30-year music industry veteran Anthony Casuccio from the Buffalo area is turning his passion for producing and mixing music into writing original pop rock and alternative music. Casuccio is coming to Syracuse on July 10 to perform at Funk ‘N Waffles from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. with opener Modafferi, a punk-funk, rock duo from Syracuse, NY.
Casuccio spent decades producing and remastering music from legends like Johnny Cash and Tony Bennett. Now, he is taking his turn behind the mic with songs like “The Rockstar” and “Lighthouse” both reaching #2 and #1 on the U.K. independent charts.
“It’s been kind of a leap of faith,” Casuccio explained. “I’ve been used to everybody bouncing their ideas off of me. Now I’m bouncing my ideas off of other people which is a total 180.”
Casuccio describes his sound as “intelligent pop,” pop rock music with depth to every element from the chord progressions to the strength of the chorus. Being a guitar centric musician, Casuccio writes many of his songs with a guitar solo or guitar focus.
Casuccio released a single “Don’t Say Goodbye” on June 17 with that guitar focus. The track is reminiscent of the 80’s pop rock sound with dreamy harmonies and bouncing cymbals. To listen to “Don’t Say Goodbye,” see below.
The musician said he has seen much success overseas in the U.K. with many of his singles reaching the Top 3 for the independent charts. Much of what propelled his music up in the charts is guitar being the mainstream in the U.K., Casuccio said.
Casuccio grew up in Williamsville, NY just outside of Buffalo. From a young age the arts were encouraged. His school district had a strong music department with teachers that supported and inspired him to get into recording, Casuccio said.
His band director showed him the schools tape deck and had him record rehearsals and concerts of the school band performances which peaked his interest in understanding the music recording process, the musician explained.
Casuccio went to SUNY Fredonia for college before moving out to New York City for 10 years to remaster vintage recordings for artists like Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison and Glen Miller. He then moved to the West Coast and started his own mastering company. By the time Casuccio wanted to start a family, he decided to move home to Williamsville and continue his career. Now, Casuccio is the President of the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame which he was also inducted into by his peers.
Now, Casuccio is a professor and chairperson at Villa Maria College in Buffalo while he grows as a songwriter. The musician says his students keep him on his toes with the way he thinks about writing and mixing music.
“I’m one of these people that believes when the creative juices start flowing, you cannot stop,” Casuccio mentioned. In the past, the musician said he has woken up in the middle of the night with ideas for a song. He picks up a pencil or his phone and won’t stop writing until the ideas stop. “I’ve written complete songs in the middle of the night.”
Casuccio recalled the time he came up with the idea for his song “Life Goes On.” The song, about grieving his mother passing, came to him when he passed by her empty room, he said. The musician said the lyrics “As I walked into your old room // I could see you standing there where you once did” flooded his mind and he wrote the song right there in 20 minutes.
“The whole song just came out. My way of grieving,” Casuccio said. “That’s the power of music. Music is… It’s everything to me.”
For more information about Anthony Casuccio’s show at Funk ‘N Waffles, see here.
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