The Chestertons Interview
DAC: Can you talk about the history of the band? When did you start playing together, writing songs, etc.?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): My brother and I, Brian Bianchi, have been playing together for a very long time. After spending a number of years away from the music business, we decided to get serious once again and pursue songwriting and performing in a very purposeful way in early 2015. At this point I had just completed a solo project produced by Dave Douglas (Relient K) and I wanted to create music with a more textured, full band sound. The core of this rebirth were the songs “Heaven” and “Sister Sweetness.” We recorded a few demos of these songs and asked one of our long-time collaborators and friends, Justin Hartman, to participate and ultimately join the band. Not long after, we were fortunate enough to work with an excellent drummer, Rob Wynne, who also graciously agreed to join us as a full-time member. This is the core unit that we have been playing shows with the past two years and also writing and recording music as the Chestertons.
DAC: There are a lot of stadium rock U2 type crescendos throughout the EP. Where are these bigger moments conceptualized? Is it while strumming a guitar, playing together as a band or something that is considered before a song is even written?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): One of my main songwriting objectives as the band has developed is to make songs that are more direct and that engage the listener in a ‘universal’ way. I consciously made the decision that I didn’t want to just create a song for myself, but wanted to find a way to speak to the larger human experience. By doing this, I think that the music and melodies began to organically take on a more anthemic stadium rock texture. One of the things that a lot of my musical influences do very well, be it U2, Echo and the Bunnymen, Oasis, or even The Smiths, is to take a common experience and elevate it through a large, singable chorus. This is something that we strive for on a number of the songs on the most recent EP. I could hear an audience singing them with me and that was a distinct and direct part of the writing process. However, I don’t mean to insinuate that the songs were calculated or clinical in any way at all. As a writer, all of my songs start from something that I feel. I am not a storyteller or someone who can write quality, narrative driven songs. My songs are more about how things feel in an often mystical and metaphysical way. I am drawn to images of water and stars as images of hope and doubt, loss and longing. I have always believed that in order to make a song that connects, I need to feel the emotion first. So, the more the songs have meant to me on a personal level, the more we have worked to make them ‘big’ in a musical sense.
DAC: I’m interested in the album title. Can you tell us about the meaning behind the title?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): The title of the album came from a quote by Elvis Costello in his autobiography where he said, “These songs are there to help you when you need them the most. You can stumble into them anytime, like the noise and benediction of any basement dive.”
I liked the image that one can be surprised and affected at any time, any place, by a song. Music is not something that is disposable; it is something that is meant to be transcendent. It is something that can bring you comfort and hope, it can challenge you, it can cause you to be moved in ways that no other form of art or conversation could ever accomplish. I have had transcendent musical moments in all kinds of places; a parking garage, staring at the ocean, a funeral, playing with my boys at a park and certainly the many ‘basement dives’ we have played as a band. It is our hope, with the album title and the songs, that people will also experience that kind of transcendent musical moment where they are ushered into something beyond the superficial or disposable. A place where they can feel the beauty of the present moment.
DAC: On that note what are the themes that run through the four songs? How are they connected?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): The songs are connected by the theme of mystery and most specifically, the mystery of love. Love has been the most talked about and written about idea in the history of the world, but it still remains elusive and confusing to each of us at many times in our life. The more we think we have it figured out or mastered it in any way, we are surprised and confronted with something that causes us to reevaluate everything we thought we knew and understood. Therefore, love is an endless source of inspiration, both in the positive and challenging sense. I often refer to a number of my songs as ‘apocalyptic’ love songs, songs that reference the beginning being found in the end of something else. This is exemplified by the idea that in order to truly receive love, you have to first be willing to put the other person first and give love. The strange reality that often to be strong, you must first be weak. These are the mysteries that continue to haunt and inspire me.
DAC: What is the creative process in general?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): Our creative process is truly a collaborative process, in the best possible sense. Each of the members of the band contribute with their strengths to make each song come alive in new ways. I am always humbled and amazed by each member in the band when they take a song and shape it into something of beauty. In addition, the rhythm section of Justin Hartman and Rob Wynne really give the songs the punch they need, to dramatically highlight the melody and emotion. My brother, Brian, is the main guy in the studio who really shapes the sound of each recording. He spends hours tinkering with sounds until he gets the exact celestial sound that each song needs. My main function in this process is to bring the initial song ideas to the band. I am always writing songs. I have hundreds of voice notes on my phone and I return to them throughout the day adding additional lines and melody shifts, always trying to capture the right emotion for each song. However, all of these initial ideas only reach their full potential when the rest of the band adds their voice to the song.
DAC: What can we expect from the Chestertons in 2017? Live shows, new album, etc.?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): We are excited about a number of fun and exciting live shows and festivals in the coming months. In addition, we are looking to release a few live tracks from our release show this past April as well as heading back into the studio to work on additional songs for an upcoming EP release. Most of all we are looking to continue to sharpen our craft and make each performance something that connects with each listener in a lasting way. Rock n’ roll is meant to be something that challenges and inspires. We promise to continue that tradition.
