“The sky could be water that I’m driving through,” musician Matt Kustura sings on his Americana-infused opening track “Valerio” from his debut album. With its recent release on June 12, the song was the perfect soundscape to kick off summer break as I cruised down the 101 toward Ventura on a sunny day, the blue ocean and cloudless sky melding into one. Little did I know every song would hit with a familiarity only someone who went to college here and made a full life for themselves post-grad could deliver.
“These songs are rooted in S.B. and the S.B. experience,” Kustura said. “It’s really a story of me living my life here in Santa Barbara. I moved here when I was 20 and I’m now 44, and I’ve been playing music the whole time.”
And not just playing music; as a graduate of UCSB with a degree in English Literature, Kusutra’s creative fervor sparks toward the written word as well. The penning of lyrics, deemed by some as an afterthought, is a well-honed skill and cathartic practice for Kustura. “Writing is an important part of what I do. During that time in college, I was living and swimming in words,” Kustura said…