Stelth Ulvang

Stelth Ulvang is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the touring member of the folk rock band The Lumineers. He is also the co-founder of the Front Range-based band The Dovekins.[6][7][8]

Stelth Ulvang
Ulvang in 2019
Background information
Also known asBarefoot Wanderer
BornFort Collins, Colorado, United States[1]
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Musician
  • singer-songwriter
Instruments
  • Piano
  • keyboard
  • guitar
  • accordion
  • percussion
Years active2009–present
Associated acts
Websitewww.stelthulvang.com

In February 2015, Ulvang released his debut album And, as Always; the Infinite Cosmos. He eventually released three more albums, one LP and two EPs, in 2018. The live performances feature him accompanied by his collaborator and drummer, Max Barcelow, and the multi-instrumentalist marine biologist Dorota Szuta.[9][10]

Personal life

Ulvang was born in Fort Collins and lived in Loveland.[11] He married Dorota Szuta in 2018. They have been traveling, composing music and performing live with each other from a long time. It was while working at a coffee shop on Laurel Street in Fort Collins, that Ulvang developed an interest in music and decided to become a musician. Being an avid traveller, he also used to busk to cover his expenses.[12][13][14] Due to his habit of performing barefooted on stage, he has acquired the nickname "Barefoot Wanderer".[15][16][17][18]

Ulvang's major influences include Paul Simon, Fleetwood Mac, Jason Molina, Weezer, Elton John, Nina Simone, Jonathan Richman, Pavement, Leonard Cohen, Joan Baez, Dave Van Ronk, Tom Waits, Jerry Lee Lewis, Neil Young and Bob Dylan. Among genres, he has been specifically influenced by Garage rock.[19][20][21] Known for his ability to play a variety of instruments, Ulvang states that he plays more than 18. He mainly plays guitar, piano and mandolin, and likes the flute and the accordion.[22][23] His favourite gear generally consists of Collings mandolin, Korg SV1 keyboard and Martin guitars.[24]

Career

2009-2011: The Dovekins

In 2009, While sailing from Hawaii to Seattle with the singer-songwriter Griff Snyder in Robin Lee Graham's The Return of Dove, Ulvang came up with the idea of forming the band The Dovekins.[25] They cemented the band's lineup in Denver which included five members, all rooted in the city's folk punk scene. Dovekins generally played mountain-town folk and indie rock style-music. The group released two studio albums - Assemble the Aviary and (A)live in 2010 and toured regularly before disbanding with a final show in Austin in October 2011.[26][27] The band reunited on a few occasions since then, including at the 2018 Treefort festival in Boise.[28][29]

2011-present: The Lumineers
Main article: The Lumineers

Ulvang came in touch with The Lumineers in 2009, when the latter, seeking for some advice on self-booking Colorado shows, interacted with him through Myspace. As The Lumineers were already in need of a musician, Ulvang joined them officially in 2011 as a touring member.[30] As a result, The Lumineers joined The Dovekins for their first Denver gig.[31][22] Initially, he was designated to play bass guitar for them, but he later switched to piano.[12][32] Since then he has assisted in the composition of various The Lumineers songs, Stubborn Love being one of the most prominent of them all. Moreover, he accompanies the group in almost all of their live performances and has also, along with the band, opened for U2 and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.[33][34][35]

2012-present: Solo career

Ulvang started to compose his own music in 2012. He has since released 2 full-length albums and 2 EPs. His full-length debut album- "And, as Always; the Infinite Cosmos" was released in February 2015, followed by the EPs- "Greetings From Perpetual Summer" and "Take Time" and a full-length album- "American Boredom", all of which were released in February 2018.[36]

"And, as Always; the Infinite Cosmos" was recorded at Destination Universe, a studio in Portland while "American Boredom" was recorded at Sean Spellman's studio in Westerly, Rhode Island.[37] TED.com described And, as Always; the Infinite Cosmos as "a balancing act of heavy truths, humour and observation".[38] Ulvang told the Colorado Public Radio that American Boredom is more political-themed than his other albums which are mostly centred around environmental issues.[39][40][41]

Musicianship

"Ulvang’s impeccably eccentric and charming charisma effortlessly infatuated the audience before him. The artist’s peculiar foot-stomping and incredibly animated antics amongst his powerful, minimally-layered sound was a treat for anyone, familiar or not."

