Earbits Blog Meet Bret Levick in this exclusive Earbits interview

A lot of you out there have heard of the very talented singer - songwriter Bret Levick whose songs have appeared in dozens of TV shows like, Sons Of Anarchy, Shameless and most recently FOX's Lucifer. But for this week's Earbits newsletter feature we really wanted to a more intimate exclusive view on this accomplished musician that is quickly becoming a household name around the country. Bret was nice enough to take the time to answer a few questions, and go into some serious personal depth about his early start in music, who he looks up to and is inspired by, his views on the music industry and lastly, what he is currently listening to at this very minute, and actually... a whole lot more!!Listen to Bret Levick on Earbits EB: When did you start writing and performing music? Have you always seen yourself as a solo artist or have you played with bands before?BL: I went to school in Paris, France, my folks just grabbed me on a whim and moved us there for what was meant to be a year but turned into 18 years when I was 4. Being the only American in my high school I got asked to front a lot of bands and began multiple attempts at writing something decent.After high school I moved to NY fully intending to pursue a career in music and this is where my story becomes a cautionary tale as the next few years are lost to my voracious appetite for mind altering chemicals.BL: (cont.) When I came to a couple years later I was in LA and that's when I started seriously considering the music thing as a craft that needed to be learned and honed. I enrolled in a now defunct music school called the Dick Grove School of Music. That's where my world expanded drastically. The place was a mecca for gifted musicians, composers, sound engineers and vocalists. They had a full analog studio and rehearsal room you could use almost 24/7. I was inspired by my surroundings and began writing about as prolifically as I ever have since and some really good stuff if I may say so...I started getting noticed a bit as a writer/frontman and was able to put together one of the hottest bands I've ever shared the stage/studio with whose name, Cobalt Bloo, did not do it justice Made up of some of the best students and a couple of the school's younger teachers, the level of musicianship was so advanced it would make your head explode.BL: (cont.) There were no limits to what they could play and it made for some really cool and interesting writing. We made some pretty good strides in LA for a couple years, great press, packed houses, some nice opening slots and we became one of the house bands for a hot Santa Monica club called At My Place. This was the early nineties, pre internet when everything was word of mouth. You'd start playing in your neighborhood then expand your fan base outwards... your town, county and neighboring towns, your state, neighboring states etc... Fast forward a couple years (and a few rehabs) I'm stone cold sober and ready to get back in the game so I start writing again (quite prolifically with a whole new arsenal of misadventures to draw from) and showing up at open mic nights to test out my work and get some performing chops back. That's when I put together my band Gifthorse. The writing was more straightforward with fewer chords, good hooks and another great lineup. We recorded our album to actual tape at King Sound, a great vintage analog studio. We drew our inspiration from some of the greats Bowie, The Stones and Iggy Pop. It was like a bizzaro world Lenny Kravitz if he had been inspired by Bowie's Berlin trilogy instead of The Beatles and Zeppelin thing. Really fun! We got picked up and funded by an Indie label called Pinch-Hit Records and began touring up and down the West Coast and doing the NXNW and SXSW festivals.In the mid to late 90s we were actually one of the first indie bands to break out of college radio and briefly chart on commercial FM radio in some cities with a song called Heather's Arrest about a guy's junkie girlfriend getting hauled off to jail.BL: (cont.) Somewhere in there I got married and had my daughter and it became painfully clear that I had to turn the page on the smelly tour van and motel rooms and turn this music thing into a viable income since I didn't really know how to do anything else. I was given a small advance from Pinch-Hit to do a solo album and as luck would have it I made one of the best rash decisions in my life: Instead of spending money on a recording studio, I would buy a Mac Pro and some recording gear and teach myself to produce music while making my record. I locked myself in a room for about a year and produced all of 2 songs. It was like that "teach a man to fish and he feeds himself forever" thing. I never released the album but I came out with a skill that would put food on the table and does to this day. I could write, record, arrange, produce and mix a song, start to finish on my own.BL: (cont.) Most of my fans first heard my music on some TV show and continued following me. I'm humbled and appreciative that there are people out there that dig what I do but I have never had to depend on them to feed my family because most of my income is "mailbox money" from companies who can afford it. There was a time when I really loved the idea of being a band member but I seem to do better as a solo artist.EB: Who do you dream to one day share the stage with? Or perhaps, have you already met your heroes? And if so, did they live up to you expectations?BL: My stage sharing dreams died this year with David Bowie. I've been a huge Bowie fan since I was a teenager, his stuff just speaks to me. Even named my daughter Bowie (who happens to be an amazing singer, much better than me) after him. The good news is that 5 years ago I moved to a small town in southern Oregon called Ashland that is bustling with tremendous artists and musicians. A lot of world-class players got tired of LA and work out of here now, some have just been making great music here for ever. There are musicians in my area that have toured with the artists I grew up loving and I get to play gigs, collaborate and record with them every day. I'm truly blessed and wouldn't trade any of this for 5 minutes on stage with anyone. Besides, my wife comes from "rock royalty" so I have had the pleasure of meeting some pretty cool celebs over the years. I've also carved a niche here recording and producing new artists and bands which has been really gratifying and mostly really cool. It's amazing how many talented people are walking around this world. Grrrr competition!!! EB: What are you currently listening to right now (at this very moment when you're reading this BL: haha, nothing. I'm completely unable to multi-task so writing this in a quiet studio. The last thing on my playlist is this great cover of MJ's Billie Jean by The Civil Wars. I really like this dark rootsy sound lately.EB: Have you written the song that you feel defines who you are as an artist yet?BL: No but there are a handful of songs I've written over the years that I got really lucky with and still like. Ones that came out of me really fast and easy that have been used on tons of shows, that always get great responses when I play them live. But overall music is like underwear, you gotta keep changing it up and not let it define you We can't thank you enough Bret, for taking the time out of your very busy schedule to go into such intimate detail about your start and how you've successfully navigated yourself towards a surging songwriting career and a beautiful family! (btw, we love the name Bowie too, obviously!)Check out Bret Levick's Sky's Falling Now playing on Earbits!Related posts:An Exclusive Interview with Kathryn GallagherAn Exclusive Interview with Audra MaeAn Exclusive Interview with Mads TollingRelated posts:An Exclusive Interview with Kathryn GallagherAn Exclusive Interview with Audra MaeAn Exclusive Interview with Mads Tolling