Meet Paul Cafcae | Indie rockabilly artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Paul Cafcae and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Paul, what’s one piece of conventional advice that you disagree with?
There is this great tale among musicians, that Buddy Holly was once asked “what advice can you give to other artists who want to be successful?” Buddy shrugged and said, “I don’t know anything about how to be successful, but I know how be unsuccessful: you just have to do what others tell you to.” That was some 70 years ago. But many believe that Gary Numan’s career dip in the 80s is another great example of that: he started taking direction from people instead of following his own heart.

It is believed that in order to be successful, one needs to surround oneself with a team of advisors. In music, this means managers, publicists, booking agents, promoters, record producers, image makers, and other “industry” executives. They will tell you that you need radio spins, online streams, social media followers and newsletter subscribers, while the only true indicator of success is how your feel when your music connects with your fans. This has been said time and time again: as an artist, when you give in to other people’s suggestions, you often lose your artistic core and that’s what makes you – you. That’s what our fan’s find loveable and uniquely endearing about you. So, listen to your heart and stay true to yourself. If an advice that someone is giving you doesn’t feel right, ignore that advice. Including this very one.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I developed a keen interest for staying melodies in the early rock’n’roll music when I was about four or five years old, after hearing the greats like Elvis Presley, John Lee Hooker, B. B. King, The Beatles, and Roy Orbison on illegal bootleg tapes and records in Eastern Europe.

Around that time my parents enrolled me in the specialist music school, which I attended four days a week for until I was 15 studying accordion, piano, music theory, and vocals. As part of the program I also played in a folk pop orchestra, but I’ve always stayed true to my affection for Western music, and when I was older and attending high school in Maryland, I taught myself to play guitar. It was also around this time that I began experimenting with writing my own song, and as a result I went on to play in local rock bands in Europe and North America. After I relocated to Canada, I continued to work towards earning a spot on the “americana and roots musicians” marquee by regularly releasing new music and touring the Great White North. Like most artists, I’ve been experimenting with songwriting and song treatment to establish my own unique style, which I believe I’ve finally found with my LP “Where I Am” in 2021. Listening back to that record, I feel like it’s a place where I belong: a raw yet optimistic rock ‘n’ roll roadhouse, soaked in blues, rockabilly, and country rock.

Some of my fans say that what they like about my art is that unique blend of Americana music with European lyricism, storytelling, and expressive imagery. I like to maintain a bright and entertaining stage presence, and I always strive to create a memorable experience for my audiences. I don’t care much about formal achievements, but I’ll mention that some of my songs have been played on radio stations all over the world, and my song “I Ain’t Shook” from my 2021 album has peaked at #11 in the UK’s Hot Disk Country Top 40 chart and stayed in the chart for 17 weeks.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Toronto, is a relatively small town, but I would definitely visit the big Art Gallery of Ontario and some small art galleries around the area, visit a dozen of small music clubs, like Drom Taberna, The Cameron House, and the Tonight Live Happening bar, and definitely a few breweries.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My favourite music mentor, Martin Obern

Website: https://www.paulcafcae.com

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