Ken Theriot A few well-chosen words with singer-songwriter-guitarist, and stalwart of the renaissance / medieval re-enactment scene, Ken Theriot. Leicester Bangs: Tell us a little about yourself, and your band (if applicable). Ken: I am a singer and songwriter performing mainly acoustic folk-pop / Celtic traditional and original music.  I've been performing and recording for about 15 years. I've released four CDs with Raven Boy Music (a label I started to make music for the renaissance market), the most recent being the long-awaited "Human History" in March of 2008. Look for me at renaissance fairs or events for "The Society for Creative Anachronism" (SCA). LB: How did you start out making music? Ken: I've been singing out loud since I was 5 or 6 years old.  Music always felt like the closest thing to magic there was in real life, and when I was about 12 years old, I started playing guitar so I could accompany myself.  But there wasn't anyone to sing with!  So I started futzing with little tape recorders so I could sing harmony with myself.  It was terribly "hissy," but it’s how I got started making my own music.   LB: Who did you grow up listening to and how do they influence what you’re doing now? Ken: I listened to top 40 radio, TV theme songs, and Broadway musicals.  My absolute favorite artists were The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Eagles, Billy Joel, Jim Croce, and Dan Fogelberg.... and show tunes (laughs).  That odd blend of acoustic "folky" guitar-based stuff pop rock and the story-telling nature of show tunes very much influenced the music I make now.    LB: Tell us about your latest release. Ken: My latest release is called "Human History", which consists mainly of songs that view famous historical (usually medieval or older) events from the point of view of a single character who was there.  There are three songs that tell stories about The Battle of Agincourt using our harmonic pop-folk song style, for example.  Other songs include "Fifty Miles Into the Main," about the Lost Colony of Roanoke.  The songs aren't meant to simply relate the events of these situations, but to convey the emotions of the specific people who were caught up in them.  That's what gives them their appeal, I think.  It makes it come alive for people. LB: Do you get out and play your music live, and if so, what can an audience expect at one of your shows? Ken: We do play live.  But the venues are almost exclusively at festivals and events put on by the renaissance groups like the SCA.  I LOVE 3-part harmony in pop music, and there is lots of that on our recordings.  I never want to disappoint audiences at our live performers by simply not having that harmony, so we have several musicians that play with us and provide that extra voice, or percussion, that two of us can't pull off... at least not without some really whacky surgery (laughs).   LB: What aspects of playing and recording music do you most enjoy? Ken: The effect the music has on people... myself included.  I still think it is the closest thing to magic that there is in real life.  When I play a song, even if I'm all by myself (which I did in college a lot… in the stairwells (laughs), it takes my mind to another place entirely.  And when other people talk about how our music makes them feel, that is what I most enjoy.  I really don't get inherent satisfaction out of writing a song.  That's work (laughs).  And recording, though fun, is also lots of work.  The magic only comes from being "inside" the music, experiencing it when it's all done (either live or on a CD). LB: Where can people find (and buy) your music? Ken: CD Baby, iTunes and my music website. Links below. www.cdbaby.com/Artist/KenTheriot http://kentheriot.com/ www.myspace.com/kentheriot http://itunes.apple.com Ken Theriot – Fifty Miles Into The Main