I absolutely love how many international artists I have had the opportunity to feature on
The Spotlight this year! It’s always cool to feature people outside of the U.S. to give you all a little taste of what the outside world really has to offer. It’s also allowed me to talk with a lot of awesome people! Getting back into the swing of things after all of these vacations and whatnot, so I have even more in the works!
Today, we have Australian pop/rock artist
Travis Caudle! Travis admitted that he fell in love with music at a really young age. “Dad was always into stereo systems in a big way and buying the latest records and Mum plays piano, so it was always around,” he said, even recalling his first concert experience at the toddler level! “I clearly remember being at a
Neil Diamond concert in Perth, Western Australia where I’m from, when I was two or three and wondering why he had red, green and blue hair (the lights!!!). Mum and Dad must not have been able to find a babysitter that night!” he joked.
At 15, Travis’ father bought him an old classical guitar, and he was taught a few chords by a family friend. Travis quickly taught himself to play guitar, and discovered that he could also sing. From there, he tried songwriter, and began to play sets around his area with some cover and original songs. Travis’ older brother would often buy him albums for his birthday, which sparked his love of music even more. Often, they along with friends would go to gigs by Australian bands, which had an impact on Travis’ own music. Inspired by bands like
The Church, The Cure, Lloyd Cole and
The Commotions, the singer admitted that his music was influenced by home. “I often get told my music has an international flavor but simultaneously a distinctly Australian sound,” he said. Songwriters like
Steve Kilbey,
Colin Hay,
George Harrison and Lloyd Cole are also some of Travis’ favorite songwriters that he looks to for inspiration. “Their lyrics have an amazing depth and poetry to them that never cease to amaze me,” the artist acknowledged.
Travis recorded his first two electric albums,
Trips Between Worlds and
Signals, with producer
Tim Powles, who also serves as the drummer for Australian band The Church. “This is where I first experienced completely immersing myself in music and creativity in the studio because I was in Sydney and away from home,” he recalled. Most recently, the singer released his EP,
It’s Just You, which dropped in December 2013. “The EP is a collection of songs that straddle a few different themes like life on the road, loss and being a new parent but, overall, it’s about the process of stripping back your conditioning as a human being and questioning your life and who you are, at the very deepest levels so that you can enjoy the moment you’re in” Travis said of the project. “Much of it focuses on taking back the power you have to change all the habits and emotions that have over time come to run you, but don’t necessarily serve you.” Check out the video the title track,
“It’s Just You,” below!
Currently, Travis is busy recording more songs with US-based Grammy-nominated Australian producer
Mark Moffatt. The studio experience, in spite of the obvious exhaustion it can bring, is still a thrilling time for this artist! “It’s like there’s a huge amount of space to create and experiment and you never quite know where a song is going to ultimately end up, so being in that atmosphere of potential is a unique type of energetic experience that I find exhilarating,” he said. No word on when those songs will be released just yet, but Travis is sure to have some great music up his sleeves for listeners!
He’s also about to head out on a few tour dates in the States, so be sure to check him out!In terms of what sets him apart from other artists, he believes that his creativity that stretches beyond any one particular genre that makes him stand out. He does what he feels, regardless of what people may think, which is honestly rare in music these days. “It’s pretty simple for me – I hear something in my head and then I do whatever I have to do to get it out of my head and onto an album, whether it’s going to be considered cool or not,” he stated. In the future, the singer-songwriter wants to have a successful career, and connect with others through his music. However, that’s not his first concern when it comes to his career. “The most important thing to me is to live an inspired life and produce inspired music,” Travis said. “When a song comes to me from nowhere and I’m wandering around trying to make sense of what I’m hearing and get it out of my head, there’s nothing like it. I’m totally in the music and the thing that’s furthest from my mind is my career. If I can stay inspired and keep feeling compelled to record and play music, that would be a great future."
You can check out more from Travis on his
official website, as well as
YouTube and
SoundCloud. You can also connect with him on
Facebook and
Twitter!
