You’ve got a lot happening right now, from music to comedy to podcasting. And now a major honor from your home state. Let’s start with the music. You’ve been a member of Five Finger Death Punch for more than 15 years. Looking back over the time, how do you feel the band has evolved, not only musically but also in terms of your own growth as a musician and performer?
Well, musically, man, it’s been a long progress from, you know, we’ve had several different members over the years. And right now with this group, we’ve got me, Charlie, Andy, Zoltan, and Ivan. I feel that we are playing tighter than we ever have. Better, stronger performances than we’ve ever had. The production is incredible and we’re all getting along right now which historically when you’ve got members going in and out of the band clearly there’s some fire there but man we’re having such a good time up there and I think that having the technical players that we have both in Charlie and Andy tightening everything up really performing well and just the personalities in the band are all wonderful interactively right now. So, yeah, you’ll see it when we get on stage up there tonight.
Well, congratulations on the release of Legacy. With this marking the band’s 10th studio album, has the songwriting and recording process become easier over the years or does reaching this point in the band’s career bring new challenges when it comes to creating music together.
I love the new record. It’s, again, technically going back to Andy James playing and Zoltan’s right hand. Just the very first track right out of the gate. It’s like, what the fuck is even happening here? I’m like, it sounds like video game music to me.
I think that riff started off, and this may be coming out of my ass. I can’t say that it’s factually based. But I feel like one time Dragon Force did a cover of a Five Finger Death Punch song, like writing like Five Finger Death Punch. Herman Lee did it on his website. And I feel almost like this is kind of us, particularly with that riff, going back and doing, oh, you’re going to do Death Punch. We’re doing a Dragon Force riff. Boom, here you go. And again, that may just be the bass player speaking out of his ass, but that’s how I envision that track right there.
Well, looking back at your early days playing in bands like Cut, Love, Kill, Did you ever imagine that your career would eventually lead you to where you are today with Five Finger Death Punch? At the time, did you have any sense that the music could take you this far?
I always knew that I was going to be playing music. I thought I was going to be like a Hatebreed level going out and playing in large theaters, clubs, stuff like that. I never could have imagined that it would have gotten as big as it did. But I definitely knew I was going to be a working musician. It’s always been in my blood ever since I first saw Gene Simmons from Kiss when I was at the age of four.
I saw him on TV. I was like, oh, I don’t know what he’s doing, but that’s what I want to do right there. And I’ve been chasing that dream ever since. So I knew the hard work was there. It was a matter of continuing to take calculated chances, seeing doors opening before me, and then walking through those doors when they’re presented. And here I am today on the bus talking to you, even bringing up Old Cut Love Kill. That’s incredible. I love it.
And how has your sobriety changed your life, both personally and musically?
Personally and musically, both. It’s made me more present and more grateful for both of them. I think that when I was drinking and doing drugs, I was consumed with filling that God-sized hole in me with external stuff. Now that I’ve gotten, really since the pandemic really, more creative. I’ve been taking more chances. I do a stand-up comedy now, doing the Beardo And Weirdo podcast. So this nut that is Five Finger Death Punch has created so many other opportunities outside. I always like to say that I work for an hour and a half a day sometimes with Five Finger Death Punch.
Because I’m up there for an hour and a half and then I got all those hours to fill throughout the day. Back when I was drinking and drugging, I was filling it up with a bunch of bullshit. And now I’m doing it with much more actual fulfilling stuff. I know that I’m an entertainer, so anytime that I’m entertaining, I’m being the best version of myself. And there’s no Mic that I don’t love and no Mic that doesn’t love me. Same with photos. Same with cameras. I always like being out there. I feel like I’ve got a very bright light that shines from within, and I love sharing that. Always have, even as a little kid.
And I feel like I’m fully immersed in just, again, being the best version of myself, which is an entertainer. regardless of where I’m entertaining, that’s where I need to be.
Well, has getting sober changed the way you approach your creativity, songwriting, or performing?
Oh, yeah, completely. I remember before I got sober, one of the things in my mind was, oh, man, if I get sober, I’m not going to be able to be creative. I’m not going to be able to write songs. And the universe very loudly was like, motherfucker, you haven’t written a song in like five years.
