Need a music and a ceremony? Lesbian singer-songwriter Catie Curtis might be able to help.
By Michelle Garcia
Catie Curtis.
Catie Curtis's sweet, soulful sound has proven to be good for weddings, whether it be a real-life ceremony or one set at the end of a romantic comedy flick. After her last album,Sweet Life, Curtis noticed her music was being used in wedding ceremonies, so she took it one step further by offering her services to couples as an ordained minister. Now the New England–based singer-songwriter is back with another album, titled for a rather unusual visual experience.
The Advocate: What is the narrative of your newest album, Stretch Limousine on Fire?
Catie Curtis:Well, in general, I write about whatever I've been paying attention to. So the challenge for me is to deliver a well-written song about anything. It's less than narrative than there are certain images that I find compelling over a year. I notice things in a certain way, and then I write songs about them, and then I notice that they fit together. So it's not so much like, this thing, that thing, and another thing happened, so I wrote these songs. It's more like, for example, I'm driving in L.A., and I see a stretch limousine on fire.
Wait, you actually saw a limousine on fire? I thought it was sort of a metaphor or something!
It's compelling, and you don't know why — it's sort of like a dream where it's compelling and you don't know why. It just sticks in your head. In the process of writing the song, I realized it makes other people feel better when we realize that everyone has bad days, and that we all have issues, whether it's with excessive wealth in this country, or the music business, or whatever.
So I got this idea about a shadow bird stuck in my head, and it made me think,What does it mean to be aware of the shadow side of things? I've written more about the loving and lightness side of things, so it was a good challenge to write a song about wanting stuff that's not necessarily good for you. I think in a way, there's a movement from the record Sweet Life, which at that point I was really absorbed on having young children. And your whole life at that point is focused on keeping them away from putting their finger in a socket, so it's hard to look up and see that there's other things going on in the world. So this record, I've had more of an opportunity to look at some bigger issues like marriage and mortality. So I guess there's more of a movement more toward outside of the house [laughs].
The Advocate: What is the narrative of your newest album, Stretch Limousine on Fire?
Catie Curtis:Well, in general, I write about whatever I've been paying attention to. So the challenge for me is to deliver a well-written song about anything. It's less than narrative than there are certain images that I find compelling over a year. I notice things in a certain way, and then I write songs about them, and then I notice that they fit together. So it's not so much like, this thing, that thing, and another thing happened, so I wrote these songs. It's more like, for example, I'm driving in L.A., and I see a stretch limousine on fire.
Wait, you actually saw a limousine on fire? I thought it was sort of a metaphor or something!
It's compelling, and you don't know why — it's sort of like a dream where it's compelling and you don't know why. It just sticks in your head. In the process of writing the song, I realized it makes other people feel better when we realize that everyone has bad days, and that we all have issues, whether it's with excessive wealth in this country, or the music business, or whatever.
So I got this idea about a shadow bird stuck in my head, and it made me think,What does it mean to be aware of the shadow side of things? I've written more about the loving and lightness side of things, so it was a good challenge to write a song about wanting stuff that's not necessarily good for you. I think in a way, there's a movement from the record Sweet Life, which at that point I was really absorbed on having young children. And your whole life at that point is focused on keeping them away from putting their finger in a socket, so it's hard to look up and see that there's other things going on in the world. So this record, I've had more of an opportunity to look at some bigger issues like marriage and mortality. So I guess there's more of a movement more toward outside of the house [laughs].
Love Ya Bunches
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