By: Phil Cartwright
We’ve been in touch with our friend Kacey Cubero. We recommend that you check out her CD, Fill Your Cup www.kaceycubero.com. Kacey plays a unique brand of Americana, incorporating elements of roots, rock, and country, all with a soulful edginess. That edginess and the originality she brings to her music were evident early on. An only child, her guitar was her best friend and music her refuge. Growing up in a home where music was omnipresent, the Washington, DC-native’s musical baptism was as eclectic and authentic as the music she writes. Haunting and thought-provoking, Kacey’s voice and songwriting have been likened to Shelby Lynne and Lucinda Williams.
The range and versatility of her music is evidenced by her winning the MAVRIC Independent Music Award in 2009 for Folk Song of the Year for Feather in the Wind, and for being named 2006 Artist of the Year by the Santa Barbara Blues Society—the oldest blues society in the U.S.—and representing them in the International Blues Competition in Memphis. From childhood, Kacey had always known music would be her life’s work. Pursuing her music was always the plan, but first she got a college degree in business and finance before she left D.C., her family and friends, and headed to California with her guitar and a suitcase. She spent years writing, performing, touring, and honing her distinctive and edgy blend of rock/alt-country. Perhaps it’s not surprising that the title of her second CD, Diamond in the Rough, conveys a mystique and honesty that has defined both her life and her music. Twice named Indie Artist of the Year by Singer Magazine, Kacey is a prolific songwriter.
She wrote and produced her latest CD, Fill Your Cup, which was mixed in Nashville by the Grammy award-winning David Z (Prince, Etta James and Jonny Lang). There’s a little bit of everything here: the raw rocking anthems I Want More, It’s Alright, and Reserve the Right; a bucolic Old Cadillac; the folksy Feather in the Wind; organic, soulful ballads, What if I Really Love You and Whatcha Gonna Do; the bluesy Set You Free; the evocative steaminess of Under My Skin; the bluegrass tinge of Two Trains; the plaintive longing of Sunday Mornings; and the love letter that is the title song, Fill Your Cup. Kacey has collaborated with many artists and musicians, including Jackson Browne, Jimmy Calire (America), Greg Douglass (Steve Miller Band, Van Morrison), Marty Fera (Joe Walsh, Glenn Frey), Bill Flores (Albert Lee, Jim Messina), Joe Molland (Badfinger), Gary Scruggs, Chris Slade (AC/DC, The Firm), David Sutton (Lucinda Williams, Melissa Etheridge), and Kim Wilson. “For me, it’s all about the music,” Kacey says. “As a writer, I’m able to speak my truth; as a listener, music has always been a sanctuary and my salvation. If I can share that same gift with my audience, and connect in a way that nurtures and inspires them, then I’ve honored my gifts. And there is nothing I would rather do.”
Purchase Kacey Cubero Fill Your Cup
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