[00:00:47] Speaker C: Thank you.
[00:00:48] Speaker B: And I meant it.
Certainly the one that I played the most and I told the most people about. Like, I really liked it. It was super good.
[00:00:58] Speaker C: Yeah, you were preaching it. Thank you, man.
[00:01:00] Speaker B: Yeah. And you have a new album out, but there's also some other things that we want to talk about. But I think we should start with this new album.
Did you put the other ep out and then immediately start, or was it something tangentially done side by side?
[00:01:22] Speaker C: Yeah, maybe a little bit of both, I guess. Kind of.
I don't know. The way I write, I got, like, ten ish, I would say, like, pieces at any one time and deciding how and when they get actualized, I guess, in a promotable form, maybe in a song form or whatever.
So, yeah, I think when Covid started and I started to try to do, like, a solo thing post my previous band, Honeyslider, I kind of set this goal. I tried to set this goal for myself of putting out something, releasing something every year.
So in 2020, well, technically 2021, I did my very first album, and then 2022 is the one you're referring to that you claimed to be your favorite of 2022, and then I didn't quite get this album in, in 2023. So February of 2024 is when this one came out. I'm not sure when this episode will air, but earlier this month. But I'm not mad because I took my time with it. I slept on it, I think. Not necessarily slept on it, but I nursed it a necessary amount, I think.
And I think to what you liked about the first one is that it's small packaged, but a lot of content, I think. And that's another thing I tried to hit. I tried to really just double down what I had done the first with. How are we? Fine. Kind of take this voice or kind of sound sonic stamp that I kind of have been finding for myself and kind of just doubling down on it, driving it hard with a little bit more of the. The funky rhythms, a bit drier, kind of cleaner. Electric guitar sound, not necessarily clean, but clean.
[00:03:30] Speaker B: You know what I mean?
[00:03:32] Speaker C: And a lot of that has come from advancements in the kind of technology and things in my own home studio and purchases and upgrades and stuff. So constantly tuning and tweaking and I think just, this is a really. I'm very proud of it. I think it's a very succinct version of my vision, I guess, and sound for myself.
[00:03:59] Speaker B: And it's funny because when I was listening to the new one, it took me, like, I think it was like the first couple of songs where I was like, oh, this is very different from how are we fine. This is like going in a different. Right. And then the more I listened to it, even, like, the same songs that I claimed to be so different, I think more upon listening, I was like, oh, no, I can kind of feel.
[00:04:25] Speaker C: Like the through line becomes more apparent as you go through. Yeah. And I think that's a good thing.
I think a lot of artists are constantly, always trying to evolve without straying too far from, I guess, their true intentions or whatever, their soul or their sound or whatever.
And I feel really excited that. I feel I just turned 31 and I truly feel like only in the last year or two have I really found my kind of sonic soul, I think, and I'm really excited to. This album kind of established that a little bit more. And my band that we'll chat about more later on, has really also been incredibly influential in bringing that to kind of a new realm as well, obviously, in the live versus studio stuff and allowing me to get the sound out and in a group of people that I really trust and have shown incredible passion and dedication for just what I'm doing and what I'm trying to do, which is extremely helpful, I guess, in doing original music, finding a band, especially when you're like, band leading and it's all your own original material, you're not writing together as a band. I'm bringing them my songs, so that can be tough sometimes. But these guys are truly great and we could save that for later.
[00:06:01] Speaker B: Yeah. Because up until all the recorded stuff, if I'm not mistaken, is all just you, all me.
[00:06:11] Speaker C: This album is particularly all have, I think. How are we? Fine. I had some sax player, some. Well, there's still a lot of drumming help. It's all been Morris, you know, shout out to Josh Morris, the drumming machine, who, sadly, I believe, has recently moved.
[00:06:28] Speaker B: Down to the Instagram post.
[00:06:30] Speaker C: Nashville, the big southern city, the big southern apple.
And great for him. I think he'll do incredibly well there, and it was probably the right move for someone of his caliber and potential at such an age that he is.
[00:06:48] Speaker B: Looks like Ryan from short wave is going to be stopping by.
[00:06:52] Speaker C: Oh, come on in. Come on down.
[00:06:54] Speaker B: That's why I say, I was going to be like, yeah, you can stop by, but I'm recording a podcast to be quiet. But I'm like, whatever.
