Buckle up your seatbelts music fans, because if you do not already know who Astrella Celeste is, you soon will, for she is one of the most emotive singer/songwriters to appear on the music scene in a very long time and she possesses both the charm and the vocal chops to take her to the top of the charts and to keep her there. You the listeners are going to be the beneficiaries of this exciting journey. Astrella Celeste’s EP Blue Star is available in the United States and the United Kingdom through I-Tunes and songs such as the fun and upbeat “Kiss,” provide glimpses into her delightful personality and demonstrate clearly why, even as a child she was being heralded as a magnificent singer.  On songs such as the gorgeous “Without Me,” co-written with Kevin Hunter, Celeste is accompanied by drummer Rat Scabies from The Damned and Andy Hobson of The Pretenders on bass.  “Without Me,” defines the essence of Astrella Celeste’s music as it is large, but not noisy or loud, the instrumentals are well orchestrated, the vocals are soft and yet they are powerful, the lyrics are not complicated  or filled with abstract metaphors, but they are always relevant. 

The EP Blue Star is so very good, that music fans should be pre-ordering Celeste’s full length album, scheduled for tentative release in February or March. Both the album and the EP have the masterful fingerprints of producer Yoad Nevo, who also handled the mixing and mastering of the EP. John Cameron’s superbly crafted arrangements are at times velvety and in other songs they soar, and they are complimented by the fine, but subtle brass arrangements of Colin Graham.

Prior to her concert at the Hotel Café, in Los Angeles, Astrella Celeste took time to talk to Riveting Riffs Magazine about her music. The daughter of sixties legend Donovan (“Mellow Yellow,” “Sunshine Superman”), first began performing on stage as a child, but her parents made sure that she was not  catapulted into the role of being a child star.

“I have really been doing this since I was seven. With my father being a musician, I sort of stumbled into it early on, and I used to watch him performing a lot. When I was eight years old, I asked if I could get up and have a go with him on stage. I think that it was the Cambridge Folk Festival. It was quite scary, because it was broad daylight and there were a lot of people (she laughs), so I sort of threw myself in at the deep end. I really, kind of liked it and the adrenaline rush that you get; the reaction from the audience and everything. It caught me early on (enjoying performing) and so I continued to get up with him to sing. I would do some of the backing stuff and sometimes duets and things. I ended up spending a lot of time with him in the studio as well. Then I ended up in theatre school, so I have been performing for a long time,” says Celeste.

In recent performances, the musical careers of Astrella Celeste and Donovan have gone full circle, only this time it is the father joining his daughter on stage. She says, “I always have him join me for one of his lesser known songs, “Sunny Goodge Street,” (covered by Judy Collins and Tom Northcutt). It is one of my favorite songs of his and it is a bit jazzier.  The last time I did it, he thought, ‘I’ll jump up next time,’ so I thought when he is in town that maybe he could get up.”

At the recent Hotel Café concert, Astrella Celeste was joined on stage by Donovan as the they performed the song “Unbelievable,” and later they were joined by guitarist Brian Ray who plays with Paul McCartney as they delighted the audience to a trio of tunes from Donovan’s songbook, “Sunshine Superman,” “Mellow Yellow,” and “Sunny Goodge Street.”

Despite the musical environs in which she spent her childhood years, Celeste says, “It is kind of funny; because I think that I threw myself more into dancing more than anything, for the majority of my youth. I picked up music on that level, but my father doesn’t read music, so when I was in the studio and working with my father, it was much more about playing by ear,” then she laughs before continuing, “He was worried that if I learned too much about the technical side of music it might take away a little bit of my creativity and the places that I might go, if I were thinking about it too hard. I took music lessons and I took piano, a little bit and stuff, but I never really saw it through to the end. I kept it a little more open and a little looser. I don’t actually play guitar, funnily enough. I think because my dad was such a great guitar player, and because I enjoy music and singing, and other parts as much as I did, so I kind of avoided it (playing the guitar). 

The song “Kiss,” was written with Kevin Hunter (Sheryl Crow, Natasha Bedingfield, Kelly Clarkson, Abra Moore) someone to whom she refers as a California Cowboy, and the song features stellar backup vocals by Carmen Squire.  After Hunter and Celeste initially met in London, and then returned to Los Angeles, they decided to try co-writing together.

