Former Radish rocker fills up clubs without relying on MTV or radio play
Melissa Marchel
Daily Staff Writer
Musician Ben Kweller has always been an optimist. And now with his career taking off, it's hard not to be.
"It's the coolest feeling ever," Kweller said. "I feel like it's a real success and I didn't have to be on (MTV's 'Total Request Live') or rely on radio."
Kweller is currently in the middle of a solo tour across the United States. He has been on the road for four weeks and has sold out his shows, including tonight's at the Green Door in Oklahoma City.
Kweller is touring in support of his debut album released on ATO Records "Sha Sha".
Kweller said his songs come from all aspects of his life,but one of the common themes is his ever-present optimism. He might start off a song with a gloomy sounding minor piano chord, but end it in a happy chorus of "ba-ba-bas", he said.
"One of my big themes is optimism. It's all going to be OK. It might suck now, but at the end of the day, or at the end of the song, it's all going to be OK," Kweller said.
Looking on the bright side, however, wasn't always easy for Kweller.
At 16, he was a member of a punk rock group called Radish. After signing a much-publicized major label record deal the band released "Restraining Bolt" in 1997.
But Kweller's youth made dealing with the sudden attention and obligations difficult.
"When I had Radish, I was too young to make decisions for myself," Kweller said. "I was really intimidated."
In 1999, the boys of Radish parted ways.
After the split, Kweller was left to start over and went to New York City. While there, he meet many musicians in the anti-folk scene, such as members of the Moldy Peaches and Evan Dando. Kweller soon began to write new music and it was not long before he was opening for Dando and others in New York. After self-releasing the record "Freak Out! It's Ben Kweller", ATO Records took attention.
Now at 21, Kweller is staging what could be called a comeback. He opened for the Strokes when they played in Oklahoma City last November.
"It's so different," Kweller said of being an opening act at times and being at the top of the bill at others. "When you open for someone there's a lot less pressure. If your really amazing, it's cool to win the main band's fans, but headlining is great. You can play more songs and do whatever you want."
Kweller grew up in the Dallas area and used to play Oklahoma City in his high school days. Kweller said he is "psyched" to be coming to Oklahoma.
Kweller will take to the stage at the Green Door, 8911 N. Western. The show starts at 8 p.m. and bands Centromatic and AM Radio are opening.
The show is sold out, according to the Green Door's Web site.
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