At the heart of musical artistry is the ability to tell stories that capture deeply felt human experiences, such as Stefan West’s “Take What You Need”, an emotive blend of alt rock, indie rock, and pop rock elements that begins a heartfelt narrative journey, exploring vulnerability, resilience, and the search for self-discovery. Listeners get their first taste of Stefan’s transformative upcoming album, “Cambridge” through “Take What You Need”, where every note and word bear witness to an honest account of his musical journey.
“Take What You Need” is an emotional song that transcends genres, appealing to listeners on a personal level. Stefan West masterfully conveys the emotion of putting yourself completely to situations, only to feel drained and betrayed when expectations are not met. With its powerful lyrics that examine relationships in all their intricacies – whether business, romance, or friendship – and eventually pulls us all closer together through empathy and understanding of one another, urging us all to pursue freedom with purpose.
The single is an enduring testament of Stefan West’s personal journey from addiction and isolation to creativity, personal expression and recovery. Even its creation speaks volumes for Stefan’s dedication to art: written while at a trade job during COVID-19’s pandemic outbreak during ladder climbing work at trade jobs as catharsis while climbing ladders. Collaborating with Aaron Schembri to refine lyrics further and recording with Chris Gatz at GM Sound Studios allowed Stefan to transform his experiences into musical narrative that resonated authentically.
Stefan West’s musical DNA embodies his influences – an amalgamation of alt rock and punk styles. As he explains it, if bands such as The Killers and Blink 182 had children musically speaking, Stefan West would likely become their offspring, raised under Keith Richards as his teacher.
His path extends beyond music: as a proponent of mental health awareness and addiction recovery, he uses his platform to shed attention on these important issues. Drawing on his own personal experience with addiction recovery, his music serves not just as artistic expression, but also as hope and incentive to others facing similar challenges.
The music of Stefan West can be defined as emotionally compelling. Listeners can experience his real and vulnerable composition approach in “Take What You Need”, which is evident with each listen. Stefan’s upcoming album “Cambridge” takes listeners on a deeper journey of recovery and self-discovery, with influences ranging from alt rock to punk music that touches people deeply – as evidenced by “Take What You Need”, which marks an exciting chapter in Stefan’s journey and invites us all on this emotional and transformative journey with him.
You can find more of Stefan West at:
You can listen to ‘Take What You Need’ below:
Karen Harding is a Melbourne, Australia based singer/songwriter, founder of Sounds On The Couch, and founder and operator of boutique music PR service for emerging and independent artists, Rise Indie.