Kickstand Jenny (Credit: Keoni Keur)
Kickstand Jenny’s guitarist and founder, Preston Morelock, talks to Jason Barnard about the unexpected journey that turned into their new album, “Between The Lines.” From poignant memories in “Take Me Back To The Time” to the challenges of reinterpreting “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” Preston shares insights into their approach to revitalising the rock scene.
How did the band Kickstand Jenny come together, and if you can say, what inspired the name?
This whole thing started out as a project meant for licensing deals and song demos.. I (Preston / guitarist) was working with my friend (famed producer/songwriter) Chas Sandford at his studio in Nashville.. We started recruiting singers and musicians to demo some songs I had written during The Covid Pandemic, and we were able to get Mark Slaughter (Slaughter), Scott Foster Harris (LA Guns) and others to perform on the tracks.. After hearing Scott’s voice, we decided to go after him.. I sent him four more tracks and asked him to join the band to make a full album.. After hearing the tracks, he decided that he wanted to be a part of it.. What started out as a simple project evolved into an amazing album full of great tunes.. And here we are..
The story behind the name is a great one, but unfortunately we have to keep it a secret for now.. haha.. We can tell you that it is based on real people and real events.
Can you share more about the concept behind “Between The Lines”?
The album itself is a concept album which tells a story from beginning to end.. The theme is about the loss of a loved one.. The songs play like the loss is a human, but in reality the songs are about the loss of the music itself.. When I was writing the songs, I was really burned out from playing music and doing shows.. Especially during covid.. So the songs are about leaving the music behind.. I knew I would regret and miss it if I quit, so the songs follow that concept.. The tracks start with “Love It or Leave It” which is self explanatory.. From there, you have “Standing In The Doorway” and “Solo”, which tell the story of being over the situation, and leaving it behind.. From there you have “Never Gonna Let You Go” and “Tonight”, which touch on remembering and dreaming about what you had.. “One More Day” and “Take Me Back To The Time” touch on wanting it back and wishing you could have it again.. Then you have “Death Trap” and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” , which signifies the concept of death and then the resurgence of the love (the music).. The album ends with the truth known all along… “Only Love Can Break Your Heart”.
The album features Mark Slaughter on the track “Solo.” How did the collaboration come about, and what was the experience like working with such an influential figure in the industry?
We were opening for Mark a few years ago, and kind of hit it off.. Mark was extremely nice and we all got along.. Our Bassist, Chris asked him if he would sing on our next album, to which Mark said “sure”.. So when the time came, we held him to that promise. ha!.. We also have a mutual friend, Chas Sandford, who was producing the album, and Mark happens to live about ten minutes from Chas’ studio in Franklin, Tennessee.. So, the stars really aligned for us on that one!! We sent him four tracks to check out, and he picked “Solo” to sing.. He said it reminded him of his old band The Vinnie Vincent Invasion.. Ironically, he left that band to go solo, which is what the song is about.
It was such an amazing experience, not only to have him on the record, but to be able to see a seasoned pro work in the studio.. It was an experience I will never forget..
Can you delve deeper into the inspiration behind the lyrics of “Take Me Back To The Time” as well as the video?
“Take Me Back To The Time” is about my high school sweetheart, Christina.. Every day after school, we would go to her house to hang out and watch music videos on MTV.. This was back in the day when they actually played music videos.. Or we would hang out in the driveway on her dads old Chevy tailgate.. We were at the stage in our lives when we wanted to graduate, grow up, and move away, not realizing how good we had it.. So the song reflects on how good life was and the desire to go back to those days.
The music video is basically a remake of those memories. We rented an old house in Nashville to make the interior scene. You can see the couple watching music videos while the band is playing the song. I purposely put Van Halen, Bon Jovi and Aerosmith videos in the background, as those were my favorite bands from that time.. The outdoor scenes were filmed at Gerge Jones and Tammy Wynette’s old plantation home, where we used an old Chevy Truck to hang out on.
The group has had the opportunity to perform with Living Colour, Sebastian Bach, and L.A. Guns. How have these experiences influenced Kickstand Jenny’s musical journey?
We have been so blessed to be able to play with these other bands.. We learned so much along the way.. Not just musically, or performance wise, but how to treat others and how not to treat others.. Ha!
Playing with Mark Slaughter paved the way to have him on the album, and playing with LA Guns paved the way to have Scott in the band, as Scott used to sing for LA Guns.
“Between The Lines” is referred to as a concept album about the death of live music during the pandemic. How did the pandemic impact the band’s creative process and the themes explored in the album?
The pandemic allowed me (Preston) to finish this project.. Not being able to play out live allowed me to have the extra time needed to make this happen.. As the concept album plays out like the loss of a loved one, it is actually about the music itself which was killed during Covid.
“One More Day” is a track about the loss of a loved one. How did you approach capturing the emotions in both the lyrics and the music for such a poignant topic?
Everyone has gone through some sort of hard loss.. Whether it is break up, or death of someone close, everybody can relate to it.. “One More Day ” is about the loss of a loved one, and it is a remembrance song.. As time goes by, the desire to have them back and desperation gets stronger and stronger.. That is how I wanted to approach the song.. I wanted the music to build along with the desperation.. The song starts simple and calm and builds throughout, to end with a multitude of sounds and emotions.
What challenges did you face in reinterpreting “Jumpin’ Jack Flash”, and how did you make it uniquely Kickstand Jenny?
When you remake any song, you are taking a chance. You are totally setting yourself up for some criticism.. Especially if you cover an epic band like The Rolling Stones!! So, in my opinion, you either need to make the song sound unique and/or you better make it sound as good or better than the original!! And even then, you are still taking a chance.. In the end, we felt this song was different enough, yet still good enough to put on the album.
How much creative input do you have in the production of your music, and how did the collaboration with producer Chas Sandford contribute to the final sound of “Between The Lines”?
I am pretty OCD, so I had all of the work done even before we stepped foot in the studio.. I absolutely love and respect Chas, and we have been friends for a long time, but I made his job easy for him.. haha.. He really just needed to push record and let us go.. On the other hand, Chas’ experience with the recording process, and the equipment he has in his studio is something I can not control.. That is where it really helped to have him on the project.
Finally, can you share any upcoming plans that we can look forward to?
We are currently working on our tour, and we can not wait to get on the road. The goal is to be an opening act for one of our label’s main acts.. Hopefully we will start filling up our calendar for spring and summer.
