The Kansas City artist Joe Rubeo, whose stage name is simply Rubeo, began making music just five months ago. He's released only two songs, but says he has a couple albums' worth of material ready to record.
He uses a phone app called Auxy to produce his tracks.
“It’s definitely been a game-changer for me," Rubeo says, "and I feel like I’m just beginning to scratch the surface on its capabilities,” he says.
In October, he released the digital single “Xanaxis,” a 1980s-style synth-pop song in the vein of Depeche Mode, Yazoo and Orchestral Manoeuvres In the Dark. He says it's about “the relationship our ego has within our own consciousness.”
His plan, Rubeo says, “is to release these tracks one by one to see how well people respond to get an idea of my target audience.”
An electronic drummer joins him for a performance on Friday night at the Rino in North Kansas City, where Rachel Mallin and The Wild Type are headliners and Brother Moses also performs.
Rubeo, Friday, February 2 at The Rino, 314 Armour Road, North Kansas City, Missouri, 64116.
KCUR contributor Bill Brownlee blogs about Kansas City's jazz scene at Plastic Sax.
