Jeb Rault On the Making of ‘Rising’
How does 'Rising' reflect your musical journey and growth as an artist?
Since ‘Rising’ is my third full length release, I’ve had some experience in the studio before(I've also released several EPs and singles over the years as well) so I felt going into the recording that I had a good handle on what was going to be needed and what to expect. I hired a great studio in my hometown (Marigny Studio,New Orleans) which had at the time a fabulous Sound Engineer named Ben Lorio whom I had heard of through the musical grapevine. So not only did I write all of the music and lyrics, but I also was the Producer on ‘Rising’, which is a seat I hadn't experienced before. So I would say that is one of the main components(being the Producer, Songwriter, Singer, and Guitarist) that reflects my growth as an artist. I was really able to put these songs together according to my own musical vision and I’m very happy with the way it came out. As far as musical journey, all of the songs on ‘Rising’ reflect exactly that, the road I have taken as an artist. Even the cover art reflects that, with the swamp scene(representing Southern Louisiana where I come from), with the mountains in the distance (representing my move to Switzerland in 2018 and my touring throughout central Europe.) The guitar rising up out of the swamp should be self-explanatory in my case, because what I am at heart is a guitar player, that’s my main musical passion, followed by songwriting, singing, and now producing as well.
Can you share any memorable experiences or stories from performing 'Rising' live?
We just finished a tour of Switzerland which was the band’s album release tour. ‘Rising’ was recorded with some of my oldest musical friends, guys I’ve known since we were teenagers, and the same group of people played on this tour, so you can imagine how much fun we had, touring around beautiful Switzerland and Germany, a real dream come true for all of the guys. I’ve been touring in Europe since 2013, but this was a first for the rest of the guys and we had a blast! Just good, old friends traveling from town to town, playing the album for the crowds, who were very appreciative. The whole tour was a memorable experience, just fun fun fun! When the people who come to the show obviously like the music as was the case, that’s a fantastic feeling, and makes all of the hard work worth it! The band and crew, girlfriends and wives included, were all able to hang out together on some off days in Scuol Switzerland, which is one of the most beautiful towns in the world. We rode the gondolas way up into the mountains, and all went to relax at the natural mineral hot baths they have there. It was an incredible time and since the shows were all going really well, everyone was relaxed and having the time of their lives. There is no way any of us will ever forget that! We will do it again!
What is your personal favorite song from 'Rising' and why?
For me personally, I am very happy to get the song “Riches To Rags” out into the world. I do a lot of international traveling, and as I mentioned I moved from New Orleans to Switzerland some years ago, though I still have a place in New Orleans and I go back home as much as I can. It's in my travels back home to New Orleans on a regular basis that I have seen certain changes taking place, not only in New Orleans but in many of the major cities of the USA, and Riches To Rags speaks about these changes. There is a real message to the song. It's saying, “Let’s all realize how good we have had it, because if we don't, we might lose the good things we have.” I think it's a message that people need to hear right now, so I’m happy to have put this song on the album. I am also proud of the guitar leads on that song, and I think you may be able to hear some of the influence of Classic Rock guitarists such as Jimmy Page on those.
Could you share some of your musical influences and how they have shaped your sound?
My favorite Rock band has always been Led Zeppelin, and one of my favorite guitarists, Jimmy Page. I just love the raw energy of Zeppelin, and I especially appreciate the attitude and no-holes barred playing that Page exhibited throughout his career. Later, after I had learned a good bit of the Zeppelin catalog(when I was in my late teens early 20s) I became mesmerized by the outlandish musical experience called The Grateful Dead(and I was lucky enough to see 5 shows before Jerry Garcia passed away.) Garcia's guitar playing then made a very deep impression on me, and I began at that time to learn many of his songs, and to mimic his style to some extent. So it may seem like an odd pairing, but at the very simplest way of looking at it, my style is probably a synthesis of Page, and Garcia, with large inspiration from Hendrix, Clapton, Blackmore, Angus Young, Rolling Stones, Beatles, SRV, Frampton, Gilmore, and other Classic Rock players. But I would be remiss if I didn't mention New Orleans Funk, with bands like The Neville Brothers, The Meters, Dr John(who I sat in with one night as well as with Art Neville a few times) and Allen Toussaint. All of that great New Orleans music from the 60s and 70s is really what I grew up amongst, and when I was young we would see them all play live in New Orleans very frequently, and so there is a good dose of that in my playing as well. That second-line, Mardi Gras rhyme really gets inside of you, and that’s a great thing because it's some of the best music in the world. And of course, with New Orleans being one of the cities that hosted the Blues, that is deeply immeshed in my playing as well. Howlin' Wolf, Robert Johnson, Freddie King, Buddy Guy, Muddy Waters, so many great Blues players have deeply influenced not only my playing, but songwriting as well.
What has been one of the most significant moments of your musical journey so far?
If I had to pick ONE thing that was the most significant thing to happen for me in my musical journey, it is being hired by Kim Carson(Country artist out of New Orleans) to play with her as her guitarist on her 2013 and 2014 tours of Europe. That amounted to almost 80 shows in Europe in those two years alone, and it completely expanded my style especially in terms of playing American Country Music, but also in terms of fans, and just playing music in Europe in general. Kim was great in including some of my songs in her set, and in graciously letting me sell my CDs as well, and I was able to continue to play my music in Europe after those tours, building up a fanbase, and expanding my touring base and that’s what led to me moving to Switzerland in 2018. I had felt a bit like I was at a dead end just before that, and it was almost magical to have that happen at that point in my career. I will always be grateful to Kim for that, and it also taught me to never lose sight of my dreams and just keep working hard, keep a good attitude, be open to learning new things, and amazing things do happen!