Interview with Miles Salter of Miles and The Chain Gang (UK)
By Mick Michaels
The Cosmick View: Hello, Miles
and welcome to The Cosmick View/MBM Ten Pounder! Thanks for taking
some time to chat with us!
CV: Describe your definition of ’Miles and the Chain Gang's
sound and style and how does that definition uniquely describe the music?
Mile Salter: It's Rock n Roll, I guess. Singer-songwriter stuff (Springsteen, Van Morrison) mixed with new wave (The Jam, The Police, The Pretenders), mixed with Soul (Sam Cooke) and a bit of country and blues stuff. Your Dad's record collection, basically! The band are: Miles Salter (Guitar, vocals), Bill Hickling (drums), Tim Bruce (bass), Alan Dawson (lead guitar).
Mile Salter: It's Rock n Roll, I guess. Singer-songwriter stuff (Springsteen, Van Morrison) mixed with new wave (The Jam, The Police, The Pretenders), mixed with Soul (Sam Cooke) and a bit of country and blues stuff. Your Dad's record collection, basically! The band are: Miles Salter (Guitar, vocals), Bill Hickling (drums), Tim Bruce (bass), Alan Dawson (lead guitar).
CV: Today, everyone talks about artist and audience connection. Is such a level of connection actually achievable for an artist and if so, how have you made the connection to your fans?
MS: I think it is absolutely achievable but it
helps a lot if you have a team working with you, helping with PR, marketing,
videos etc. It's important to be visible, and that is not easy because there is
so much STUFF out there, all the time. Have we done it? A bit. We have a
loooooong way to go. It's starting to happen. It's hard work, building things
up. At the start of 2020 we had nothing. We've been working on a web presence
with a video and social media, etc. It's building slowly.
CV: Is fan interaction an important part of The Chain Gang's inner culture?
MS: Oh for me, it is absolutely critical. We really
want to connect with people, through the music, through gigs and videos. Like I
said, it gets a lot easier when you have a team helping you. Record companies
still have their place, even though a lot of bands are independent in outlook.
CV: Can a band truly interact with its fans and still maintain a level of personal privacy without crossing the line and giving up their “personal space” in your opinion?
MS: For us, it's not a consideration at the moment
because we've just started, and there is a long way to go. I think if you
become a “celebrity” then it becomes an issue. Your private life becomes scrutinized;
photographers follow you to the shops. I imagine that is pretty annoying. It
sort of comes with the territory, though. If you put yourself on TV, you're
going to get intrusion. I am quite a private person. I don't go to London
nightclubs. York is fairly quiet compared to the big cities. I think it's how
you live your life. Having a home and a family is important. Van Morrison has a
song called “Ordinary Life.” He sings “Ordinary Life, be my rock in times of
trouble…bring me down to earth, keep my feet on the ground.” I know what he
means. Buy the groceries. Walk the dog. Be real. Don't get too tied up with
your ego.
CV: Is music, and its value, viewed differently around the world in your opinion? If so, what do you see as the biggest difference in such multiple views among various cultures?
MS: In the west it is tied up with commerce and
capitalism. That has its good points and its bad points, although I have always
spent money on buying music and going to gigs, from being about 13 onward. I
suspect if you go to India, or Sri Lanka, or Viet Nam, or parts of Africa, you
would find a different approach, a more communal one. And that is the root of
music, really. Folk music was a communal experience; it was about singing the Blues
together. The Africans brought it to America, during slavery. The people in
rural Scotland did. Music is a great bond. I went to see The Stereophonics a
while ago and it reminded me of the power of music, all those people singing
along at the O2 in Leeds. It was fantastic. Music connects us in a way few
other things do. It is a very communal experience; it reminds us of us our
humanity…the things we share.
CV: Do you feel that a band that has an international appeal, will tend to connect more so to American audiences? Would they be more enticed or intrigued to see the band over indigenous acts because of the foreign flavor?
MS: I hope we have an international appeal. A lot of my favorite artists
are from the USA…Springsteen, Jackson Browne, REM…people like that. I don't
know if they would be enticed or intrigued. It's probably too early to say at
the moment. We have such a long way to go. I'd love to play USA, though.
California, New York, Boston, Memphis...
CV: Has modern-day digital technology made everyone an artist on some level in your opinion? Have the actual lines of what really is an artist been blurred?
