NYC native, Christina Cuesta Loeb (who dropped the “Christina” for her debut solo project) comes from a family of musicians. Born to world-renown jazz guitarist Chuck Loeb and Spanish singer-songwriter/actress Carmen Cuesta, she grew up between the US and Spain, studying classical flute and bassoon. While she really enjoyed performing and playing in orchestras, Cuesta Loeb was unable to find her voice in classical music. In 2015, she moved to Los Angeles and began experimenting in her own songwriting and production.
Inspired by Green Day, The Smashing Pumpkins, Fiona Apple, and (early) Sheryl Crow, she combined her love of dark, haunting melodies with dreamy, etherial instrumentation and vocals. She found her home somewhere in the world of Dream Pop, with a blend of everything from acoustic ukuleles to Shoegaze-heavy guitars. From this, she self-produced and recorded her first 4 track EP, Dive, to be independently released in September of 2016.
In this interview spotlight, we chat with Cuesta Loeb about their new project, influences, and more.
Full Q&A, links, and a stream of Dive can be found below.
Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)
I was born and raised in and around New York City & Westchester, but also spent every summer of every year in Spain, where my mother’s side of the family is from. Looking back, those two months in a completely different culture were such a gift.
I was raised surrounded by music. Everyone in my family is a musician, and we all play very different styles of music. My dad is a jazz guitar player. My mother is a singer/songwriter that loves Brazilian inspired Bossa Novas and Pop. My sister is a singer/songwriter and guitarist, who plays mostly pop-folk. My stuff is very different. People tell me my music lives somewhere in the world of Dream Pop, a blend of hard electric guitars and ethereal vocals and harmonies. A friend of mine said my music made him want to run free in a big open field, and I liked that. I’m always aiming to create a dream-like state and feeling.
What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to stay the course?
You’d think that being surrounded by music and musicians would be what led me most down this path, but my parents were very careful about not pushing anything on me. They have always been so supportive of anything I did musically, especially recently in my new production adventure. While it was the language we spoke from early on, it wasn’t until recently down a new path, in a new city (LA) that I became most creative.
I think what keeps me motivated is purely the joy I get from creating music. I get lost in it.
Who or what are your biggest influences when it comes to your creativity?
My first favorite band was the Beatles. I didn’t really start listening to the “music of my time” until Middle School. I always loved songs that had a dark element to them. I loved Green Day, Nirvana, Sublime, and then female artists like Fiona Apple, Alanis Morissette and Sheryl Crow.
How is your new release different than previous ones? Did you set out to accomplish anything specific?
This is my second release! When I started production on this project, I just set out to make a collection of songs that I loved. I had always been stopped by one thing or another — not ever fully satisfied with the whole sound of my songs. I had no specific plans to release it or anything. I just wanted to make it sound like I wanted. It wasn’t until about a year later that I knew I found it, and my first EP was formed.
Do you face any challenges as an indie musician in a digital age? On the flip side, how has technology helped you (if it has)?
I am so new to the whole scene. Every step of the way has been so fun. I think technology has certainly helped. There are so many platforms that help share music.
How do you feel about streaming services? Any romantic attachments to the physical formats: vinyl, 8-track, cassettes, CDs?
I love how accesible music has become. I mean, it is the best thing ever to think of a song you want to hear and be able to listen to it that same minute (provided you have service). And then listen to stuff just like it, or the whole record. Streaming services have made it so easy to discover new music. At the same time though, I absolutely have an attachment to CDs and vinyl. I used to love going to Tower Records and picking out new albums.. especially since my sister and I weren’t allowed to download music illegally. I would be very sad if physical formats of music ceased to be. Musician’s album art is also something I treasure and value.
Where can we follow you online and hear more music?
- Stream on Spotify: play.spotify.com/search/dive%20cuesta
- On Soundcloud:https://soundcloud.com/cuestaloeb/dive
- Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Y82vvdn11_I
- Find me on iTunes: itun.es/us/Ub-Ceb
Anything else before we sign off?
Look out for more music this fall and early winter! My EP, Dive, is coming soon…
