Imagine if Jeff Buckley would have written ridiculously catchy pop songs.
Or, imagine if the Beatles would have had a much better drummer. Better yet, imagine if Gershwin would have had access to Marshall stacks. Arthur Yoria has an amazing ability to be innocent, sultry, irreverent, and completely captivating all in the span of about three and a half minutes. With his "pretty boy" looks and a voice that apparently has no limits, Arthur Yoria has been known to seduce even the most apathetic of audiences in Houston, TX.
A native of Chicago with roots in Colombia, South America, Arthur and his family moved to Houston in the late 80's. Being new and very shy, he resorted to his talent for playing Soccer as a way of making friends in the new town. "Even though I considered my Soccer friends to be an interesting and very entertaining bunch, I was always intrigued by the musician cliques," he recalls. "I knew that I could sing, but I didn't play an instrument and I didn't have long hair."
It was on the way to class while attending The University of Houston one fall that he noticed a "clean cut young gentleman," playing guitar outside on the lawn. "I worked up the courage to ask him if I could listen to what he was doing," Yoria says. "He was fine with it so he started playing these crazy pop tunes which were apparently his. I was blown away and decided at that moment, that I would learn to play guitar and write songs." Yoria then discovered that he had a gift as his song writing developed at an amazing rate. Within two weeks of picking up the guitar, he wrote the song, "If Invention" which seven years later, he still performs live to wonderful response from audiences. Shortly there after, Yoria and the U of H student that changed his life,
Usep Tasies, formed a band, The Jeepneys. "It was a great learning experience to be in a band that played live often but I knew at one point that I didn't want to share song writing credits anymore." Yoria admits. "I left only because I wanted to record a CD of my own songs. Actually, Usep and I are still best friends and I can say that we've both benefited from the split."
Under the name Lavendula, Yoria released His first CD Joseph
Bringley, in 1996 to rave reviews from both local and national publications. Songwriter's Monthly described the collection of songs as "music that washes across you like a numbing exotic drug." In 1997, Yoria continued his critical success as Lavendula by receiving a Musician Magazine nomination as "One of the Best Unsigned Bands in the United States."
Later that year, on a whim, Yoria decided to capitalize on being bi-lingual and began writing songs in Spanish. "I went in to the studio with some pop songs, a guitar, a sampler, and no expectations," says Yoria. The result, a
five song EP, again under the name Lavendula was released in 1998. The incredibly catchy set of drum loop driven gems quickly became the talk of the local music scene and Yoria was voted Houston's Best Singer/Songwriter in the 1998 Public News readers poll.
In early 1999, while in the process of recording his second full length CD (in English), Yoria was approached by local producer and label owner, James Bennett. By April, a deal was signed and the two began work on what was supposed to be his debut under the name Arthur Yoria. "The ideas that we had were lofty to begin with, but on top of that, every day those ideas would spawn new ones. Meanwhile, the record company was running out of money. I became skeptical as the company staff began to dwindle." Yoria recalls. "A year after we had started, we decided to take a one month break that turned into a permanent one."
In August of 2000, Yoria was essentially let out of the deal. "It felt like an overdue break-up of a too-good-to-be-true relationship," Yoria allows. "It was painful, but at the same time, I was relieved and excited about the prospect of a fresh beginning."
Arthur Yoria's latest release on his own label, K Oso Records is a self-produced and self-titled 4-song EP. Once again, Yoria has come up with the stunningly beautiful, powerful, and instantly catchy songs that have become his trademark. Each of the four songs displays an incredible vocal, emotional, and melodic range as well as enough lyrical depth to tame even the harshest of critics. The only challenge here is picking a favorite.
"I'm attempting to walk the lines between accessibility, creativity, and uniqueness," says Yoria.
" I love well-crafted, catchy, and poignant melodies and I think that every song that I record and promote should be unique and captivating."
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