"Roads" is the much-anticipated sophomore release from Cas Lucas, an artist who has been turning heads for the last couple years. Tracks from "Roads," first posted on the San Francisco based artist's MySpace page early in 2006, instantly garnered an outpouring of fan support. After receiving international critical acclaim for his debut CD, the acoustic live album, "Giving it Back," and winning an devoted fan base for himself (impressively large for an impendent artist) through touring, myspace buzz galore, and an ever-growing street team program, "Roads" promises to be the CD that brings this talented guitarist/singer/songwriterís music into the spotlight.
Lucas' knack for creating infectious hooks and the ubiquitous pop sensibilities evoked in his guitar playing have led to frequent comparison with the likes of Jack Johnson, Dave Matthews, John Mayer, and Sting (a Cas Lucas fan himself, who featured Cas on his official MySpace's "top friends"). But Lucas' style is more than that - beyond the hooks and lyrics, his musicianship spans the ages, calling to mind both the passionate intensity of Robert Johnson's raw blues, and the intricate, tonal playfulness of Michael Hedges's
instrumental virtuosity.
Co-producing "Roads" with Lucas was Bay Area producer/engineer, Adam Rossi, best known for his work on both albums by local sensation, LUCE. Lucas and Rossi assembled a talented group of session musicians to play on the album, featuring players who had previously contributed to projects by artists like John Mayer, Counting Crows, Chuck Prophet, and Boz Scaggs (members of LUCE & Lucas’ live band also play on "Roads"). Lucas thrived in collaboration with this group of seasoned heavy-hitter musicians, calling "Roads" his "first chance to really get it right. My first opportunity to present my music the way it was meant to sound from the beginning."
Lucas pulls no punches in his writing... The music just "goes there." These are songs by an artist who isn't afraid to lay it on the line or create something that doesn't fit perfectly into any standard rock demographic; "Roads" has a little something for everybody. Lucas' music has been embraced by fans in all age groups and played on mainstream radio, but it still manages to retain it's "street cred." along they way. While many of today's acoustic rock artists make deliberate attempts to incorporate eclectic blues, jazz, funk, and soul influences into their sound, these elements shine through naturally in Lucas' music. His music just does what it does, and it does it well.
National Radio Promotion by TJ Promotions - 100 City Campaign - April 1st
Track Listing
1. Dream A Window 2. Feel You 3. Slip Into the Sound 4. You and Me (Intro) 5. You and Me 6. Do You Feel Me Love? 7. Tired Air 8. Home 9. Make It 10. Roads 11. Dream A Window (Clean Version)
Cas Lucas - Giving it Back
With guitar-driven songwriters like John Mayer and Jack Johnson breaking big, the sky's the limit for this 26 year-old songwriter. His groove-infused tunes take this fresh rock and roll sub-genre to new levels of musicianship, pop appeal, and funkyness. His original music has been compared to Mayer, as well as the Police, Dave Matthews, and Ben Harper. Cas’s latest release “Giving it Back” is his first LP and his first CD of all original material. In addition to the multi-textured, tastefully intricate, hook-infested compositions present in all of Lucas’s pervious work, this disc also features the guitar and vocal interplay between Cas and Hawaiian guitarist Steve Inglis. Inglis was formerly the singer/lead guitarist of Grateful Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann’s House of Spirits band, and has also gigged extensively with fellow-Hawaiian singer/songwriter Makana (who just opened an entire US tour for Jason Mraz). Cas and Steve have honed a tight duet sound, performing Cas’s originals at countless live shows from 2002-2004. “Giving it Back” is comprised of the highlights from several live in studio sessions that yielded over 25 tracks of their unique acoustic grooves. It includes live show staples like Feelin’, Dream a Window, Refection, and many more.
Bio
In his short time in California, Cas Lucas has won over a devoted group of fans with his shows, including a recent live in-studio performance on 107.7 "the Bone's" morning show.
Cas received his first acoustic guitar at age six. He soon discovered the music of guitar legends such as Robert Johnson and Jimi Hendrix. It was the virtuosic guitar work of these legendary players that inspired Cas to make the guitar truly his own. "Girls came and went. So did Transformers, G.I. Joe, Sports, Drugs... but it was always there. My favorite toy and oldest friend," said Lucas of his life-long love affair with the instrument.
Leaving his native Central Florida at age 18, Cas studied blues history as well as composition, performance, and production in Amherst, Massachusetts at Hampshire College where he received a BA in May 2000. At Hampshire he had the good fortune of studying with legendary multi-instrumentalist Yusef Lateef. His influence added a new element to Lucas's playing. "Just playing in his performance seminars showed me how broad the tonal spectrum could be within a piece of music, " said Lucas. "It made me want to go beyond the standard progressions of blues and rock. Yusef's compositions, concepts, and playing showed me that there really are no wrong notes."
Having played since he could talk and gigged since his early teens, Cas Lucas has forged his own brand of rock music, taking the influences of his guitar heroes and blending it with a modern pop sensibility. This talent will no doubt turn the industry on its ear in the years to come.
