Cleveland’s Bethany Joy reinvents herself on debut album

When the coronavirus pandemic canceled her upcoming performances in early 2020, Bethany Svoboda – who performs under the name Bethany Joy – saw a silver lining: This would be a good time to strengthen her guitar playing.

The Cleveland singer-songwriter enrolled in online guitar lessons to build on her self-taught skills, learning the technicalities of the instrument.

“I didn’t really know that much. I could pull it off, but I really decided I wanted to learn more. COVID(-19) was a good time for that,” Svoboda says. “It was a great time to start over.”

That restart led Svoboda to refine her sound – as heard on her 2021 EP All We Really Want, and on her jazz and blues-infused debut album Planet, out on Friday, Sept. 23.

Recorded and mixed by Tuck Mindrum, the album features performances by Svoboda and her bandmates: guitarist Anthony Papaleo, percussionist Anthony Taddeo, bassist Daniel Socha, saxophonist Justin Tibbs and background singer Josee McGee. 

Together, the players craft an expansive sound, evoking the likes of Madison Cunningham or Julia Jacklin. Papaleo and Tibbs take turns ripping solos on the album’s jazzy title track, while Svoboda shines on songs like “Reel Life” and “Beautiful Girl.”

The final track of the album, “Close to You,” was recorded live at Bock’s Jukejoint in Amherst. Inspired by missing human connection during the pandemic, the song also looks at political divisiveness, delicately repeating: “Love one another; Why’s that so hard to do?”

Svoboda says Planet is representative of her musical development during the pandemic.

“I really spent that time learning and growing and changing,” she says. “This album is showing people the work I put into it, the intention and time.”

That work and intention began long before 2020. The 31-year-old musician says she “was born into music.”

Starting piano lessons at 5 years old, Svoboda said she learned to sing at church and church meetups with her mother and family friends. As a teenager, she quit piano, later picking up the guitar when she graduated from Kent State University in 2013 and established her career as an American Sign Language interpreter.

“My career as an interpreter and my life as a musician are very separate, for obvious reasons,” Svoboda says. “Some people know that about me, but in the music world, they don’t overlap very often.”

Svoboda balanced her work as an interpreter with her work as a musician. In Kent, she became a regular at the Venice Cafe’s open mic nights, even running the series for a couple of years. After moving to Akron, she kept showing up to open mic nights, particularly Gretchen Pleuss’ Uncorked open mic night. She joined the bands Thieves of Joy and The Speedbumps.

Now based in Lakewood, Svoboda has returned to the stage as the pandemic has loosened its grip around gatherings and live performance. She’ll celebrate Planet’s release with a show featuring her full band at the Winchester Music Tavern on Sept. 23, with opener Angie Haze. She’ll also perform at Coda on Oct. 7, opening for Eastern Union. Keep up with the musician at bethanyjoymusic.net.