“It’s a long time coming, but I thought it’d be great to name it And So It Begins… because it’s about to begin. We’re dropping 17 tunes on the world; I’m stoked man,” says Kurt Deimer, sitting on his tour bus, parked outside Pickering Casino Resort in Ontario, Canada. Later that night, Deimer would open for co-headliners Steel Panther and Buckcherry. Previously, Kurt’s been the opening act on nationwide tours for both Tesla and Sebastian Bach.
Comprised of 17 songs, And So It Begins… released on May 9th via Bald Man Records, classifies as a double album. That’s almost unheard of in 2025. “That’s what I used to buy back in the day,” recalls Deimer. “I just always loved the gatefold and being able to read about the band. I put my lyrics in there for everybody, a little poster, to make it a gift, a piece of art. And you come out with a splash that way, with a double album. It stands out.”
Throughout the socially conscious, anthemic lyrics of his songs, Kurt Deimer emphasizes the message of relentless positivity and unwavering perseverance. “Yeah, and be kind to each other, respect each other, and care about each other. It’s pretty simple, common sense stuff. The world is tough, and I want people to know I’m not afraid of it. I’m here and we’re gonna kick some ass. Let’s all be strong and be good to each other. I’m like a motivational speaker in rock. My grandpa was one, he was a preacher. I told my grandma, a week before she died at 106 during Covid, cause nobody could visit her, ‘I’m a motivational speaker, doing what you and grandpa did, just on stage in a rock format.’”
Kurt Deimer just unveiled a video for “Sunset Boulevard”. Arguably, that’s the most iconic street in West Hollywood. The promotional clip showcases legendary venues The Viper Room, The Whisky A Go Go, and The Rainbow. So many bands got their start on the Sunset Strip, with Guns N’ Roses and Mötley Crüe being two of the biggest. Kurt shares one of his own memories from Sunset Boulevard.
“Well, when I came out here in 2020 and got a place out in the Valley, I was always going down to The Rainbow, trying to connect with the industry, and people would take me there. Or I’d go to The Whisky and see a show. I just said, ‘Someday, I’m going to play here.’ And I played The Rainbow’s 50th Anniversary which was huge – great memory! I’ve played The Whisky now twice. And we just did a show at The Viper Room; it was sold out, just us. We shot a lot of footage there for some of the videos. So, I’ve played all three iconic venues. I’ve got to play The Troubadour, and some of the others, But those ones right there on Sunset Boulevard… I wouldn’t be where I am today without Sunset Boulevard.”
And So It Begins… opens up with “Dance” – a melodic, uplifting track. Although the album is quite varied, this is the perfect introduction to Kurt Deimer’s sound and style. Kurt details the origins of that catchy song.
“I missed a flight to LA out of Cincinnatti, so I ended up having to go to Columbus, Ohio to fly on SouthWest; I fly on Delta. I got crammed against the window, and it was just terrible. I had to do something to kill the time on the plane. So, I really took my time and wrote a song. I was just writing around the ups and downs in life and what I was going through, you’ve just got to learn to deal with it and dance your way through it. Keep your spirits up and have a positive attitude. Life can throw you a lot of shit – that’s why I wrote ‘Dance’. I sent it to Phil (X, guitarist) and gave him the vibe I was feeling. That’s how ‘Dance’ came about, just being trapped on a plane in an unhappy moment.”
Although And So It Begins… is Kurt Deimer debut solo album, he previously released a six-song EP – Work Hard, Rock Hard – in November 2021. Four of those six songs (“Naïve”, “Burn Together”, “Only Time Will Tell” and “Back Of The School”) are also included on the new album. Deimer explains his decision to re-release them.
“Well, ‘Back Of The School’, we didn’t change anything on that. It’s just such a powerful song and people love it when we play it live. So, I wanted to reintroduce that to the new listeners who might not have found it already. ‘Burn Together’ is iconic with Geoff Tate (of Queensrÿche). I thought it was more than appropriate. It really gives people another feel of what we can do as a band. ‘Naive’ is a fan favorite, we play it all the time on tour. It’s just a powerful song that takes you back to the way I used to do things, where I’m singing more. Then, ‘Only Time Will Tell’ is a redone version, and I’m singing it now, I’m not talking it. That’s going to radio next month, and it’s bad ass! That’s a remake.”
