Mike Edel just spent the latter part of August playing down the west coast and back up again. From Vancouver to San Diego to San Francisco. Had he had a show in the Los Angeles area, I would’ve made sure to have attended. See, a couple years ago I pushed male artists to the side because I felt like they weren’t giving their all.
Over and over, it was the same song – just a different format. All the rock guys were the same. The pop dudes, the same. Singer-songwriters…yup, the same. Then in walked Mike Edel and I was taken aback. “Go With You” made me cry like a newborn entering the world. A beautiful song that I’m sure will be on many mixes from here on out. We talked about the tearjerker, mantras and more as he wound down one leg of his tour and prepared for the next.
Kendra: In “Finish Line” you mention being a few years in and wanting to quit. What drives you to continue on with everything you do?
Mike Edel: Firstly, this song was originally written for my wife and her friend’s graduation, and I played it for the first time at their Graduation Party. My fav line in it is “There’s a marathon in your mind, but there’s no clock there’s just a finish line.” Hopefully, our motivation comes from an artful, positive and good place, rather than from elsewhere.
Kendra: First of all, I cried listening to “Go With You.” I haven’t done that since Paramore dropped their last record. Anyways, it’s an amazing song with an even better message. Was there something major that inspired this fearless way of life that is void of regrets?
Mike Edel: I did that once too! Thank you:) I’ve listened to that Paramore album once, but would love to listen more. Well, the song is about change, a new orientation, and Thresholds, and I think some major life changes inspired it. Getting married, moving countries, turning 30, our parents getting older – things like that. And I feel like regret is such a fascinating topic, and I hope to erase the word from my vocabulary very soon.
Kendra: Tears also streamed because this can and will be an adored wedding song. I noticed you got married recently. How would you feel knowing someone used your music on their biggest day?
Mike Edel: Yes it totally could be – although we took the music video in a different direction. I’m a bit of a romantic but I try to hide it at all costs. I wrote a song called “Two Of Us,” and I’ve experienced this before. Every time I play it, I send out a little prayer that this marriage works out positively.
Kendra: We’ll hear “Go With You” on your upcoming release. It’ll be the follow up to your 2015 release, India, Seattle. How do you feel this album compares to the last in terms of your musicianship as well as songwriting?
Mike Edel: It’s 100X better and cooler. I love the new record more than almost anything.
Kendra: You also went into this album with the mantra, “consistency is boring.” Have you also applied that to your everyday life?
Mike Edel: I’m a pretty consistent human, so I haven’t adopted this for my own life, although in certain situations I lean this way. I think in art/media/culture, we are also looking to stretch ourselves and what we make – this is why we had that mantra
Kendra: You just had a string of shows in California and come September you’ll be playing through Canada. Was that your first time on the west coast playing? Will you be adding to those shows? Just want to know what we can be on the lookout for the rest of the year from you.
Mike Edel: That was possibly like my 12th! We’ll have some more shows later in the fall and have some really fun festivals coming up. Next year will be nuts!
