Jeff Tessler

You know, a lot of guys I know who tried to make it in their hometowns and moved away give no props at all to where they started. Jeff Tessler on the other hand, is a different kind of animal. For a guy who moved to Hollywood to make his dream come true to still remember all of us in Motor City really says something about his character. But, his character aside, can we talk for a minute about his music? For starters it is good, and secondly, it is good. Wait, I said that; I guess its bears repeating.

I think Jeff is a guy who knows what he wants, and knows what he wants to do with his music. He has enough pop sensibility and a clever knack for writing quality hooks to make it far in the business. You can clearly tell he pours himself into each song, easily noticeable in Hollywood and What Did I Do? It is those hooks that should work to create a large and diverse fan base for him, since truly anyone can enjoy what he is doing musically. He has a strong voice, and is very adept with a guitar in his hands, so whether he makes the choice to continue with or without a band, he will do well. His music is universal in that way, and very relatable with central ideas.

Being from Detroit, I cannot help but notice how West Coast his music sounds. Oddly enough, when I first heard Caught in the Rain, I imagined it to be one of those trendy songs they play on commercials for made for TV movies, or MTV shows. Then I thought, you know how shows like CSI and Without a Trace play a lot of very indie music during their shows to help establish mood? Perhaps Jeff Tessler should the next songwriter they look up. It could work.

I consistently say that emo and metalcore are very diluted and crowded forms of music, but believe it or not, so are solo acoustic acts, or singer/songwriters. Jeff is refreshing in this category though, so he won’t easily get lost in the shuffle.

Regardless, Jeff is a good musician and singer that people are already noticing him right now. I mean, he doesn’t have almost 30,000 MySpace friends and average hundreds of plays a day for no reason.

- Brian Campbell



- DetroitatHome.Com 6.22.07

Jeff Tessler's music is honest, riveting and insightful, and this musician from Detroit, Michigan is great at keeping everything he does real. With the release of his self-titled debut EP, Jeff Tessler is bringing his gift for music to the masses. - XRVolume.com 7.10.07

We caught up with Tessler to see what was new. He told us he’s moving to Los Angeles and he’s having his last live appearance as a solo-acoustic night at Club Bart on Sunday. We wish our young stud luck and we know he’s certainly got the talent to hack it in good old Hollywood. We will be in attendance on the 11th, for sure! - Rachel Weber - Real Detroit Weekly 2.7.07

An interesting conundrum exists in today's contemporary music society. With the advent of massive studio production and mega-budget records that utilize every studio trick from Pro-Tools to AutoTune, people are losing faith in pop music. It’s gotten to a point where new musicians are being automatically dismissed for being too poppy, simply because people have gone to other extremes to, at the very least, find authenticity and sincerity in the performance and the production.


Enter Jeff Tessler, a genuine pop musician hailing from California via Detroit. Jeff is a true musician with honest lyrics, and because he sings them melodiously in a pleasant tenor, a lot of critics and observers would have you believe that his sound is somehow of less significance than other underground musicians who disregard melody. I don’t want to be the one who bursts anyone’s bubble, but not all music played angrily and fast is done right.


Jeff’s songs are sweeping and catchy as anything. All of the songs on his debut EP (available on iTunes for five bucks) are beautifully penned and produced to accentuate his God given talent as a songwriter. The first track “What Did I Do” is an unfathomably catchy song that tells a story that pulls you right into it. The opening verse is played with acoustics and accenting piano, which bulilds into electric guitar, drums, and piano, and finally releases with the liftoff of the chorus. You can’t help but sing along with it’s infectious chorus “as I stare into your eyes, it made me think twice, what did I do, what did I do…”. The buildup and liftoff are characteristics of a true musician, they’re things you can find in songs by seasoned veterans like Train or Coldplay.


I could go on to describe what there is to love about every single track on his album but it would take pages and pages because there isn’t a single song that doesn’t meet up to the standards of pop rock perfection he’s set out to accomplish.


Other musicians that function in a similar vein as Tessler, would be, John Mayer (pre-blues), Ryan Cabrera, and Ashley Parker Angel. If any of those artists strike your fancy there’s really no reason not to like Jeff Tessler. Long live pop music! - BlogSpot : Dust Covered Soul 5.19.07

It’s a little pretty boy, and a tad bit too polished to feel really emotionally accessible, but at least Tessler’s very professionally presented here. It’s rare to see this kind of production value on a local CD, but Tessler and his pleasant acoust-emo might be headed for something bigger than local all-ages shows. - DM
- Real Detroit Weekly 1.3.07