In the latter part of 2009 I met Christopher Paul Stelling at a friend’s house party where Stelling would be performing. Up until that point I had only heard of Stelling from that friend, who raved endlessly about him. I’d taken a gander at his myspace and enjoyed a couple of the sounds, but never quite gave the songs the undivided attention they deserved.
Meeting Stelling for the first time he made a powerful impression immediately. Unlike the stream of hipster musicians I encounter on a daily basis, he had a unique presence. There was no wall of defense/judgement. With long hair, and natural-colored clothing that looked as though they’ve seen the world, he was a hippie in the nicest sense of the word—intellectual, approachable,and warm-hearted.
A little later in the night, in the living room of a Bed Stuy apartment, he performed a handful of songs on his beat-up acoustic guitar. The entire room was captivated throughout the entire performance. His fingers picked through the strings at rapid pace brewing up fluttering melodies while passionate words of the devil, swamps, love and loss escaped his raw throat. The faster songs like “Pig Roast” had the more immediate impact, lending to energetic performance where Stelling stomped his foot violently as added percussion.
Needless to say, the first time I saw Christopher Paul Stelling perform, I was thoroughly impressed. His passion and skill radiated from his performance and felt real and unique.
Through the rest of the year and the beginning of 2010, I’ve seen him perform again and again, finding different types of magic in every performance and song, while also getting to know him as a person. He’s refreshingly honest and true to himself, both in his music and his life.
Earlier this year I was lucky enough to be one of the first people with a copy of his debut double-album The Songs of Christopher Paul Stelling. Twenty sounds sounded like a lot until finding out the massive number of recordings they were cut down from.
Listening to these tracks, I felt especially moved by the slower, heartfelt ballads like opener “Flawless Executioner” and “Like Little Broken Birds.” Unlike the live performances, I could devote more time to the tracks, hearing things that I couldn’t possibly hear in the heat of a performance. Clocking in at well over an hour, there’s not a minute on the record in which Christopher Paul Stelling not only believes the words he’s singing but also feels them. That’s exactly why songs like “The Ocean Took My Love Away” are so touching to listeners. Anyone can write emotionally impactful words, but if their presented with a sterile approach, they become meaningless to anyone hearing them.
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