Alternative Singer-Songwriter Theo Kandel Releases "Half as Cool (Acoustic)" Today
THEO KANDEL
— ALTERNATIVE SINGER-SONGWRITER —
RELEASES
“HALF AS COOL (ACOUSTIC)”
INDIE ROCK EP What if it all works out in the end?
EXPECTED SEPTEMBER 2022
ON TOUR THIS SPRING AND SUMMER
LOS ANGELES, CA (May 23, 2022) — We all wish we could be as cool as we used to be, a feeling Theo Kandel explored in his single, “Half as Cool.” Out today, the Los Angeles-based alternative singer-songwriter holds onto that sentiment in this raw acoustic version of the track, laying bare the emotion laced into the lyrics of the original pop-punk production of the single. The “Half as Cool (Acoustic)” stripped-down take has Theo embracing that nostalgia once again.
Stream / Download “Half as Cool (Acoustic)” here.
“‘Half as Cool’ is about being in your twenties and having no CLUE what’s going on,” says Theo. “Looking at yourself in the mirror and expecting to see a teenager, remembering the days when it felt like you could do or be anything you wanted to be, when a crazy night was staying up until 4am playing video games with your friends. Trying to get back to that mentality… balancing the optimism of a kid with the responsibilities of an adult.”
Keeping his momentum going, Theo will be releasing additional singles leading up to his indie rock EP What if it all works out in the end? (exact details and release date TBA).
What if it all works out in the end? has served as an encouragement to keep going for Theo, with “Existential Crisis” being the kick starter of it all. “I realized I was writing a lot of sad songs and was in a sadder place than I’m in now,” admits Theo. “Moving to LA, having the sun all the time, wanting things to be better and to be happier you can kind of will yourself into that.”
Theo has several tour dates lined up across the U.S. including “The Growing Season Tour” with Wyatt Pike (American Idol, Season 18) and a headlining show at New York City’s iconic Bowery Ballroom on July 7.
Last year, alternative singer-songwriter Theo Kandel set his sights on the West Coast in what he calls the “final frontier” on a journey of music influence and inspiration that settled in Los Angeles. The journey began in New York City where he grew up learning classical and jazz violin before picking up the guitar. “Growing up in New York, I got super into folk music – that was what drove me to write initially – but I always found that my music was too pop to be completely folk, and too folk to be completely pop,” Kandel says.
It wasn't until he moved to Nashville, TN that he began honing his craft into something a bit more mainstream, despite an initial aversion to the word. “It definitely sounds cheesy, but in Nashville, the song itself is king. Writing better songs is literally the goal there. For a while I hated the idea of my music being labeled as ‘pop,’ but ‘pop’ actually just means accessible – relatable – whatever. So hopefully, the better my songs are, the more people can find a little bit of their own stories in there.”
His 2021 EP, Spin Cycle, found the exceptional artist arriving at the peak of those New York and Nashville influences that molded his creativity. “It’s funny – my last EP, Spin Cycle, ends up in the same place that it started, with the idea that the cycle of emotions after a breakup is inescapable, as long as you situate yourself within it,” explains Theo. “This EP [‘What if it all works out in the end?’] is different, decidedly more positive in its progression. I think that’ll become more clear as I release more songs off the project, but it definitely doesn’t finish where it started, and through the process of making it, neither did it.”
Above: Theo Kandel; credit: Moriah Ziman
THEO KANDEL ONLINE
https://linktr.ee/theokandel
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