"Musicians of today are very strong at technique, it's incredible, but it sometimes lacks personality... Concerning the guitar skills/technique, it's just a tool for me. The most important thing is emotion. Music is a language, and what is important is what you say, more than how you say it..."

Phil Vermont: A Modern Blues Trip

The music of Phil Vermont is rooted in rock and modern blues artists like Joe Bonamassa, Eric Gales, Larkin Poe, Gov't Mule... His virtuoso guitar playing may remind us of Gary Moore, ZZ Top or Stevie Ray Vaughan. Electrified by the energic groove of Jean Michael Tallet and Clément Landais, Phil Vermont Will give you good vibrations with his great show! Phil Vermont and his band had been on studio for a brand new album! This new cd "Time Has Come" had been produced by well know American bluesman Neal Black and will be released on the 8th of November. Phil was playing/singing in a Stevie Ray Vaughan/ Jimi Hendrix cover band. He was guitarist/singer with the country rock band Texas Line too. Phil had a lot of experience as sideman in the past, and toured all Europe with latino rock band "La Familia", and had produced/composed two albums with the progressive metal band Superscream. The band started with covers of Jimi Hendrix, ZZ Top, Santana, Dire Straits, and had a great success with those first gigs at Le Havre. Near after, the band opened for Kimberose in a great place: the Magic Mirror at Le Havre.

(Phil Vermont / Photo © by Jeff Lescene)

Phil Vermont & the Electric Wizards band had a great success again, and Phil decided to start writing songs for a future album. But with because of covid pandemic, the band had to take a long break, and Gregory and Jean Marc had to leave the band. Phil's new band was opening for the American bluesman Neal Black at the Soubock, Cauville. Neal had heard Phil's show, and enjoyed it, so he proposed to be the producer of his new album. Then Phil and Neal started to work together on Phil's songs. The recording started in October 2023, and was finished in June 2024, then the band started to play in festivals, and open for Neal Black, Bernard Allison, Little Bob, etc.

Interview by Michael Limnios / Photos © by Jeff Lescene

How has the Blues and Rock music influenced your views of the world? What moment changed your music life the most?

Well, first, it changed my whole life! The first time I heard rock music, I think it was « Money for nothing » by Dire Straits on the radio. At that time, I didn't even know that kind of sound could be produced on an electric guitar, but when I heard this riff, I knew that I wanted to play guitar for the rest of my life... Later, when I tried to get guitar lessons, my teacher was a classical guitarist, so he didn't know a lot of rock and blues songs, but he was teaching another student a kind of instrumental delta blues with a fingerpicking part …I loved this song so much, that I tried to learn it only by ear... I think at this exact moment, I really started to be a musician...

Considering how rock & blues music changed my life, I think the most important thing it gave to me was freedom... Rock/blues music tells us that you don't have to be like everyone else, you can be yourself, and if you're honest, it can bring something interesting to your life and in the lives of everyone who likes what you're doing... In a world where freedom is diminishing, where a lot of people are lost, hypnotised by their smartphones, I think this point of view is very important...because it could inspire young people, and why not, save the world!!! (joke)

Another important thing is that blues and rock were black music at the beginning... And if we take a look at USA history, it has helped black people to be more accepted by white people, and teaches us that mixing races and mixing different styles of music is good for everyone.. In these troubled times, I think it's these kind of moral values that are so important to remember...                      (Phil Vermont / Photo © by Jeff Lescene)

"1) You have to be really honest in music (like in real life anyway!), because it's the only way to really touch the people's hearts. That's what Neal Black said to me when we recorded the album, and when I met Bernard Allison, He said the same thing, and I totally agree with them! 2) Don't listen too much to other people, do your own thing... You can take advice from people who are well meaning, but you have to remember everybody sees you and your work subjectively and not objectively."

How do you describe your sound, music philosophy and songbook? What's the balance in music between technique (skills) and soul/emotions?

