Alex Henderson

Jonathan Tiersten

By Alex Henderson

Ask Jonathan Tiersten what type of music he performs on his new EP, We’ll See (Edward Records), and the Colorado-based singer/songwriter and actor quickly responds that it‟s roots music with an edge. Tiersten has performed a variety of music over the years, but on We’ll See, he offers an earthy blend of roots rock, folk-rock and adult alternative pop-rock that is at once contemporary and timeless.

“People I’ve never even met before have told me, you have this knack for writing songs that I could see myself listening to 20 years down the line,‟ Tiersten explains. “I want to write songs that are like John Huston’s films, which hold up well over time and never become dated. I think that the more honest you are in what you write, the greater the odds are that what you write is going to be timeless. Honest emotion doesn’t have a half-life; neither should honest songwriting.”

We’ll See moves quickly into aggressive, hard-rocking territory on “In the Air,” which is used as the theme song in the horror film ‘The Perfect House’ and sounds like a cross between Tool and Cream. But “In the Air” is atypical of the EP on the whole, as Tiersten favors a much more rootsy and contemplative approach on “Sancta Caecelia,” “Black Rain” and “Theodore.”

“Vertigo,” which boasts John Magnie of the Subdues on accordion and electric Hammond B-3 organ, becomes increasingly intense as it progresses, and is as passionate as it is introspective. “Vertigo,” like “Sancta Caecelia,” “Black Rain” and “Theodore,” is perfect for triple-A/adult album alternative radio formats.

“If your into artists like Van Morrison, Cat Stevens, or in some ways Jeff Buckley chances are you’ll enjoy this album. Definitely worth checking out if you’ve had enough with the cookie cutter music that you hear on the radio day in and day out. Enjoy.”   Says Shakefire.com

Born in Queens and raised in New York City and Northern New Jersey, Tiersten has been involved in both music and acting since his teens. He studied both French horn and guitar while growing up.

He was still a teenager when, in 1983, he played Ricky Thomas in Robert Hilzik‟s cult horror film Sleepaway Camp.  In 1984 he had a featured role in A CBS Schoolbreak Special.  Tiersten went on to study acting at New York University‟s prestigious Circle in the Square Theater School) and in 1987, he had a principal role in the Emmy-winning ABC After-School special ‘Seasonal Differences’ (which also starred Utah Hagen, Melba Moore, Gabrielle Carteris and Frank Whaley).

As a singer/songwriter, Tiersten made his presence felt on the Greenwich Village folk-rock/roots rock circuit in the late 1980s and early 1990s as one-half of the acoustic duo The Magic Box. But in 1991, Tiersten surprised his admirers (and family and manager) by leaving the Big Apple and moving to Fort Collins, Colorado, where he opened a beer bar/live music venue called The Mountain Tap Tavern. Tiersten‟s bar attracted its share of well known artists (including Dishwalla, David Gray and Victor Wooten), but he ended up selling it to devote more time to his own music. His contributions to the Colorado music scene included everything from solo performances to AC/DC and Black Sabbath cover bands to the indy rock outfit Bambi‟s Apartment . He has upwards of sixty original tracks on itunes and elsewhere.

Having spent the 1990s and early-to-mid 2000s concentrating on music, Tiersten returned to acting in a big way in 2008, when he reprised the role of Ricky Thomas in the ‘Sleepaway Camp’ sequel ‘Return to Sleepaway Camp’. and the following years proved to be an even busier as an actor, thanks to major roles in two independent films: ‘Redemption’ and ‘The Perfect House’.

‘Redemption’ is a psychological thriller that also stars George Loros (best known for his portrayal of Raymond “Buffalo Ray” Curto on the HBO series “The Sopranos”), Meredith Ostrum (known for her roles in Love Actually, Men Don’t Lie and other movies) and veteran film/television actor Barry Primus.  Redemption is looking to debut at the ‘Tribeca Film Festival’.   ‘The Perfect House’, meanwhile, stars Felissa Rose (the film‟s co-producer), John Philbin and Chris Raab along with Tiersten. Rose and Tiersten go way back; she played Angela Baker in both Sleepaway Camp and ‘Return to Sleepaway Camp’, and it was Rose who recommended Tiersten for ‘The Perfect House’.

Lately dark, edgy characters have become the norm for Tiersten, who portrays a pimp in ‘Redemption’ and a serial killer in ‘The Perfect House’. “Apparently, I‟m everyone‟s favorite bad guy now,” jokes Tiersten, who explains that John Doesy (his character in ‘The Perfect House’) is an insane sociopath who sees the murders he commits not as crimes, but as artistic performances. In fact, Doesy keeps a woman hostage and makes her observe his crimes because he needs a “muse.” Tiersten is preparing to reprise his ‘The Perfect House’ role as the star of a full-length prequel centered around his character.

“John Doesy sees himself as a performance artist akin to Andy Kaufman, who thought his whole life was a performance,” Tiersten notes. “My wife saw a clip of The Perfect House, and even she said, You are absolutely terrifying in that role.‟

Tiersten recently won ‘Best Actor in a Feature Film’ at ‘The Underdogs Film Festival’, ‘Best Supporting Actor in a Feature Film’ at ‘The Macabre Faire Film Festival’ and was nominated for the same award at ‘The Scarlet Waters Film Festival’. Jeffrey Reddick (creator of ‘Final Destination’) called Tiersten’s performance, “Intense and terrifying and stayed with me long after the film was over.” ‘The Perfect House’ is available on itunes and many other VOD providers.

Tiersten also wrote the score for the short film Demption (a crime drama starring David Krumholtz of ‘Numb3rs’ and now ‘Partners’) He is a triple threat: he can score films as well as produce and act in them. Tiersten, in fact, has been doing some work for the independent film company Brittany House Pictures, and recently was hired by its president, Anjul Nigam (Grey’s Anatomy, Terminator Salvation, and The Jimmy Kimmel Show) to help produce several films.  He is also working with legendary producer  Brian Witten (‘The Wedding Singer’ ‘American History X’ ‘Final Destination’ ‘The Chernobyl Diaries’) in hopes of making several cutting edge films.

“When I got back into acting,” Tiersten asserts, “I realized how much that was an itch that needed to be scratched. I’m very passionate about my acting and I look forward to producing and maybe even directing, but I don’t want to be perceived as an actor who became a musician. Music is always on my mind. Music is not what I do. It’s who I am.”♦♦♦