Shut the fuck up. So I’d written riffs and whatnot, but I hadn’t really, I was afraid of something that wasn’t even happening at that point. Losing creativity. I had already lost it at that point. In 2021, started kind of like, I was going through a bit of a mental breakdown with the pandemic and not knowing where the band was going to be playing. If music was going to be an option for anybody ever again. And I was really going through it personally. So I sat down with a guitar probably six, seven hours a day just playing guitar over and over again. And suddenly riffs were starting to come out of me again. And I basically, through a therapeutic purge, wrote an entire solo record. We’ll see if that ever comes out.
It was enough for me just to use it therapeutically to get through that pandemic. But I definitely leaned on being creative during that rise back to becoming me again. And between that, between engaging in the stand-up comedy with my buddy Craig Gass, who I do the Beard And Weirdo podcast with, just really getting in and accepting this creative energy that’s in me, allowing it to kind of fall from the ether and me be a conduit of that. And again, when I’m doing that, the free flow of energy from wherever the hell that comes through me to wherever it goes after that, that’s the line of flow that I like being in right now. And it’s staying that way.
Of all the songs in the Five Finger Death Punch catalog, which is your favorite to perform live, and which song are you most proud to have been part of creating?
The one I’m most proud of being part of creating is on Afterlife. It’s called Gold Gutter. It was originally called ‘In Hell Was You’ that I’d written for my solo record. So the music is essentially the skeleton. I wrote the skeleton for that. and then Zoltan came in and added a couple of different parts and he added his magic on top of that and then Ivan wanted to be able to sing something that he connected with so that song has got a whole different set of lyrics and melodies and then Ivan came in with his and that’s the one that you hear on that record.
I am proud of the live element that I bring out here on stage. I’m very much a physical presence. I’m big. I’ve got the beard. I’m a performer. I’ve always been a performer. I say that I’m not a bassist. I don’t play bass. I beat the shit out of it.
that’s pretty much how I go through life. I’m not a finesse guy and let’s take it to another place in your life right now.
You’ve also ventured into stand-up comedy. How did that come about and was it more intimidating in the beginning to step on a stage by yourself without the rest of your band beside you?
Hell Yes! A resounding hell yes still today. I’ve been doing it for three years, it started off me and comedian Craig Gass. He was on King of Queens, Howard Stern Show, does voices for Family Guy. Him and i really bonded through sobriety, he’s got i think 20 years now maybe 21 years. I’m less than that but you know building up days i think i’m i just celebrated five years October 1st of this year. We were able to bond over that and anytime that we hang out we’re always telling stories going back and forth and he’s like “man, you are so funny. I know you love stand-up. We should get you up and do stand-up”. So he put together this show called ‘Punch Lines and Back Lines’ where they have three professional comedians and that one musician who’s wanted to do it but hasn’t done it before. They offered to do some writing for me for that but as the jokes were coming in I’m like ah again going with that flow I know my voice I know my experiences I’ve got stories from the road. I’m very expressive. I’m an entertainer performer.
So I used a couple of Craig’s jokes in the beginning when I first got started just to kind of break that ice and get a couple of pops. But then I went into stories about being in Death Punch, about growing up in Kentucky, about having to wear a motorcycle helmet to school because of a head injury in kindergarten. That’s where it started. Born fucking comedian, right?
So the very first show that I ever did was at a rock club with Punchline and Backlines. The second one that I did was at a comedy club called The Dirty at 12:30 in Las Vegas. It’s like a weekly Friday night show and I crushed it in a very forgiving audience in the rock club and then took it on the comedy stage and was like whoa! That first show was very forgiving.
So ever since then just been getting up there. I mean I go to open mics in front of 10 people. I’ll play here in front of 10-15,000 people with Death Punch and then be at a comedy club on a Tuesday night doing open mics in front of 30 people. And I love it. It’s a completely different animal. Here on stage with Death Punch, it’s like the back of my hand. At a comedy club, it’s like I’m getting smacked with the front of my hand.
Who are some of the comedians who have influenced your style and approach to stand-up, and what is it about their comedy that resonates with you?
