St. John Couple Sharing the Love with New Music

Our lovely island home has so much to offer, but one of my favorite things about living here is being in the heart of a healthy live music scene. On any given night, you are bound to encounter an acoustic set, an open mic night, or maybe a nice jazz ensemble. 

Anysia and Scott Hutchens of Chasing Hues have been playing music together for around ten years. The musicians began dating in 2009 and were supporting each other with their individual musical aspirations. Over time, it became apparent that their goals could align and they could combine their passion for songwriting with their trust in each other to play music together. 

We are fortunate to catch Chasing Hues right in the middle of releasing new music. They began releasing small EPs in January with Mood Medicine | BRIGHT.  I had the chance to get the details straight from the songwriters so we can better support and understand these fun, themed releases which will result in the finished product of their new full-length album, Mood Medicine. 

Do you mind explaining the concept of the releases and how you developed this theme?
When we came up with the concept for the song “Mood Medicine”, it was more of a feeling rather than a song. We were so lucky to be playing a lot of live shows and having support from the musical community here on St. John! Performing more often, we came to find that no matter what type of day you’re having, you still have to be committed to your audience and show up as your best self! This is where the idea was sparked for [the title track] “Mood Medicine”. Right after the New Year in Jan 2020 we got the lightning strike idea to write “Mood Medicine” the song. The groove is a blues progression with an upbeat funky feel and before we knew it, the first part of the song had come together! We decided to head out east to Miss Lucy’s open mic night and we finished writing the song in the jeep on the way. When we got to Miss Lucy’s it was packed with amazing performers and eager spectators, dancing and listening! We were a little intimidated at first, but when our turn came, we decided to send it and perform “Mood Medicine” with the house band! We all quickly settled into the funky feel and everyone took a turn soloing over the groove. We were so thrilled to hear this song bloom in real time and we knew from that moment, it had settled into a special place in our lives!

How are the separate releases working for Mood Medicine and the Moods, BRIGHT, SWOON, DEEP & LIFT: As we got further into 2020 and the pandemic, we had moved quickly from full time music to full time at home. Like everyone else in the world we were pivoting into our new “normal”, working old jobs and adjusting to a different experience, but all too familiar ‘after the storms’ feeling from the past few years. In this time, we leaned into our creativity and songwriting more than ever. We started developing the concept for the album Mood Medicine with 4 separate moods; BRIGHT, SWOON, DEEP & LIFT, each with 4 songs. We worked through unpacking our original songs to truly fit the mood, sometimes bumping one off the list if a stronger choice came to light. We wanted the album to be an emotional journey through the highs and lows of our life and experience on St. John over the past 6 years. So we welcome you with sunshiny upbeat vibes in BRIGHT [released on January 3rd], then you fall in love with the romantic side of SWOON [released on February 10th], indulge the real feels with DEEP [coming in March] and dare to be inspired with LIFT [coming in April]. We also dove into how to bring these concepts to life visually with our album artwork and content. Shooting our album covers are the incredible St. John based photographers, Linds & Max, including an underwater cover for DEEP! We’ve had so much fun filming our first video and some behind the scenes content with the fantastic Island Media Co! We hope that our followers enjoy soaking in the moods on many levels and find the songs in the times you need some Mood Medicine of your own.

If you are not on island, but want to follow Chasing Hues on this journey, their music can be found on all major music streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music. 

Their new music video for the song “Out in the Sun” is available now on YouTube. If ever a perfect visual representation of a song existed, this might be it. 

If you are on island and want to see the group live, you are in luck. They are hosting a Valentine’s Day party at Lovango Rum Bar this evening from 5-8pm – Contact Lovango Rum Bar for Reservations. They also have an upcoming show on Feb 18th at Salty Mongoose and another Sunset Songwriter Session on February 24th at Lovango Rum Bar 4:30-6:30pm.