Growing up in Italy, the UK, and Paris, Cristina Vane never thought of herself as an American, despite having a father from Connecticut. “I spent a large part of my life rejecting the American part of my identity,” Vane says. “I wasn’t tuned into American folk music or the blues at all, but it was slippery slope once I heard someone playing slide guitar. I had to know what it was and it turned into an obsession.”
“Travelin‘ Blues” is out now! Video directed by Jeremy Harris, who also happens to be a contributing photographer to The East Nashvillian.
After attending college in New Jersey, Vane moved to L.A. to pursue a music career, but soon found it wasn’t the friendliest place for a budding Americana singer-songwriter.
“I had hit a wall. I wanted to take my music elsewhere because L.A. wasn’t giving me much love for slide guitar and banjo,” Vane says.
That led to the decision to self-book her first tour — a five-month sojourn through the American West. It was an opportunity to bring her music to a new audience and discover her American roots
“I wanted to explore the West — a place that was like fiction to me,” Vane says. “It was a very bittersweet experience. On some levels, it was the most informative and best summer of my life. I learned a lot about people, music, and myself, but on the other hand, on many parts of the journey I felt very lonely and I wished I was sharing the experience with someone I cared about. It was a dichotomy that never went away.”
Vane’s voyage of discovery provided the inspiration for her first album, Nowhere Sounds Lovely, recorded at The Embassy in Leipers Fork with Cactus Moser producing. The album drops April 2. For a sample, check out her new single, “Travelin’ Blues” and visit cristinavane.com for more on her music.