It'll be more fun when he walks in and sees a surprise.
[00:07:07] Speaker C: Is he going to contribute, you think?
[00:07:09] Speaker B: Maybe. We do have a microphone. Right on. I told you, you're my fourth podcast today. Wild dude.
[00:07:17] Speaker C: Yeah. Output's crazy.
[00:07:19] Speaker B: Yeah. And Ryan was on my first one.
We did our band show. I don't know if you've seen. So we had Christian and Patrick from our band show on the phone. So me and Ryan were here and they were there and we did an episode. Those guys. That's a really cool.
[00:07:36] Speaker C: You guys were out there on the 10th, right?
[00:07:38] Speaker B: No, we already did it.
[00:07:41] Speaker C: Right? You were out there.
[00:07:42] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, we were. Yeah. I thought you said we are. I was like, oh, no, done.
[00:07:47] Speaker C: Seal delivered on that one.
[00:07:49] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:07:49] Speaker C: Old news.
[00:07:50] Speaker B: So we do certainly want to talk about now that you have a band. I have questions about that, about some things, about future recordings with the full band. Who's in the band? There's.
[00:08:06] Speaker C: Love it.
[00:08:06] Speaker B: I've got a lot of things, but I say we play a tune first and then roll into it. So what do we want to play?
[00:08:14] Speaker C: Let's do a track. Number one. We'll do whatever you want.
And. Yeah, number one or first track? I guess not number one track. Let's not say that. But if there were to be a single, quote unquote, it'd probably be this one.
[00:08:26] Speaker B: So it's whatever you want for everybody listening. Just keep in mind that what you're hearing is 100% Alec.
[00:08:35] Speaker C: And I mean you, Josh Morris on drums.
[00:08:37] Speaker B: Oh, and Josh Morris on drugs. All right, so 90% Alec and Josh Morris on drugs. And then you do all the post production stuff on it.
[00:08:46] Speaker C: Do all the production. Well, let's clarify. I do all the writing, producing, recording, and I did send this out to be mixed by Daniel de Cab or DeKalb. And he's been a good friend for a while and is often involved in a lot of Katie Gallagher stuff, who I was involved with the Honeyslider, so I've known him for a while and I wanted to get his ears on this one. But I will say that.
[00:09:18] Speaker B: I could.
[00:09:19] Speaker C: Probably take a comixing credit on this, because just the way that I write and produce very much mix along the way. And I was sending him more. So, like, instrument clusters versus independent instruments to mix. So.
Not that he didn't pull a lot of weight, and I think he did a fantastic job really cementing it all together. But I think I did more mixing than I think most people would call producing.
[00:09:45] Speaker B: Nice. And what was the name of the track again?
[00:09:47] Speaker C: Whatever you want. Sorry. Yeah, I got away from that one a little bit. Here's the song.
[00:09:51] Speaker B: All right. It's whatever you want. It's Alec Lewis, and we'll be right back to talk.
[00:09:55] Speaker A: Alec ran close. You. I spent that money on this date.
You were 30 minutes late.
Now your fork is all up in my plate that ain't nothing I would change?
Don't make me beg because, honey, I.
Don't make me beg because I'll do what you like?
You could take whatever you want from me, girl, take it out, take me out you take whatever you want from me take me out you got me driving your kids to game you got me snaking out your drain cooking you breakfast every day but that ain't nothing I would change don't make me, don't make me like a soldier at your side you need me find sake it all take me out you can take whatever you want from me, girl, take it, take me out you could take whatever you want.
[00:13:37] Speaker B: Everything that you've done up until now, recorded wise, has been you again with Josh Morris.
[00:13:44] Speaker C: Me and Josh.
Me and my home studio, for sure.
[00:13:48] Speaker B: Yeah, but now you've got the Alec Lewis group, and I guess. Tell me a little bit about the members.
Tell me about the know, because now you have an actual band.
[00:14:00] Speaker C: Oh, man, it's so exciting. And I think kind of like I alluded to earlier, has allowed me a new level of excitement in my creative life. And I'm so excited to just really start playing. And we've been rehearsing a lot and we've got some shows coming up, and it's just, like, really exciting popping off. But we are made up of myself and then another jive hive guy, Noah Skinel, who does the lights at the jive Hive. We've obviously came to know him through that.
