What's Up! Magazine

Austin Jenckes, a student at Western Washington University, has released his album entitled Coming of Age. Photo courtesy of artist

Playing music has always been a part of Austin Jenckes life. For him, it was not merely a hobby that evolved; it’s been a passion since day one. From first picking up a guitar at the tender age of eight, to his current touring in the here and now, he finds himself as busy as ever.

His album, Coming of Age, was released this past spring. While it is long on hooks and crafty melodies, it admittedly has a bit of a polished edge.

“I was trying to grab a lot of people,” he said, explaining the pop feel to the recording.

Nonetheless, it managed to generate a decent buzz for Jenckes. He has since toured off and on in support of the disc, traveling all over the Western states. “We go on a West Coast tour next week,” he said.

Jenckes is also no stranger to the Bellingham scene, having played the Cobra Lounge and the Wild Buffalo within the past month.

There is no date set for a new album, but the writing has commenced. His newer demo finds him returning to a more stripped down, Southern and folksy feel. Originally from the tiny, nearby town of Duvall, WA, the 21-year-old Jenckes has been performing nonstop in all sorts of venues. Be it coffee shops, clubs, student unions or even churches, he always seems to find a niche in which to belong. Initially, he began performing at the modest venues in his hometown. Soon after he ventured into various open mic nights in the Seattle area. He cut his teeth, however, at the Still Life Cafe in the Freemont when he was 15. “That’s where I learned to get friendly with the stage,” he said.

Eventually, his playing took him all the way to Oklahoma, which brought him closer to his Southern rock roots. “I was a big fan,” he says of the genre. His father taught him to play guitar, and Lynyrd Skynrd and the Eagles were among the early repertoire.

Being from the Northwest, however, Jenckes soon gravitated to the grunge scene, emulating his favorite artists from the era. While on the surface that might seem like a mere pit stop on the way to finding his true musical self, it did end up forging a beneficial relationship that lasted the better part of six months. “I took lessons from Maestro David Kyle,” he said.

No small feat, when considering Kyle’s clientele over the years has included the likes of Geoff Tate, Chris Cornell and Layne Staley.

To this day, Jenckes maintains that his voice is the focus of his music, as opposed to flashy instrumentation. “I’ll still show off a little bit [on guitar],” he added a bit sheepishly.

In addition to touring, Jenckes has found other things to keep him busy since the release of Coming of Age.

In August, as per usual for growing solo artists, he hired a backup band. It was not, however, haphazardly thrown together. In addition to friends, the lineup includes family members and his high school music teacher. Talk about coming full circle. As it turned out, there was more good fortune for Jenckes in August, as he landed an endorsement with Alvarez guitars.

It goes without saying that the validation of being endorsed by a name brand would be a validating benchmark for anyone’s career. But the other obvious perk wasn’t lost on him. “It’s nice getting free guitars,” he added.

However, it doesn’t look like the rock star accoutrements will go to his head anytime soon, given that he is still a student at Western Washington University. He happens to be a recording major, and an opportunistic one at that. “I just recorded my new demo there,” he said.

Time to add “resourcefulness” to his list of talents.