— Writer Tecla Ciolfi in a review of Ulvang's performance[42]

Reviewing Ulvang's short-notice performance at the Enmore Theatre in Sydney, The AU review author Carine Nilma praised him and wrote, "For a very short-notice stint filling in, Ulvang managed to literally win over the entire room after playing for about half an hour.".[43][44][45] American Boredom was accredited with being the best album of 2018 from the Denver music scene by folk/rock musician Paul De Haven.[46] In a The Lumineers concert review, Lexington Herald-Leader writer Walter Tunis named Ulvang as the "MVP of the show" and labeled him "resourceful" for his ability to rapidly change instruments during performances.[47] He has been praised for his adeptness at playing keyboard and has been seen oftentimes playing it with his feet.[48][49]

Discography

Solo discography

[50][51][52]

Year Album Label Format
2015 And, as Always; the Infinite Cosmos Self-released LP, Digital
2018 Greetings from Perpetual Summer Self-released CD, Digital
2018 Take Time Self-released CD, Digital
2018 American Boredom Self-released LP, CD

The Dovekins

[26][53]

YearArtistAlbumCo-written with
2010The Dovekins"Assemble the Aviary"Blake Stepan, Laura Goldhamer, Nate Wheeler, Max Barcelow
2010The Dovekins"(A)live"Blake Stepan, Laura Goldhamer, Nate Wheeler, Max Barcelow

References
  1. "Stelth Ulvang". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  2. "Artist Information - Stelth Ulvang". All Music. n.d. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  3. Joel Thompson (29 September 2019). "FoCo native Stelth Ulvang brings energetic folk to The Whiskey". The Rock Mountain Collegian. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  4. Kolbie Stonehocker (2 January 2014). "Stelth Ulvang". Salt Lake City Weekly. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  5. Court Mann (19 November 2015). "Sound Hot Ticket: Nick Jaina, The Lumineers' Stelth Ulvang are coming to Provo". Daily Herald (Utah). Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  6. "Stelth Ulvang Biography". Stelth Ulvang Official Website. n.d. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  7. Cavan McGinsie (n.d.). "PLUGGED IN SERIES : A CHAT WITH STELTH ULVANG". DO 317. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  8. "The Lumineers' Stelth Ulvang plays stealth Grand Rapids show". Local Spins. 2014-09-16. Retrieved 2020-06-04.
  9. Bulletin, Brian McElhineyThe. "Stelth Ulvang opens for Wild Child at Volcanic". The Bulletin. Retrieved 2020-02-06.
  10. "Packed house for Stelth Ulvang". Colorado Community Media. Retrieved 2020-02-06.
  11. "Lumineers' Stelth Ulvang returns to his roots". Daily Camera. 2015-03-18. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
  12. "Stelth Ulvang: A troubadour captivated". Texx and the City. 2018-02-27. Retrieved 2020-02-07.
  13. "Laura Gibson and Stelth Ulvang Soothe The Entry". Music In Minnesota. 2019-01-16. Retrieved 2020-02-09.
  14. Morford, Lily. "Stelth Ulvang". Scene Magazine. Retrieved 2020-02-09.
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  20. "[Interview] Stelth Ulvang from The Lumineers will be gracing Pretoria this weekend for Park Acoustic's 5th birthday!! - Mixed Apples". Retrieved 2020-02-10.
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  29. "Q&A: Dovekins rustling up success (VIDEO)". Colorado Daily. 2010-04-22. Retrieved 2020-02-10.
  30. "The Lumineers: Family Ties". Relix Media. 2020-01-30. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
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  33. "The Lumineers' Jeremiah Fraites on Opening for U2 on Joshua Tree Tour: 'I Started to Cry the First Night'". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved 2020-02-10.
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  36. "Everything you need to know about the Smoking Dragon Festival". Channel24. 2016-11-10. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
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  38. "TEDxRiNo | TED". www.ted.com. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
  39. Daniel Mescher (16 April 2018). "Stelth Ulvang Shares Music From Sophomore LP At CPR's OpenAir". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  40. Editor, Adrian Gomez | Journal Arts and Entertainment. "On the move: Stelth Ulvang looks forward to Meow Wolf performance". www.abqjournal.com. Retrieved 11 June 2020.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
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