British melodic rocker Chez Kane and her band were at Sweden Rock in June and Metal Covenant was given the opportunity to talk to this lovely woman about her music, released as well as coming, her other band Kane'd, touring plans and some personal stuff.

Tobbe: You put out a cover version of Ghost's Mary On A Cross in February. Will we see more standalone singles coming out, or was this just a one-off thing?

Chez: It kind of started as a one-off thing, because we thought we'd give it a go while we had a bit of a break between, like, the album coming out and doing some shows, so we wanted to fill a little bit of a gap there, and keep doing stuff, and staying active, but we had quite a nice reception from it so we're hoping to do more in the future, definitely.

Tobbe: And a third album, do you have a release date for it?

Chez: Well, the funny thing is Danny Rexon is actually here as well, so we've been talking this weekend that this needs to happen. So we're talking about it. We don't have a date, but I think it's gonna happen. (Laughs) Yeah, it's coming.

Tobbe: Would it be just stupid to expect something in a different musical direction than your two first albums?

Chez: I feel that we've kind of got our niche. I think we work together really well. It's the style of music that I loved, and it was the first style of music that got me into rock music, and it always has a special place in my heart.

So we've kind of gone down that road and I feel that we need to stay there, because I love performing this music and, yeah, I can expand on different styles doing covers or doing different projects later on, but I just love what we're doing so I'm hoping that we're gonna carry on going down the same kind of road.

Tobbe: And how would you personally describe the music on your two first albums for people who haven't listened to them?

Chez: I would say that there are a lot of influences in there from the 80's, so you could expect little clips of stuff like Bon Jovi, Lita Ford, Vixen and even a bit of Meat Loaf in there. You can just hear how influenced Danny's writing is by these styles of music. I think that kind of nails it on the head. You know, that 80's good feel music.

Tobbe: Was it also your intention in the beginning to come with this style of music, or did he tweak a little bit to make it your style instead?

Chez: So the style of music that I was doing before we did this, 'cause I was in a band previously, wasn't this style of music. I believe it's because music changed over the years and the 80s stuff wasn't really around. Even though I've been highly influenced by the 80s. It started with Def Leppard for me and then I've gone on to bands like Alter Bridge and a bit heavier.

People weren't really accepting 80's style of music that much anymore, but Danny wanted to do it again. He was like, "We're missing that 80s female rocker.". And then he was on the hunt for a singer and found me. We didn't know how it was gonna be accepted, but we thought, "You know what? Let's do it!", and we did it, and everybody seems to like it. Yeah, it was intentional on Danny's part and when he asked me I was like, "100 percent. I want in on this, yeah.".

Tobbe: Do you have any idea what could make your music stand out a little bit more than anyone else's stuff in this jungle of music nowadays?

Chez: It was a hard one 'cause there's a lot of music out there. I don't know; I think that what Danny and I have created is quite special. I think it does really hit on all those old amazing bands that we all absolutely love from the 80s, but I do feel like we managed to put our own spin on it where we've got something special.

It's hard to say when you're talking about your own music, but I feel like we've got something special, yeah. (Laughs) And to be honest, when we released the music we really didn't know what people were gonna think. And it has gone crazy and people have been so amazing. They love the music. Yeah, it has been a crazy experience, but it has brought me here. (Laughs)

Tobbe: As we already know, Danny writes, produces and mixes the albums, but what do you contribute with, besides laying down your vocals on the albums?

Chez: If there is something I'm not happy with or anything, I always speak up about it. I'm the kind of person that I wouldn't ever wanna put anything out that I wasn't happy with. But it's a really weird working relationship with me and Danny because we have the exact same vision. So everything that we put to each other, we're like, "Yeah, that works.". (Laughs) So it's just crazy.

Obviously he has written all the songs. I did try to write a few songs for the second album, but I wasn't feeling them, and, I don't know, he's just gold when it comes to writing this music, and I was like, "I'm gonna leave you to this.", 'cause when I write music I write a bit heavier. A bit more like Alter Bridge then, 'cause I'm highly influenced by them as well.

But he's so good at writing, like Def Leppard stuff, which is where it all started for me, so I'm like, "You continue to do that. I will just sing.". (Laughs)

Tobbe: But on a coming third album, will you at least try to come up with some lyrics?

Chez: I'm gonna give it a go again, yeah, and see what happens.

Tobbe: Is it very different singing other people's lyrics than lyrics written by yourself?

Chez: I don't think so, no. Obviously you do have a special connection when you write your own music, but when you also connect with other people's writing I think it's quite special as well. So, I really connect with his writing.

Tobbe: Honestly, how much is fully machine-made on those records and not people actually using their instruments?

Chez: All of it is Danny. Danny does everything, so. He will send stuff back and forward to me, so I think that's a question you need to ask Danny Rexon. (Laughs) I know he plays all the instruments on the albums. Yeah, he has done all the guitars and stuff, so yeah.

Tobbe: You are on the Frontiers label who are super well-known for putting artists together, so what kind of collaborations might we see from Chez in the future?

Chez: There is nothing planned at the moment. I've done a few since becoming part of the Frontiers family. I did a collaboration with Jim Peterik and I did a collaboration with Tony Hernando. So yeah, I'm sure there will be more. (Laughs) There is nothing planned at the moment, but yeah.

Tobbe: But how many different collaborations can a person do? (Tongue-in-cheek)

Chez: Yeah, exactly. (Laughs) Well, I like to be busy, so, you know.

Tobbe: Well, I guess you've got to be out touring much instead, if you're not recording.

