Keez Keeps it Natural in Oregon

A lot of creative types think they have to be in either New York or LA to make it but with all the smog, traffic and noise – are those cities really the best places to put out anything? That’s something that could be argued until the cows come home, but one could say the serene nature or Oregon is perfect for creating art. At least it is for Keez. He takes full advantage of his surroundings by taking hikes to clear his head and he notes when it comes to how his surroundings have shaped his sound, he says, “The outdoor life along with the variety of musical influences that come through, gave me the patience and time to be creative.” Variety is right, his style is a strong combination of everything from reggae to electronic to rock and on that he says when he started out he was just going with what felt “natural” to him and on his new CD he notes that he has “some really cool new style of combinations.”

Maybe one of those new songs will end up on the big screen like Keez’s music has in the past. Yes, he’s been featured in movies but in recent years, he thinks his sound would’ve been a perfect fit for Emily Blunt’s Sicario or any horror film. While he mentioned a thriller and horror, Keez himself is a huge fan of sci-fi and if aliens landed in his backyard and it was up to him to prove human life was worth it he would be up for the challenge, “I would tell them all humans need to judge less, I only care about the character of people and hopefully it’s kind even if it disagrees with what you do. I’d tell them I believe in other people and other worlds and then probably play some music.”

“Motorcycle”

Judging less may be hard since we live for social media and are quick to judge one another based on 140 characters or less on a daily basis. That may not be the case for this musician though. A quick search, you come up pretty short looking for him online. He has a good explanation as to why, “I have been working with my amazing band for about three months, and my approach to media is minimal temporarily due to the fact we haven’t played a live show yet. I have a nice load of merchandise and I’m buying a new RV for the road, as we prepare for the tours. We will take a larger media approach at that time.” Prepping for shows in the new year, Keez had a record release party last week and says he and the band will be heading to California after they take over Oregon and Washington. As for what else is to come, he says, “I am collaborating with Matisyahu for my new CD that’s coming out sometime in July or August.”

Away from the noise of a huge city, Keez creates music that combines a number of styles and comes up with cohesive pieces that have made their way to films, and will soon land him in the studio with Matisyahu. It’s safe to say this artist has a good grasp on what he’s doing out in the beautiful landscape of Oregon.