Deimer reveals how he came to collaborate with Geoff Tate on “Burn Together”. “My management at the time, Andy Gould, back in 2021, and Paul Gargano was helping him. He was friends with the Tates. We were looking for our first tour, cause we didn’t start out in little bars or anything. That was our first tour with Geoff Tate. He agreed to come in and do a song with me, and shoot a video, and then have us open up for him on tour that Fall. He’s kind of been a mentor to me, just a kind, sweet person. I wouldn’t be where I am today without him. That’s how it all came together.”
Kurt’s past is anything but ordinary, as he attests to. At age 20, Deimer started his first band in Cincinnati, Ohio. Because of too much partying, it didn’t really amount to anything. Meanwhile, at college, he was majoring in English Literature. “Well, trying to…” admits the unflinchingly honest vocalist. “I had panic and anxiety disorder, and I didn’t know how to take care of it up until I was like 30. I wasn’t going to go anywhere. I was self-medicating, trying to figure out what was wrong with me. So, yeah, I just quit, and I married my kids’ mom. I have three boys. She got my act together cause she’s a narcissist and just took control over me – which I guess was good at the time. Then I figured out what I needed – a serotonin uptake inhibiter changed my whole life. I’ve had to figure everything out on my own, but yeah, I had to step back, or I probably would have died from all the stress, anxiety and partying. Once I did, I made the Dean’s List, I got my degree. I’ve got a Master’s Degree. I’ve got three great kids with the same mom. My life’s been quite a journey.”
At one point, Deimer followed the family tradition, but looking back divulges, “I was a nervous, unhappy wreck when I got into the oil business in corporate America.” Going into further detail, Kurt remembers, “Yeah, my dad got me into Chevron, wearing the suits every day and all that shit. Seeing how long my dad worked there – for 30 years – kissing ass and not making any money by the end of his career, cause they limit you. So, I just told myself ‘I’ll learn it all and get out of this stressful environment,’ cause I still had anxiety. I just learned it all and kept moving up. I told my dad, ‘I’m going to try and start my own business eventually.’ That’s what I did. By 33, I’d started Coolants Plus in 1999. I’m not a corporate America guy, but I realized I had to learn. I took some other jobs and learned more of the business. I told my kids’ mom, ‘I’m going to take a chance, I can sell cars and make just as much money as I am working for these other people. I put 40 grand into a chequing account that I made from buying and selling real estate. Here we are now, the company does about 200 million a year in sales. I started it right above my garage.”
Deimer launched multiple start-ups including the oil and lubricant brand Starfire, a venture that inadvertently kick-started his acting career. “Yeah, Starfire.com. We were placing Starfire products in movies, starting in 2015/16. Then I finally told the guy, ‘Yeah, I’ll put it into this Trading Paint movie with John Travolta and Shania Twain, but I want to get a cameo.’ I’ll present the cheque in the winner’s circle is what they said. So, I went down to that. I’m just walking around, waiting, it’s like two in the morning and they said, ‘We need to finish the final scene. We need a track announcer.’ And they gave me a speaking role. I joined SAG (Screen Actors Guild), and two months later I’m in Halloween getting killed by Michael Myers. It’s like, fuck, I guess I was born to be an actor. That led me back into music. When I was shooting down in Alabama, I met Ben Trexel, who I wrote a lot of the early songs with. I said, ‘I have a unique voice, I haven’t sung in a long time.’ Then here we are, in music and acting. That’s what I do now, and the companies run themselves.”
Kurt Deimer also collaborated with Canadian guitarist Phil X (Bon Jovi, Triumph). “Yeah, he is on every song on the new album. Brian Tichy (Whitesnake, The Dead Daisies) plays drums on every song except ‘Hero’; we redid that with Daxx Nielsen – Rick Nielsen’s son who plays in Cheap Trick.”
Grammy Award winning producer / mixer / engineer Chris Lord-Alge was at the helm for And So It Begins… “Chris and I are like best friends. We go on trips together, we go to shows. We go to dinner all the time. It’s just like two buddies working on a passion project. He took me under his wing, he discovered me. I wouldn’t be where I am without him.”
