Kevin Heckeler is the multi-instrumentalist and primary member of the project that goes by the name The Boogeymen. Since the early 2000s Kevin has managed a website for the project and self-produced several albums, as well as collaborated with other musicians both locally and across the United States. Originally creating parody and comedy music with local guitarist Lewis Benko, the project eventually took on a more serious tone as Kevin honed his musical and production skills. At a time when online music was still considered a new, vibrant and exciting platform he released numerous albums that tackled complex social, religious, and political issues.
The line-up for the current incarnation of The Boogeymen begins a full decade earlier. A longtime friend and occasional collaborator came aboard as a full contributing member, helping infuse some fresh perspective and ideas into the project which ultimately sent it into a more musically accessible direction.
Scott Watts grew up in upstate New York, and spent much of his young life surrounded by musicians and the process of writing and recording music. Although he’s always had a love for nearly all genres of music, and for songwriting and recording, visual storytelling has always been his first love. So, in 2002, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the film and television industry. He joined Miramax Films in 2005 where worked on films such as The Queen, Gone Baby Gone and No Country For Old Men. After his tenure with Miramax, Scott transitioned to The Walt Disney Studios in 2010, where he worked on Frankenweenie and Maleficent, and the Disneynature films Oceans, African Cats and Chimpanzee. During this time he has also worked on the documentaries Waking Sleeping Beauty, Hand Held, High Ground, and The Gamble House. Missing Pieces combines Scott’s love of music and storytelling, drawing from personal heartbreak and experience to tell of one man’s journey through love and loss.
Scott Says:
“I’ve always been a storyteller at heart, and some of my favorite songs are ones that tell a story. People like Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel and even more recently, The Lumineers, come to mind. In three minutes or so they’ve told you this amazing tale of some stranger. They’ve given you a snapshot into their lives with lyrics. And since it’s a song that story automatically comes with its own score, which most of the time is both haunting and heartbreaking. Songs like that always seem to stick with me. But at the same time I’ve always been a fan of concept albums, like Rush’s 2112, The Who’s Tommy, Tom Waits’ Franks Wild Years, or Green Day’s American Idiot. Not only do the individual tracks on those albums tell a story, but they all add up to become part of a much larger whole, and together tell a much bigger story. That idea has always excited me. Then, add on top of that my love for musical theater, and animated musicals, where you bring in lyricists like Howard Ashman, who was an absolute genius, where each of his songs in the context of the larger story doesn’t just tell that tale, but becomes a sign post or a tent pole that turns the very direction of the story through the song itself. They aren’t passive, but are in fact driving the plot forward. My goal for Missing Pieces was to combine these three ideas, and it seemed to me the best way to do this, the most universal way, was to tell a love story. So I decided to take some of my own experiences and tell a story to which I think everyone can relate.”
Kevin says:
“We started by doing comedy music back in high school and by college we started writing serious material that gained some positive feedback from family and friends. We played some local Albany, New York shows, but never pursued it further. Years go by, Scott moved to California, and our collaboration on music mostly stalled. He appeared as a guest vocalist on a few of my original tracks, and we worked on a couple of his original songs over that decade. Then in fall 2014 Scott approached me about recording a song for a prospective love interest, which became “Fallin’ For You.” From the success of this track we discussed and set into motion the plan for creating Missing Pieces. Working on 15 songs (2 songs ended up being dropped) across the internet was daunting, even with the 21st century tools at our disposal. Were it not for our 20 years of experience as friends and collaborators I doubt it would have gone as well. Working with Scott has always been challenging, in the best sense, and rewarding. He has a different perspective on music from mine. I’m more technical minded while Scott has always been driven by melody, emotion, and content. He would suggest a song by an artist I’ve never heard of, and with my musical acumen I would shape that to fit into the theme we were developing. He would find memorable melodies in the seemingly chaotic musical bits I would send him. It was like magic to me, as it was often not in a direction I anticipated.”
Website: http://www.the-boogeymen.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Boogeymen-47510633471/