At only twenty-two years of age, the Triana Presley has already ignited the Bay Area music scene and, receiving national airplay, winning local and international songwriting awards, and garnering professional acclaim- all before the release of her debut EP. With Timorous or Bold comes a collection of folk/pop tunes, bursting with catchy melodies, sweet vocals, and lively arrangements. While Presley frequents the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, CA, she is currently booking performances throughout the East Bay.

Presley seemed to be testing the waters earlier this year with the release of two singles, “Dirt Road Waiting” and “Kaydence,” both receiving a wealth of praise from music bloggers to competition judges. “Dirt Road Waiting” won first place for Best Lyric of the Year in a contest held by West Coast Songwriters, a songwriting development non-profit best known for sparking the careers of pop singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles among others. An anthem for road-trippers and wanderlusts, “Dirt Road Waiting” is an upbeat, catchy tune about leaving the confinement of the city and answering to the calling of the open road. Earlier this year, it was named a finalist in the international Great American Song Contest in the country category, selected from over 1700 other songs.

One of the contest judges noted, “there’s no doubt that [Presley has] songwriting talent.” “[‘Dirt Road Waiting’] grabbed me right from the start” said the judge, “the music and lyric epitomizes [a] laid-back, adventurous nature-loving attitude!”

Presley’s five-track EP is modern and striking enough to be played on mainstream radio, but shines with personality, incorporating folk, blues, and Americana influences. The first two tracks, “Dirt Road Waiting” and “Scotch & Soda,” are upbeat, lively, and very nearly country. Creating a sort of west-coast-twang, the sweet rhythm guitars, fiddle, and foot-stomping rhythm set the tone early on. The second two tracks, “Just to Say Hello” and “Kaydence,” slow down the pace. It is here that Presley truly shines as both a songwriter and as a vocalist, weaving together moving melodies and heartfelt lyrics. Her line, “between my big-city dreams/ and your small-town pride,” a lyric from “Just to Say Hello,” won third place for Best Line of the Year in a annual lyric contest.

While Presley is proud of the whole EP, a project that she began as a high school student, she’ll tell you her favorite song is the very last one, titled “Yours.” “If you make it all the way to the end, you get to hear my favorite song,” she says. “‘Yours” is the most recent song I’ve written, so I think it’s the most representative of where I am now as a writer.”

Seeming to walk the fine line between a commercial pop and folk/Americana, Presley’s tracks feature strong hooks, and showcase thoughtful, elegant lyrics. Her songs “Scotch & Soda” and “Kaydence” have been described as mainstream leaning, yet Presley’s style is decidedly earthy.

Similarly, the EP’s evocative title, