5 Questions With.... is a chance to get to know up and coming bands you may not be familiar with. Vocalist/guitarist Patrick Kennison introduces us to his L.A. hard rock band Heaven Below, whose self-titled EP is released August 17th.
Give us a history of Heaven Below.
Our bass-player John and I grew up together in San Antonio TX. We moved out here to Los Angeles in 2003 and lived in a Hollywood apartment with our buddy DJ Ashba (Sixx AM, Guns N' Roses). After my band The Union Underground ended, I met Chad our drummer at a Hollywood rehearsal complex. We hit it off formed the band and had John join us and searched far and wide for a killer guitar player. Dozens of auditions later Jesse showed up and blew us away. I was tired of dealing with difficult singers and had been singing on demos and live performances anyway. It only made sense to turn it up a few notches.
How has your sound evolved/progressed from your debut to your new self-titled CD?
Having a couple tours under our belt has made us much more solid as a unit. We decided to turn up the heat on this release by exploring more harmonies, double bass, guitar solos etc. Since we always place song value first, we feel we can afford to get outside of the traditional arrangements of mainstream rock a bit.
How did you decide to cover Pat Benatar's "Heartbreaker"?
We'd been playing "Ace of Spades" by Motorhead as a set closer on our previous tour. The audiences would go crazy. So one day at rehearsal we were warming up with that song, and as a joke I started singing Pat Benatar's "Heartbreaker" over the music. After laughing while playing it we decided it actually sounded pretty cool, so we went ahead and recorded it in the studio.
How did your endorsement deal with BC Rich come about, and why do you prefer their guitars?
I'd had a relationship with them back in my Union Underground days. The new vice president there had always been a fan of my work, even before he worked there. I've always though BC Richs were cooler than the expected Les Paul or Strat. I remember seeing the video for Guns N' Roses "You Could Be Mine" as a kid. When I saw Slash play that Mockingbird I knew I had to play one one day too.
Anything else you'd like to mention or promote?
We just dropped our new self-titled album and we're eager to tour and promote it. Please catch up with all things at www.heavenbelow.com
(photo courtesy Chipster PR)
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