Gazing inward

Photo courtesy of Presto Public Relations

ANDERSON

Portland-based Americana artist Kasey Anderson has been creating music since the age of 12, and on Feb. 16 the musician will be releasing his fourth album to the world entitled “Nowhere Nights.”

The 30 year-old singer grew up in Portland, moved to Bellingham for a 10-year spell and eventually found his way back home to Portland. Despite only dwelling in the Northwest for the whole of his years, Anderson feels that geography isn’t an integral part to the creative process.

“Where you are is a blank slate, and generally, you’re writing about somebody’s state of mind, not their state of residence. There are exceptions but I don’t much buy into the theory that certain kinds of music can only be made in certain locales.”

Anderson’s home backing band is composed of Dan Lowinger on guitar, bass player Bo Stewart and drummer Julian MacDonough.

Though the musician has an alt-country vibe running through his sound, notes of rock and a little bit of a punk influence and mentality run through his sound and vocals, but don’t let those descriptions limit the scope of Anderson’s essence. He lists authors James Baldwin, Cormac McCarthy and David Foster Wallace, artist Jean-Michel Basquiat and quintessential American musicians Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Steve Earle, The Replacements, The Clash and Otis Redding all as influences on his work.

“Dead Roses,” Anderson’s first album, was recorded when the artist was 21 years old, and according to him, that fact definitely permeates the work. It is in essence a green piece of music.

“It was me learning how to write songs while tape rolled. I look back and I’m proud of the record, but it’s a very young record, in every sense of the word,” Anderson affirmed.

His second album, “The Reckoning” was recorded sans the usual backing band Anderson keeps in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. “Roscoe, (Eric Ambel, who produced the album) brought in some friends from around the neighborhood and we arranged the record on the fly. Some real brilliant mistakes were born that way. We’ll work that way again at some point,” he stated.

“Way Out West” was released in 2009 and was recorded while Anderson was touring and traveling through Europe. The musician created the record on his laptop, played every instrument to pre-programmed beats and was happy with the product. The work was released digitally and Anderson proclaimed it’s an effort he’d like to repeat in the future.

Listeners of the soon to be released “Nowhere Nights” can realize a folk-ish Ryan Adams and early era Bruce Springsteen-esque temperament piercing through the record, revealing grit, dirt, life-infused lyrics and an artist who’s experienced much in his limited years.

 In Anderson’s mind, it’s a very personal record.

“So much so that I worried about whether to release it or not, simply because I didn’t know how people would respond to an album that’s so specific and so personal. But, it was part of the process, part of the catharsis, to say these things out loud. It was something that, ultimately, I needed to do to keep moving forward.”

The musician has toured on his own, as a headliner and also in support of a few well-known national acts such as Jesse Sykes, Steve Earle and the Low Anthem. Anderson has represented himself and his music on the road from 2004-2010 and has only taken a few breaks along the way. The musician believes he “doesn’t do well with stasis.”

When asked why listeners should check out his music where there is lots to choose from in the way of Americana artists emerging today as well as those who have been established for decades, Anderson felt that creating music is not about competition with other artists, but rather about the act of creating.

“In my experience, artists are not in direct competition with each other. We’re all contributing to something that existed long before we did. Being a traveling musician is a very old profession, it’s a very honorable profession and, in my experience, artists are incredibly supportive of one another. People should explore as many artists as they can - there are so many records out there worth listening to. Mine is just one of them.”

Fans of narrative-infused lyrics, rooted in country, pop and rock stylings and raw guitarwork and vocals will appreciate what Kasey Anderson brings to the record table.

Kasey Anderson’s “Nowhere Nights” will be released on Feb. 16. He plays Seattle’s Sunset Tavern on Feb. 28 at 9 p.m. with Matthew Ryan.

For more information about Anderson, his upcoming shows or to hear some of his songs, check out his website at http://www.kaseyanderson.com, his Myspace page at http://www.myspace.com/kaseyanderson or find him on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ kaseyandersonmusic.

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