It’s time for another Featured Artist! At SongCast, we’re always looking for new ways to help promote YOUR music. Check out this week’s Featured Artist interview with Noah Kitterick and The Sons of Paupers.

What’s your first musical memory?

My parents used to run a guest house back in the early nineties  As  a kid I would help change the beds etc. One day I found a tape a French couple left behind. On one side there was Fleetwood Mac and on the other Credence Clearwater Revival. Man I played that tape to death. I’m still a big fan of both bands especially their early stuff.

What artist inspires you?

There’s a few I guess. I’m reading Neil Young’s autobiography at the moment. I used to play his stuff a lot, people say I sound like him. His endurance through the music decades really is unique. He has never changed his style to conform with new genres, or appeal to the masses, which unfortunately a lot of artists do. I say, if it’s not broken, why fix it? Alongside that, would be Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. Another Legend. I guess, as I myself  mature a little, the guys leaving the longest legacy inspire me the most.

What’s your latest track or album?

We have just put the album ‘If you have something to say….’ up for release. There’s about five years worth of material there, songs that have been knocking around in my head for a long time. It’s great to have them down and finished. It opens the path for new works. We are working on a second album which should be ready in late Spring. The songs sound good, more accomplished musically I think. I guess it gets a little easier, with more experience

What song or album do you HATE?

Don’t really have one, because I wouldn’t listen to anything I don’t like! I never really got the whole ‘dance’ scene though. I really think that genuine musicians suffered over the past ten or fifteen years due to the mass marketing of that genre. Throw some girl and boy bands into the mix and one could really go ‘off the rails’. Let’s just say I hate all of the ‘Now’ compilations!

What’s a song or album everyone should be listening to right now?

I still listen to Blind Melons Soup album nearly 20 years on. One of the greatest I reckon   Started listening to ‘The Veils’, ‘Nux Vomica’ recently, that’s good. Everyone should have the ‘The Frames- Fitzcarraldo’ in their collection!

What profession would you choose if you couldn’t choose music?

I work as a carpenter and really enjoy it. Working with timber is very therapeutic and I enjoy creating something from my head. I am currently completing my workshop/studio where these ‘wonders’ will take place.

Tell us more about your local scene.

It’s not great to be honest. I mean to say, there are a lot of great musicians in and around Connemara, but nobody is willing to push the boat out. There are heaps of ‘cover’ bands with great musicians but you get the feeling that you’ve seen it all before. We are the only original band for miles around, but it’s difficult even to get gigs. People become very comfortable with familiarity and are not willing to try something new around here. We will be setting our sights a little beyond, for 2013.

As a performer, what would be your ‘perfect’ live experience?

Somewhere small, sweaty, and up close. Getting close to the fans is great, I find you can really draw energy from a crowd when they are close and enjoying the sound. I go to the Rory Gallagher festival regularly where the bands play in small pubs. The energy there is unreal, and the musicians look like they really enjoy it. It’s always at breaking point, but they always pull it off….fantastic.

What aspect drew you to the particular genre of music that you now perform/write?

The grunge scene of the nineties definitely captured my imagination. Bands like Pearl Jam and Blind Melon have a huge influence on our sound. I love the high impact of Grunge, without all the distortion you find in Heavy Metal. All the instruments come through clearly. Along with that, the Blues scene of the Sixties and seventies. I listen to a lot of Peter Green, Led Zeppelin, Rory Gallagher and Canned Heat. They definitely have encouraged my guitar playing.

Share one personal event in your life that greatly influenced a song/album that you have created during your musical career.

Something of a midlife crisis at the age of 27. Seems like that age corrupted a few artists, some of which did not survive. It is to me, a very pivotal time in one’s life, something of a coming of age and time to make a plan for the future. Seems I got through relatively unscathed and a few decent tunes to show for it. ‘Before We Start’ is the last song I wrote from this era, I knew then I had to move on.

A big thanks to Noah Kitterick and The Sons of Paupers for speaking with us this week!  Check them out on Facebook and SoundCloud.

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