I try to get the most expressive sound I can...I like when my guitar sound growls, when the sound is fat, with a vintage/seventies inspiration. My music philosophy is linked with your first question: I think everybody has to find their own way to play music...There are a lot of good music schools today, but they often teach you  an academic vision of  music: Rock has to be played like that, blues like that... When I think about Jimi Hendrix, he learned to play the blues, but he learned to play a lot of different kinds of music too (soul, rock, hard rock, jazz), and was trying to do his own mix of all those influences with his own guitar technique. That's what I try to do too ...Once again, music schools are very good to learn harmony, technique, music reading, but they don't teach you to be yourself and to do your own music...

Musicians of today are very strong at technique, it's incredible, but it sometimes lacks personality... Concerning the guitar skills/technique, it's just a tool for me. The most important thing is emotion. Music is a language, and what is important is what you say, more than how you say it... I like guitarists like BB King or Albert King, they don't have a big technique, but they have a lot of soul in their guitar playing. But I like Joe Satriani or Gary Moore too. It's not a fight between emotion versus technique, emotion is the goal, guitar technique is the tool. I try to use my guitar technique to produce emotions, because people don't care about if a guitar part is hard to play or not, they just hear the music, and it talks to their souls... or not ! Finally, nobody but the guitarists cares about technique!

What are some of the most important lessons you have learned from your experience in the music paths?

1) You have to be really honest in music (like in real life anyway!), because it's the only way to really touch the people's hearts. That's what Neal Black said to me when we recorded the album, and when I met Bernard Allison, He said the same thing, and I totally agree with them! 2) Don't listen too much to other people, do your own thing... You can take advice from people who are well meaning, but you have to remember everybody sees you and your work subjectively and not objectively.

"Another one is music made by AI. If the music industry can make music without musicians in the future, I’d be very concerned about composers and arranger’s jobs… Likewise, I hope live music would continue to generate interest for young generations… But, if you wanna know my hopes, I'm pretty sure someday, like anything else, music made by computer will be obsolete, and I'm sure people will reconnect with core human values." (Phil Vermont / Photo © by Jeff Lescene)

Are there any specific memories or highlights of your career that you would like to tell us about!?

A big highlight of my career which was very important was the first gig with my project at Magic Mirror, Le Havre...We were just playing covers at that time, when the band started. It was very different from what I’ve done in the past, because I was the lead singer for the first time on a big stage, and I was feeling the public reaction more than when I was just a sideman...It was so good for me, it became an inspiration for me to start a solo career... Another very important moment was when I met Neal Black (producer of the album) for the first time...I was honoured to play with him, because I'm French, I try to be a good musician, and to be as respectful as I can to all blues /rock culture, but... He's born in USA, and he's born in that culture... He's a real native bluesman (and an awesome guitar player!), so I was a little bit anxious about what he would think of our show... But he liked the songs and my guitar playing when we jammed together and he offered to help me record this album... I was the happiest man in the world!!! Later, when we worked on the album, it was really a good experience, we had an instant friendship, and the collaboration was very simple and organic...

Why do you think that the Blues music continues to generate such a devoted following in France?

There's a big and very organised blues network in France, and some people in this network are very passionate people, that's probably why. There's always been a kind of fascination for the US culture in France... I actually work a lot with a country rock band called Texas Line when I don't play with my own project, and there's still a lot of people who come to gigs each time we play... Maybe because of history too, because Uk and USA saved France from a German invasion... Another reason could be the fact there's a big blues network in France, and I can see it's a very well organised community, made by passionate people... I don't know how it is in other countries, but for France, I think that’s a part of the answer... But we must be careful, because there's not a lot of young people in this community... so it's important to bring to the blues to young people. I had a long conversation yesterday with Fred Delforges who very active in France blues federation, and he does a lot of things for that cause. Anyway, the blues talks about things that anyone can be affected by...Everybody in the world has known sadness and needs, I think today, it's still universal music, we just have to spread the word as far as possible.

