Mid-West transplant Aaron Lavigne is more than happy to contribute to Queens’ flourishing music scene.
“I’ve been fortunate to have been involved in [the Queens music scene]” said Lavigne. “It’s always been a welcoming sense of community — anytime and anywhere I play, I’ve only met the most positive people and artists looking to help each other.”
Crooner, guitarist and current Astoria resident, Lavigne began his musical dabbling back in high school.
“I was into everything from alternative to punk rock,” said Lavigne. “I didn’t really start to ‘seriously’ play until about five years ago when I started writing songs.”
Lavigne draws inspiration from the artists he grew up listening to: The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and even newer musicians including the Avett Brothers, NOFX and Band of Horses.
“Anything that attracted me with any kind of soul or substance to it,” said Lavigne of his influences.
Lavigne catalogs his pop, rock and soul sound as an amalgamation of Paul McCartney, Marvin Gaye, Jason Mraz and Jeff Buckley. He prefers his songs’ subjects lean towards the simpler side, centering on themes of girls, animals and nature.
When Lavigne sets down his guitar, he moonlights as an actor, currently participating in the Off-Broadway revival of “Rent” at New World Stages in Midtown Manhattan. Between one stage and another, Lavigne can be spotted cruising the streets of Astoria on his bicycle or catching a Cincinnati Bengals game.
Coming off a six-month-long tour of the southeastern United States with his backing band, the DownTown Crowd, Lavigne is in the early stages of planning his next release, an EP of six or seven songs.
“I’ll be full time with ‘Rent’ for a while, which will allow me to stay in New York and record my next EP,” said Lavigne. “We’ll begin recording in late January with a summer release. I’m really looking forward to this next EP!”
Lavigne believes his song writing style has evolved since past projects, benefiting in part from his new mantra: “keep it simple — simple and open.”
