Award-winning, internationally touring singer/songwriter Arlan Feiles recently spoke with TEDxAsburyPark writer Suzanne Pisano ahead of his TED Talk and musical performance on May 6th in Cakes & Ale: Why We Drink and Party.
Feiles performed and spoke at TEDxAsburyPark PASSION on the Paramount stage in 2018. His TED Talk covered his passion of story telling in his song writing. He shared a moving song and story inspired by Viola Liuzzo, who died on March 25, 1965, the day of the civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery.
This time around he’ll be speaking about a different kind of social topic—namely drinking bourbon—while bringing his usual depth and gravitas to the stage.
Pisano: You’ve mentioned having a complicated relationship with bourbon. Tell us about that.
Feiles: What's interesting about putting together this talk is that it's an opportunity to really take inventory and think about my relationship with alcohol; recognizing that there are useful components, but also damaging ones.
There’s a celebratory component that has been tied to the use of alcohol. We toast with champagne to celebrate the New Year. We drink wine with Shabbat. We toast at weddings. So it’s really written into our social fabric as a tradition, a ritual.
Pisano: That speaks directly to our theme, that we gather and party because we want to connect with other people in our family or community. What do you see as the potentially damaging components?
Feiles: Some people use alcohol to feel better, feel happy, to fight anxiety, depression, or pain. To overcome barriers in hopes to commune with people.
When I drink I’ve been told that I’m quite funny and jovial, but I don’t drink just for fun. I struggle with terrible stage fright and anxiety. I suffer with chronic pain as well, and it helps, so it’s complicated. It’s not been socially or personally destructive, but it’s also something I recognize is not [always] good for me. So it’s a kind of a dance.
Pisano: Your music is rooted in insightful social commentary and observations of the human condition. What role does alcohol play—if any— in your songwriting or musical performance?
Feiles: Most of my writing is done with a clear head. I don’t find [alcohol] a useful tool in my creative process at all, though I do reference alcohol in many of my songs. What it seems to be is a great tool for squashing down my stage fright, and the horrible anxiety that I get when performing in front of people…it helps quiet the voices in my head and helps me not care so much. Believe it or not I’m very shy, so having even one drink opens me up so that I feel comfortable engaging.
A lot of my music finds its redemption in sadness; it seeks clarity in harsh realities. It's where I thrive artistically. But I don’t want my talk to be a downer. There is plenty of joy to be found in our personal struggles. I try to navigate and explore these feelings so some of my concerns go away. That way I can focus on the content and not my character. I have good ideas on how to find that balance now.
Member discussion: