EMQ’s With AARON KUSTERER
Hi everyone! Welcome to another EMQs interview, this time with USA Musician and Producer, Aaron Kusterer. Huge thanks to him for taking part.
What do you play and can you tell us a little bit about the history of what you do?
I’m a guitarist, vocalist, producer, and mix engineer. I started playing guitar when I was about 9 years old and a lot of it was because my Dad bought me my own acoustic guitar. By the time I was about 14, I had made up my mind that I wanted to work in music. Things started to pick up a bit when went to school in southern Missouri for music and then joined the US Air Force Band. The military band was my first contact with real professional musicians. That scenario unleashed a deep dive into touring and working as a music director. It was also through that experience I started honing my engineering chops under a few different audio engineers that were kind enough to lend their time and expertise. After I completed my time there, my wife and I moved to Los Angeles. LA is an entirely different experience and you have to learn really quickly and fulfil what’s needed at a high level. Between learning what gear to use for a specific gig, to how to dress, how to sound—it was a crash course. Even still, every day presents something new to learn from! Which is great because then you don’t stagnate as musician—keeps you on your toes!
What Country / Region are you from and what is the Metal / Rock scene like there?
I’m originally from St. Louis, Missouri but work out of both Los Angeles, California and Honolulu, Hawaii. The rock/metal scene in Los Angeles is very much alive, although many acts seem to tour out from there as opposed to working in town. I think a big part of it is what you as a player/band make of it and what you want to accomplish. In Honolulu, the scene is completely different and rock/metal have much more of an underground vibe to them.
What is your latest release?
My latest EP is called “A Little Louder” released on October 11th, 2023.
Who have been your greatest influences?
That’s a mixed bag of folks, right there! Probably a combination of Sting, Toto, Bruce Hornsby, Chaka Khan, Nickelback, Def Leppard… like I said, it’s a mix. What a lot of those folks have in common though is polish. I’ve always been attracted to polished, tight, well-produced music. If it sounds huge… even better. On the guitar side of things, even though I grew up listening and loving all of the major shred players (Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, etc), I eventually had to be honest with myself in that I really dug the studio cats. Guys like Steve Lukather, Michael Landau, Brent Mason, Dann Huff—these are guys that can write amazing parts that truly sound like they belong on a record. And they can do it live too. I love that and it’s probably been one of the biggest influences on me. On the vocal side, I’ve always loved big voices—singers like Geoff Tait, Bryan Adams, Richard Marx, Richard Page. While I could only hope to do what they do, there is a ton to be learned from folks like that.
What first got you into music?
Music was always present in our house. Between my Mother playing piano (which I was also required to do) and my Dad playing guitar, I was surrounded by music growing up and that really ignited a fire. I also worked at a local music store in Missouri where I grew up and that only drove my passion harder. Being around cool gear helped a lot too!
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician who would it be?
Richard Page or Richard Marx without a doubt. I think that would be amazing and a tremendous learning experience for me.
If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?
Wacken Open Air would be killer. I’ve heard so many amazing things about it and I just think it would be cool to bring my music to a festival like that. At the moment, it seems almost unreal to even wish that but it would be really cool and we can always dream, right?!
What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
Flowered hair clip. If I remember correctly, it was attached to a note…maybe?? I honestly don’t remember.
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
One message… keeping seeking good music and don’t just look to the charts for your music. Some of the most refreshing music I’ve found lately has been closer to the underground than the charts. Seek music and remember… while good is subjective to a point, of course—sounds good, is good. Don’t be afraid to buck the trends and dig what you dig.
If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?
Jeff Porcaro, probably more player than rock star… but definitely a rock star to many, many fellow players out there including myself. If it had to be the classic definition of a rock star, then Eddie Van Halen. I would have loved for him to see what his son is accomplishing. Wolfgang is doing some amazing things and I think it would be cool to see Eddie’s reaction.
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
Getting to do something that I love for a living. Waking up everyday and looking at either tunes to learn (I often work as a sideman for a number of artists) or sessions to knock out in the studio is a truly cool thing to do. That said… there are plenty of dark sides. I hate the “fakeness” that is frequently prevalent with some folks in the industry. I’m a “call it as I see it” and “what you see is what you get” type of person. The overly-wide smile, slightly too excited handshake vibe doesn’t work with me and I generally walk the other direction when confronted with it. I loathe that part of the industry.
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
I would eliminate all that fake behavior!
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
Sting’s “Ten Summoner’s Tales”.
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CD’s or Downloads?
Best probably depends on context for me. But for sheer listening pleasure, I actually miss cassettes and think those are probably best for me. There was a warm presence I remember from my childhood that just doesn’t quite come across in the digital realm.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
Tough question—it’s an even split between playing the Melbourne Cricket Grounds in Australia with the US Air Force Band and playing with Eddie Money in Pittsburgh, PA before he passed away.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
Most likely something in the psychology field.
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
Steve Martin, Martin Short, Keanu Reeves, Geoff Tait, Steve Vai
What’s next for the band?
Well, even though I have a cast of folks that are all friends who played on my EP, we are all working dogs in the industry. Many of us work as sidemen/women. So, the next step will be to get all these cats together to do more as soon as schedules allow! In all seriousness, I have two singles I’m working on right now that will be released later this spring/summer. Looking forward to sharing those with everyone!
What Social Media / Website links do you use to get your music out to people?
You can listen on any of the big streaming services and can select which one via this master link:
LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/aaronkusterer
I’ve also included the primary social media links as well.
Official Website: https://aaronkusterer.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaronkusterer/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aaron.kusterer/
AK Studios & Productions: https://www.instagram.com/akstudiosandprod/
Time for a very British question now. As an alternative to the humble sandwich, is the correct name for a round piece of bread common in the UK either a Bap, a Barm (or Barm Cake), a Batch, a Bun, a Cob, a Muffin, a Roll or a Tea Cake?
Hmm… I’m going to get out of my depth real quick. Ha! A barm???
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
My pleasure and thank you for having me!! Truly appreciated!!
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