Music
Press
Jess Meuse (L) signed a management agreement with Guest House Studios Pres. Tony Buenger (R). They are pictured at The Bazel Group offices with Shirley Hutchins/The New Penny Group, who administers Meuse’s catalog.
- Music Row Magazine
Jess Meuse (L) signed a management agreement with Guest House Studios Pres. Tony Buenger (R). They are pictured at The Bazel Group offices with Shirley Hutchins/The New Penny Group, who administers Meuse’s catalog.
- Music Row Magazine
Julia Oakes, Montgomery Concert Photography Examiner
On the outskirts of a small little town in central Alabama called Eclectic, I find myself sitting at a tall pub table in Guest House Studios in an intimate setting lit only by candles. The stage, almost centered, is complete with mics, guitar amps, complete drum kit, headphones, guitars, stage lighting and video equipment. Directly off the stage, a living space with a couch one would melt into. To the left of the entrance is a larger-than-life, curved staircase that leads to a loft. The studio is open with exposed beams. The sound room is lit by the computer monitors, recording console, equalizers, and compressors, providing for a sweet escape for an enthusiastic singer/songwriter who spends much of her free time here. Shortly after absorbing all this, Jess Meuse enters the studio; a vibrant, eager young lady with burgundy hair wearing a pair of worn jeans with a small red patch, a grey and black striped shirt, and an acoustic guitar on her back. She walks in confident, full of excitement, and the biggest smile you could imagine.
Settling into the tall, mocha brown pub chair, Jess opens a window into her captivating world. I could tell immediately that music is her life. Her musical journey began at an early age after being completed absorbed with the music and production of Fantasia. Her first performance was a very memorable one, but not a happy memory. This performance was at her private Catholic school in a talent show. When she first walked on stage, she was overwhelmed and started to cry. After a moment, she started laughing at herself. Then she finished her song. So all was not lost. She realized performing in front of a crowd wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be. She has been performing ever since. However, singing is not her only talent. She is also a very talented multi-instrument musician. The first musical instrument she played was a violin. “The reason why I played it was because my brother had one and I wanted to be better than him.” She played in an orchestra for years and learned to play other instruments. She taught herself to play the piano, bass, and guitar.
Her fans describe her as: “a great singer, talented, amazing, love your originals, cool stuff-enjoyed what I heard, amazing voice, respect you” and the comments continue on her Facebook, YouTube and other social networking pages. When asked how the comments made her feel, she replied, ”Like Christmas. Like I just got a bike and I’m a little kid. It makes me happy.” With the growing social networks, her fans are able to reach out to her with encouraging words and feedback. Jess continues,” I got a lot of feedback on my You Tube. I got more than I thought I would. When I started out in my basement when I was in high school and I didn’t have friends. I didn’t party, so I’d go in my little basement, turn on the web cam and made distorted, crappy quality videos. Now I am to the point where people don’t want the crappy quality videos- they want the one recorded in the studio.”
Last year Jess entered the Stars of Alabama Artists Showcase that was sponsored by Guest House Studios. She sang three original songs and came in third place, which was not bad considering that 0.4 points separated her from the first place winner. After the showcase, she hinted to Tony Buenger, owner of Guest House Studios, subtly with a text, “Need. To. Make. CD.” And she remembers Tony beating around the bush by suggesting other studios, but she told him, “I want to record at your place.” That is what Tony was waiting to hear and produced her first E.P., “What’s So Hard About Bein’ a Man?” Writing her first song at the age of 18, a tangible product was born. The E.P. includes originals and a cover song.
When asked to describe herself she said,” I like to say I’m weird. My sense of humor is pretty messed up and I do a lot of things normal people don’t do.” Growing up Jess was teased. Instead of using it as an excuse, she used it as a resource to bring life to her creative side. She developed a love for music. She became introspective and she tapped into her soul and wrote. She wrote lyrics and composed songs scattering notes on a treble clef and sang freeing her from the negativity of her reality.
Along with her music she escaped into the imaginative worlds of Final Fantasy becoming an adventurous, free spirit in a world far from reality. Other games like Dance Dance Revolution and zombie games filled her afternoons.
