Casey Benefield's new band, Carey, begins to find success with 'You Were Right' single, upcoming EP

Casey Benefield, relatively new to professional music, already has come full circle. The Cape Girardeau native took his talent to another level in Nashville, Tennessee, forming the band Carey and later returning to his hometown.

His musical gift is opening doors and bringing him and his band success for which they have worked.

Benefield's love for music began at a young age in Jackson, where he grew up. At 13, he got his first taste of the stage when he participated in the Jackson Junior High School talent show as a seventh-grader. Shortly thereafter, he began performing in Jackson with Doug Rees, and by age 15, he was playing in downtown Cape Girardeau, making music with cover band The Intention. The lead guitarist, Jesse McAllister, gave Benefield lessons because the band needed a second guitar player.

Carey came together as a group in January 2015, though they all knew each other since their freshman year at Belmont University in Nashville.

"We all had circulated through different bands and projects since 2010, but not really until January of 2015 did we all join forces for Carey," Benefield said.

The band Carey includes, from left, Daniel Green, Bryan Davidson and Casey Benefield.Photo courtesy of Jenna Wagner

The four-man band comprises Bryan Davidson, primary songwriter, vocalist and guitar player; Daniel Green, bass guitarist and audio engineer; Jacob Gann on the guitar; and Benefield, who is the drummer but also is instrumental in what he calls the "creative process."

"It started when Bryan, Dan and myself were living together at this old house in East Nashville, and we cleared out what should have been the dining room for all of our gear. I bought a drum set off of Craigslist that was put in this room," Benefield said.

After Davidson shared songs he was writing with Green and Benefield, they "started playing through as a three-piece to figure out instrumentation, structures, and eventually ended up recording in that house to a tape machine in the spare bedroom," Benefield said.

The group self-identifies as "carport" rockers, a term they use as a "spinoff of garage rock," a genre with which they do not identify well.

These rockers find inspiration in other bands.

"We are very much inspired by mid-'90s indie and the alt-rock crowd," Benefield said, naming "bands such as Pavement, Guided by Voices, Teenage Fanclub ... [and] Yo La Tengo" among their influences.

The group also looks to current bands for inspiration, such as The Bully from Nashville, but "there is also a lot of great music coming out of the Northeast right now," Benefield said, naming Waxahatchee, Beach Slang, All Dogs and Diet Cig.

The music industry brings its share of joys and accomplishments, Benefield said. One of Carey's greatest achievements came Feb. 5, when USA Today designated the band's song "You Were Right" as one of its 10 best songs of the week.

"This was the first week that our label, Old Flame Records, put out 'You Were Right' as a single for the upcoming EP," Benefield said. "It was unexpected and a great honor to see early praise for our record." Laughing, he added, "It was also pretty crazy to see our name alongside Drake and Kanye West."

The single is successful, Benefield said, because it resonates with young people who are grappling with life's challenges.

"I think the lyrics of this song really articulate -- at least for a lot of young people -- the anxieties that come with postgraduate life," he said, citing "jobs, relationships and living arrangements."

Davidson, whom Benefield praised as a "great songwriter," wrote the successful lyrics quickly. "Some days the lyrics just flood out so easily," he said.

The band experiences challenges, just as they celebrate success.

"It's a Catch-22, really: In this day and age, it's very easy to record and distribute music to the masses, but identifying how to stand out among so many bands is tough," Benefield said. "It can be tough, but things like these articles are the real payoff and joy of making music."

Last week, Carey was in Austin, Texas, for South by Southwest, the annual gathering of music festivals and conferences.

"It's a great honor to be included with so many bands that we like and be an official showcasing artist for our label and booking agent," Benefield said.

The group is looking ahead to what is on the horizon, particularly since the March 11 release of "Carey," their self-titled debut EP, available now on iTunes, Spotify and Amazon.

While the other band members live in Nashville, Benefield still calls Missouri home; he splits his time between Nashville, where he moved in 2010, and Kansas City.

Does the band have any immediate plans to play locally?

"Not at this time," Benefield said. Nonetheless, local fans should be on the lookout, he said: "We will be touring the Midwest again this summer, so it is possible."