Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sam Cochran. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Sam, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

Recently, Seven Teller released a third record called “Jester.” It’s my third official release since making a profession out of my original music. I’ve worked endlessly on writing and producing my songs to the fine details. I’ve never felt entirely satisfied with the end results until now. I can honestly say that I can hear myself in the music. It sounds original and from-the-heart. I’ve put in thousands of hours to find my voice and I think I’m close. I’ll always be searching, but this new record marks a big turning point for me, and some level of maturity as a recording artist.

Sam, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’ve always written songs since I was young and I taught myself to play instruments. I’ve always deeply loved music. When I was a late teenager I went through a darker period and I soon stopped listening to the music I used to love and I stopped writing. I got sober 6 years ago and almost instantly picked up my guitar. It helped me heal. Music is like that for me. It isn’t background noise like it is to other people. It’s lifeblood.

I don’t know what my aspirations were when I started writing music again, but I began to busk and perform at open mics and bars. I even started a band and we played my originals. I wouldn’t say I was breaking ground creatively, but I was experimenting and having fun.

Like a lot of people, I dug into my creative roots even more during the pandemic. I wrote a lot of material. I made a commitment to myself at the time that I was going to pursue music from there on out. As the lockdowns began to cease I began networking with other musicians and soon got a band together to record. I used the stage name Sam Teller and released my first record “Out Of The Womb.”

I was pretty naive at the time and I didn’t have any experience recording. It sounds like it. But the seed was planted. I began performing ticketed shows at small clubs and festivals in Maryland. We recorded a second record called “SEVEN” in 2022 and I changed the name to Seven Teller because I wanted it to sound more like a band than a solo project. It is my project at heart but I am only able to present the sum of the parts. My bandmates are like my chosen family and they know that. Even if some have come and gone.

Before “SEVEN” was released in 2023, the core lineup changed when Jake Fine and Brandon Mediate joined on drums and keyboards. I booked our first tour in support of the new record in early 2023 and for the first time I went on the road. It was exciting! I had no idea what I was doing.

The live show is like a religious ceremony to me. There is a higher energy at work. I feel that it’s our job as the performer to channel that energy to the audience through composition and improvisation. It is one of the most rewarding parts of playing music. It’s just like being an aqueduct. The spirit really is where the power of music comes out to play. I am most proud when someone approaches me after a show and confirms this. I want the show to be moving. I want to make people dance as much as possible. I want people to forget who they are for a minute. I want to forget who I am for a minute! Music can do that.

Over time the band has developed a groove-based, art-rock sound. As I mentioned before, I want people to dance. The song ideas begin with rhythm. It’s something that everyone can relate to, no matter where you come from or what kind of music you enjoy. It’s not philosophic; it’s meat and potatoes. It’s inside everyone. Lately, I’ve been experimenting with these thoughts even more and you can hear this all over our new record “Jester.” On our album release tour, I’ve been messing around with more percussion and more instruments/musicians overall. I’m going for a big sound with lots of layering. It’s exciting and new to me and I’m looking forward to developing this more.

I’m really proud of where we’re at right now. Things are steadily changing and developing within the band and simultaneously we have all this really cool stuff going on. “Jester” just got released and both of the singles are doing well on Spotify. We’re going out west next week for the album release tour and hitting 9 shows in 10 days. 8 of which are new areas for us like Colorado and Chicago. We’re bringing back Tellerfest on September 28th in Patterson Park! I can’t wait for that.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I thought that everything had to be democratic in my band. I thought we had to have a shared creative vision on everything when really, it’s my creative vision and I’m the one who cares most about it. I’m owning that now and it’s saving me a lot of angst.

I’ve long looked up to my musical heroes who are in these tight-knit bands. The members have been best friends since college or high school or something, they write together and they share equally in the labor. I thought I had to have that. But the reality is I’ll probably never have it like those bands. And I don’t need to. It’s really hard to maintain friendships in a band. You have to keep friendship at the forefront. One of the ways I’m doing that is by taking all the responsibility of the band on myself so there’s no confusion and I’m not expecting anything more of bandmates than to be the best musicians they can be; which they are.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I hate to sound negative, which I think some people sound like when they talk about this, but the music industry is incredibly hard right now. And I don’t think the average music listener understands everything that goes into managing a band, managing a tour, or owning a music venue.

If I broke down all of the financials versus the labor of planning a cross-country tour or recording an album, most people would gasp. The returns are dismal, if anything. And the reason why I say that the music industry is hard right now specifically is because bands and venues are experiencing the same thing all across the board: consumers aren’t buying presale tickets. Smaller acts like us might be expected to go through this, but even national acts are having trouble. Festivals are canceling and venues are shutting down. Even some bands that me and my friends have looked up to are calling it quits.

Average consumers are only buying tickets to stadium acts and household names. Shows are either selling out or they are barely selling. There’s no middle ground. It’s confusing. The way we approach making a career in the music industry has to change to meet these varying levels of demand. It’s not all the consumer’s fault. I just wish people appreciated the arts more and were more willing to go out to their local venue to connect with people. They should go see the band that traveled hundreds of miles to play for them instead of re-watching The Office on Netflix. I feel like people forget that all of their favorite musicians, all the big names, were at some point playing to small crowds of 50 people.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.seventeller.com
• Instagram: @seventeller
• Youtube: @seventeller

Image Credits

@theguapogallery