Dan Zalles

So nice to meet you! First off, what’s your name? Tell our readers a bit about yourself—where you’re from originally and where you live now.

I'm Dan Zalles (pronounced like Dallas or Alice). I was born in Rochester, NY, then spent a lot of time in Northern California, and now I live in Salt Lake City.

Tell us one thing you love about where you live now.

The amazing natural beauty of the Wasatch Mountains, which tower above where I live.

Tell us a little more about what your company does and how it started. How does it help your customers?

My company is my music. I write it, produce it, publish it, circulate it on all the major music streaming platforms, and support it with occasional videos. I do this to satisfy my love of making music. I make it available to people to make them happy, provided they like it, of course.

If someone wants to start a business, what advice would you give them?

It should foremost be a labor of love and stand a good chance of meeting whatever other goals you may have, financial or otherwise.

What is one piece of feedback from a happy customer or client that you won't forget?

I remember feedback from listeners who tell me my songs really resonate with them. For example, responding to an album I released last January called Harmonia, a listener wrote, "Dan, I love the new album! We could launch the new counterculture movement with some of these songs... You are a seer who found his voice in music."

Where do you see your company in the future?

I just want to keep creating new music and making it available to people online.

What is the biggest misconception about your industry?

That it's not worth putting out new music because you can't make a living from it anymore. I'd say, yes, it's true that you probably won't be able to make a living from it anymore, and that's all because of streaming. However, it's so cheap to produce and make available to people these days that it's absolutely worth doing, if you're so inclined, of course. It's great to have creative outlets.

What has been one of your biggest struggles building your business, and how did you deal with it?

My biggest struggle was caring too much about getting lots of clicks and attention when that's just a hollow ego thing. I care less about that now and am content reaching whoever happens to find and enjoy my music. I'd rather spend my time making music than marketing it.

Who was your favorite music artist and athlete growing up?

I have a very boring answer: The Beatles. I was of that generation of kids who were obsessed with them, and they continue to inspire me. I didn't have a favorite athlete.

Any shoutouts you want to make?

I'd like to use this space to introduce my new solo album, my 12th. It's called Emoticon, and I just released it on September 25. Emoticon is bookended by two good vibe songs, the pop piano groove of Comfort Food and the folky Just Laugh About It. Comfort Food is meant to sound as warm and comforting as its subject matter.

Emoticon, the title track, is a new wave dance song about the impacts of modern technology on our humanity, along the lines of prior songs I’ve released on this theme like Automate Yourself, Virtuality, The System Crashed and Email Hell. Will I See the Light is a Latin-grooved rocker on mortality, a theme I’ve also explored on Resting Place and Consequential. Garden is a pastoral prog folk psychedelic song about nature, another theme I write about frequently. If you like mandolins and mellotrons, you’ll like this one. Rapids is a progressive piano rock powerhouse of an instrumental written by my son Ian. Master is a funky but quirky song about social angst. Other songs I’ve written on this theme are Curiosity, Persona, and I’m Sorry For Saying I’m Sorry.

Then come three songs about the darker sides of humanity. Split the Difference is a minor key acoustic rave up with flamenco guitar picking and strumming mandolins. It’s on a theme I’ve not written about before, that of how destructive competition can be to relationships and how it might be better to just “split the difference and go.” Who’s the Bigger Victim is a satirical swing jazz tune that makes fun of victim culture. Then, there’s Collateral Damage, a hard rocker with a punk edge that’s as close as I ever come to a full-on anti-war song. But it’s not just that. It’s also about how terrifying it would be to find yourself in the line of fire.

Then, the album gets lighter again. I Don’t Get It Anymore is a bopping bit of Americana about losing touch with pop culture as we age, complete with acoustic guitar, mandolin, and dobro. Nice and Easy is a catchy light retro jazz instrumental that hearkens back to the days of small combo urban jazz from the 1950s and ’60s. Just Laugh About It, the folky closer, is about lightening up with a healthy dose of humor.

Where can our readers learn more about you and your company?

You can hear my albums and singles on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube and most other music streaming platforms. My YouTube channel has lots of music videos and videos of me performing live by myself and in various bands. Then, there's my website, danzallesmusic.com, which describes my bands, my albums, and links to all the press I've gotten and album reviews.