Alex Dezen On The Damnwells' New LP, Justin Bieber, Cheap Trick & More - "Paltrocast" Exclusive

Photo byThe Damnwells

Formed in Brooklyn, The Damnwells held their first band practice in 2000. Alex Dezen, a former stage actor who starred in Les Miserables as a child, was no stranger to the stage. Neither was Steven Terry, who had kicked off his career as a member of the iconic alt-country band Whiskeytown. Those unique backgrounds gave way to an equally unique sound, and Bastards Of The Beat — The Damnwells' 2003 debut album, recorded in the musicians' own rehearsal space and released by Epic Records — introduced a band caught halfway between the streetwise swagger of New York's indie-rock scene and the raw, rootsy timelessness of Americana. Air Stereo followed in 2006 from The Damnwells, along with a documentary film, Golden Days, that chronicled the band's departure from Epic Records.

As The Damnwells' original lineup began to splinter, Dezen left the East Coast and headed to the Midwest, where he secured his MFA degree in English from The University of Iowa's Iowa Writers' Workshop. Those newly-sharpened writing skills were showcased on albums like One Last Century and No One Listens To The Band Anymore, both of which featured Dezen leading a revised version of The Damnwells. Meanwhile, he also expanded his work as a songwriter, penning songs for TV shows like Nashville, Ed, Life As We Know It, and Brothers & Sisters, while also writing music for artists like Justin Bieber ("Take You"), Robin Thicke ("One Shot"), JoJo ("I Am"), The Night Game ("Die a Little"), Cheap Trick's Bun E. Carlos and dozens of other notable artists.

The Damnwells reformed in 2015 for a self-titled album and accompanying tour. Dezen finished the decade by releasing a handful of solo records, as hailed by No Depression for their mix of "reflective observations and tender narratives that are liable to bring a tear to the eye and a lump to the throat." Several years later, Dezen sounds reinvigorated on Bad At Beautiful, whose songs were recorded remotely between November 2022 and June 2023. Bad At Beautiful -- as tracked in various studios across America and compiled together at Dezen's home studio in Los Angeles -- finally saw its commercial release earlier this month.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Alex Dezen via Zoom, as embedded above and set to air via the Long Beach, New York-based Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz television series. Beyond Bad At Beautiful, we discussed Dezen's career as a songwriter for other artists, his working relationship with Cheap Trick, and life outside of music for him.