At 59 years old, Kurt Deimer is living proof that it’s never too late to follow your dreams. “Exactly, you only live once. Look at Roger Daltrey (age 81) still playing Who songs. I can act and sing until I can’t do it anymore. What better life than that?”
Getting back into the music on And So It Begins, the song “Big Toe” contains one of many standout lyrics on the album – “If you walk on water, better learn to swim.” Where did that come from? “Just out of my crazy brain. I was sitting in New Jersey early on, like 2019, and it was a real eerie sky; all that smoke and stuff around the New Jersey area. I was on a patio pounding beers, cause I drank beer still at the time. I just looked at the ghostly sky and it had a silver moon – I’m going to write about life and near death. If you almost do die, you can come back and be a better person; not be such an asshole. That just all came from me looking at the sky and seeing the silver moon. I came up with that lyric and ran with it.” You never know when inspiration’s going to strike. “Most of the songs I’ve written that you hear, I’ve wrote in 10, 15 minutes; they just flow out of me. But you can’t force it.”
Deimer’s work in movies translates well into videos, and he’s filmed a lot of videos! “Yeah, we’ve got three more we just filmed. I’ve got one coming out for ‘Back Of The School’. I’ve got one coming out for ‘Ease It In’ (from the Work Hard, Rock Hard EP), which will be re-released as a single, and ‘Only Time Will Tell’ with me singing.”
The video for “Fight” has a Mad Max vibe to it. “I shot that in 2019 at an old gravel company property with all the old buildings cause I wanted the Mad Max vibe. I wanted to show a leader that’s fighting for his people, cause that’s what the song’s so about. It’s a very intricate video to shoot, but we won a lot of awards in film festivals with that one.”
The song “My Dad” really pulls at the heart strings, especially the line, “For you to die, I was not ready.” “Yeah, I wrote that on my back porch at two in the morning, probably 2018. It just popped into my head; I needed to get the emotions out after I had lost my dad cause he was my hero, my best friend, my biggest supporter. It just came to me. I literally wrote that song in ten minutes – and none of the words ever changed. That’s exactly how it came out of my head.”
Thus far, “My Dad” hasn’t made the live setlist. “Not yet cause we can’t play long enough. But when we can headline, we will. Might even do an acoustic version. I get emotional when I hear it, but it’s a good emotion. I know I honored him; I can’t wait to play it live.”
And So It Begins… ends with a pair of covers – “Have A Cigar” by Pink Floyd and “Riders On The Storm” by The Doors. Kurt elaborates upon his decision to tackle tunes from two iconic bands. “I wanted to reintroduce ‘Have A Cigar’ and it goes into this storm, then the storm takes you into ‘Riders On The Storm’. People can listen to Side D of the double album and take a trip; whether you’re getting high, or doing shrooms, or just want to go to bed – it’ll take you on a journey and make you think. It’s deep and dark and really cool.”
Currently, Kurt Deimer has tour dates booked until June 22nd, after that? “There’ll be a tour in the fall, it’s just a matter of are we going to headline? We have my first movie, Scared To Death, coming out in the fall. So, are we going to go to cities where it premieres and do shows? A lot of moving parts, but we might be picking up an opening slot in July / August. Stay tuned.”
As far as Scared To Death goes, “That’s my movie I star in as The Grog. I’m a horror icon, and it’s with Lin Shaye from Insidious, and Something About Mary, and Bill Moseley from The Devil’s Rejects – my favorite movie of all time by Rob Zombie. Bill was always somebody I looked up to. I kind of modeled my character, Bull, after in Hellbilly Hollow. Then I got this opportunity to do Scared To Death and play the horror icon. To star alongside Bill Moseley, who I already admired so much and loved, was just crazy. Now, him and I are really great friends. It’s a horror comedy. It’ll take you on a ride; it’s the first of many. The Grog is coming, and The Grog is pretty much me. I’m The Grog, so it’s a whole new alter ego. The movie’s set around doing a practice séance for a movie we’re going to be shooting called Dead House. And then all shit goes wild in the house during this practice séance.”
