Album Notes

Dante Mazzetti's accomplishments include his selection as a featured artist at New York's Peek-A-Boo Songwriter's festival. He was also awarded a BMG scholarship for an original composition entitled "The Red Shirts." The following year, Dante appeared in Levi's "What's True," commercial campaign performing another original composition "Standing in the Rain," which was ultimately purchased by the company for future ad campaigns. He was a finalist at the Sierra Songwriter's festival in Sonora California and currently plays venues throughout America. Dante has a strong New York City base, playing such venues as Arlene Grocery, Luna Lounge, CBGB's, Sine, Hotel Galvez, Kendell Cafe, Cafe Lena and many others in the surrounding New York area. Each year Dante is invited to perform at the St. John the Divine Annual AIDS benefit in New York City. He recently opened a sold out Ben Folds show at the prestigious Newport Sunset Music Festival in Newport, Rhode Island to a phenomenal response.

THE SONGS:

Dante's compositions have been described by some as edgy-folk-alternative, with strong melodies and thoughtful lyrics sung with a voice that is both expressive and melodic. Inspiration for many of Dante's songs comes from literary sources such as, Catch-22, The Great Gatsby and Crime and Punishment. Mazzetti, 23, attributes his early interest in music to his parents, who had an extensive music collection - from turn of the century to modern tunes. He studied voice at the Professional Performing Arts School in Manhattan. He left Purchase College after three years to focus on performing. About singing he said he prefers "voices that seem to be more real rather than trained." "It's hard to think in a structural sense when you think in an artistic sense," "Writing (lyrics) is more of an inspirational thing. Being told to write just isn't going to work."

Musical inspiration comes from artists such as Steve Earle, Jeff Buckley, Lucinda Williams, Mississippi John Hurt, Howling Wolf, Nirvana and Bob Dylan.