Biography

Evan Westerlund - STILL CRAZY
2010 Rootsy/ADA/Warner Scandinavia
www.evanwesterlund.com

From the first guitar lick on the opening title track Still Crazy, to the last downbeat of the rocker Can't Sleep for Thinkin' - STILL CRAZY is a record filled with songs about love, heartbreak, guitars, dreams, tornadoes, trains, and dying - featuring killer guitar licks & sizzling pedal steel solos that will leave you dizzy. It's pure, raw energy.

Evan's journey back to Nashville for his second album, was a natural. 

"Nashville has the players who played on my favorite records, so why wouldn't I have them play on mine? Why not go to the place where they are best at making the music that lives inside of me? A few years ago, I intentionally hunted down Larry Marrs (once longtime bass player & harmony singer for Marty Stuart's Hillbilly Band) because I knew he was pure Hillbilly in the greatest sense of the word - where he comes from musically is where I want my music to go. He proved that on some of Marty's best records. I saw him perform, and thought this is the kind of music I want to make - the kind that turns my crank - so why not go straight to that source? Larry works as an independent producer & session player these days. When I first reached him in 2007 his attitude about recording my debut cd HOWLIN' AT THE MOON (2008 Rootsy) was encouraging, challenging & inspiring. It was natural that I went back to him for STILL CRAZY. We got along great from the start, had some good creative battles, and came out with some great music as a result. He has a great work ethic and fantastic network around him after spending his whole life in Nashville & recording with such artists as George Jones, Martina McBride, David Ball, Jim Lauderdale, Allison Moorer, Marty Stuart and loads of others. For him it was just a quick phone call to get the players from my favorite records, and we were in business..." -- EW

THE PLAYERS:
Drums - Mark Beckett 

Bass - Larry Marrs

Electric Guitar - James Mitchell
Acoustic Guitars - Johan Engström,Larry Marrs

Piano & Keys - Howard Duck
Pedal Steel - Robby Turner
Harmony Vocals - Larry Marrs, Amy Courts

Fiddle - Tim Crouch, Kimberly Marrs
Mandolin - Tim Crouch

THE SONGS
The record is a collection of 11 new songs laced with great guitar licks, pedal steel melancholy, heavy drum beats and dancing piano. All of this is done in a way that graciously opens up passage for hammering home the emotion of the lyrics in every song. For those engaged to really tune into this record, it's one song after another of storytelling that will move you to hit the gas pedal, play air guitar, laugh, dream, wonder, smile, dance, identify with characters, hit rewind, and do it all over again. All songs on STILL CRAZY are written by Westerlund along with a few select co-writers (Johan Ensgtröm, Johan Hallström, Patrik Lorentzson, Martin Lorentzson & Fredrik Silfverberg).

I think the 11 songs balance a good package of endearment, fear, fun, melancholy, and straight ahead honky tonk. Most important for me has been to progress as a writer, and to have brought the songs to life in the right energy & production levels." --EW

SOUNDSCAPES
The new album was recorded in Hendersonville, Tennessee just north of downtown Nashville, Engineered by Jimmy Tarbutton (J.J. Cale, Oak Ridge Boys, Chely Wright), and co-produced by Evan, Larry Marrs and the band.

All songs were tracked live over 2 days with the entire band, with spontaneous arrangement changes on the fly and additional piano/keyboard & guitar parts overdubbed on-the-spot. Harmony vocals, fiddle & mandolin overdubs were done at Marrs Recording Studio.

"It was a collaborative effort, really. Everyone had input for how the songs turned out and I really appreciated their dedication to making as good a record as possible."--EW

INFLUENCES
Westerlund grew up listening to Kenny Rogers, Waylon Jennings, Ferlin Husky, Don Williams, Charlie Pride, Willie Nelson and others of his father's taste, along with sounds of the 1970's southern rock scene of The Eagles, Allman Brothers, Poco, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and the Marshall Tucker Band. His first record player was given to him by his step-brother, Scott Stephenson in 1980. "I remember these big bright orange headphones. And the system had an intermittent electrical problem, so I would have to bang on it once in awhile to keep both left & right channels working in the "stereo" feature. I remember tuning into radio station in Spokane, Washington that was playing AC/DC's Shook Me All Night Long...and I ran out and bought all the AC/DC cassettes I could get my hands on. Later in the winter while traveling to a hockey tournament (I was 14) we had a van full of kids and a ghetto blaster cranked up. My dad asked me "What the heck is that noise?". I remember telling him it was AC/DC Highway To Hell - his answer "You got that right!". The first vinyl LP I bought was Steve Miller Band Book of Dreams. This, only after just realizing that I could "buy" music! Next up, only a week or so later was the self-titled album Boston, and then I snuck a listen to Bob Seger's Stranger In Town while I was babysitting for a cousin. One listen to Hollywood Nights and I was hooked on Seger after that. My records started to stack up. Van Halen I, II, II etc. I was a big fan of rock music until I spent some time up in Williams Lake, B.C., where I was subjected to bands like Alabama & Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. I was hooked quickly by the melodies, and most of all the lyrics in country songs. They really hit home. The music that has influenced me most as a writer over the years is that of The Eagles' Hotel California, Poco's Legend, Bob Seger's Night Moves, Stranger in Town & Against the Wind respectively, Marshall Tucker Band's Searchin' For A Rainbow, along with the great myriads of country artists I played on the radio. Dwight Yoakam's Hillbilly Deluxe, Steve Earle's Guitar Town rank up there on the top of the heap when it comes to vocal performances I took a shine to singing while driving down the backroads of Saskatchewan & Manitoba during summer months between hockey seasons. It took me a long time to latch onto & appreciate Bruce Springsteen. I wasn't there with him until listening to the album cuts of Born in The U.S.A. It was tracks like Downbound Train and I'm On Fire that locked me into who he is as a songwriter. So simple, so powerful. You will always find The Rising clearly accessible at my cd rack, along with Marc Cohn's Burning The Daze, Shawn Mullins Soul's Core. Travis Tritt, Marty Stuart, Vince Gill, Rodney Crowell & Dierks Bentley are usually close-by as well. When I am in dire need of a lesson in good songwriting, I just throw on Chris Knights back-to-back (Self-titled & The Jealous Kind). I think you'll hear a rather broad array of influences in my songs, and still all me". --EW

LIVE
Frequently loaded as a 6-piece band called The Smokin' Guns, you 'll find Westerlund's live performances full of raw energy, and at the same time, humble and personal. High soaring harmonies, ripping guitar solos, and songs that leave you wanting more.

"I simply aim to give as much energy as the music gives me, and as much as the songs deserve. The Nashville studio band certainly gives my local band a fine reputation to live up to, so every show is a growth experience. We get tighter & more cohesive as a band, and I appreciate the attitude of the guys. When we have some rough spots, we feel it all the way home. When we play well we know it & always set focus on improving the next show. We are not the E-street Band, but they are a great model of power & energy to benchmark from. If it takes a rock'n roll attitude in a pair of cowboy boots, I'm up for that..." --EW

INTERVIEWS & BOOKINGS:
Phone: +46 (0)708 30 2901
e-mail: bookings@evanwesterlund.com
web: www.evanwesterlund.com