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The post KURT DEIMER – A Motivational Speaker In Rock appeared first on BraveWords - Where Music Lives.
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Comprised of 17 songs, And So It Begins… released on May 9th via Bald Man Records, classifies as a double album. That’s almost unheard of in 2025. “That’s what I used to buy back in the day,” recalls Deimer. “I just always loved the gatefold and being able to read about the band. I put my lyrics in there for everybody, a little poster, to make it a gift, a piece of art. And you come out with a splash that way, with a double album. It stands out.”
Throughout the socially conscious, anthemic lyrics of his songs, Kurt Deimer emphasizes the message of relentless positivity and unwavering perseverance. “Yeah, and be kind to each other, respect each other, and care about each other. It’s pretty simple, common sense stuff. The world is tough, and I want people to know I’m not afraid of it. I’m here and we’re gonna kick some ass. Let’s all be strong and be good to each other. I’m like a motivational speaker in rock. My grandpa was one, he was a preacher. I told my grandma, a week before she died at 106 during Covid, cause nobody could visit her, ‘I’m a motivational speaker, doing what you and grandpa did, just on stage in a rock format.’”
Kurt Deimer just unveiled a video for “Sunset Boulevard”. Arguably, that’s the most iconic street in West Hollywood. The promotional clip showcases legendary venues The Viper Room, The Whisky A Go Go, and The Rainbow. So many bands got their start on the Sunset Strip, with Guns N’ Roses and Mötley Crüe being two of the biggest. Kurt shares one of his own memories from Sunset Boulevard.
“Well, when I came out here in 2020 and got a place out in the Valley, I was always going down to The Rainbow, trying to connect with the industry, and people would take me there. Or I’d go to The Whisky and see a show. I just said, ‘Someday, I’m going to play here.’ And I played The Rainbow’s 50th Anniversary which was huge – great memory! I’ve played The Whisky now twice. And we just did a show at The Viper Room; it was sold out, just us. We shot a lot of footage there for some of the videos. So, I’ve played all three iconic venues. I’ve got to play The Troubadour, and some of the others, But those ones right there on Sunset Boulevard… I wouldn’t be where I am today without Sunset Boulevard.”
And So It Begins… opens up with “Dance” – a melodic, uplifting track. Although the album is quite varied, this is the perfect introduction to Kurt Deimer’s sound and style. Kurt details the origins of that catchy song.
“I missed a flight to LA out of Cincinnatti, so I ended up having to go to Columbus, Ohio to fly on SouthWest; I fly on Delta. I got crammed against the window, and it was just terrible. I had to do something to kill the time on the plane. So, I really took my time and wrote a song. I was just writing around the ups and downs in life and what I was going through, you’ve just got to learn to deal with it and dance your way through it. Keep your spirits up and have a positive attitude. Life can throw you a lot of shit – that’s why I wrote ‘Dance’. I sent it to Phil (X, guitarist) and gave him the vibe I was feeling. That’s how ‘Dance’ came about, just being trapped on a plane in an unhappy moment.”
Although And So It Begins… is Kurt Deimer debut solo album, he previously released a six-song EP – Work Hard, Rock Hard – in November 2021. Four of those six songs (“Naïve”, “Burn Together”, “Only Time Will Tell” and “Back Of The School”) are also included on the new album. Deimer explains his decision to re-release them.
“Well, ‘Back Of The School’, we didn’t change anything on that. It’s just such a powerful song and people love it when we play it live. So, I wanted to reintroduce that to the new listeners who might not have found it already. ‘Burn Together’ is iconic with Geoff Tate (of Queensrÿche). I thought it was more than appropriate. It really gives people another feel of what we can do as a band. ‘Naive’ is a fan favorite, we play it all the time on tour. It’s just a powerful song that takes you back to the way I used to do things, where I’m singing more. Then, ‘Only Time Will Tell’ is a redone version, and I’m singing it now, I’m not talking it. That’s going to radio next month, and it’s bad ass! That’s a remake.”
