I first became aware of Peter Bradley Adams‘ musical acumen back in 2005 when he was one-half of the musical duo, Eastmountainsouth, and one of the duo’s songs was featured on the Elizabethtown soundtrack. More recently, Adams has pursued his solo interests, including (as detailed at his website) “Gather Up, Leavetaking, and his most recent, Traces, in October 2009 on Sarathan Records“. If you’re looking to get a taste of Adams music for free, you’re in luck as currently Amazon is offering a sampler of three of his songs here. He’s currently back in the studio, recording his next release-and has established a Kickstarter page to collect funds for it. Before getting into the interview, one last tip-Adams will perform live on WUMB (Boston, MA) next Wednesday, May 26, at 2pm. My thanks to Adams for his time and Sarathan’s Marc Ratner for helping to arrange the email interview.
Tim O’Shea: Over the past several months, your songs have appeared on CBS’s The Mentalist, WB’s One Tree Hill and ABC’s Brothers and Sisters. What do you think it is about your music and/or lyrics that makes it so clearly appealing to TV producers?
Peter Bradley Adams: I think the producers for those shows are just looking for the right mood from a song. And of course lyrics that fit but don’t describe the scene too literally. And I just happened to have a few songs which fit the bill and got in their hands at the right time. I’m lucky.
O’Shea: What motivated you to record the new version of Los Angeles?
Adams: I’ve been playing it on guitar at my shows when there isn’t a piano at the venue. and, as a result, the song became something else that I really liked.
O’Shea: You’re with Sarathan Records. I was curious how much you think you’ve benefited from Sarathan’s marketing efforts through the Internet (such as the free download of Better Way currently available at your website).
Adams: Everything helps, and to have a team of people help you work the internet is so valuable. Their blog outreach has been particularly effective. I’ve been lucky to have them.
O’Shea: From your standpoint, in terms of interaction with your fans (beyond when you’re performing in a venue and have that vibrant and vital performer/audience connection) do you feel you connect better with your fans via MySpace, Facebook or Twitter (or a mixture of all)?
Adams: They all seem to be about the same, although MySpace seems to have become a lot of spam and people trying to promote themselves. It’s still a great place to discover music but not so much for social networking. Twitter also seems to be eclipsing Facebook. But everything peaks and then burns out. I wonder what the next thing will be….
O’Shea: You were born in Alabama, spent a number of years in Los Angeles, as well as some time in Nashville. How much does where you live influence your songwriting? Can you point to certain songs of yours (other than Los Angeles, of course) that clearly were shaped by where you were living at the time?
Adams: It’s hard to say how a place influences the songs. But I can say that since moving to Brooklyn, I’ve been writing songs which are more “americana” than what I was writing in Nashville. May seem backwards, but it’s almost like I find my roots most when I get away from them.
O’Shea: Are you already at work on your next album?
Adams: Yes! Already started recording it. And simultaneously raising money to fund it through a site called Kickstarter.