"Because it's a very human thing when all our lives are polluted by computers and fake news! And there's a political angle too. Blues at the beginning was slave music...It tells a lot about how humanity can be bad, stupid and egotistic... And we have to remember this, because we could easily make the same mistakes again." (Phil Vermont / Photo © by Jeff Lescene)

What do you miss most nowadays from the music of the past? What are your hopes and fears for the future of?

What I the most, like I said in another question you asked, is strong musical personalities...and people who try to promote them too! Once more, there's a lot of young incredible musicians in the world today, but unfortunately, there's not a lot of place for them in the music business… Big record companies have probably a lot to do with it, because they don't take a lot of risk promoting original artists... The fact is that we had a lot of evolution in music between 1920 and 2000, but since this time, there are not many new musical styles that have appeared… The last one was electronica, and that was twenty years ago!!!! Why? Probably because now, we sell music like it was a commercial product like anything else...Big medias has the responsibility to raise people, but that's not what they do...If Queen, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan were born today, I'm not sure they would have the same success...Image has a strong influence too, much more than music...

My fear is that new generations won't have a lot of interest in music... Another one is music made by AI. If the music industry can make music without musicians in the future, I’d be very concerned about composers and arranger’s jobs… Likewise, I hope live music would continue to generate interest for young generations… But, if you wanna know my hopes, I'm pretty sure someday, like anything else, music made by computer will be obsolete, and I'm sure people will reconnect with core human values. To be in the same room, enjoy music together, be respectful of each other, feel the same emotion at the same time because of the music... I think it's a very human thing, and I'm sure that can’t be replaced...Live Music will live forever because there still will be people who have emotions to express, and people to hear that and enjoy it.

What is the role of music in today’s society?

The role of music today isn't the same than in the past...In the past, music helped people to be more tolerant… Now, for the most part of people it's just like one more consumer product like anything else...I think famous songwriters of today have to denounce all of that...That's the role music has to play in today’s society like in the past: make the world better and help people to connect with each other.

"The most important thing for me is to stay aware of all kinds of music, and continue to discover new artists... I saw last month in a magazine that most people in the world stop discovering new music at the age of thirty years... I try to listen a lot of recent albums." (Phil Vermont / Photo © by Jeff Lescene)

Why is it important to we preserve and spread the blues? 

Because it's a very human thing when all our lives are polluted by computers and fake news! And there's a political angle too. Blues at the beginning was slave music...It tells a lot about how humanity can be bad, stupid and egotistic... And we have to remember this, because we could easily make the same mistakes again. In all USA and Europe, extremists are powerful and man, it's not a good thing for the whole world!!!

But Blues Music gives us hope too, because it tells us that even when people are struggling to cope with life, they can create amazing things, amazing music. In these troubled times, each time I watch the news on TV, I get inspired to get my guitar out and write a song about what I see...

What are you doing to keep your music relevant today, to develop it and present it to the new generation?

The most important thing for me is to stay aware of all kinds of music, and continue to discover new artists... I saw last month in a magazine that most people in the world stop discovering new music at the age of thirty years... I try to listen a lot of recent albums.

For example, I'm a huge fan of Larkin' Poe, those two girls have a modern approach of the blues rock that is very inspiring for me.... I like Marcus King too...In my guitar playing, I have the same way of thinking, I'm listening to guitar players like young Matteo Mancuso. He's totally incredible, and his guitar skills are very interesting!

Another way to keep music relevant is my composition technique (Anyway, I hope so!), I compose all my songs without an instrument, with just a pen and a paper, and I write my ideas down only if a riff,  a hook, or a refrain stays in my mind for a few days... I hope if that if a new musical idea stays in my mind, it will do the same for future listeners...

Phil Vermont - Home

(Phil Vermont / Photo © by Jeff Lescene)