Well, what I like versus what I perform are two completely different things. I realize that I love kind of dark humor, like Anthony Jeselnik. Yeah, I love that dude. There’s a dude named Derrick Stroop out of Alabama. He lives in Nashville now. That dude is so damn funny. He’s a southern comic. Just the words he uses and his expressions, he’s a genius. I’m somewhere in between those two styles. I definitely know that I’m a very likable person, very positive.
So if I’m trying to do dark humor, it doesn’t work for me on stage. And I’m big and scary. I can’t be doing dark humor because I’m going to scare the shit out of the crowd. I can’t be bringing me on stage with Death Punch into a comedy club. Right. That approach does not work. So a good friend of mine, another comedian back in Vegas, Josh Wolf, who used to be on Chelsea Lately, he did that. He’s a stand-up comedian, goes all around with his son now, Jacob Wolf. And he invited me to do stand-up at Jimmy Kimmel’s in Las Vegas.
And I was like, “hey, man, watch my set. I’m open to notes. I want to know what I need to work on. I love this art. I love this craft. I want to get better at it. Let me know what you think.” After I did my set, he came back. He was like, dude, the only notes there are, there are no notes. He’s like, you’ve got it, you’re comfortable on stage because of all the stuff that you’ve done with Death Punch.
Now it’s just a matter of finding your unique voice, your perspective in one night. And that triggered a change in me. There’s definitely some third rail topics that I touch in my stand-up growing up in Kentucky. There’s some stuff growing up that I touch on as well. But I also know that, again, I’m this light. I’ve got this light within me. I don’t want to introduce dark stuff just because I think it’s fun and interesting. I want to share the light. I want to get people out of their homes, into a comedy club, into the stage up here when we’re playing with Death Punch, and be a distraction from all the craziness that’s out there.
When you come see me, I want to be an entertaining. I want to be an entertainer and take you away from whatever you’ve got going on in life. give you an hour and a half, or if I’m doing comedy, 20, 25 minutes just to come in, relax, have a good time, take you away from all the other stuff. Or if you’re celebrating shit, bring you in. Let’s celebrate it as well. That’s why I’m an entertainer.
That’s a great perspective. You also co-host the Beardo And Weirdo Podcast with Gass, which you’ve mentioned. And were the two of you friends before you got into stand-up? And how did the idea of the podcast come together?
The podcast came together because we were friends. We’ve been friends for probably about 10 years. He was originally friends with Jason Hook. And one day Jason was busy with some other stuff. So Craig and I ended up hanging out watching Monday Night Football, I think.
I’ve been talking about how sober I am and all this other stuff. So that kind of helped me balance the public talking about it versus really sharing intimately with those in my sober circle. And that’s where we really bonded, sharing those stories, and it eventually just turned into the podcast. We got a lot of unique stories with me and Five Finger Death Punch, all the rock and roll stuff going on, him being a comedian. So he’s got stories from his life. I’ve got stories from my life.
We’ve got Geoff Tate on there from Queensryche fame today. We’ve had Gene Simmons reach out to us to promote his KISS land cruise that they do in Vegas. It’s crazy the amount of people that are coming out. and the love and support that we’ve got from all of our friends and able to talk about rock, comedy, sobriety.
I mean, I went through a major breakup on the podcast as well. So I’m crying like a bitch on there, along with all the laughter as well.
Well, now that you’re more than 40 episodes into Beardo And Weirdo, looking back at the guests you’ve had so far, who has been some of your favorites? And was there a moment or something a guest said that genuinely caught you off guard or left you speechless?
I think just the moment when we had Gene Simmons from Kiss on there. Because that’s where my musical journey started. I saw him on 321 Contact, knew what I wanted to do in seeing him on that stage. And there I was talking to Gene Simmons as a guest on our podcast. And I felt like, oh, hold on. I’m here now. going into this life there’s a little bit of an imposter syndrome when you’re hanging out with legends like Gene Simmons. Sometimes you find yourself going like “why am I in this room” but something about that interview it came full circle for me. It’s a huge moment in life. I saw him at four, now I’m doing essentially what he does at the age of 52 and have a conversation on the same level with the man.
