PETTY CHAVEZ is an acoustic singer-songwriter duo; a transatlantic partnership whose haunting vocal blend and evocative, intimate soundscapes tell their modern day love story in a timeless fashion.
Born thousands of miles and an ocean apart, yet in similarly grey and rainy latitudes, Simon Petty and Celia Chavez somehow followed their own musical paths — from Manchester, England and Seattle, Washington, respectively — to sunny southern California. Meeting backstage in LA at a David Bowie tribute gig in 2013, they have combined their disparate experiences ever since, in harmony, life and song.
After earning a degree in English Literature at Cambridge, researching rare birds in the Madagascan jungle, fronting an Americana band in the UK before it was cool, and winning a label deal that launched his band Minibar into the studio with legendary producer T Bone Burnett, Petty found himself touring North America from coast to coast. Opening up for Pete Yorn, and eventually becoming his backing band, Minibar’s life on the road helped Petty to hone the unique brand of world-weary optimism and musical eclecticism that typify his songwriting. His distinctive voice lies somewhere between Nick Cave and Nick Drake, between finger-picked romanticism and a seam of more dissonant darkness, as featured on his solo albums, The Sea, The Sea by Solomon’s Seal (2009), The Sad Carousel (2015) and —with Seth Rothschild — Recovery Time (2019).
Since leaving her hometown in 2003, Celia earned her musical stripes in the clubs and studios of New York and Los Angeles, singing with the likes of Pink, Burning Spear, Julia Fordham and Melody Gardot, which brought her to her current role touring the globe as backup vocalist for Enrique Iglesias. Between countless sellout nights in international arenas — duetting with Enrique in Kiev’s Olympic Stadium to 80,000 Ukranians, for instance —Celia uses her downtime on buses, planes and hotel rooms to compose and refine her own brand of wistful lyricism, tempered by her unique clarity of vocal delivery, showcased on the album Sailor’s Daughter (2007) and EPs White Flag Blue Sky (2013), Live at Rockwood Music Hall (2015) and Dare To Love (2017).
Together, Petty Chavez showcase their smoky harmonies and complementary writing styles on “Jodrell Bank” and “Our Apartment,” the first two singles from their upcoming debut album, One Last Look At the Stars.
Both songs made their world premiere debut on KCSN 88.5 FM (Cal-State, Northridge) and championed by tastemaker DJ Nic Harcourt who hosts the Morning Music Mix on the acclaimed LA-based station.