Erin Westfall shines on EP “Light”

Salem singer/songwriter Erin Westfall releases six-song EP “Light” with night of live music

Erin Westfall admires honesty and the 25-year-old singer/songwriter brings just that to her EP (which released in June 2019, at a show at The Governor’s Cup Coffee Roasters.)

This recording, said Erin, is long overdue. 

“I’m really excited to finally share it and put it out there,” she said. 

A music major with classical violin background, Erin picked up her first guitar for $25 at an antique shop. She taught herself how to play. She didn’t take her first official guitar lesson until she was in college.

And in college is where Erin met her band: Sean McLeod, guitar; Jacob Marsh, bass; and Ethan Wilson, drums. The quartet has been performing officially for two years, but playing music together since 2011 while students at Western Oregon University. This is where Erin graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Contemporary Music and a Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance. 

“I’m very proud of what we’ve made,” she said. “I’m excited to give back to those who have supported me along the way.”

There is no concrete method for her creativity. A song may begin as a small idea, a guitar riff, a hook she wants to develop or a melody in her head. And generally, the words come after the music. 

“Words are the hard part for me,” she said. “That’s a muscle I need to work out.”

And while Erin notes that she brings the main idea to her music, each of her bandmates plays a role in the creativity, creating their own part.

Titled “Light,” her six-song EP, which expresses influences of pop, soft rock and jazz, is reflective of multiple meanings for the artist. 

“A lot of this is very personal. I’m putting it out there in the light for them to see,” she said. “Putting it out there is also going to make me feel lighter.” 

It was recorded by her drummer, Ethan, and mixed in Salem by Jason Carter of Wavelength Studio. 

Erin’s EP also marks the beginning of a new chapter as she has been writing new material for the past six months…and who knows, maybe those songs will become her next album. 

Celebrate the arrival of Erin’s EP with a night of music including the new wave tunes of Camp Crush and indie femme Katy & the Null Sets, 9 p.m. Friday, June 7, 2019, at The Governor’s Cup Coffee Roasters, 471 Court St NE. 

Erin will also perform Salem Art Fair and Festival on Saturday, July 20, 2019. Keep an eye on her website at www.erinwestfall.us for more shows.

This story originally ran in Press Play Salem issue 7 (Jun/Jun 2019)

Author: Carlee Wright

Carlee Wright is a community instigator with a grand love for Salem and notably fashionable shoes (Hello, John Fluevog!) who turns waste into wearable art in her "spare" time.