Lee Coulter

Funkacana – say it out loud. It’s fun. It’s what you get when you let an Australian who doesn’t know the rules of classic American folk, rock and urban loose around San Diego. “Stereo Stills,” the third self released album from singer/songwriter/producer Lee Coulter, is comprised of elements of folk, surf rock, soul, hip hop, even Latin and sometimes, all at the same time. The common and gravitational threads in this ambitious fusion are lazily soulful vocals, thought-out lyrics and the fact that each song leaves you feeling better about something, even if you’re not sure what. Coulter moved from the Gold Coast, Australia to Lake Tahoe in early 2004 to be with his American girlfriend (now wife) and “Stills” is his first project since moving to San Diego in 2005 to set up his own studio, Perfect Wav Productions. The past year has seen him making ends meet producing for other artists including Mike McGill, David Vaughn and Chris Leyva of Blizzard as well as making progress with his own four piece band on the local scene graduating to gigs at the House of Blues, Belly Up and now the Casbah for the CD release party on November 28th. Whether it’s socio-political cuts like I Would Love, Uncle Sam and Ocean, body moving fusion like Love In a Bottle, Kim Kimmy and the Peace Protesters, or refreshingly honest love songs like Titanium, “Stereo Stills” has the unique potential to be both a “have it on in the background” or “crank it up and sing your heart out” kind of album. The first track Photograph suggests “music is a photograph of the way you feel” and having played 90 percent of the instruments and produced 100 percent of everything else from recording and mixing to mastering and artwork, Coulter’s ideas and feelings shine through. Guest musicians include San Diegans Evan Bethany (backing vocals and violin on two tracks) and “Doktor” Dave Sawyer (resonator on the struggling musician’s anthem House of Blues). Coulter’s life transitions in the past 2 and a half years - full time job to the musician hustle, Australia to America, bachelor to husband – have made for a lot of writing material. However, whether it’s because of the Polynesian blood, being born and raised on the biggest island in the world, or living in San Diego, one message remains clear throughout his music – life’s a beach. Available at www.leecoulter.com now and local music stores from November 28th.