The Kurt Neumann Interview
Co-founder of the Wisconsin-based roots-rock band BoDeans, Kurt Neumann, not the prolific German film director, screenwriter, and producer Kurt Neumann, who directed films like The Fly and She Devil, first came onto the scene with their critically acclaimed debut “Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams,” which was produced by legendary songwriter, guitarist, and producer T Bone Burnett in the winter of ‘85. Since then, the band has become a harmonious household staple in American culture, representing one of the tonal trailblazers that eagerly balanced the trepidatious tides of commercial success with the intimacy of independence within their craft. Their hit song “Closer To Free” was also featured in the 1995 Disney classic Heavyweights, for all you Millennials out there.
Tell me about growing up in Milwaukee (I still think of Alice Cooper in Wayne’s World when I hear the word 'mill-e-wah-que'), and how you initially became fascinated with music. What was the local music scene like back in the late 1970s? I imagine you guys went to hot spots like Sunset Bowl and Club 400 to see touring bands, etc. Was there a specific moment(s), or show(s) that ultimately defined your choice to pursue music? Before forming BoDeans, what are some of your most fond memories of those formative days before the band took off?
I was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and lived on 51st St. between Lisbon and North Avenue. It wasn't terrible, but it was definitely in a rough area. I saw kids get hit and run over by cars, lots of fights, and was roughed up myself. When I was around nine years old, they found a young girl’s dead body in the garage next door to our house, and that was the dealbreaker for my parents. They decided to move us out to Waukesha, which was different in every way from what I had experienced in Milwaukee. There were cornfields, woods, wide open spaces, and the sound of the wind blowing through trees instead of the sound of traffic and sirens. As far as music goes, I’ve always been fascinated by it. It felt like a place I could hide out from the world, like a safe space. I was captivated by the way the music sounded on AM radio at the time, and then in high school during the 70s, by FM rock. There was so much good music, bands, performances, and great records! It’s like they were speaking my language. I connected with it on a deep level, and that’s where I have resided ever since. Well, I was still in high school, and used to work as a roadie for one of the local bands around Waukesha. They often played the Sunset Bowl, sometimes in Milwaukee or Chicago. It was a good learning experience watching how bands function on and off stage. Everything seemed to happen so fast… From the time I first started working on songs in my basement, to winning a bid for studio time on the local TV auction, to actually getting up on stage and playing our original music. People seemed to respond to our ecstatic energy on stage. It felt as though I was almost in a river that was moving fast downstream. All you could really do was hang on and let the current take you. I found myself in Hollywood in a recording studio with T-Bone Burnett, singing one of my songs that would be our first single from our first record,“Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams.” It really felt like there was an external energy that was rolling along, and I was rolling along with it. I remember it was a lot of fun, a wonderful time, and really fortunate as it was all happening.
As a multi-instrumentalist, the band naturally explores and expresses several genres like heartland/roots/alt rock. During a time when punk/new wave, and hair metal, to name a few, were influencing the world in their respective ways, you guys were on a totally different tonal trajectory. Tell me about those early days of juggling members, finding your place, sound, and playing local spots on the East Side of town? Without divulging too much into the band’s incredible discography as we move forward, I’d like to highlight a few particular bodies of work like “Outside Looking In”, which was produced by the great Jerry Harrison, “Go Slow Down”, my personal favorite if I may say, and “Joe Dirt Car”, an album creatively conceived over several years until its release in ‘95. What were some of the most memorable moments you experienced while bringing these wonderful works to life?
Yes. That was the beauty of coming out of Milwaukee and Waukesha. The trends of the music industry seemed like they were 1,000,000 miles away, and you could do whatever you did with whatever energy you had. I wanted to get people up and moving, singing and feeling good. So that’s what I focused on rather than any musical trend. I still do. I also remember going to rock radio stations after our first record was released, and they didn’t know what to do with us. Luckily, college radio loved us, and MTV played our videos. While working on “Outside, Looking In,“ it was mostly just me and Jerry in the studio working with a studio drummer since our original drummer had just quit the band. So Jerry and I worked on arrangements, tempos, and feel. Once that stuff was done, the rest of the band would come and play their parts. As far as “Go Slow Down,“ I played most of the instrumentation on that record, which is probably the most “me“ sounding of all of our records up until the releases I started putting together in my own home studio. With some of the songs like “Idaho,“ I literally started playing the drums and singing in my head. I would then layer the guitars with vocals on top to build the song up. It would eventually sound like the song in my head. I also came up with a crazy photograph technique to create the artwork for that record. Including lots of naked pictures of myself. For “Joe Dirt Car“ it was just me in the studio with piles and piles of 2-inch tape, going through many years of live recordings we had acquired over time, trying to find the best ones. I was mixing demos to convince Warner Brothers to put the record out and then going back and doing a final mix on all the songs, which the record company thought would be a throwaway album, but in retrospect, it ended up outselling most of our other records.
“People seemed to respond to our ecstatic energy on stage. It felt as though I was almost in a river that was moving fast downstream. All you could really do was hang on and let the current take you.”
Photo: Luciano J Bilotti
Jumping ahead a bit, the band has released nearly 20 albums over the last four decades, most recently 2022’s “4 The Last Time,” been permanently placed in the RRHOF in Cleveland, and have had several numbers chart on Billboard 200, to name a few career highlights. I’m sure there are times when it all seems too weird, or it’s like it's some fever dream from a David Lynch movie. What are you most proud of when you reflect on the overall sonic success and cultural influence of the band? Is there anything else you would like to further share with the readers?
Well, I was immensely proud when the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame called and said they wanted to include us in their Midwest artists exhibit. Just the very idea of being there in that museum amongst all those phenomenal artists is an extreme honor. But really, when I think about it… It’s all of it! All the big shows we’ve played with audiences singing with us. Now for 40 years, people have been showing up, singing these songs with us, and celebrating the band. For all the years the radio played us in such heavy rotation in so many cities. All the movies that have used our music to express the feelings they were trying to convey. It’s all a great honor to have your music even considered in any of these, not to mention all of them. Yes, it can be very surreal. What's in store for the BoDeans as summer begins to unfold? Well, as I said, we’re celebrating our 40th year of being out there playing these songs for all these years since the release of our first record in 1986. So, mostly this year is just about celebrating with the fans. I feel like it’s kind of like a party for all of us who have had so many great moments with the music, concerts, and memories with their friends and families. That’s what I’m focused on this year. Just celebrating with the fans. I’ve put together a lot of new songs that I will be looking to get out to the fans at some point, either later this year or early next year. Other than that, it’s just about peace, love, and happiness… And good things for you and me.
