Steph Casey – At a Bar Downtown

Award-winning New Zealand songwriter and musician Steph Casey releases new single At a Bar Downtown, ahead of her sophomore album, The Seats In My Car.

Watch The Video Clip HERE

Laden with gritty guitars, off-the-beaten-path lyrics, dark harmonies and soaring vocals, At a Bar Downtown, is the first single from Indie-folk/alt country artist Steph Casey’s upcoming album The Seats in My Car.

Casey, on acoustic guitar and vocals, is backed by well known & loved NZ indie musician Caroline Easther on drums (The Chills, The Verlaines, Beat Rhythm Fashion), Murray Costello on bass (Sneaky Feelings, The Mockers) and Alan Galloway on electric guitars (Let’s Planet, Galloway). After several decades playing together in indie-pop band Let’s Planet, which supported the likes of R.E.M, and Paul Kelly, these three have a synergy that lends a special quality to this track, and the entire album.

Lyrically the song veers away from the typical and explores disappointment and empathy when watching
a clearly talented performer trying to be someone they’re not. The sadness and hope coming through on
the chorus lines:

I hope you find your own voice one day/I hope we find out what you’ve got to say/

The song opens with widely spaced acoustic guitar chords, sparse vocals follow, and distorted tremolo guitars crash through mid-verse. Casey’s voice soars above atmospheric, eerie vocal harmonies, grounded by Caroline Easther’s bone-rumbling tom tom drums.

Voice-wise Casey has been likened to Alison Krauss, Joy Williams of The Civil Wars and US folk artist Dar Williams. At a Bar Downtown, and all of the tracks on the forthcoming album were recorded and mixed by the legendary Lee Prebble at The Surgery Studio in Wellington.

Casey and her band will be touring the new album throughout NZ from July-December 2019 with a run of special, intimate shows, as well as touring throughout the US in September.

Website | Facebook | Youtube | Itunes | Spotify | Soundcloud

© Scoop Media