Travis Ehrenstrom's musical journey began in rural Central Oregon, where he honed his songwriting skills inspired by the likes of Paul Simon, Jackson Browne, Jonie Mitchell, Bill Withers, and Bob Dylan. From teaching himself to play guitar at age 14 to recording his first album at Santa Cruz's Ridgetop Sound Studios, Travis wasted no time in developing himself as an artist. Travis's music has taken him across the country, opening for renowned acts like the Blind Boys of Alabama and performing at venues from the Santa Monica Pier Folk Festival to North Park University in Chicago. He toured nationally as a solo artist before joining Noah Gundersen and the Courage, with whom he opened for Josh Ritter and Kimya Dawson.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Kamil) Hey Travis Ehrenstrom, super nice to have the chance to chat with you. What first got you into music?
Hey Kamil,
Nice to meet you as well.
My family wasn’t particularly musical but my dad was a lover of music and songwriting. From an early age I remember talking with him about great songwriters and lyrics that he felt were poignant. I grew up revering a good song and the main catalyst was when my older brother returned from college with an acoustic guitar. I think I was 14-ish and spent every waking moment that summer trying to learn how to play.
How do you balance your time in the studio with other commitments such as a part-time job, family, admin?
For me, creativity is something that sorts of occurs throughout life as it happens. I don’t necessarily plan or prioritize music in my life but it always seems to find a way to happen when it needs to.
In terms of studio time, that’s usually determined by where I’m at in the song collection process and if I feel like I have a collection of material that’s ready to be recorded.
Your latest release is 'Hollinshead'. Can you tell us more about the making of it and if there were any unusual things happening during the process?
Hollinshead was my first attempt to record our live band in the format that we traditionally play. This music is a lot more upbeat, driving, and improvisational than my previous solo recordings.
We recorded and self-produced the tracks ourselves so it’s really an honest interpretation of how the band wants to sound.
Where did you get the inspiration for this EP?
A lot of the music and lyrics on this record were inspired by the current state of discourse with humanity. In the US in particular, something like COVID became a really polarizing issue, and people started to lose the ability to see the humanity in each other.
My experience with music is that it’s the one thing that can connect people from all walks of life. My hope with this record and this music is that in some way it helps heal to hear broader personal division.
How long did you work on the 'Hollinshead'? Was it an easy process for you?
We recorded the tracks live over the course of a few days, and mixing and mastering took a few months after that. It was relatively painless!
How do you know when a work is finished?
For me, determining when something is “done” definitely occurs in the subconscious. It’s a feeling of completeness that I can’t describe, but it usually comes at the end of a lot of tinkering!
Can you write what was your best performance in your career? How do you remember it?
I’m honestly not sure that I can. I’ve played live music for over half my life at this point are there are too many good memories that come to mind to name just one.
How do you find yourself in the music business? When you started out in music, did you know it would be like this?
I think the challenge with the current music business is that most of the business has nothing to do with the music whatsoever, aside from ticket sales. It takes a lot more than a good song to sustain a healthy music career these days, and that can be a challenge. That said, I’m blessed to be where I am today and grateful for every opportunity I have to play music!
Who is your favourite musician?
I certainly couldn’t name just one musician, but I’ll say it’s the members of TEB. There’s a shared musical connection with us that goes beyond our abilities as players, that I feel very fortunate to know.
What are your plans for the future?
There will be a run of shows this fall that I’m really looking forward to along side hopefully some more new music to end the year!