Interview With: L.A. Gore

-Where are you from?

I am from Columbus, Georgia, about two hours south of Atlanta,

-How did you discover music in general maybe not even playing guitar, but when you went, “Yeah, that's what I want to do in life”?

My parents had the most impact on me with music. My dad played drums in a lot of bands when he was younger. He grew up in the 80s, and as a result he listened to a lot of that music when I a kid. I would hear Ratt, Motley Crue, KISS, Dokken, Skid Row, a lot of Bon Jovi, Black Sabbath, Metallica etc. With my Mom, I got the lighter side of those bands with Poison, Slaughter, Cinderella, White Lion, Tesla, and Trixter and stuff like that. I loved this music from the start, it was really heavy with a great sense of melody and memorable hooks. It shaped me immediately, and I was always listening to bands they introduced me to. I studied it like you would study a subject in school. By the time I was of age to start playing myself I knew a lot about the instrument and the kind of sounds I wanted to make with it.

-What made you decide to play guitar (if a particular artist, which one)?

It was all sort of culminating in my life at the time I started, but the incidence I most associate with wanting to play is watching VH1 Classic with my dad, and the music video for Unskinny Bop by Poison came on. Sounds hilarious! But C.C. Deville had that bright green guitar and was playing this incredible riff. To this day he remains one of my all-time favorite guitarists, severely underrated. About a week later my dad and grandfather bought me my first guitar.

-What are your inspirations when it comes to songwriting ? Any favorite books or mentors you'd like to talk about?

As far as inspirations go, it is really varied. I can’t speak for other artists, but for me it could literally come from anything. What usually comes first is a melody, or maybe even a song title that has a certain energy that will give me an idea of the kind of music to fit around it. For this new album Samsara I wrote almost all of the songs within a semi-sort of meditation. I would sit outside and listen to nature and really observe it, and mentally I would be as still as possible. I tried to tap into whatever energy I felt for any particular day by experiencing the Tao and playing whatever came to my fingers while I held the guitar. It ended up being a very fun and bluesy project, with each song being very different from each other, and incredibly different from any of my previous work.

An enormous influence for me later in life was my college biology professor, Barten Canamella. At the time I took his class I was already listening to stuff like The Beatles, Hendrix, Janis and all of that. One night I wore a Beatles shirt to class and he struck up a conversation with me that we have kept going for the past year. He really introduced me to blues and all of these bands that had structured songs and music with all of these blues and jazz jams, bands like Jefferson Airplane, Love, Big Brother & The Holding Company, The Animals, The Moody Blues, and just so much great stuff that I had never been exposed to before. He gave me the album Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus about a year ago and it changed my musical life singlehandedly. You can really tell this by my new album.

-Do you ever experience writer's block? If you do, what do you do to get over it?

After each album I write I usually go through a period of musical inactivity. It’s kind of like after a project that you really give yourself to is finished, you are satisfied for the time being. And it takes a while really get into another project, at least for me. But every time that happens, after a year or so, I’ll pick up the guitar and songs will just come pouring out. That’s my process, and I have used it for every album I’ve ever made. So, no it isn’t like a writer’s block in the sense where I can’t write when I want to, but rather I just don’t write for long periods of time followed by short bursts of creativity.

- If you could go back in time, would you do anything differently in any of your recordings?

Other than maybe wishing they had a better sound production or distribution process, no! But seriously, I like each one so far. I can always tell what state of mind I was in at the time because they all have such a different sound. If I am playing live I mix it up a lot, though. I like the jam oriented stuff a lot and most of my older songs lend themselves to that sort of free play bluesy-jazz thing.

-What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free?

Why?

That’s a tough question for me. We all know that the music industry is not what it used to be. A lot of musicians these days carry full time jobs and families, and record for a limited audience for that amount of creative output. Established artists, though, have come to rely on it as part of an income. For example, as a consumer and avid music collector, I always buy the album. I want to have the cover in front of me and read the lyrics and liner notes. As a fan, it helps me feel that much closer to the band. So, it’s hard for me to answer because I can see the other side to, that music is art, and I don’t necessarily feel that monetary value and art should go hand in hand. All of my albums are free online, so I am for it in a sense, too.

- What's coming up for you? What are you working on now and where do you feel your music is

headed?

I’m in the middle of recording the newest album, Samsara. The first two singles from that album are “Antique Noose” and “Long Haired Woman”. They are both on my soundlcoud page and you can download them for free at soundcloud.com/lagore

-Thank you for this conversation and the fantastic music video that you recorded for us! Is there any piece of musical advice you would like to give to our readers before we finish?

Watch a brand new performance that L.A. Gore recorded specially for you!

Thanks for having me! Just keep playing and rocking, guys! Most importantly, peace & love!