Styx. Photo by Jason Powell, courtesy of StyxWorld.com.
Lawrence Gowan joined Rocking With Jam Man for a candid, funny and surprisingly deep conversation about Styx, his Canadian solo career, artificial intelligence, Dennis DeYoung, his brother Terry Gowan and the musical feeling that still keeps him moving forward.
The Styx keyboardist and vocalist spoke with 15-year-old host Remzi “Jam Man” Yates at the beginning of the band’s tour with Chicago. Gowan said the opening stretch included a sold-out 12,000-seat show in New Hampshire, preceded by another sellout in New York.
The man behind the stage character
Gowan acknowledged the theatrical, larger-than-life personality fans see onstage, but said that energy has to be turned down in everyday life. He pointed to Mick Jagger as another performer who can be flamboyant under the lights and low-key away from them.
“If you act like you do onstage, people are going to be kind of worried about you. And if you act onstage as you do in the real world, people are going to want their money back.”
Melody, fame and the American breakthrough
Asked what he believes about music today that his 25-year-old self would have rejected, Gowan focused on melody. He said many songs from the early 1980s remain memorable because melody was central, while much of today’s popular music gives it less importance. At the same time, he noted that a powerful new melody stands out immediately.
He also contrasted the modern worldwide release model with the divided music business of his solo era. Even when his records were hugely successful in Canada, American listeners often could not legally buy them. That became a real frustration. After imported copies of his music gained traction at Cleveland radio and he toured nationally with Tears for Fears, a full U.S. breakthrough still proved difficult.
Then Styx called.
Gowan said joining the band brought him into the massive American audience he had spent years trying to reach—but in a way he never expected. Sometimes, he said, life deals a different hand than the one you imagined, and the result can exceed your expectations.
His 1985 song “A Criminal Mind” became an immediate bridge between his two careers. Styx already knew the song, audiences sang along, and Tommy Shaw told him they should make it a Styx song. Gowan also named “Keep Up the Fight,” from his commercially unsuccessful first album, as a song that later became a personal mantra about resilience.
He called the discovery of “Strange Animal” by younger generations—helped by its appearance in Jordan Peele’s Us—one of the most gratifying forms of validation because it showed the music had survived beyond its original moment.
Why Styx still needs new music
Gowan said he does not automatically know whether a new idea belongs on a solo album or a Styx record. He often plays it for producer and bandmate Will Evankovich, who helps decide where it belongs. He said he never keeps a strong idea away from Styx simply to save it for himself, because doing that would cheat both him and the band.
While discussing the Styx album Circling From Above, Gowan described writing with Evankovich and Tommy Shaw as a “mind meld.” The finished songs become something none of them could have created alone.
For a band with a massive catalog, new music is not an obligation—it is part of the lifeblood. Gowan said new songs, new ideas and new approaches to the live show give Styx the forward momentum required to keep the musicians and their audience engaged instead of simply reaching a plateau.
He also defended listening to complete albums. Streaming has made nearly every piece of music instantly accessible, but that convenience can make songs feel disposable. Vinyl asks the listener to step away from the world, put on a record and devote roughly 40 minutes to sides A and B. That experience, he said, gives people the time to understand an artist’s musicality and point of view.
AI versus human emotion
When Jam Man asked whether artificial intelligence copying his voice, playing and songwriting excites, scares or angers him, Gowan answered that it could do all three depending on the circumstances. He could imagine being amazed by hearing his ideas reflected back, feeling ripped off when no revenue reaches the artist, and eventually becoming more ambivalent as listeners push back against generic results.
“It’s even more vital to make sure that humanity in your music survives the recording process.”
Gowan has heard AI music that impressed him technically, but not something that moved him the way human-created music can. He believes AI and musicians can coexist, but hopes the human side ultimately carries more weight.
Dennis DeYoung’s songs and Terry Gowan joining Styx
Gowan had heard and enjoyed Dennis DeYoung’s songs before joining Styx, but learning their details and living inside them onstage gave him a much deeper appreciation. He praised the relatable lyrics and melodies that continue connecting with multiple generations.
“I feel connected to him through his songs—in the best possible way.”
With his younger brother Terry now playing bass in Styx, Gowan also addressed the potential danger of mixing family emotions with band emotions. His rule is simple: inside Styx, Terry receives the same respect and treatment as Tommy Shaw, Todd Sucherman, Will Evankovich, James “J.Y.” Young and Chuck Panozzo—not the treatment reserved for a younger brother who already knows which buttons to push.
The musical high he is still chasing
After more than four decades of records, tours and legendary collaborators, Gowan said he is still chasing the ecstatic joy music can create.
“When you reach it, you just want to reach it again. It’s an endless kind of road.”
He compared that drive to the story of Beethoven continuing to compose until his final breath, still pursuing an elusive musical high he had already experienced thousands of times. Gowan has no plan to stop making music; he wants to keep creating and communicating with people for as long as possible.
The interview also takes several lighter turns. Gowan describes modern tour buses as rolling five-star hotels, admits his body feels every mile more than it once did, and says that although he feels 15 or 16 while performing, the next morning reminds him of his “vintage.” His wildly unhealthy last-meal order would include a monster stack of pancakes, an entire bottle of maple syrup, melting butter, Dairy Queen ice cream, Häagen-Dazs coffee ice cream, endless espresso shots—and, after reconsidering, a strawberry milkshake.
Watch the complete Lawrence Gowan interview:
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