That was one of those kind of affirming, like the path that I set out at the age of four and followed and stayed disciplined and kept taking those chances and refused to accept no and kept going. That was my moment. I was like, ah, I’m here. That is so awesome.
Has Craig ever talked about hitting the road with you and the band to record Beardo And Weirdo while you’re on tour?
Oh, yeah. Absolutely. that and stand-up comedy performances too. So going into this, I originally wanted to write a book about being in Five Finger Death Punch, all the experiences in life. Given the opportunity to do the comedy, I’m basically like doing market research on stage, seeing what stories hit, writing them, punching them up and making them more interesting. And then if something doesn’t register with fans over a couple of shows, I’m like, okay, maybe this is just for me but it’s given me a chance to kind of share these stories and get an immediate reaction from people. I love being on stage, I love being on a mic, I love interacting with people so rather than being in the back of a bus writing down my book i’m going up on a comedy stage and doing what i do. Entertaining, telling stories, connecting, and doing all that.
I’ve been trying to schedule comedy shows on those same cities on the days off to get people to come in. Five Finger Death Punch fans get to come in and see me up close at ridiculously cheap prices compared to my meet and greets and all the other stuff. But you’re going to get up close and personal. You’re going to hear stories about Death Punch. Get to meet me personally. I say hi to every single person in there. And then come see the big rock show on Saturday. So it just turns into a full Death Punch weekend.
Well, as far as that, you also have the upcoming induction in the 2026 Kentucky Music Hall of Fame later this month. How did you first find out that you were being inducted, and what was your reaction to that news?
I got an email from the Hall of Fame, and I saw it, and I was like, this is bullshit. They’re trying to get money out of me. Oh, I’m going to pay $250 for a plaque at the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. I was like, fuck that. Got a second email. I was like, no, this is stupid. And then a friend of mine that I’ve known since elementary school sent me a text. He said, hey, my friend’s wife works the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. They’re trying to reach out and get in touch with you to induct you into the Hall of Fame. Get back to her. I was like, holy shit. This is real. So again, imposter syndrome.
Thinking that that’s being offered, I’m like, ah, that’s bullshit. But I’m here. I’m going into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. I’ve been waving the Kentucky flag for years. I’m doing it essentially for kids growing up in Kentucky and my friends and family who have supported me all these years. I appreciate going into it. It’s really to inspire kids from Kentucky because I was inspired by a guy named Blaine (Cartwright) from a band called Nine Pound Hammer. They played at the Wrocklage in Kentucky right when I first started playing music.
And he said something on stage that stuck with me in between songs. He said, something up here is telling me to say this to you guys. If I can do this, you can do this too. And that’s the example that I want to set for kids growing up in Kentucky. I mean, I grew up in Lexington. was the big fish and escalated to a big fish in a little pond.
That band broke up (Cut, Love, Kill) and then I moved out to Vegas to be the little fish in a big pond. And now I’m swimming nice and comfortably out here on tour with Five Finger Death Punch going to the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. So if I can do it, you guys can do it. You just got to believe in yourself. Probably a little excessively sometimes.
And yeah, nobody that plays guitar in their room wants to play guitar in their room. We all want to get out there. We all want to get out there and give back to the people, be acknowledged for the things that we’ve done. And I feel like I’m at a point now in life where I’m comfortable accepting the accolades that are coming now. I don’t revel in them, but I’m comfortable enough to be like, okay, yeah, I can look at the body of work that I’ve done over the years and realize that it’s connecting with a lot of people And if those connections can allow me to inspire other people to get outside of their comfort zone and go with it, that’s the end goal for me.
Anything you’d like to share about your shows or your meet and Greets?
If you want to meet me up close and personal I offer several different options. I’ve got a stage played bass package, a stage worn vest package, and then recently just started offering a stage used strap. That way it’s a little bit of a lower price in case you don’t have it to get the bass or the vest. That way it opens up for me to be able to continue to meet people and again just share the light that’s out here.
The post Chris Kael Interview – Bassist of Five Finger Death Punch and Co-Host of Beardo and Weirdo Podcast appeared first on Mayhem Music Magazine.