Deimer reveals how he came to collaborate with Geoff Tate on “Burn Together”. “My management at the time, Andy Gould, back in 2021, and Paul Gargano was helping him. He was friends with the Tates. We were looking for our first tour, cause we didn’t start out in little bars or anything. That was our first tour with Geoff Tate. He agreed to come in and do a song with me, and shoot a video, and then have us open up for him on tour that Fall. He’s kind of been a mentor to me, just a kind, sweet person. I wouldn’t be where I am today without him. That’s how it all came together.”
Kurt’s past is anything but ordinary, as he attests to. At age 20, Deimer started his first band in Cincinnati, Ohio. Because of too much partying, it didn’t really amount to anything. Meanwhile, at college, he was majoring in English Literature. “Well, trying to…” admits the unflinchingly honest vocalist. “I had panic and anxiety disorder, and I didn’t know how to take care of it up until I was like 30. I wasn’t going to go anywhere. I was self-medicating, trying to figure out what was wrong with me. So, yeah, I just quit, and I married my kids’ mom. I have three boys. She got my act together cause she’s a narcissist and just took control over me – which I guess was good at the time. Then I figured out what I needed – a serotonin uptake inhibiter changed my whole life. I’ve had to figure everything out on my own, but yeah, I had to step back, or I probably would have died from all the stress, anxiety and partying. Once I did, I made the Dean’s List, I got my degree. I’ve got a Master’s Degree. I’ve got three great kids with the same mom. My life’s been quite a journey.”
At one point, Deimer followed the family tradition, but looking back divulges, “I was a nervous, unhappy wreck when I got into the oil business in corporate America.” Going into further detail, Kurt remembers, “Yeah, my dad got me into Chevron, wearing the suits every day and all that shit. Seeing how long my dad worked there – for 30 years – kissing ass and not making any money by the end of his career, cause they limit you. So, I just told myself ‘I’ll learn it all and get out of this stressful environment,’ cause I still had anxiety. I just learned it all and kept moving up. I told my dad, ‘I’m going to try and start my own business eventually.’ That’s what I did. By 33, I’d started Coolants Plus in 1999. I’m not a corporate America guy, but I realized I had to learn. I took some other jobs and learned more of the business. I told my kids’ mom, ‘I’m going to take a chance, I can sell cars and make just as much money as I am working for these other people. I put 40 grand into a chequing account that I made from buying and selling real estate. Here we are now, the company does about 200 million a year in sales. I started it right above my garage.”
Deimer launched multiple start-ups including the oil and lubricant brand Starfire, a venture that inadvertently kick-started his acting career. “Yeah, Starfire.com. We were placing Starfire products in movies, starting in 2015/16. Then I finally told the guy, ‘Yeah, I’ll put it into this Trading Paint movie with John Travolta and Shania Twain, but I want to get a cameo.’ I’ll present the cheque in the winner’s circle is what they said. So, I went down to that. I’m just walking around, waiting, it’s like two in the morning and they said, ‘We need to finish the final scene. We need a track announcer.’ And they gave me a speaking role. I joined SAG (Screen Actors Guild), and two months later I’m in Halloween getting killed by Michael Myers. It’s like, fuck, I guess I was born to be an actor. That led me back into music. When I was shooting down in Alabama, I met Ben Trexel, who I wrote a lot of the early songs with. I said, ‘I have a unique voice, I haven’t sung in a long time.’ Then here we are, in music and acting. That’s what I do now, and the companies run themselves.”
Kurt Deimer also collaborated with Canadian guitarist Phil X (Bon Jovi, Triumph). “Yeah, he is on every song on the new album. Brian Tichy (Whitesnake, The Dead Daisies) plays drums on every song except ‘Hero’; we redid that with Daxx Nielsen – Rick Nielsen’s son who plays in Cheap Trick.”
Grammy Award winning producer / mixer / engineer Chris Lord-Alge was at the helm for And So It Begins… “Chris and I are like best friends. We go on trips together, we go to shows. We go to dinner all the time. It’s just like two buddies working on a passion project. He took me under his wing, he discovered me. I wouldn’t be where I am without him.”
At 59 years old, Kurt Deimer is living proof that it’s never too late to follow your dreams. “Exactly, you only live once. Look at Roger Daltrey (age 81) still playing Who songs. I can act and sing until I can’t do it anymore. What better life than that?”
