As a teen growing up in Waukesha Wisconsin, just outside Milwaukee, Kurt Nuemann always loved music, but had no big expectations about making it a career.
"When I look back at it all now, I see that I found music as a place I could hide out in, it felt safe. I was not a real social person, I was a bit of a recluse, so music gave me a place to go into a room and do that. I loved being there, I loved music, I loved the feeling of playing music but I was never certain I could make a living out of it. I never thought I'd be still doing this," he laughed.
He and his boyhood friend Sammy Llanas founded the The BoDeans, a band that quickly gained a cult-like following especially in the Midwest.
"I feel completely connected to the Midwest. I'm not sure why the music connects so strongly there because when we analyze it, it's just guitar and words and for whatever reason, it does. I have a lot of respect for that. I do focus on it and whether we are in Chicago, in Wisconsin or in Minneapolis, there are a lot of people who connect with our music so I always feel right at home with them."
Nuemann describes his music as a mix of alternative, roots and indie rock music, and as die hard fans will attest, there is a BoDeans sound.
Cover of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
"I think so too. What was most important to me was that I never took any music lessons because I didn't want to learn what other people, how they approached it. I really wanted to approach it myself. When it comes to playing guitar, I play it differently than a lot of people. I think in the end, that was does define your sounds is that you did it your own way," and radio and air play he said was key to their success.
"It's essential, especially back then. It's a different thing with streaming and YouTube now. Back then, it was essential that stations played your music otherwise you just weren't heard, if you're not heard, nobody buys the record and the record can't afford to keep you on. If you want to build a fan base at all, you need to get heard. When Triple A (Adult album alternative) and especially WXRT believed in us for so many years, it helped create The BoDeans' fan base, by playing the music and people connecting with it, that made all the difference in the world for us," he said.
Cover of "Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams" album
It's been 40 years since their first album in 1986 "Love & Sex & Hope & Dreams".
"First records for any band can be great because it's your introduction to the world and to this band, all the sudden you hear new music that you connect with so I think that's what happened with us. We didn't know what we were doing. I had barely been playing guitar for a few years, I had grown up playing drums and I'd never sang a song, ever. So all of it was very strange and new to me so we kept everything as simple as possible, all those songs on the first record are very simple, they are well structured songs, but they are all about simple parts, simple music and that's probably what people really liked about it. It was really easy to grab onto, you weren't trying to bring some challenging new sound, you were just giving them this classic song writing. I think that's what they liked about it."
Nuemann and Bono, Hampton Arena, Virginia, 1987
The Neumann Family
Decades of playing college campuses and small venues soon turned into packing Summerfest in Milwaukee and touring with U2.
"When the first record came out, the record companies were sending us to rock stations where Guns N' Roses and Bon Jovi were the thing and we had this very quirky, strange sounding records compared to those. I give a lot of props to Warner Brothers for sticking with us for so many years. Our second record was a little more of a rock record so it fit into radio so U2 hired us to come out and open some songs because they loved American music. I think they liked the energy we had in our shows because it was like their energy. Our music isn't identical but it's very much based on the energy and power and the audience singing with you so I think they liked that. They added us to about 30 shows. You're in a stadium playing for 60-90 thousand people sometimes, it was crazy." he recalled.
In 1994, an old tune became the theme song to a new and popular Fox television show "Party of Five" and showed the world what their Midwest fans already knew.
"It was a strange time, it was an older song, it had come out three years before. Producers tested out a lot of songs. They poured a ton of money into it to create promotion. They did this with "Closer To Free." (from the 1993 album "Go Slow Down") The weird thing is that it didn't sell a lot of records, it became a pop song on the radio, but it didn't sell records." he recalled.
In 2011, Llanas left the band. Nuemann says that was a difficult time.
"It was really hard. My perspective then was- this is totally up to the fans. I'm happy to go out and still play these songs without him because I like playing them and if people want to show up and keep supporting and singing a long, we'll keep doing that as long as it's a good, positive thing. I show up in a room to sing the song but it really depends on if people want to show up with me and so far, they've been showing up. It's amazing. It's been a great thing but I never knew if that was going to be the case," he said.
Nuemann and The BoDeans
Luciano J Bilotti
The biggest thing he says he notices now is that a new generation is discovering his music.
"I expect the older people to come out but it's been passed down. I do get a lot of 25-30 year olds still in the room singing these songs. At first, I was really confused about it because a lot of them told me -my parents or grandparents listened to your music. I see them singing the words to "Good Things" and I can see the words are meaningful to them, they connect with this song and they are dancing and singing to it. That's the beauty of music, of a well written song or a performance, is that it can transcend time like that and that makes it really special to me," he smiled.
When Nuemann looks back, making music was so much different four decades ago.
"Music has almost become disposable to the younger generations. This is what's today, but they just throw it away and move onto tomorrow. Back then, Tom Petty would make a record and we'd live these songs for 1-2 years. We had so much fun and experience with this music and so that's what I always wanted my music to be too, to be part of people's lives. You have a long cycle for these records, you're not just about one song in a week or two and then it was done. I never wanted it to be like that. It was a different process too. The way it was made with studios, it was very expensive and you needed a record company to pick you up and help pay for it all. it was a weeding out process. If you couldn't write a good song, stand at a microphone and make it sound good without technology you didn't have a record contract. Now, everyone in their bedroom can make an elaborate sounding record. It seems like anyone can do it now compared to when we were initially doing it."
Kurt Neumann (on guitar), The Bodeans
Luciano J Bilotti
The BoDeans have released 13 albums over their 40-year career. Their debut was released in 1986, and their most recent, 4 The Last Time was released in 2022. Their discography also includes live albums, such as Joe Dirt Car (1995) and Homebrewed. The BoDeans' 40th Anniversary Tour in 2026 is underway. Throughout the year, Nuemann estimates they'll perform about 100 shows. He also has another album in the works.
"I have about 20 songs recorded. I'm just trying to find the best way to put them out. I have a lot of it done. If they think it's good, yeah I'm ready to put it out. Music now to me, in many ways, means more than ever. You're not just trying to get girls, attention or money, you play music for music's sakes and that's a whole different experience. I'm grateful that I got to do something in this world that creates positive energy. For me, music always felt positive to me and it's what's keeping me going and feeling good at my age," he laughed.
The BoDeans will be back in the Chicagoland area at the Des Plaines Theater on June 6th.
"It's not so much a celebration of me doing this so many years, as much as I celebrate the fans who've been coming out singing with us year after year. That's the way I see this tour. It's not about me, so much as we're still singing these songs and it's a good reason for us to get together in the room and singing them"
