Back in January I did a podcast with the guys at AcousticConversations.com. Top to bottom it was the most comprehensive interview I’ve ever done and I’m proud to say it was all recorded for posterity. As a result, I now have this 52 min podcast that you can listen to by clicking here or on the image below. Thanks Peter Wright and Curt Siffert for such a fine conversation.

Tyler Stenson on Acoustic Conversations

The Big Hearts performance from Artichoke Music is now posted to YouTube for posterity. This song was written for some very close friends of mine that have amazing hearts- constantly helping mine grow. Though I could never thank them enough for their grace, let this song be my humble attempt. This is quietly one of my favorite songs so I hope you enjoy it too.

Watch the video then listen to the studio version:

BIG HEARTS

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Heaven knows I’d wait to feel another breeze.
To lay beneath another sun.
Germany here I come.

Big hearts are filling up the hemispheres.
Big hearts are warming up the coldest years.
They’ll lay beside me forever more
Cause big hearts make mine grow.

Growing everyday and softly resting miles away.
I swear Heaven was exploding there-
It’s filling up the air.

Big hearts are filling up the hemispheres.
Big hearts are warming up the coldest years.
They’ll lay beside me forever more
Cause big hearts make mine grow.
Big Hearts are Full Moons and Northern Lights
They come full circle to defy science.
Big Hearts are freight trains that push me along-
Shine out the clearer;
Shine on.
Big Hearts are factories of Godlight Beams
That just get brighter as the daylight recedes.

A month ago, I made up my mind that I was going to write a song about Wyoming. The inspiration was there, the love of subject was there and my writing had finally returned after months of drought. I finished it (proudly) last week just in time for the Artichoke concert.

I wanted this song to be deep, heartfelt and human. I wanted it to really express the beauty within the state and the air that flows through it. With that said, it spoke for itself and I had written three of the four verses before finally hitting a wall. In search of some final inspiration, I went to Wikipedia to gain a little insight on Wyoming and her history.

Above is the song’s debut at Artichoke Music. The lyrics to Wyoming should reflect my love but above all, tell a story and pay tribute to the last good plot of land.

I picked up the Artichoke concert DVD from EMA Video on Tuesday afternoon. Between then and now, I’ve managed to cut up the film enough to post a couple songs on YouTube (including this version of Cellophane). I am no video editor but over the next couple weeks I will pretend to be one as I release the Artichoke footage bit by bit. Here is Cellophane from last Thursday’s performance… the rest will come with time.

In February I competed for the title of the PSA Portland Songwriter of the Year and won! Now, in April the PSA is hosting an intimate night at Artichoke Music to celebrate the winner and showcase an hour of my original music.

I’m very honored to have received this award so I’d like to share this evening with those that are closest to me and have supported and inspired my passion.

-Seating is limited (60 people)
-All ages welcome… but no screaming kids:)
-$3 at the door
- Show will be recorded (audio + video)

SHOW SCHEDULE:
Songwriters in the Round: 7:30 – 8:15
Intermission/set-up
Tyler Stenson Showcase: 8:30 – 9:30

I just posted this new video on YouTube of me playing Come Around at PolitiPalooza earlier this January at the Montgomery Park Building in Portland. This is the newest song that will be included on the upcoming album so give it a watch, read the lyrics and patiently wait for the album to be released within the month or so!

COME AROUND

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I hope someday
In the sunlight’s softest rays
That you will glide your way
Back through this town.
I hope someday you come around.

Quickly becoming one of my favorite songs, Cellophane was schemed at the top of Mt. Pilatus in Luzerne, Switzerland roughly one year ago. As you can see from the picture, very few sites in this life parallel the beauty of a Swiss Valley and the magnificent Alps in the distance; however, as the song lyrics suggest, one other caused distraction:

Oh, look there!
See that gleam?
It’s the sun-
Your eyes the beam.

Below is the new recording of Cellophane from Mississippi Studios, PDX. Though the lyrics aren’t quite current in this version, I hope you’ll take the time to read along with the updates on the lyric page at some point. I laugh because when I wrote this song, my intentions were romantic but I’ve since been told that there is nothing romantic about plastic wrap:)

The water looked like Cellophane,
Reflecting stars back into space
And your eyes look that way to me.

Cellophane by Tyler Stenson

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Random Note: Lake Pilatus is said to be the resting place of Pontius Pilate.

As I mentioned before, the Lander live at Mississippi Studios recording is in the process of being mixed and mastered and it seems some time since I last updated everyone on the status. Well, I’m proud to report that we are in the home stretch! Approximately sixteen songs are being mixed and mastered at SmileyNote Studios by Daniel Work and it is sounding great. Though the finished product is still a couple months away, I wanted to let everyone sample Popo Agie. Again, this is not considered a final product but a fair gauge of what to expect later this winter. Ladies and gentlemen, I proudly present Popo Agie, live at Mississippi Studios, PDX.

Popo Agie by Tyler Stenson

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Whether you know it or not, recording and producing music is extremely expensive and always a climb for indie bands everywhere. You can have talent, heart and loads of original music but in the end, it will require an enormous personal investment to see any of that material immortalized onto an album. This spring, I hosted a concert and live recording at Mississippi Studios with the plan of eventually releasing that recording to the public. However, all of my money was spent hosting that show and without a surplus, that recording has sat on the shelves waiting for my pocket book to catch up with me. I have no doubt that it would have collected dust until 2020 if it wasn’t for one very generous fan…

I am overwhelmed with gratitude toward Super Fan Jeff Sanford and his family. He emailed me asking when are you going to release the Mississippi Studios recording? I answered with the truth, probably never. I gave him my financial sob story; explained how I am still paying for Orange Chrome Sky and a new solo album (See That Gleam) (amongst life itself). I expected nothing from that conversation but nonetheless, a check arrived at my door today.

There are no words to explain his Big Heart. He simply shrugs and calls it an investment in good music. I will never disclose the amount donated to my cause but the recordings will be heard and I will no doubt dedicate them to his name. Thank you Jeff, for everything you’ve ever done for me.

Big Hearts are filling up the hemispheres
Big Hearts are warming up the coldest years
They’ll lie beside me forever more
Cause Big Hearts make mine grow

Big Hearts

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