In February I received a very kind write-up in The West Linn Tidings — my hometown’s weekly newspaper. Centered around the release of my new album Bittersweet Parade, writer Nicole DeCosta documented the evening of my release party in grand fashion.
FULL ARTICLE:
STENSON’S HOMECOMING is BITTERSWEET
West Linn Tidings – February 4, 2010 – Nicole Decosta
West Linn High School graduate Tyler Stenson released a CD this month titled Bittersweet Parade and features 11 songs. He recently played at the Crystal Ballroom.
Dimmed lights revealed a packed room of preppy-dressed twentysomethings facing a corner stage. And when Tyler Stenson – with his guitar and dressed in his signature blue jeans – strummed his first chord, the chattering fell silent. Some hushed listeners closed their eyes as Stenson’s biographical lyrics transported them into his head for an hour.
On Jan. 21, singer/songwriter Stenson released his latest album Bittersweet Parade to a packed house of friends, family and some that found his music online and wandered over to see what the parade was outside Lola’s Room beneath the Crystal Ballroom in Portland.
“It’s my birthday and he’s hot,” said Portland resident Anne Kelton, who hadn’t heard the West Linn graduate’s music live before the event.
The line snaking onto West Burnside Street brought many passerby to ask “who’s playing?”
Stenson – voted several times as Portland’s Songwriter of the Year – moved from Portland to Nashville, Tenn. In October to “take his talent to a bigger stage,” as his web site states. His well-received homecoming introduced attendees to Bittersweet Parade, with the same mellow, straightforward poetry set to sounds as his previous release See That Gleam.
On this special night, Stenson’s soft vocals floated through the room with help from his live band. The ambiance was gentle, honest and a year in the making.
“The band is super-dynamic. He’s got great vocals. It’s an honor to see him in Portland,” said Portland resident Maggie Brown whose boyfriend, Jake Oken-Berg, played piano on the CD.
Stenson isn’t just a musician, but a songwriter – he doesn’t just write words that sound cool with music, he unleashes his soul. His passion for the craft can make for sleepless nights, as he documents on his favorite song the album titled I Get No Sleep, inspired by a time when he lived and worked in Portland near a noisy train track.
“I get no sleep with these trains in my head / As far as I can see, I’ve got tracks running down both sides / It started as a steady hum / Became a war-time drum / And eventually North and Southbound collide.”
As Stenson introduces new audiences across the country to his sound, he savors his unique songwriting and isn’t afraid to adapt to his new surroundings, as reminded on Welcome the Change.
“I’m in love with the stars because I envy how they hang / As constant constellations in an ever-changing space / I’ve been alive for one instant and I can already feel me fade / Unlike them, I’ve begun to blend like one color against the same / And that ain’t me.”
For more information and to purchase the album visit www.tylerstenson.com. To watch videos with Stenson explaining the songwriting process for each song on the album visit http://www.youtube.com/user/landerband.