INTERVIEW: Despite the ‘Doom’ of his lyrics, Kurt Deimer is all about positive vibes
Photo: Kurt Deimer’s new single is called “Doom.” Photo courtesy of the artist / Provided by O’Donnell Media Group with permission.
Kurt Deimer loves the world of horror. As an actor, he appeared in 2018’s Halloween — spoiler alert: he doesn’t survive against Michael Myers. He also has his own horror movie coming out in 2024 called Hellbilly Hollow. In his music career, he leans into the world of horror as well. His latest single is called “Doom,” and the tune will be prominently featured in Hellbilly Hollow.
But watching Deimer perform live is not necessarily a horror-filled experience. In fact, Deimer and his hard-working band give off positive vibes and generally want the audience to feel inspired and have a rocking good time. Deimer is in the business of positivity, and he wants everyone to know it.
This year has been a memorable one for the musician, whose style of rock ‘n’ roll is somewhere between AC/DC and Queensrÿche. He toured with Skid Row and Buckcherry, amassing a larger fan base at every gig, and he recently wrapped a tour with Mushroomhead. Now he’s taking a well-deserved break from the road, but not for long.
“They’ve been good,” Deimer said about the dates with Mushroomhead. “It’s very appropriate to be out with them because with the horror movies I’ve got coming out and being in Halloween in ‘18 and all that, it’s a good October run with a band that’s kind of in harmony with the Halloween theme, if you will. And we’ve got the freak show after us [Hellzapoppin Circus Sideshow]. It’s like a carnival actually. It’s really cool, and coming off the Skid Row / Buckcherry dates, and we then we did some Buckcherry shows with just us and them, it’s been a good couple months. It’s been really creating many more fans in different parts of the country that we haven’t been to, and it’s been very nice. In fact, right now, I’m back where I went to college in Bloomington, Illinois, back in the ‘80s. This is where I first went to school right after high school, so I haven’t been here in a long time. It’s kind of crazy.”
Deimer started his music career in earnest a couple years ago, and when he began, the singer was shot out of a cannon. His first tour was opening for Geoff Tate, former lead singer of Queensrÿche, an honor that Deimer still cherishes to this day.
“Geoff and I did a video together,” he said. “We’re about to do another project together, and for your first show, to be opening for Geoff Tate, and then all of the people we’ve been with — Tesla, Yngwie [Malmsteen] … it’s sind of like Van Halen did with Black Sabbath back in the day. It was Black Sabbath and then this band Van Halen that had their own sound. I look at it the same way. I’ve got my own unique sound, and I write my lyrics from my heart, trying to help people and teach kindness and being strong for everybody in this crazy world. To be able to go out and present that, it resonates with people, and they can hear my lyrics. They can hear me clearly, and I sing the way I sing. We’re unique.”
Deimer used the word “blessed” when describing his two-pronged career: acting and making music, right alongside each other. One immediately recognizes that the musician-actor would have it no other way.
“To be blessed enough to incorporate having an acting career along with being the frontman of a rock band, it’s pretty cool shit,” Deimer said. “You only live once. I did the family thing. I raised three boys that mean everything to me. They’re all grown up now, for the most part. … So I’ll just do this now until the day I die. I’d rather do this than golf.”
Deimer added: “I try to remind people that when they are in front of me watching our show, all we have to do is be kind to each other and treat each other with respect and dignity and just use common sense. That’s a big theme of mine. Believe me, doing all the things I’ve done in my life, I’ve been kicked to the curb, and I get back up. … Don’t be afraid to get up, follow your dreams, follow your goals. There’s always going to be people in your ear telling you, ‘You can’t do this; you can’t do that.’ I just don’t listen to it. I know I can do it if I put my mind and my heart to it, and I just try to convey that to people.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