And I've kind of had this live band idea for a while now. I kind of got away from the live stuff and kind of dug into the studio stuff and the live sound stuff, got away from playing, but have been looking for a reason to get back into it. And I think jamming with Noah a couple of times was like, the kind of instigating reason to get back into it. We really gelled.
We kind of just sat up at the jive Hive. We each had a looping pedal, and we would just kind of loop stuff and toss around solos, 15 minutes on a loop, and just jam and kind of got to know each other a little bit. So we're like, okay, so now what else? We need a rhythm section. So I had also been chatting with a budy of mine, Roscoe, who I do sound with and does sound with me at Lar call and is one of my go to homies in the sound world. And anybody who knows Rascoe knows he's, like, legit dude and young dude, Spitfire, he's headed to the moon. So we'd been kind of talking about it a little bit when doing gigs together and stuff, and he's, yo, I play bass. We can start jamming together. And I've actually got this homie named Connor who's moving to Albany in the future pretty soon, and plays drums really well. We kind of play together, and I know him, et cetera, et cetera.
So Connor, on drums, moved kind of to Albany. He's new to the area. He came in in September or so. So we started jamming October only a few months ago. And those two, because they know each other and because they've been playing together, they really gelled kind of instantly. And Noah and I had kind of come in prepared with our own thing, and I had demos prepared, and we got busy. Like I said, it feels like we've been jamming together for a very long time, but it's, like, been four months, maybe, and we've got about an hour of original material under our belt and did our first show at the jive hive for my birthday party, got that under our belt, and that was received very well in a freaking awesome night. Thank you to everybody who was there, and it's just wildly exciting. And I think, like I said, I was waiting and kind of waiting for the right reason to start, and I think these guys know were worth waiting for in a weird, not weird way.
[00:17:08] Speaker B: And so now that you've got the full lineup, do you have plans to record as the Alec Lewis group? Like, record songs with all of them as a collaboration?
[00:17:23] Speaker C: Yes, and kind of.
Definitely yes, but not, like, right away.
Given that I do my own kind of studio stuff and a lot of the material that we are doing in the band is under my name and produced by me and stuff, I am kind of still exploring the right kind of dynamic of how to ride those know. Definitely going to want to at some point be releasing music as the Alec Lewis group in some way, trying to find a way to separate that strategically in a way that makes sense and isn't just like, oh, the same songs in a different place.
[00:18:02] Speaker B: Right.
[00:18:04] Speaker C: And I think the way that we're going to do that starting out is being more of a live recording band, given that three and a half of the four people are sound guys. Noah, while he's a lighting guy, has his own little home studio set up and is kind of an audio guy at heart, as well as a fantastically knowledgeable guitar player and tech and stuff. In that way, we're going to be multi tracking almost every show. We're going to be doing our own sound. And so I hope to compile a lot of live recordings, make a bandcamp page where we can release a few shows to get our name out there, and then kind of a bigger batter compilation at some point down the road of live recordings.
[00:18:47] Speaker B: Oh, and hey, look who it is. It's Ryan Shaw.
I was saying that I was going to let you know that we were in the middle of a podcast, but we thought it'd be more funny to not let you know.
[00:19:00] Speaker C: Welcome to my podcast.
[00:19:02] Speaker B: So that when you come in, you just walk in and you're on a podcast.
Yeah.
[00:19:07] Speaker C: Got a mic set up for you actually already.
[00:19:11] Speaker B: Hold on, let's take a quick pause and then we'll be right back with Alec Lewis.
All right, we're back. So where were we? Quick little interlude. Ryan had to stop by. Well, we were talking about the band and how you've got the whole band now and trying to navigate how you're going to separate the Alec Lewis group stuff from the Alec Lewis solo stuff that you're playing as a group. And I'm sure that, I mean, that has to be a.
[00:19:50] Speaker C: Of. It's almost solving itself in a way. Obviously the songs I've already done and released and stuff exist in that form and we are adapting them for our own style. So as far as recorded music in the future, I don't think we'll be re recording those unless they're in a live setting. Like I said, alive. I look forward to doing some compilation stuff of live recordings as we start playing out and stuff more. But I've also been working on a lot of new material for us and kind of shifting my writing brain a little bit to. Instead of writing in a way that I have unlimited production availability, I'm trying to write songs for drum, bass and two guitars and limit myself to that.