MS: Very good question. Technology has democratized art; it has made it accessible to everybody. You can self-publish your book, put out your music…get yourself on Youtube. But is that always a good thing? There is a lot of dodgy art out there. I met somebody the other day who was selling her books at a stall. She showed me a poem. I was like 'oh dear'. Not my thing at all. Ghastly. But, on balance, you would have to say the universal aspect is a good thing. It means people can be heard, their stories and voices are out there. I remember when I pressed my first cassettes in 1993…my own songs. It was an amazing moment. So exciting. Here are my songs!
CV: Has modern-day digital technology made everyone an artist on some level in your opinion? Have the actual lines of what really is an artist been blurred?
MS: Very good question. Technology has democratized art; it has made it accessible to everybody. You can self-publish your book, put out your music…get yourself on Youtube. But is that always a good thing? There is a lot of dodgy art out there. I met somebody the other day who was selling her books at a stall. She showed me a poem. I was like 'oh dear'. Not my thing at all. Ghastly. But, on balance, you would have to say the universal aspect is a good thing. It means people can be heard, their stories and voices are out there. I remember when I pressed my first cassettes in 1993…my own songs. It was an amazing moment. So exciting. Here are my songs!
CV: How would you describe the difference between an artist who
follows trends and one who sets them?
MS: Hey, good question! I think courage and authenticity are important. Make your own path. Follow your own instincts. Bob Dylan is a great example here. And Kurt Cobain and Thom Yorke from Radiohead. They were all interested in following their instincts, and they were all leaders, and people followed. It takes guts to be a leader. You have to stand up for yourself, know what you want, not compromise on the things that matter, which, for me, is usually about quality. The sadness with Cobain is that he killed himself. That was tragic. There's too much tragedy in music. I watched the Janis Joplin documentary the other week. She was totally a leader who set trends - a woman who sang the blues brilliantly, and was an example in many ways. But she blew it with drugs. Dead at 27. I felt sad and angry at the end. Sorry, I've gone away from the question.
MS: Hey, good question! I think courage and authenticity are important. Make your own path. Follow your own instincts. Bob Dylan is a great example here. And Kurt Cobain and Thom Yorke from Radiohead. They were all interested in following their instincts, and they were all leaders, and people followed. It takes guts to be a leader. You have to stand up for yourself, know what you want, not compromise on the things that matter, which, for me, is usually about quality. The sadness with Cobain is that he killed himself. That was tragic. There's too much tragedy in music. I watched the Janis Joplin documentary the other week. She was totally a leader who set trends - a woman who sang the blues brilliantly, and was an example in many ways. But she blew it with drugs. Dead at 27. I felt sad and angry at the end. Sorry, I've gone away from the question.
CV: Has music overall been splintered into too many sub-genres in
an effort to appease fan tastes in your opinion? And has such fan appeasements,
in actuality, weakened music’s impact as a whole by dividing audiences?
CV: What can fans expect to see coming next from you?
MS: We have a video out, for a song called “When It
Comes To You.” We have had over 1000 views, which is not bad. People can take a
look at that. We are working on a video for our
song “Drag Me To The Light,” which will be our second main release, out Autumn
2020…hopefully. I'd like us to do an album, but it won't be out in 2020. And
gigs…I really want to get out there and play, hopefully soon.
CV: Thanks again Miles for
taking some time and talking. It is greatly appreciated.
MS: Thanks guys. Please do keep in
touch.
Miles and
the Chain Gang's latest single 'When It Comes To You' is available on
Spotify, GooglePlay, Apple Music and Amazon MP3.
Check out Miles and the Chain Gang at:
Youtube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=V43RLsMBdWc
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Miles-and-The-Chain-Gang
Check out Miles and the Chain Gang at:
Youtube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=V43RLsMBdWc
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Miles-and-The-Chain-Gang
Like The Cosmick View on Facebook at:
www.facebook.com/TheCosmickView 
My name is Mick Michaels...I'm an artist, music fan, songwriter, producer, show host, dreamer and guitarist for the traditional Heavy Metal band Corners of Sanctuary. Writing has always been a creative outlet for me; what I couldn't say in speech, I was able to do with the written word. Writing has given me a voice and a way for me to create on a multitude of platforms including music and song, articles, independent screenplays, books and now, artist interviews. The Cosmick View is an opportunity to raise the bar and showcase artists in a positive and inspirational light. For me, it's another out-of-this-world adventure.
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