A Dirty Dozen with ANTHONY GARCIA – July 2020

According to a recent press release: “Austin, TX-based singer-songwriter Anthony Garcia is set to release his album, Acres of Diamonds, on July 17, 2020.  A guitarist and classically trained pianist, Garcia creates music that is perhaps most accurately been described as “cinematic Americana,” a genre that interweaves songwriting with a healthy dose of genre-blending and expanding, quasi-orchestral sections.” We get Anthony to discuss new music, influences, and much more…

Photo Credit: Eric Panico

1. Tell us a little about your latest release.  What might a fan or listener not grab the first or second time they listen through?  Are there any hidden nuggets you put in the material or that only diehard fans might find?

I’d say the two tracks that a listener might want to listen closest to are “Haunted Hotels” and “For Your Love.” Listen to the way the outros in particular have layered string, guitar, and piano parts that could be compositions on their own.

2. What got you into music, and can you tell us about the moment you realized you wanted to be a musician?

I’ve always been able to play music as far back as I can remember, but the moment I realized that I wanted to be in front of people making music was when I saw Michael Jackson moonwalk at the Grammy Awards in the early 80’s.

3. Building on that, is there a specific song, album, performer, or live show that guided your musical taste?

Musical taste is something that changes throughout life. And I have had several of those moments. Like I mentioned above, Michael Jackson played a huge role; so did Van Halen’s 1984, which turned me on to not only fabulous lead guitar playing, but really tasty rhythm guitar parts; the first time I heard Bach on Christmas Day 1990, I nearly cried at the beauty of it because I realized a spirituality to music and a craftmanship that exists; then I heard The Beatles and saw how “pop” music could meld all of the things I had heard up to this point in my life: Rock + Classical + Cinema, which is what I draw most inspiration from in my music. There are countless other epiphanies, but I see these as the major ones.

4. Who would be your main five musical influences?

Bach, Jimi Hendrix, Townes Van Zandt, Jaco Pastorius, and Miles Davis.

5. If you could call in any one collaborator to do a song with, who would it be, and why?

London based songwriter/composer Rachel Zefirra. She is an accomplished, classically trained vocalist, organist, and flautist and puts her skills to work in the pop world, in addition to having founded and currently conducting the Capitol Children’s Choir in London. It was her “pop” works that drew me to her, though. I first heard her work on the soundtrack for “The Duke of Burgundy.” On her solo work, she blends all of this talent that she has to orchestrate her lush pop songs with her beautiful soprano voice. Listen to her album The Deserters, and you’ll hear what I’m talking about.

6. How would you describe your music to someone who’d never listened to you before? What is the one comparison a reviewer or fan has made that made you cringe or you disagreed with?

I describe my music as Cinematic Americana: Rock + Classical + Cinema. I haven’t really encountered anything that has made me cringe. The people who have taken the time to listen to my music and gone so far as to write something about it have been very gracious.

7. When your band is hanging out together, who cooks, who gets the drinks in, and who is first to crack out the acoustic guitars for a singalong?

I don’t really have a band, per se. I primarily play solo live or with a violinist as a duo. I do have musicians I call in from time to time when the situation warrants a band. From all of those musicians, I’d say everyone is pretty democratic and thoughtful. Those are the characteristics I look for in friends and musicians. I would, however, say that the producer of the album and bassist on some of my shows, Jeremy Fowler of Transientmic.org, would likely be the first one to instigate a singalong.

8. When was the last time you were starstruck and who was it?

I was lucky enough to open for Junior Brown last year. While I was certainly starstruck, I kept it at bay. I felt it was important to give him space. I didn’t even introduce myself until after we had both finished our sets and were backstage. He was very complimentary and very kind to me.

9. What is the best part of being a musician? If you could no longer be a musician for whatever reason, what would be your dream job?

Travel, freedom, and meeting people are the best parts. If I had to choose another job, it would have to be something that had to do with travel. In the past, however, I’ve also done music therapy with Alzheimer’s patients, and continue to play piano at Assisted Living Centers and Nursing Homes. Those are the most rewarding gigs. I’ve always wanted to also work with international students, both those coming to the US and American students curious about doing an exchange year abroad, as I did one years ago while in school in Germany. It was one of the best things I’ve ever done in my life.

10. What is one question you have always wanted an interviewer to ask – and what is the answer? Conversely, what question are you tired of answering?

The first one, I’m not sure. The second, describing my music.

11. Looking back over your career, is there a single moment or situation you feel was a misstep or you would like to have a “do over,” even if it didn’t change your current situation?

I think early on in my creativity and songwriting, I made some artistic choices that were not based on being true to myself. It is hard to “regret” those decisions, because I simply didn’t know better. I also wouldn’t want to go back and change anything, because I learned at the time what I was supposed to learn. But I finally feel comfortable in my skin now as an artist and feel that this current album stands up.

12. If you could magically go back in time and be a part of the recording sessions for any one record in history, which would you choose – and what does that record mean to you?

The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band: this album broke so many genre concepts of what a rock album should be, and transformed the way rock/pop was to be perceived from that moment on. When I first heard this album, I realized, as an artist, that there were absolutely no limits or rules to music.

ANTHONY GARCIA LINKS:

OFFICIAL SITE

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Category: Interviews