Getting back into the music on And So It Begins, the song “Big Toe” contains one of many standout lyrics on the album – “If you walk on water, better learn to swim.” Where did that come from? “Just out of my crazy brain. I was sitting in New Jersey early on, like 2019, and it was a real eerie sky; all that smoke and stuff around the New Jersey area. I was on a patio pounding beers, cause I drank beer still at the time. I just looked at the ghostly sky and it had a silver moon – I’m going to write about life and near death. If you almost do die, you can come back and be a better person; not be such an asshole. That just all came from me looking at the sky and seeing the silver moon. I came up with that lyric and ran with it.” You never know when inspiration’s going to strike. “Most of the songs I’ve written that you hear, I’ve wrote in 10, 15 minutes; they just flow out of me. But you can’t force it.”
Deimer’s work in movies translates well into videos, and he’s filmed a lot of videos! “Yeah, we’ve got three more we just filmed. I’ve got one coming out for ‘Back Of The School’. I’ve got one coming out for ‘Ease It In’ (from the Work Hard, Rock Hard EP), which will be re-released as a single, and ‘Only Time Will Tell’ with me singing.”
The video for “Fight” has a Mad Max vibe to it. “I shot that in 2019 at an old gravel company property with all the old buildings cause I wanted the Mad Max vibe. I wanted to show a leader that’s fighting for his people, cause that’s what the song’s so about. It’s a very intricate video to shoot, but we won a lot of awards in film festivals with that one.”
The song “My Dad” really pulls at the heart strings, especially the line, “For you to die, I was not ready.” “Yeah, I wrote that on my back porch at two in the morning, probably 2018. It just popped into my head; I needed to get the emotions out after I had lost my dad cause he was my hero, my best friend, my biggest supporter. It just came to me. I literally wrote that song in ten minutes – and none of the words ever changed. That’s exactly how it came out of my head.”
Thus far, “My Dad” hasn’t made the live setlist. “Not yet cause we can’t play long enough. But when we can headline, we will. Might even do an acoustic version. I get emotional when I hear it, but it’s a good emotion. I know I honored him; I can’t wait to play it live.”
And So It Begins… ends with a pair of covers – “Have A Cigar” by Pink Floyd and “Riders On The Storm” by The Doors. Kurt elaborates upon his decision to tackle tunes from two iconic bands. “I wanted to reintroduce ‘Have A Cigar’ and it goes into this storm, then the storm takes you into ‘Riders On The Storm’. People can listen to Side D of the double album and take a trip; whether you’re getting high, or doing shrooms, or just want to go to bed – it’ll take you on a journey and make you think. It’s deep and dark and really cool.”
Currently, Kurt Deimer has tour dates booked until June 22nd, after that? “There’ll be a tour in the fall, it’s just a matter of are we going to headline? We have my first movie, Scared To Death, coming out in the fall. So, are we going to go to cities where it premieres and do shows? A lot of moving parts, but we might be picking up an opening slot in July / August. Stay tuned.”
As far as Scared To Death goes, “That’s my movie I star in as The Grog. I’m a horror icon, and it’s with Lin Shaye from Insidious, and Something About Mary, and Bill Moseley from The Devil’s Rejects – my favorite movie of all time by Rob Zombie. Bill was always somebody I looked up to. I kind of modeled my character, Bull, after in Hellbilly Hollow. Then I got this opportunity to do Scared To Death and play the horror icon. To star alongside Bill Moseley, who I already admired so much and loved, was just crazy. Now, him and I are really great friends. It’s a horror comedy. It’ll take you on a ride; it’s the first of many. The Grog is coming, and The Grog is pretty much me. I’m The Grog, so it’s a whole new alter ego. The movie’s set around doing a practice séance for a movie we’re going to be shooting called Dead House. And then all shit goes wild in the house during this practice séance.”
Do you have a rock, hard rock, heavy metal website, blog, podcast, radio show, YouTube channel, Spotify playlist? BraveWords Records wants to send you music!
Submit your info: https://forms.gle/j8wygtJjnv429GzJ6
The post KURT DEIMER – A Motivational Speaker In Rock appeared first on BraveWords - Where Music Lives.
Continue reading...