Paul Maged has become a staple on these pages. Naturally, we’re back to spotlight his newest project, Fight To The Death!
Delivering a smooth blend of rock elements, Paul paves his own lane while capturing the essence of what originally sent alternative rock into the mainstream years ago. That essence is present more than ever on Fight To The Death as Paul continues to evolve as an artist, musician and songwriter.
For this release, I decided it was time to chat with the man himself and get his take on the new music.
In the below interview spotlight, Paul and I chop it up about the new album, his motivations and how he came to be labeled as a socially conscious rocker.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (in your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications)
I’m originally from Framingham, MA but came to NYC straight from high school so I’m kind of a mutt in that respect. I’m part small town, part big city. My producer Sean Gill describes my music as “Maged Music” and I think that’s pretty apropos but I know that doesn’t say much to someone who doesn’t know me. What he’s trying to say is that it’s not really one specific genre. It has elements from everything I like to listen to and have absorbed through the years so Alternative, Rock, Pop, Punk, Singer-Songwriter, Indie, R&B, Classic Rock, Grunge. It can be different from song to song but rock is the most common denominator in my music. I have a rock mentality.
What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going?
I began writing songs when I was a little kid. My Dad bought me a tiny Casio keyboard. It had like an octave and a half on it and I used to try to plunk out popular songs by Journey and Van Halen. Then I began writing my own songs with lyrics, usually ballads. Straight from high school I came to NY and attended Acting school which began a long detour that included writing and performing stand up and sketch comedy for about 10 years as well as acting in a few Indie films. However music was never far away. I would dabble in and out of songwriting. I was slowly getting back into songwriting and around that time my father suddenly passed away. Shortly after he died my vocal coach and one of my best friends pitched in and bought me a Yamaha keyboard and I started playing it all the time, it was like therapy. One morning I woke up with a full song in my head. I went straight to the keyboard and in less than an hour wrote a song called “Living Prayer” which wasn’t at all about religion but rather what happens when you pass on. If I can feel you so strongly, how can you be gone? That song literally kick started the songwriting and recording chapter of my life and I’m now about 14 years in with no end in site.
Sorry about your dad. Is that song online anywhere?
No. It’s recorded but it’s not a very good song.
Tell us a bit about this release itself. What were you trying to accomplish with it?
This EP was the culmination of music I had been writing pretty much since the release of my album ‘Diamonds & Demons’ in 2014. I had more than a full album worth of music as a follow up to ‘D&D’ but I’m the type who’s pretty satisfied just writing and recording and I don’t really like the marketing and business side of this. My producer Sean said look if it were up to you you’d just record forever so why don’t you release this stuff as EP’s so we get you back out there into the public consciousness and I thought that made good sense. So this EP was kind of putting a bow on a 4 year period of songwriting.
That’s interesting. Your music sounds like it’s written by a full band but you write all the music and lyrics yourself. Describe your process.
Yes that’s how I hear it. I write the music first but there are times I’ll have a lyrical phrase in my head and I know the song will be built around that. For instance ‘Off In The Distance’ was like that. I had that phrase and I thought that’s a nice idea to build a song around and I wrote the music and lyrics based off that one phrase. Sometimes I’ll have a guitar riff in my head and will plunk that down on my keyboard (I write all my songs on the keyboard, even the hardest rocking ones) but I will imagine it as a distorted guitar and I can hear how cool it will sound on guitar. Ideas come at any time. I will just get a melody in my head and have to record it onto my phone so I don’t forget it. I’ll sometimes wake up from sleeping with melodies in my head and have to go plunk them out on the keys. When I’m writing a song I flesh it out on Cubase using my keyboard and some guitar and drum plug-ins so by the time I bring the song to Sean at his Times Square studio the song already has its full structure and many musical ideas recorded. That’s the birth of the song and then we take it from there.
I noticed in your music sometimes you allude to prior songs. For example in that song “Off In The Distance” from this EP you have the line “diamonds and demons from the past” which is a reference to your 2014 album title. Is this something you do consciously?
That particular reference was not done consciously. I knew I wanted to use the phrase “demons from the past” but then as I was working through the lyrics I wanted to also convey good from the past as well as the bad and that’s where I had the idea to use “diamonds” and then I thought oh that’s a pretty cool callback. I do like the idea of bringing certain ideas and references back from past songs because these songs represent my life. I’m a very personal writer. Most everything I write is based on my experiences and emotions so I think it’s normal to reference things from past songs and if I do have any fans out there I think it’s cool for them too. I look at all my songs as a journey in my life, like a book and maybe when I’m dead I’ll be discovered and if people want to get to know me they can listen to my music in order and get to know who this person was. Kind of morbid I guess.
Kind of but makes sense too. What is your next project and is it similar musically?
I’ve been writing and recording new music since the start of 2019 that I foresee being released as a full album. At least a 10 song album. I’m kind of tired of the EP’s. I think it’s hard to build cohesion and concepts when you’re just releasing 5 songs at a time so I really want to release a full album. I think you get to know the artist more that way even though the music business these days says otherwise. We’re about 6 songs in. The music is different I’d say. More alternative sounding. More experimentation. I want to make interesting and provocative music and keep challenging myself as a songwriter.
You’ve been called a “socially conscious rocker”. Where did that come from and do you like that label?
That came from ‘D&D’. That album had like 16 or 17 songs on it and I’d say a good 7 or so talked about social issues from climate change, war, religion to our evolving society. One of the reviews, I think it was from Popdose, called me that and it kind of stuck. I don’t mind the label because I write very passionately about issues I care about and I won’t censor myself. In the same token more songs than not that I write are not socially conscious songs. They’re just songs about everyday life and struggles. Joys and pain. But it’s better to be known for something than nothing at all.
True. Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this oversaturated, digital music age.
Standing out from the rest. The great thing about where we are now is that you can 100% be a DIY artist. But then how do you stand out from the crowd? It’s one thing to have product but how do you differentiate yourself from everyone else who has product? I think that’s the one thing that’s helped me with the ‘socially conscious rocker’ label is that it’s helped people remember who I am. That and that I write rock music which is a dying breed makes me stand out, I think.
That’s a really good point. Each artist/band really need to create their own identity. Speaking of rock music, what happened to it?
Radio stopped playing it for one. I’m amazed that Imagine Dragons, Panic! At The Disco and Twenty One Pilots are considered rock these days. All 3 were just nominated in the rock category for one of the big award shows. I can’t even…
Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music?
I have my website online. My music is streaming all over Spotify, Apple/iTunes, Amazon and more, pretty much everywhere online. My videos are on my YouTube page and I have a bunch of songs on my website and my Sound cloud page. I’m also on Twitter and Instagram. I’ll leave some links.
https://www.youtube.com/user/PaulMagedMusic
Anything else before we sign off?
It’s all an illusion.
Thank you for taking this time and giving me this platform and I appreciate your support of Indie artists. Rock on.