That has kind of spawned a couple of more than a few kind of new songs that I would say are definitely more the Alec Lewis group than they are Alec Lewis in an exciting kind of way that I think is, again, kind of allowing me to find, really, a purposeful package sonically, as well as kind know thematically and.
[00:21:08] Speaker B: And, like, as a studio know, as know. Obviously, if someone's listened to your ep or the new ep, even. Especially. There's a lot of layers. There's a lot of stuff going on. Do you find trying to work within the confines of let's have this be something that we can reproduce live? Do you find that that's an exciting new venture kind of way of writing, or do you find it's, like, a little stifling and weird?
[00:21:39] Speaker C: No, I find it to be very exciting and not, like, necessarily a writing. Like, I'm excited about the songs being written. I'm more excited about what these guys are kind of doing to them in the live band, and I've been really impressed with their kind of ability to.
They do their homework. Noah, especially, like, dude, studies the shit and is inspiring me in his dedication and interest in my music.
[00:22:11] Speaker B: Right.
[00:22:12] Speaker C: And so they do their homework, and they have such an ability, I think, to take that direction and do exactly what I really want from them and then take it, like, ten to 15% further with themselves and put themselves.
I have a demo, do my demo 80% and then put yourself 15% to 20% into it. And they run away with that 20% in such a cool way. And again, especially for the rhythm section, Connor and Roscoe being such young dudes and kind of surprising, and I think everybody's kind of surprising. I enjoy the fact that nobody's seen either of us play, any of know I was in AOL and Honeyslider, but I haven't really played my own stuff in a while, and nobody's seen Connor, Roscoe, or Noah play, and they're all incredibly, I think, impressive musicians.
[00:23:09] Speaker B: Well, they will get a chance to see them.
[00:23:11] Speaker C: Oh, we gonna be out and about.
[00:23:13] Speaker B: Certainly coming up and Andy Palooza, too, is. Hell, yeah, it's happening. So that's May 18. Yeah. Five one eight day 518518 day Andy Palooza.
[00:23:25] Speaker C: Killer, dude.
[00:23:26] Speaker B: Be my first birthday as you guys.
[00:23:29] Speaker C: Erie and black tongue river. Black tongue. Yeah.
[00:23:32] Speaker B: And we're obviously shortwave radio band. Obviously we're going to open the show.
[00:23:36] Speaker C: Got it.
[00:23:37] Speaker B: That's how we do. Andy can start drinking, so that way we can start partying. For sure, because I don't do well as like the last act of the night, because I like to enjoy the other bands. That's, to me, playing on showcases with several other bands. The absolute best part about it is getting to go see three other bands.
[00:24:00] Speaker C: And I think there's a glory and a bonus in opening or going. Not necessarily. There's obviously pros to headlining and stuff like that too, but there's a lot to be said about opening. It's a sweet gig.
[00:24:17] Speaker B: Yeah. Headlining could be a very humbling experience, depending, because sometimes at the end of the night, there's not as many people left.
[00:24:27] Speaker C: I'm a big proponent of that. Middle slot. Middle slot. Middle slot.
[00:24:30] Speaker B: Fantastic.
[00:24:30] Speaker C: Fantastic.
[00:24:31] Speaker B: But even, like opening, if there's not as many people there, it's not an ego shatterer.
[00:24:38] Speaker C: That's the way it's supposed.
[00:24:39] Speaker B: They're just not there yet. You're getting a party rolling. But if they're not there at the end of the night, that means they fucking left. You know what I mean? That means they were there. So, yeah, I prefer the earlier plus we're not that.
[00:24:54] Speaker C: We'll work out the rest of the, you know, like I said, no disrespect to closing, and I think now, and.
[00:25:01] Speaker B: That'S why we got Erie to close, because only a pool is going to.
[00:25:05] Speaker C: Leave before being inspired by people in this community. I've been working with Erie on their new record, and I'm so pleased and grateful that they asked me to kind of produce their new record with them. And we've been hitting in the pre production pretty tight, and it's great. These guys are awesome. They're writing incredible music, and I think for them it's like, again, kind of that we want to evolve, but not betray ourselves. And I think they are doing exactly that.
[00:25:43] Speaker B: And TJ's up for songwriter of the year.
