In his mid-twenties, Cherland chose music over a tech career and has since made a living playing everything from clubs and corporate events to parties and weddings while self-releasing a string of increasingly accomplished records culminating in 2021’s heartwarming Love Songs album. His debut EP for Santa Barbara Records captures his cinematic songcraft, poignant lyricism, and tremulously emotive vocals more vividly than ever before...

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The SoCal local moves into ultra-authentic, organic indie rock territory alongside the likes of Hozier and Shakey Graves on Call Waiting. “This is the first record of mine that I’ve ever cried to,” said Cherland. “Because I’m so proud of it, and it just moves me.”

 

The EP’s six songs explore love, loss, and emotional maturing with rare candor and clarity. Rich in universal sentiments refreshingly expressed, a recurring theme is the wistfulness of life’s transitional chapters, as we shed old selves and grope for fresh identity. “When you’re from a small town and seen as pretty valuable and unique, then you move out into the real world and realize that no one really cares, that’s a really big disparity,” said Cherland, who grew up in California’s High Desert before relocating to Santa Barbara for college.

 

Produced by John Bottrell (Christina Perri, Keith Cullen) at L.A.’s Four Seasons Recording, Call Waiting is Cherland at his most polished and articulate, yet with his signature sincerity and sensitivity charmingly intact. The album’s title track revisits a traumatic teenage breakup, while “Heavy” conveys his emotional numbness upon relocating to L.A. recently, and “You Are What You Take In” forms a farewell letter to a former self as he watches it devolve during the pandemic.

 

“It’s cathartic, but I hope people will feel excited, too,” mulled Cherland. “The lyrical content can really hit the heart, but if they just want to enjoy, it’s also right there on the surface.”

 

A self-described former volleyball jock, Cherland began writing songs while still studying at UCSB. Early inspirations included Sufjan Stevens, City and Colour, Ed Sheeran, and something of an epiphany while watching his favorite movie, High School Musical. “I felt like I was seeing myself for the first time,” Cherland said. “I still love being athletic, but I’m very artistic as well. I really enjoy being a blend of the two.”