DAC: Can you talk about the history of the band? When did you start playing together, writing songs, etc.?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): My brother and I, Brian Bianchi, have been playing together for a very long time. After spending a number of years away from the music business, we decided to get serious once again and pursue songwriting and performing in a very purposeful way in early 2015. At this point I had just completed a solo project produced by Dave Douglas (Relient K) and I wanted to create music with a more textured, full band sound. The core of this rebirth were the songs “Heaven” and “Sister Sweetness.” We recorded a few demos of these songs and asked one of our long-time collaborators and friends, Justin Hartman, to participate and ultimately join the band. Not long after, we were fortunate enough to work with an excellent drummer, Rob Wynne, who also graciously agreed to join us as a full-time member. This is the core unit that we have been playing shows with the past two years and also writing and recording music as the Chestertons.
DAC: There are a lot of stadium rock U2 type crescendos throughout the EP. Where are these bigger moments conceptualized? Is it while strumming a guitar, playing together as a band or something that is considered before a song is even written?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): One of my main songwriting objectives as the band has developed is to make songs that are more direct and that engage the listener in a ‘universal’ way. I consciously made the decision that I didn’t want to just create a song for myself, but wanted to find a way to speak to the larger human experience. By doing this, I think that the music and melodies began to organically take on a more anthemic stadium rock texture. One of the things that a lot of my musical influences do very well, be it U2, Echo and the Bunnymen, Oasis, or even The Smiths, is to take a common experience and elevate it through a large, singable chorus. This is something that we strive for on a number of the songs on the most recent EP. I could hear an audience singing them with me and that was a distinct and direct part of the writing process. However, I don’t mean to insinuate that the songs were calculated or clinical in any way at all. As a writer, all of my songs start from something that I feel. I am not a storyteller or someone who can write quality, narrative driven songs. My songs are more about how things feel in an often mystical and metaphysical way. I am drawn to images of water and stars as images of hope and doubt, loss and longing. I have always believed that in order to make a song that connects, I need to feel the emotion first. So, the more the songs have meant to me on a personal level, the more we have worked to make them ‘big’ in a musical sense.
DAC: I’m interested in the album title. Can you tell us about the meaning behind the title?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): The title of the album came from a quote by Elvis Costello in his autobiography where he said, “These songs are there to help you when you need them the most. You can stumble into them anytime, like the noise and benediction of any basement dive.”
I liked the image that one can be surprised and affected at any time, any place, by a song. Music is not something that is disposable; it is something that is meant to be transcendent. It is something that can bring you comfort and hope, it can challenge you, it can cause you to be moved in ways that no other form of art or conversation could ever accomplish. I have had transcendent musical moments in all kinds of places; a parking garage, staring at the ocean, a funeral, playing with my boys at a park and certainly the many ‘basement dives’ we have played as a band. It is our hope, with the album title and the songs, that people will also experience that kind of transcendent musical moment where they are ushered into something beyond the superficial or disposable. A place where they can feel the beauty of the present moment.
DAC: On that note what are the themes that run through the four songs? How are they connected?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): The songs are connected by the theme of mystery and most specifically, the mystery of love. Love has been the most talked about and written about idea in the history of the world, but it still remains elusive and confusing to each of us at many times in our life. The more we think we have it figured out or mastered it in any way, we are surprised and confronted with something that causes us to reevaluate everything we thought we knew and understood. Therefore, love is an endless source of inspiration, both in the positive and challenging sense. I often refer to a number of my songs as ‘apocalyptic’ love songs, songs that reference the beginning being found in the end of something else. This is exemplified by the idea that in order to truly receive love, you have to first be willing to put the other person first and give love. The strange reality that often to be strong, you must first be weak. These are the mysteries that continue to haunt and inspire me.
DAC: What is the creative process in general?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): Our creative process is truly a collaborative process, in the best possible sense. Each of the members of the band contribute with their strengths to make each song come alive in new ways. I am always humbled and amazed by each member in the band when they take a song and shape it into something of beauty. In addition, the rhythm section of Justin Hartman and Rob Wynne really give the songs the punch they need, to dramatically highlight the melody and emotion. My brother, Brian, is the main guy in the studio who really shapes the sound of each recording. He spends hours tinkering with sounds until he gets the exact celestial sound that each song needs. My main function in this process is to bring the initial song ideas to the band. I am always writing songs. I have hundreds of voice notes on my phone and I return to them throughout the day adding additional lines and melody shifts, always trying to capture the right emotion for each song. However, all of these initial ideas only reach their full potential when the rest of the band adds their voice to the song.
DAC: What can we expect from the Chestertons in 2017? Live shows, new album, etc.?
Kevin Bianchi (the Chestertons): We are excited about a number of fun and exciting live shows and festivals in the coming months. In addition, we are looking to release a few live tracks from our release show this past April as well as heading back into the studio to work on additional songs for an upcoming EP release. Most of all we are looking to continue to sharpen our craft and make each performance something that connects with each listener in a lasting way. Rock n’ roll is meant to be something that challenges and inspires. We promise to continue that tradition.