Commented on: Smiles Beyond

Bio written by Dan Kimpel...

Kephas is a Florida-based songwriter, producer, guitarist and vocalist at the axis of an expansive collection of sounds: electric guitar lines soar over a percolating hotbed of Latin percussion in songs that map a terrain of textures and rhythms across a cinematic soundscape.

Born in Miami to Cuban immigrant parents, Kephas was raised on the sounds of their homeland: urbane big bands easing effortlessly into the rhythms of Africa. Kephas’ first instruments were cello and drums, but when he picked up the guitar his pathway was illuminated. “I felt a calling,” he notes.

A strong spiritual connection informs Kephas’ artistry. “Something with the potential to lift someone’s spirits. Even if it sounds melancholy it evolves into a happier space.”

Two recent projects collect his handiwork: The first, an instrumental CD titled Threshold of Truth, explores the spiritual path of music through evocative melodies and deep Latin percussion. Also in the pipeline is Corazon de Leon, a Latin/Spiritual project with a track penned by Kephas’ late uncle. Above the infinite sustain of electric guitar, the surge of the Hammond organ and the syncopated grooves of timbales and congas glows an aura of reverence and thankfulness. “All of my songs are prayers,” Kephas concludes. “I’m offering meditations through music. To me it’s not an earthly thing – it’s divine – it has to come from God. And that’s why I do it.”