Chez: When I did the first album touring wasn't happening 'cause of Covid. So we thought we'd get straight back into the studio to do a second album. So that's why the two albums came out pretty close to each other. But now I'm making up for lost time and I'm trying to gig as much as I can.

Tobbe: What's it like being out on the road?

Chez: It's what I love doing. This is what it's all about. And the fact that I'm here is absolutely mind-blowing. A festival I wanted to play for many years, and now I'm here, and some of my idols are on this lineup. So, absolutely crazy, but very special.

Tobbe: Tell me how your touring plans will look like in the future, after a third record? Will you promote the record in all of Europe, or will you stay in the UK and maybe Western Europe?

Chez: I would love to go wherever I can. I just love being on the road. I love traveling. So, recently I've done the Monsters Of Rock Cruise in the States, I'm now here, I'm in Spain in two weeks, Switzerland later in the year. I just being wherever I can be and spreading the music, and traveling, and seeing the world. It's what I live for.

Tobbe: What did you think of the Monsters Of Rock Cruise?

Chez: It is a crazy experience. One that you will never forget, and I hope that I get to do it again, because it's just like you're in another world doing that, and you're just hanging around with people that you've looked up to. It's weird seeing people walk around you, like, "Oh, my God! It's them.". It's crazy. I'm just a fan like everybody else as well. You know, I've grown up with this music. And being on the cruise with, like, Winger just standing next to me, you know, it's crazy.

Tobbe: Tell me about your other band, Kane'd.

Chez: So, I've grown up in music. I'm coming from a background of musicians and singers. My father is a singer and my grandparents have been in bands as well, so there was no escaping music for me. (Laughs) The second I could talk my mother said all I wanted to do was sing; I wanted to be like my dad.

My sisters are also singers, so that was the band Kane'd. It was the three of us fronting a band. So we put a band behind us and we started doing rock music. We did that for many years, so this isn't just the start. A lot of people think that I've just done this solo stuff and it has gone boom, but I've literally been doing music all my life.

We were in Kane'd for, I think, like, 13 years. We were trying to get somewhere with Kane'd. It came to a little bit of a halt around Covid, as well as my sisters having babies. So I've got two beautiful nephews. And then obviously I got offered to do the project with Danny, so I branched off to do some solo stuff, which I always wanted to explore as well.

But at the moment they're busy being beautiful mothers, and I'm exploring my solo career, and then you never know, in the future we might do some more stuff together.

Tobbe: I think that the band's music is less polished and maybe a little bit cleaner than the Chez Kane stuff.

Chez: Yeah, we wrote that stuff and Danny writes my stuff now, so it's a bit different. But I think you can really hear the influences in the Kane'd stuff of little bits of Alter Bridge, little bits of, like, Halestorm, and then a little bit of 80s because I've always loved Def Leppard, and one of my sisters loves Bon Jovi, and another of my sisters loves Whitesnake.

And then you've got Harry (Scott Elliott, guitar), who we write with, who is also playing in my band now, and he likes a different style of genre as well. Yeah, you can just hear lots of different influences in that music. And a lot different to what I'm doing now.

Tobbe: Has the thought occurred to you, if your solo stuff goes well, will you ever come back to Kane'd, and what will your sisters think about that?

Chez: We've spoken about it. My sisters love doing this as well. So, it would be cool to get back together and do some stuff. I don't see why we can't do different genres. I can do this stuff and then go back and do a bit of stuff with my sisters. It would be fun, yeah. But who knows what the future holds. They might have more babies yet. (Laughs)

Tobbe: When you were young, how did you train your voice? Was it usually, like, standing in front of a mirror and just screaming your lungs out?

Chez: I've never been that kind of person, who just stand in the mirror and sing to myself. Obviously, it's natural because I've sung. My parents always said that I was gonna be a belter because I was always screaming. (Laughs) I had a bit of training when I was younger, but since I was, I would say, 11 years of age, I have always self-taught from there on. I had a few lessons. I think it was around between 9 and 11 that I had some training, yeah. With a Russian opera singer. (Laughs) So ever since then, it has just been self-taught.

Tobbe: Music was obviously important to you in your youth, but was there something else that if you hadn't been singing that could have turned into a profession maybe?

Chez: Just before Danny contacted me to do this stuff, I got to a point where I didn't know if music was gonna be for me anymore. I just thought like I was hitting a brick wall, I wasn't getting anywhere with it and I was getting quite frustrated with it. After, obviously, years and years and years of doing music I didn't know what I was doing anymore, so I decided to train to be a personal trainer.

So I've done my personal training qualifications. I work in a gym now and again, and when I'm home and I'm not out gigging I pick up some shifts doing that. So, probably would have gone down the fitness route, yeah. 'Cause I like to stay fit obviously for singing as well. But I'm just really glad that Danny contacted me, because music is always my number 1. I know that now. (Laughs) For a moment I lost it and then it just came back.

Tobbe: Is there a number 3 of interests then, besides music and fitness?

Chez: Well, I like gaming. So I did some game streaming through Covid. 'Cause obviously that has become a big thing now, streaming games. I think I would have gotten into that. And who knows, I might still. (Laughs) Might do a little bit of game streaming now and again. Yeah, maybe something like that.

Tobbe: And what kind of games do you enjoy the most?

Chez: Call Of Duty. (Laughs) Yeah, I used to like playing the Zombie maps and now I play quite a bit of Warzone, with friends. So it's a good way to connect with friends, yeah.

Related links:

www.facebook.com/chezkanevocalist