Rebekah Lane and Kevin G. Becker team up for epic EDM Cat music Kickstarter
Off-Broadway director Rebekah Lane and acclaimed composer and transmedia artist Kevin G. Becker announced today their debut music album, DJ Bubbs and the Cat Tracks: Songs that Give You Pause — launched today on Kickstarter. In this epic album, songs include “The Cat Chose Me” which catalogs the experience of any cat lover who’s gloated to others in the room when the cat has chosen their lap and “The Lizards are Taunting” which seeks to voice inner trauma and longing house cats experience day to day.
“This was a COVID-19 project. Kevin and I found that we wanted to create art, but needed something to lift us out of the gloom. We both work in the performing arts, and theatre was shutting down around us. We were faced with the terrifying question: what do we do if we don’t create theatre? We found ourselves singing to the cat to lift our spirits. I started recording the vocal lines. Kevin agreed, first begrudgingly and then a little too enthusiastically, to produce the music. The creation process continues to bring us a ton of joy.” said Lane.
Lane and Becker are not the first artists to sing tribute to their cat, and they won’t be the last. The unique flavor they bring to cat themed music is the storytelling and theatricality. “This album project has so many influences. It’s a love letter, through homage, to all the genres I grew up with. It’s Dimitri from Paris meets Deadmau5, including a W. B. Yeats poem spoken over musical backing in the vein of the opening moment of David Lynch’s film Dune. The album’s sole goal is to make you smile through its absurdity and simplicity” said Becker. “We want to create this album so cat lovers can take the music home and celebrate their cats with their families in style.”
In addition to Lane and Becker, DJ Bubbs and the Cat Tracks includes a number of visual and performing artists. Orlando photographer Brittney Walsh has created the primary promotional and album art. Allison Wilson, popular visual artist on Threadless.com, will craft the design for the album t-shirt. Lane’s father, James F. Lane Jr. has contributed to the lyrics. We will launch the Kickstarter with a medley performance of the first four songs commissioned by the Downtown Orlando Festival, Immerse on October 16th at 8:35 pm and 10:15 pm. In this performance dancers Aaron Ellis, Katie DeBari, Sarah Lockard, and Darci Riccardi will play DJ Bubbs and the Transformed Crazy Cat Ladies in a high-energy dance performance. The production team includes Alyssa Will Zegers (stage manager and assistant producer), Cathy Cox (costume design), and Sam Catone (set design).
“When we conceived this album, I knew it would expand into live performance once it was safe for audiences to gather again” said Lane. “Creating music is exciting. Sharing it through live performance is even more rewarding. Finalizing the music is the first step in an epic cat-venture.”
And just in case you were wondering about the sincerity of their cat-obsession, both Lane and Becker are devoted to cats. Lane grew up with family cats ‘saved’ from her grandfather’s barn in Illinois, and religiously read cat-themed fiction as a child. Becker had an even deeper cat experience.
“A cat saved my life” said Becker. “I didn’t realize I had pneumonia. I was laying on the couch, too exhausted to go to work. My brother’s cat, Bubba, walked up to me and said ‘Kevin. You’re sick. You should call your mom.’ When I called my mom and told her the cat said I needed help, she rushed to take me to the hospital. When I arrived, I was 5 minutes away from going into a coma.”
The album is available exclusively through Kickstarter until November 15, 2021.
WHERE WAS THIS PIC TAKEN – NEAR WHAT TOWN? I SEE TIBETAN BUDDHIST FLAGS IN BACKGROUND…
Hi! We’re in Florida!
Great portrait. What part of USA? was portrait taken in?
@Leta rosetree – We’re in Florida!
We’re in Florida!
I would love for it to become a CD.
@Catsandcoffee – We’d love for it to become a CD, too! If we are able to reach out Kickstarter goal, we will make that happen. We would love your help.
http://kck.st/3mKGgAZ
We are close to making that happen! You can get a copy through the Kickstarter! http://kck.st/3mKGgAZ
I’m so excited to see this published! Thank you <3