KIEFER SUTHERLAND

We don’t quite have 24 hours with him (more like a strict 30 minutes). But it’s remarkable how closely an interview with Kiefer Sutherland resembles a chat with a normal human being. Answering the phone from Los Angeles in that unmistakable honey-and-grit drawl, he’s the most gracious megastar you’re ever likely to encounter, more like a guitar shop regular than the man who stared from your childhood Lost Boys poster as a peroxide vampire.

At the grand old age of 55, Sutherland is paying his dues all over again. Unlike his movie and TV career – a context in which he’s been a stone-cold icon since Stand By Me, 35 years ago – the Canadian’s two country albums since 2016 have seen him shinning up the greasy pole and playing venues that can barely contain his star power. But aside from the scale, he considers, maybe his day job has more in common with third album, Bloor Street, than it appears. “The thing I love about acting is that I get together with a group of people to tell a story. Americana music is kinda like that, too.”

What subjects came up as you wrote Bloor Street?

“I couldn’t help but be aware of the struggles people were having to endure during the pandemic, economically, emotionally and from a mental health perspective. The songs I naturally started writing – , , – were incredibly hopeful. Even a song like , which is really playful. Y’know, I’m at an age now where I feel like a used car and I thought it would be funny to write a song from