Talking about “Kiss,” Astrella Celeste says, “Someone else had written it and sung it, but it was so different. The song itself I really loved, so I took it, twisted it a little and I made it my own. I kind of fell in love with it, because it is life and it is fun and cheeky. When I write, I tend to be a little intense and a little heavy sometimes, so I think that it was good for me (to co-write). Kevin was playing these songs for me, to inspire me and to help me come out of just being intense about it. Finding out the way that things are sometimes, can be difficult, but it is like finding a sense of humor in it. If you can’t laugh in life, then you kind of get in trouble.”

As far as working with Colin Graham for the horn arrangements on “Kiss,” Celeste says, “Colin was a sweetheart. It was kind of brief, because he is so fast at what he does. He came into London and to the studio that we were working with and he just sort of suggested the sound that I would like. I really like Chet Baker and that retro sort of feeling. He came in and whoosh he came out with this perfect sound, which was really easy and lovely. Sometimes it can be a bit brutal with musicians, if it is not flowing naturally, it can get a little uncomfortable. It was really nice and smooth and easy.”

Celeste returned to that retro sound once more, when she covered Van Morrison’s “Crazy Love,” (not on the EP) and she delivers the most evocative interpretation of the classic tune, since Aaron Neville covered the song, and she does so with impeccable phrasing. When she sings “Yes I need you in the daytime / I need you in the night / I want to throw my arms around you / Kiss you, kiss you, hug you tight,” it is easy to imagine that it is to her husband Jason that she is singing.

About her arranger she says, “John Cameron worked with my dad, I think, before I was born even, and I have kind of known him on and off for most of my life, but I had not known him as a musician. It was a really great experience. He lives in Avon, so he was like, you must come to my house and we will (work on) the arrangements and I was (she giggles) okay then. It was really nice to go out there and what a stunning place that is. Then we went on to Prague and it was amazing. I think that it was four songs in four hours. He was really good. He does theatrical. He does Les Miserables and all of that, but he has also worked on a lot of albums, so I think that he was really good at finding the balance and not taking over the songs. An orchestra can tend to do that.”

As she intersperses our conversation with laughter and often just expresses a girlish giggle, one gets the sense that it would not be in Astrella Celeste’s nature to record a “He did me wrong,” type of song and to that end, “Without Me,” does not travel down that pathway either. “When I first came out with the lyric, “You Without Me,” we thought that it was going to be taken in a very negative way, like a sad or a broken hearted song. Funnily enough, we both (Kevin Hunter and her) thought what if we twisted it a little and sang “You Without Me,” and it is difficult, but you know what, I’m Okay. I’m surprisingly okay and sort of take that attitude with it. It has this sorrow or this sad sound to it. Then it kind of shifts into this, you know what, it’s okay, yes I am a little sad and a little heart broken but I’m going to be fine. I think that the arrangements kind of reflect that sort of feeling,” she says.

The song “Take It Easy,” from the EP Blue Star possesses a bit of an underlying country guitar riff and the groove almost, but not quite teases you with a two-step, while the melody is definitely pop. This song may very well have good crossover potential and broaden Astrella Celeste’s fan base. Any guy or girl who has ever experienced a major crush can identify with these lines, “I see a girl / On top of the world / In love with a boy / That she can’t talk to / I see a boy / Other side of the room / Doesn’t know what to do,” and yet there is the constant reminder in the chorus, “Take it easy / What’s your hurry? / I can see no need to hurry / Take it easy life is long / Love’s a game / So play along.”

Songs such as “Dream,” from the EP Blue Star have already received a lot of airplay and charted well in the United Kingdom and it appears that it will be a lot sooner than later, as listeners in North America and around the world discover what those in Los Angeles, New York City and London already know, that there is a Blue Star (Astrella Celeste’s name in Spanish) rising rapidly on the music scene.

Astrella Celeste’s mother once told her, “to always be true to myself. I know that it sounds like a cliché, but she told me to always follow my heart, follow my gut, and to try not to think too much about what other people think of what I do.” 

Let’s hope that she follows that advice, because Astrella Celeste possesses vocals that are unparalleled on the pop music scene and her sensibilities for delivering a phrase evoke a strong emotional response from the listener. She has surrounded herself with musicians who compliment her well, a producer and arrangers who understand her, and she has a father who is watching musical history in the making, once again.

Interview with Joe Montague, protected by copyright ©