#Risingartist: We can't be Half as Cool as Theo Kandel
Photo Credit- Moriah Ziman
LOS ANGELES, CA - We all wish we could be as cool as we used to be…and a little less “cheugy” (Google it). Los Angeles-based alternative singer-songwriter Theo Kandel wishes he could be just half as cool.
We had the chance to chat with Theo about his latest song, TikTok, book recommendations and so much more. You can watch the full interview up above or on right here.
Coming out tomorrow, February 10, “Half as Cool” has Kandel embracing his early 2000s pop-punk influences while utilizing his modern storytelling ability to deliver a song that’s already generating strong anticipation among his 100k+ TikTok followers. Fans can pre-save the single here. Earlier this month, Theo teased “Half as Cool” — co-produced by Kandel, Wingtip, and Ben “Beep” Pleasant — on TikTok and the video has already amassed over 300k views.
“It’s about being in your twenties and having no CLUE what’s going on,” says Theo of the new song. “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 4 am 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.”
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 few 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. What comes across in the six-song collection is equally vulnerable as it is highly unique. The songs are musically complex, layered, and blend a variety of instrumentation that creates special alchemy; a musical fingerprint that directly identifies Kandel.
