Singer-songwriter Casey Smith’s third album, “Just Like You Wanted It,” was released on Valentine’s Day of this year, with the official album release party set for March 21.
“It’s been about two years since the last album, pretty much started working on writing songs immediately,” Smith said. “A lot of them vary in how long they have been around. Sometimes demos exist for years and then I’ll finally get them finished up. ‘Hold On,’ I’ve had probably for six years.”
Coincidentally, Smith’s second album was also released on Feb. 14. The Fairbanks artist began playing guitar in high school, which was primarily acoustic. In college at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, he joined a band called Thought Trade, which was mostly instrumental music, and in 2016 he began writing independently.
Smith, who performs under the Casey Smith Project, plays with Anchorage bandmates Derek Haukaas and Scott Joyce, plus some friends from Fairbanks. He recently returned from Hawaii, where he has been touring the new album.
“I’ve been playing those songs and they’re really fun to play, kind of relearning them. As I record them, they kind of change how they are and are configured,” Smith said. “I’m a multi-instrumentalist, so maybe I’ll write it on the guitar but end up playing more bass on it or something.”
He also recently released a music video for “Confess My Love,” which was filmed last summer in Fairbanks.
“There’s this old, kind of derelict, ‘Blair Witch Project’ cabin just down the road from my house,” Smith said. “We actually walked down there, it’s called Old Chena Town, and we filmed that music video for ‘Confess my Love.’”
The Casey Smith Project will be live at Bear Tooth Theatrepub for First Tap, co-headlining with Black Barrel and The Bad Men on March 21. Tickets are $15. He will also be live on KNBA 90.3 with Loren Dixon the same day.
Sam Davenport is a writer residing in Anchorage. She's a leo and a plant-person, and loves spending quality time with her dog, Aspen. She is a Real Housewives fan and has been called a Bravo historian.
