"Hey, the old Greek guy Plato would probably say that I always wanted to play the blues."

The Wired!Band: Dr. Feelgood

Seattle's "The WIRED! Band"  has won the 2012 INTERNATIONAL BLUES CHALLENGE on Beale Street in Memphis playing the HISTORIC DAISY THEATER, HARD ROCK CAFE and B.B. KINGS before winning the Finals in front of a packed house at THE ORPHEUM THEATER. The Wired! Band features Washington Blues Society Performer of the Year and Songwriter of the Year Kevin Sutton with perennial Pacific Northwest rhythm kings Rick 'the stick' Jacobson on drums and his uncle Seattle legend Keith Bakke on bass. Get out and see the WIRED! Band for their sweet and soulful take on the American art form we call "THE BLUES".

Let's talk with Kevin about the blues...

Interview by Michael Limnios

Kevin, when was your first desire to become involved in the blues & who were your first idols?
Hey, the old Greek guy Plato would probably say that I always wanted to play the blues.  All other music is just looking at shadows of the real thing.  He probably wasn’t much into idols either.

What was the first gig you ever went to & what were the first songs you learned?
My first gig had to be that first band concert in sixth grade. I Couldn’t read music, I  just listened and imitated what I heard. My band instructor cured me of that bad habit quickly.  Go tell aunt Rhody was a song I well remember from those days.

Which was the best moment of your career and which was the worst?
The best moment of my career has always been right after a song when people start applauding.  The worse moment is when they don’t.

Tell me about the beginning of the Wired!Band. How did you choose the name and where did it start?
It was the Wired and Unplugged Coffee House Friday Night Blues Jam Band for obvious reasons:  we covered slow nights when the drummer’s wife’s coffee shop Friday night open mike line-up was short or if someone there wanted a back up band. Lot’s of words strung together there, sorry….

How do you describe the music philosophy of the Wired!Band?
Our philosophy is that to play that which makes us feel good is to eventually make others feel like we do.

What are some of the most memorable gigs and jams you've had?
The ones where you play something like you’ve played it a thousand times but it is really only the first time..  Those are the best times. The ones where nobody is playing it safe and playing it the way they’ve  always played  is mandatory.

How would you describe your contact to people when you are on stage?
Most of my contact is off stage when I go out into the crowd.  The toughest part is to get through the dancers to where people are sitting.  Sometime you end up with your headstock in some pretty awkward places.

Are there any memories of the Wired!Band, which you’d like to share with us?
The best memories are in the van to and from gigs. Out of boredom you end up talking about things you never should have.  So, I really can’t/won’t detail them here. Let’s just say I won’t be running for political office in this lifetime.

I wonder if you could tell me a few things about your experience at International Blues Challenge in Memphis TN
It really is the greatest party ever.   There is no way one person can see it all.  During the whole competition there are touring musicians playing and jamming  till well into the night. No recounting of it can ever be it.

How/where do you get inspiration for your songs & who were your mentors in songwriting?
My inspiration comes from desperation.  People standing there waiting to hear what you’ve got.  Willie Dixon is the MAN.

What does the BLUES mean to you & what does Blues offered you?
Blues is the core quality that all American music elaborates on.  It is music pared down to its real intent.  What it offers is the foundation for playing all other forms of American music.

What do you learn about yourself from music? What experiences in your life make you a GOOD musician?
Music shows us how we perceive the world. If you feel the world you play that way, and if the world is an intellectual exercise to you, you will also play that way. Music IS experience.

Alive or dead, who is the one person that you’d like to meet face to face if they were alive, and talk to over jam?
Willie Dixon.  “The strong overpower the weak, the smart overpower the strong”  Brilliant.

Where did you pick up your guitar style? From whom have you have learned the most secrets about blues music?
My guitar style comes from not being able to accurately play other people’s styles. Besides, blues players have worker’s hands.  They work the soil, they build things, they sweat and toil. After  the day is done they  pick up the guitar. That’s where the sound comes from.

What are the things you’re most passionate about in life?
Human dignity.

Who are your favorite blues artists, both old and new? What was the last record you bought?
Records? They have not made those in years!  I still buy them at  second-hand stores and listen to them. I sure do miss looking at the artwork on those things. They were big enough to fit a poster inside.

How do you see the future of blues music? Give one wish for the BLUES
The future of the blues is secure because there will always be the feeling of the blues. The blues does not need my wishes; I don’t know enough to take on that kind of responsibility.

When you get back home, what do you play besides the blues when you’re kicking back at home or just to have fun?
Old time songs are great to listen to and play.  They are more full of meaning and complexity than they seem right off. I wish I could see and hear them performed back then.  Wouldn’t it be great to hear a Greek Chorus just once to know what it was like? See the look of embarrassment in someone’s face the first time Lysistrata was performed in public- there are some racy bits in that one!

What are your plans for the future? Do you have a message for the Greek fans?
Keep on living.  Americans don’t seem to realize that you cannot do the impossible.  Do the impossible. Be what everyone says you cannot be.

What is the current state of the live music scene in Washington, Seattle where you live?
Alive and kicking. Much like Greece we are isolated by geography.  Its harder to get to and from gigs here.  You might have to go over a mountain pass or  take a ferry. Lots of great blues though. Many bands are doing original material. The Scene really extends from Bellingham in the north all the way to Portland Oregon. The blues societies really help keep the whole scene together: Washington Blues Society, South Sound Blues Society,  and the Cascade Blues Association in Portland. They are critical to creating a “scene.”

Really in my mind come the famous grunge scene in Seattle, what are the difference and similarity between the blues and the grunge?

Grunge is singing about what life feels like independently of what you are told that it feels like .  Estrangement, loss of meaning, lack of bearings, and the idea that society is not declining , it is just changing in a way that most people  cannot understand or comprehend.  That is the blues in a nutshell…..

The Wired!Band