East Forest

East Forest
Origin Portland, Oregon, United States
Genres Ambient, Electronic, Contemporary Classical, Indie Pop
Years active 2008–present
Labels Aquilo Records
Website eastforest.org
Members Trevor Oswalt

East Forest is an American Ambient/Electronic/Contemporary Classical/Indie Pop artist from Portland, Oregon, United States. The project was created by Trevor Oswalt who derived "East Forest" from the German translation of his last name (technically Ostwald: Ost=East, Wald=Forest). To date he has released eight full-length albums and six EPs. He has toured extensively throughout North America, as well as performances in Europe. He also performed at festivals such as SXSW, CMJ, Lightning in a Bottle, Arise,[1] and Mysteryland.[2] Music entertainment and pop culture website Altoriot.com referred to East Forest as the "sleeper-hit and best hidden gem" at the 2014 SXSW festival. "His emotive music experimentation of instruments is in a league of its own...".[3]

History

The Education of the Individual Soul (2009)

The Education of the Individual Soul was released on February 3, 2009. Rachel Kowal of NPR described the album as "tied to both nature and to everyday urban life, giving it the qualities of a sort of ethereal and mystical modern-day fairytale."[4]

Leela (2011)

Aside from performing and recording his own material, East Forest also wrote music for Leela, Deepak Chopra’s video game for Xbox 360 Kinect and Wii. This was released on November 11, 2011.[5]

Orbits (2014)

Orbits was released on November 11, 2014 and was very well received.[6] Under the Gun had this to say: "A revelatory excursion in sound, Orbits serves as the auditory equivalent of a sonic journey through the endless beauties and intricacies Mother Nature has to offer."[7]

Music to Die To + Music to Be Born To, Elements, and Ritual Mystical (2015-2016)

On February 26, 2016, East Forest released 2 EPs: "Music to Die To" and "Music to Be Born To." Tarynn Law of The 405 says the following: "To describe Trevor Oswalt, or East Forest, as innovative is putting it lightly. He aims to capture the essence of the outside world in his music by using different field recordings to do so. He's slept in the Sahara desert, been chased by bears, hung out in the Amazon for a bit and climbed some of the world's tallest mountains alongside his trusty recorder while he does so to capture the sounds of those different landscapes. The sound ends up being reminiscent of Sigur Ros, Olafur Arnalds, or Explosions in the Sky, and it's absolutely stunning."[8]

On June 22, he released a full-length album entitled "Elements." This music originated as the soundtrack for Tony's G's series with Udaya.com. It was filmed and performed live in Sofia Bulgaria in the summer of 2015.[9]

2016 also saw the collaboration between East Forest and MC Yogi on MC Yogi's album "Ritual Mystical."[10]

Cairn (2017)

On September 8, 2017, East Forest released "Cairn", a collaboration with Portland-based producer Keith Sweaty, named for the a stacks of stone built as a landmark to guide you in the wilderness. "I was thinking a lot about how sometimes you don't know where you're going in life...and you're looking for those signs, metaphorically speaking."[11] Charleston Grit called the album, "relaxing electro-pop music...soothing yet upbeat."[12]

The release of "Cairn" coincided with a 30-city US tour, opening for musician Trevor Hall[13] (Sept-Nov 2017) along with the release of a "Cairn (Live)"[14] a video recording of East Forest's performance at Jannus Live in St. Petersburg, Florida. The music video was filmed and produced by Sugar Shack Sessions and premiered on Popdose.com[15]

Members

  • Trevor Oswalt (2008–present)

Discography

[16]

Studio albums

  • The Education Of The Individual Soul (2009)
  • Music Meditations (2010)
  • Love Bomb (2012)
  • Orbits (2014)
  • Elements (2016)
  • Ritual Mystical (2016)
  • Held (2016)
  • Cairn (2017)

EPs

  • Port Landers (2009)
  • Crystal Starship (2009)
  • Prana (2013)
  • Music To Die To (2016)
  • Music To Be Born To (2016)
  • Held / Kindred (2017)

References

  1. ↑ Harsh, Anand (2015-07-30). "ARISE Festival spotlight: enter the lush soundscapes of East Forest". The Untz. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  2. ↑ Marro, Ashley (2015-05-09). "MYSTERYLAND USA ANNOUNCES 2015 CULTURE & ARTS LINEUP". stoneyroads.com. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  3. ↑ "Classical/Ambient Artists to Watch at SXSW 2014". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2016-08-31.
  4. ↑ Kowal, Rachel (2009-02-27). "East Forest: "Pacific Coast Highway"". NPR. Retrieved 2016-08-31.
  5. ↑ Meyers, Blanca (2011-11-04). "Review: THQ Deepak Chopra's Leela". Wired.com. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  6. ↑ "East Forest's "Hold On, Again" Brings Relief To Our Daily Busy Lives". Huffington Post. 2014-10-16. Retrieved 2016-08-31.
  7. ↑ Leak, Brian (2014-07-11). "UTG ALBUM PREMIERE: East Forest – 'Orbits'". UTG. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  8. ↑ "East Forest - 'Dive In' (405 Premiere)". thefourohfive.com. 2014-06-05. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  9. ↑ "Elements". EastForest.org. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  10. ↑ "Amazon.com - Music - Ritual Mystical (feat. East Forest)". Amazon.com. 2016-07-29. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  11. ↑ "East Forest to Play at Music Farm with Trevor Hall: Interview".
  12. ↑ "East Forest + Trevor Hall". 5 October 2017.
  13. ↑ Trevor Hall (singer)
  14. ↑ Sugarshack Sessions (21 November 2017). "East Forest ft. Richard Vagner - Cairn (Live) - Sugarshack" – via YouTube.
  15. ↑ "Popdose Video Premiere: East Forest, "Cairn" (Live)". 21 November 2017.
  16. ↑ "East Forest Discography". Sonicbids, LLC. Retrieved 2016-08-31.
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