Meghan Patrick
“ Every decision we made , either with writing songs , selecting songs , how we recorded them , had to do with the energy we wanted to put out on stage ,” Kissel shares . “ Every song needed to fit into the set list . If we couldn ’ t play it live , I didn ’ t want it on the record .”
That ’ s a bit different from the approach he ’ s taken on previous recordings , particularly the two released via Warner Music Canada since he signed his deal in 2013 . This time around , he explains , he had both the experience and confidence to assert himself into the process .
“ I ’ m really proud of the new record ,” he begins . “ There were songs previously that I was a bit worried about recording , where I cut them because I thought that was what the industry wanted to hear . This time , I know who my fans are and who I want to cater to , so I knew exactly what I wanted to do going into this . There was no second-guessing on this record .”
Some of that confidence stems from the fact that Kissel was in his element while recording We Were That Song , surrounded in the studio by his longtime bandmates instead of the usual talented-but-temporary cast of Nashville session pros .
“ We did a few songs together on the last record and they went so well , so I talked to my producer and said I truly believe my band is the best [ option ]. They ’ re equivalent to anything that would come out of Music City ,” he explains , and they brought more to the table than just talent .
Being able to comfortably and seamlessly communicate with full trust in one another was critical . If he was after something specific from a given performance , Kissel could call upon years of shared experiences to elicit the right energy or emotion . “ It was , ‘ Let ’ s pretend we ’ re playing a giant festival and give it that energy ,’ or ‘ Remember when we played the Opry , how that sounded ?’ Or even if it was 10 p . m . and we were loose , maybe into the whisky , we could play something like it was the last song in our setlist ,” Kissel recalls .
He could even draw from the experience of playing some of the very songs they were tracking earlier in the year while on tour . Considering how often Kissel and his band are on the road , they often use their shows as a means of testing out new material – what they collectively refer to as “ market research .”
“ We did that purposefully this summer . ‘ We Were That Song ’ and ‘ Anthem ’ were two of the four or five or six [ new ] songs we played all the time this summer , and they were the two that stood out in a big way , so I was able to take that back to Warner and say , ‘ This stuff is going over really well live , and I think we should push it as the first single .’”
“ Every decision we made , either with writing songs , selecting songs , how we recorded them , had to do with the energy we wanted to put out on stage . Every song needed to fit into the set list . If we couldn ’ t play it live , I didn ’ t want it on the record .” -Brett Kissel
They listened . On top of lending its title to the album as a whole , “ We Were That Song ” was its first single and “ Anthem ” was its second . They may have gone over well on the tour leading up to the record release , though now that said record has seen the light of day , they ’ re bona fide room shakers that are strategically placed in the set list on Kissel ’ s ongoing odyssey of a Canadian tour .
“ I wanted this to be the biggest Canadian country tour to ever happen – the most dates and the biggest reach ,” Kissel says of his We Were That Song Tour . He ’ s currently nearing the end of part one , which includes over 60 shows from Ontario to B . C . and plenty of places in between .
“ We wanted to go to places like Melfort [ Saskatchewan ] and Thunder Bay [ Ontario ] – places that maybe don ’ t get real quality country entertainment that often . We want to give it to them ,” Kissel enthuses , and he ’ ll carry that ethos into the next legs of the tour , which he promises will have dates strewn across Quebec , Atlantic Canada , and even the three territories .
From the outside looking in , it seems as though Canada has been particularly hospitable to country music and artists in recent years . The number of domestic country artists with nationwide name recognition is high these days . Between the work of the Canadian Country Music Association and the growing number of country-focused labels , firms , and agencies , not to mention major festivals that act as something of a breeding ground for domestic talent – from Alberta ’ s Big Valley Jamboree to Ontaro ’ s Boots and Hearts Festival to PEI ’ s Cavendish Beach Music Festival – it looks like we have the welcoming markets and industry infrastructure in place to build something big .
But Kissel doesn ’ t see this as all that new of a trend . “ It ’ s not that we ’ re starting to see a groundswell ; I believe we ’ re in the heart of the good days for live Canadian country ,” he offers . “ I ’ m hoping we look back on these days of Meghan Patrick and James Barker Band and High Valley as our best era of live music .”
Kissel is confidently following a blueprint that he drew up himself , though it ’ s one that was inspired by those to come before him and is continually amended as he works to grow his profile in his home and native land and beyond .
“ I watched guys like Paul Brandt and Charlie Major and George Fox like a hawk ,” he says , referencing some Canadian “ musical heroes ” who found some success south of the border . “ You look at who went to Nashville and came back , look at who stayed . They went down there to chase a dream and I ’ m no different ; I ’ ve followed their lead , but I ’ m trying to differentiate myself from what ’ s out there now and just be different and unique .”
CANADIAN MUSICIAN • 35