For Chris Shiflett, working as a solo artist is "challenging."
This year saw the guitarist for Foo Fighters release his third solo album, "Lost at Sea," although he said it took some getting used to being the only person in the spotlight.
When asked about the change from sideman to frontman, he responded, "Challenging," to Classic Rock magazine. He added that playing the guitar is where he's really comfortable in.
"But to be the singer and then also have to talk to the crowd, I had to work at that. What you realise is that people want to have a good time. They've hired a sitter, bought tickets, bought a few drinks,maybe bought a t-shirt, they've invested in the evening. So that's my job up on stage, to provide them with a good time. Once I figured that out, things got a lot better," he explained.
The 52-year-old artist also presents the podcasts "Shred With Shifty" and "Walking The Floor," and he acknowledged that his motivation was a constant need to be productive and avoid wasting time.
He said he's bad at downtime and needs to be playing or learning something new.
He added that as he become older, he has been experiencing a sort of overwhelming sense of regret about how much time he squandered in his younger years. He said he can never get those years back - no one can.
He however, said that he's fortunate to be able to do music full-time. And he wants to keep doing it, forever.
Despite reflecting and looking back, Chris is determined not to get too nostalgic.
He said, "I think we're all overly nostalgic and kind of overly sentimental. With songwriting, I'm constantly digging into earlier periods in my life. And I find myself pushing back against that because too much nostalgia is a dangerous thing. I try to write in the present."
Normally, putting out a solo album is an all-consuming endeavor for a musician-but for Chris Shiflett, it's just one of projects he has been involved in lately and one of the many hats he has put on.
He said he did not intentionally set out to be so busy with all sorts of things though.
"You try from a distance to plan things so that you're not doing all the stuff all at once, and, oh boy, did my planning fail miserably on this one!" he tells American Songwriter with a laugh during a recent Zoom video call.
