Premiere: Chico Romano is In Full Bloom with New Single "Who Said"
NJ-based instrumentalist Rob Romano (fka Professor Caveman) unveils his latest musical voyage under the name Chico Romano. The peachy laid-back single, "Who Said", acts as the first glimpse into his upcoming project Vol. 5 which releases on Oct. 7th, later this year.
For listeners of: Mild High Club, Connan Mockasin, Baseball Gregg
Branching out from his previous project, Professor Caveman, Rob Romano is tapping into a new garden with Chico Romano. A garden where elements of Motown, bedroom pop, and tropicalia mix up the perfect mulch for some tasty tunes to blossom. Not to get too sappy, but Chico's first two singles "Who Said" and "All My Love" take the listener through a cosmic tunnel of love. Rowing downstream, it probably leads to some DIY basement show where the music hits just right.
With production credits from the likes of Carlos Hernandez (Carlos Truly, ARTHUR.), Vol. 5 is full of intricate stylings and sonic textures that really shine a light onto Romano's musical versatility. It's smooth listening for those who like to groove. Take a load off, let your ears peak at these singles and stay tuned for the full EP later this fall.
We had the chance to catch up with Rob Romano about his project via email. Here's what he had to say...
Q: How’d you get involved with music?
A: Tough question! I don’t know if you want the FULL history, but I’ll try to keep it short. Elementary school Rob wanted to be a rapper. 50 Cent, NOW 4, whatever hip hop was on MTV, I wanted to be that. I got in trouble with my friend’s parents because I wrote these crazy vulgar diss raps for my friends to battle each other. It was really funny, ghostwrote both of their parts.
Around age 12, I started playing bass, my older brother had exposed me to the whole mythology of classic rock, in addition to pop punk, ska, and whatever else was cool in 2007. When I got to high school, I started my own band, mostly out of necessity. Everyone wants to be in a band, but no one wants to lead it. So I naturally assumed that role and started writing songs, some of which made it to the first Caveman EP (grape.) 5 years later. In my opinion, that’s when my pursuit of music-making REALLY started.
Q: What’s the local scene like in NJ?
A: The local scene in NJ is like—- well like any place there’s many little pockets of scenes. The scene to me personally, is New Brunswick, NJ because that’s where I really got the most involved. There’s also the “down the shore” Asbury Park scene, Hub city hardcore punk scene, Jersey City/Newark Hip-hop scenes, house shows around Rowan, the Meatlocker in Montclair, there’s really a lot of different stuff happening here. Even more places that I haven’t mentioned. And all these little pockets of scenes have a lot of crossover. In my humble opinion, New Jersey is one of the best states for music whether it’s DIY or on a big stage.