[00:25:46] Speaker C: He should be. Yeah. And really interesting sounds know, new palettes, but same canvas kind of.
[00:25:55] Speaker B: Actually, by the time this airs, it'll already have passed. But we're doing a benefit show this coming weekend as we record this, and John, our drummer, couldn't make the show, so Mr. Chad Flewling will be short waves drummer for a set this weekend.
[00:26:14] Speaker C: Yeah, we had a marathon pre production session earlier this week.
I can't remember exactly, but.
And Chad is tenacious, dude.
[00:26:27] Speaker B: It was so funny because when we.
[00:26:28] Speaker C: Were into it till the very end.
[00:26:31] Speaker B: We were trying to figure out rehearsal because he's going to play a full set with us and whatever, we're like, when do we want to get rehearsals? And he was basically like, we don't have to if you don't want it.
We're rehearsing tomorrow. One rehearsal, but he was full on ready to go to the gig without rehearsing with us, not one single time. And had full confidence, and I have full confidence that he would have crushed it. But it's good to rehearse. It is good to rehearse, but, yeah.
[00:27:03] Speaker C: Confidence is key, for sure.
[00:27:05] Speaker B: Yeah. I love it.
So do we want to maybe play another tune here?
[00:27:12] Speaker C: It's up to you, dog.
[00:27:13] Speaker B: Yeah, I think we should. What are we going with?
[00:27:17] Speaker C: I want to do one of the instrumental ones. Are you feeling more kind of silly and upbeat or something more melodic and or episodic?
[00:27:27] Speaker B: Let's go with melodic. I don't know if you noticed when you walked in here, I was in a very zoomed.
[00:27:32] Speaker C: Yeah.
Shout out to the rearrange job in the dazzled den. This place has a whole new flow, dude.
[00:27:39] Speaker B: Yeah, I rearranged the whole thing and now it's very comfortable. And when Alec got here, I had my feet up. I was listening to radio handle going smoking a ball.
[00:27:48] Speaker C: It was like a fake fireplace.
[00:27:50] Speaker B: Yeah, a little fake.
[00:27:51] Speaker C: Can't even tell it's fake.
[00:27:52] Speaker B: I know, it looks pretty real. Yeah, the dazzle dent just got very double.
[00:27:57] Speaker C: The dazzle.
[00:27:57] Speaker B: Yeah, it is at least double. So what are we going to hear then?
[00:28:02] Speaker C: That means we're going to listen to Fiona. Fiona, the final track. So we're buttoning the album, so to speak, top and bottom.
[00:28:09] Speaker B: Sweet. All right, well, let's listen to Fiona, Alec Lewis, and then we'll be right back to wrap it up with Alec.
[00:30:00] Speaker A: Nay.
[00:32:41] Speaker B: All right, that was Fiona. Alec Lewis. Alec, I want to thank you so much for taking time out of your day for coming up here and doing this podcast with me. I always appreciate when people do that. So before we go, though, like I do with all my guests, I just want to give you a chance to say what I call your gratitude. So, microphone is all yours.
[00:33:03] Speaker C: Mad gratitude.
I'm at a very, I think, grateful point in my life, I think, for a lot of what we spoke about, but for the community and the possibility to do this and to have people to do it for, and not that making music and doing music for yourself and stuff is not valuable enough, but having people to show it to and to feel like there are people around you that you know and that care about you that will listen is great. So, having said that, thank you, Andy. Shout out to Mikey and Tom. The jive Hive, the dudes in the Alec Lewis group, Noah Roscoe, and you know, my girlfriend for sure for being patient with my schedule. And yeah, thank you for everybody who says nice things about me and my music and listens to it and believes in me. And thanks to everybody who appreciates me as a sound guy as well. I love that. I'm not going to stop doing that.
Hit me up. Whether to play or to make you sound good.
[00:34:19] Speaker B: Sweet. All right, so, Alec Lewis of the Alec Lewis group. I am Andy Scullen. This is unsigned five one eight. I'll see you on the road.
Unsigned five one eight is produced and hosted by me, Andy Scullen. New episodes are available every week wherever you stream podcasts. If you'd like to help support the show, please like and subscribe wherever you are listening. Or you could buy me a
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[00:34:59] Speaker A: You.
[00:35:02] Speaker B: Take care of one another and I'll see you next week.