Some other interests she discovered were mythology and the country of Norway. Her favorite mythological character is the Muse, simply because the Muse is creative and inspiring. Her goal with her music is to inspire one person at a time with the lyrics and stories behind them. During her days of persecution, she felt so alone. She wants her fans to feel the words to her songs so they can be comforted and know they aren’t all alone in this crazy world.
When asked how sh - Examiner
Aw Shucks
Jess Meuse was a hit tonight (Jun 18, 2011)...rocked the house! Everyone did an excellent job! we were really busy....kitchen, servers, shuckers, hostess, and bartenders did an awesome job!!!! Thanks! :)
- Aw Shucks
Meuse entertained the packed studio singing all of the songs on her first album, “What’s so hard about bein’ a man?”
All but one song on the album is written by Meuse, and they all are personal stories of past relationships.
“These are all personal and true stories,” she said.
Tony Buenger, producer of Meuse’s album and owner of Guest House Studios, said Meuse’s songs were too good just to do a demo.
“Some of these songs were just screaming to be taken to the next level and lay down some music with them,” Buenger said. “...I?think it’s a good CD for it being her first.” - Wetumpka Herald
Kevin Taylor
Editor, The Wetumpka Herald
Editor, Elmore County Living Magazine
kevin.taylor@thewetumpkaherald.com
“Her musical ability has a wide range, too. She can perform Lady Gaga to the saddest country song.”
Featured in Elmore County Living Magazine
http://issuu.com/elmorecountyliving/docs/ecl_spring_2011
- Elmore County Living Magazine
Discography
EP - What's So Hard About Being a Man?
What's So Hard About Being a Man?
Start Again
The Other Me
Jacksonville
Simple Man (Cover)
Bulletproof
So Long, Casanova
Photos
Bio
You don't look to backwater hamlets like Slapout AL to find exceptional talent, until you realize that those humble environs serve as serious motivation for gifted artists like Jess Meuse, in their determination to ascend to the next level. Borne purely by her dedication to the need to perform, Jess has the drive and spirit a twenty-one-year-old needs to blast herself into orbit... she's aided by the direction and guidance of her producer Tony Buenger, who's helped her fine-tune the alt-country-rock approach she takes to her own songs, and the unique twist she applies to her favorite covers (The Ride and Simple Man). How she got the nickname" Velociraptor" is probably the first question you'll want to ask--- but once her opening set gets started, you may not have to.
Jess is fully fixated on her goal of making a career out of writing and performing music. She fronts her own band called Khamera which plays 3 to 4 shows per month. During her high school years, she performed at many school functions as well as shows for local venues, such as chambers of commerce, private parties, and town events. During that time she also played principle second violin in the Montgomery Youth Orchestra for several years.
She wrote her first song at the age of eighteen in response to a real-life situation. Since then, her writing has developed even further into more abstract and deep thought. She creates songs people can hear and say, I know how that feels. Every single song she has written is from her soul; typically sparked by a true story.
She has been influenced by virtually every genre of music. Her music is a blend of southern rock with alternative and rock n roll! Her influences include Coldplay, Miranda Lambert, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Stevie Nicks, Death Cab for Cutie, and Shinedown.
For her local shows she not only performs her original songs, she also takes cover songs to an entirely new level. She performs anything from Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Carrie Underwood to southern rock.
In October 2010, she was a winner at the state-wide artist showcase called Stars of Alabama Artist Showcase where she performed three of her original songs for a panel of music industry professionals from Montgomery, Atlanta, and Nashville.
In early 2011, she completed her first EP, Whats So Hard About Bein A Man? at Guest House Studios, LLC in Eclectic. It was released on April 9th. At first, she only wanted to record acoustic tracks of each song in an intimate acoustic setting, but soon found that several of the songs were desperately screaming out for a band to play along. So, Jess producer, Tony Buenger, and Jess arranged for just that. The end result was a CD of heartfelt songs with intriguing story lines.
Jess is currently working with songwriter Gary Gentry ("The Ride," "1959," "Drinkin' and Drivin'") on a set of new original songs.
Music is Jess heart and her soul. Her major goal is to inspire through her music.
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