Regardless of season or venue, Aaron Espe is a constant. Whether swaddled in the grass of a Great Plains folk festival or enveloped in the soft din of a city café, Aaron’s music summons a resurrected depth that otherwise cowers within during the monotonous work week. His melodies unfetter us from our “civilized” busyness, interjecting space to reflect and be human again.
Alighting upon the folk music scene two years ago from the upland wilds of Northern Minnesota, Aaron has begun to garner the attention we might expect from a significant young talent. His recent plumes include being named the feature artist for the 2007 Volkswagen Auto Tour, two feature interviews and live performances on BBC radio, a successful grassroots tour through Northern Ireland. In addition, his album My Whole Life was in the Top 20 list for 2006 on intelligentpop.com and he is among the top-ranked unsigned folk artists at myspace.com.
If such a thing as the clichéd “total package” exists, then attending one of Aaron’s concerts offers a hint as to what it may be. The beauty of his sound, coupled with the aura of a shy guy, stirs a desire to join the now burgeoning army of his unpaid publicists. Among his recent surge of supporters is Derek Sivers, president of CD Baby.com (America’s largest distributor of independent music). In an e-mail to Aaron, Sivers exclaimed that his My Whole Life album was “one of the best [he’s] ever heard,” then featured it for three days on the home page of cdbaby.com.
For this performance, he’ll be unveiling his highly anticipated sophomore effort, Songs from a Small Town. The album features special guests: Chris Cunningham from Storyhill, Chad Langford from The Jeni Fleming Trio and Ben Wysocki from The Fray.
