One of the most difficult things about being an artist of any sort isn’t just learning how to paint or write or sing or play the guitar. That’s brutal in its own ways, sure, but it’s also the most fun to do. But then, once you have a poem or a song or a novel ready for the masses to ingest, well, now that’s when the real work starts. That’s also when the spirit tends to break and the weak head for safer ground. Now you have to figure out how to find a gig, sell a club owner on your talents, convince a gallery owner that this piece of art you just spent a year and a half working on deserves a spot on the wall, with a price tag on it.
Keith Sanders from Epsom, NH, knows all this from experience. Not only can he sing beautifully and play the guitar really well, but he can write, and I don’t mean just reiterations of what some other lout already created with a slightly different spin on it, but a full on original sound that encased all things gorgeous about music.
Problem is, Keith can’t find a gig. As he admits, “I just don’t know how to go about booking gigs for myself.” And he is not alone.
So, Sound Check chit-chatted with Keith about his difficulties with the business side of the music world, the development of his original voice and whether or not he can “rock out.”
Sound Check: You are such a phenomenal singer and guitar player. Your songs are dead on, really. You’re young, eager and ready for the next level. Tell me about this road block you have hit with finding an audience.
Keith Sanders: Some of what makes it hard is that my songs are a bit off-center. I tend not to write about romance overtly. The lyrics are imagery-based and sort of flit around, and oftentimes it’s difficult for people to follow and maybe connect with them. I don’t play too many covers, and the ones I do play tend to not be terribly well-known or current. Also, I don’t really look like a musician. I have no tattoos or piercings, no beard. I tend to dress pretty understated. All that can be a tough sell to a bar or restaurant owner looking to please a Friday night crowd. Bands that can create a fun, energetic atmosphere, and maybe pull a little posse of people with them, are the ones in demand on the local scale, and for good reason.
The music circle in Concord, NH, is growing wider and wider. Epsom, where you are from, is right in its wheelhouse. Can it be intimidating breaking into that circle?
It’s really cool that there’s a growing music scene in Concord. I wouldn’t say breaking into it is intimidating, but it’s kind of like trying to get on the inside of any group, or trying to land a job or something: it’s just kind of confusing and you’re not sure if you’re doing the right things. I guess maybe trying to break into the local music scene is a microcosm of trying to break into any music scene, on any level: it takes talent, determination, and luck. I haven’t worked out those exact measurements as of yet.
When you started playing, that high voice that you sing in, is that your original singing voice or something you created?
My singing voice has always been kind of high, but the voice I sing in now I’ve worked on for a few years. I’ve always had a quiet voice, even just as far as talking goes, so part of how my voice has evolved is the result of a struggle to be louder, to be audible. I have this consistent paranoia that my voice is always deteriorating, and is always worse than it was the week before, although in reality I don’t think that’s actually happening. It’s a weird anxiety.
Are you a fan of seeing music live? Or are you a listen at home kind of guy? I know you don’t watch TV. So, whats going on at your crib that’s feeding this talent?
I tend to listen more to music by myself than go to shows, probably to my detriment. I find new music online, reading and watching music reviews, clicking the YouTube “recommended-for-you” videos and seeing where they lead, even just listening to the radio in the car. When it comes to writing, the older I get the music I write is driven less by imitation of music I like – which has always been kind of a hit-or-miss approach to songwriting for me – and more just about coming up with stuff that interests and excites me and makes me want to keep working on it. The more fun it is to write, the better the song is, in my experience.
I have only seen you perform alone with your guitar, mostly in studio at WNHN. Always a great set, but quiet, for the most part. Do you ever just want to rock out?
Yes! In fact a lot of music I enjoy tends to be a lot more rocking – sometimes exponentially more rocking – than the music I actually write and perform. Part of that is necessity. Like I mentioned, I’ve never had a particularly loud voice, and most of the time I haven’t had a band, so acoustic, folky music was the easiest stuff to write with the tools at my disposal. On my YouTube page, though, there are some relatively rocking songs I’ve written fairly recently and recorded with a lot of added instrumentation and drum machines. Also, I play bass (poorly) with some friends in a death metal band once a week, believe it or not.
So, it’s 2020 and Keith Sanders is still writing, still coming up with new licks, still developing that incredible voice. Has he walked away from the music scene at age 30 or is a playing out three nights a week and twice on Sunday?
I really can’t imagine ever not writing new stuff, just like, giving it up and walking away. Whether or not I’m playing out more, I guess I’m always hoping I’m going to write something really good someday, just like, undeniably catchy, beautiful, etc., and then an audience will just naturally be attracted to it. That’s probably the definitive, bedroom type songwriter dream, and it’s pretty unrealistic. I guess I should really work harder on breaking into the Concord music scene, now that I think about it.
If you are looking to book Keith (and you really should) contact him at soursweettooth.com.
