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Recently, I had the pleasure of speaking with the talented Eric “EG” Vines. Among other things, we touch on what he’s been up to during the lockdown, his newest music, his opinion of the music scene today, and what he’s looking forward to the most once COVID-19 breaks.
If you would like to learn more about EG Vines, you can head over to his website, and dig in. Once you’ve done that, check out this interview with Eric. Cheers.
Andrew:
Eric, I appreciate you taking the time today. How have you been holding up over the last year or so? What have you been up to?
Eric:
Thanks for having me! We’ve been hanging in there. Once everything shut down last March, we just put our heads down and got to work. Getting better at the craft and recording an album. Now the album is out there, and we are touring again. Things are certainly looking up!
Andrew:
Before we dive into your professional career, let’s go back a bit. What first got you hooked on music?
Eric:
Weezer’s Blue Album and Green Day’s Dookie came out when I was nine or 1ten, and they were part of my first batch of CDs in the Columbia House exchange program. HOOKED!
Andrew:
Who were some of your early influences?
The aforementioned two bands for sure, Stone Temple Pilots, and Nirvana. I’ve always loved Stevie Wonder and Phil Collins, and before too long, came my love for my favorite two bands of all time — Radiohead, and Led Zeppelin.
Andrew:
Let’s talk about recent events — tell us about your new release, Through The Mirror. Tell us about the album, and how it came together. This record has a bit more of a Rock vibe compared to your past releases. What prompted the change in direction?
Eric:
I just started writing that way. We’ve all experienced a variety of emotions the last couple of years, and I was finding myself lost in social media, and the “news.” It really pissed me off more than anything — just the underlying divisive forces and whatnot. So, I turned up my guitars to match my emotions.
Andrew:
Before you embarked on your musical journey, you were imbibed in Corporate America. What was the moment which led you to shift toward being a full-time musician?
Eric:
It was very much a gradual process, something I knew deep down that I needed to do for years. The moment that gave me the strength to actually make the jump might have been when I first played the song “The Salesman” live. That was the first song I wrote that would quiet any room where I played it, and I think affirmed in my mind that this is what I was meant to do.
Andrew:
The lyrical themes on Through The Mirror cover a lot of bases, ranging from politics, Corporate America, the toxicity of social media, and more. Tell us about your mindset going into and during the recording of this record.
Eric:
I just try my best to chase the muse, absorb myself in the moment, and take what the universe gives me. I do believe there are better ways for us as people to approach a lot of things in life, and I guess, I tend to philosophize. Roll all that up together, and add in the state of things in 2019, and 2020, and you get Through the Mirror.
Andrew:
Between the sonic shift in sound and the poignant lyricism, this record could potentially be a defining moment for you. Would you say this is a true statement record for you?
Eric:
I dunno. I’ll leave that up to others to decide.
Andrew:
Easy ones now. What are a few of your favorite albums, and why?
Eric;
Radiohead’s OK Computer — it hit me at a young, impressionable moment. The soundscapes were unlike anything I’d ever heard before, and Thom Yorke conveys the emotion of a song better than anyone else.
Stone Temple Pilot’s Purple — another one that caught me at the right time to stay with me forever. The album covers a lot of ground, and [Scott] Weiland hooks you in with every word.
Jason Isbell’s Something More than Free — I was still playing in riff-based Rock bands when this came out, and listening to his storytelling on this album made me realize how far I had to go in my songwriting. It lit a fire under my ass!
Bob Dylan’s The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan — growing up, I never appreciated [Bob] Dylan. Probably the voice, and many times bland arrangements. But boy did his early records hit me hard after my [Jason] Isbell revelation.
Andrew:
What other passions do you have? How do those passions inform your music, if at all?
Well, I’m one of those people that spends almost all my time doing or thinking about music. I know some people don’t like going to shows in their downtime once they do it full time, but I still take in a lot of shows. I also bike the trails a lot. That allows me to take a short break from the chaos, get out in nature and reset. I think my bicycle kept me sane in 2020.
Andrew:
In your opinion, what is the state of the music business these days? Should artists be hopeful? Scared? Both?
Eric:
I think you’ll find in the business whatever you set out to find. If you think there’s hope, I believe you’re going to find hope and success will start to come. If you’re pissed off that no one buys records anymore, that most popular music is formulaic bullshit, that’s gonna come across too.
Andrew:
Last one. What’s next on your docket? What are you looking forward to most in the post-COVID world?
Eric:
I’m looking forward to a post-COVID world, first and foremost, if we can get there! I’m just going to stay on the grind. Play a bunch of shows this fall, and try to get as many people to listen to this album as possible. This winter, it’ll be time to start working on the next record, and we have a ton of material to sort through. I’m just excited to be making music, and happy that people are connecting with it. Thanks for the platform. I appreciate you having me!
Interested in sampling the work of EG Vines? Check out the link below:
Dig this interview? Check out the full catalog of Vinyl Writer Interviews, by Andrew Daly, here: www.vinylwritermusic.com/interviews
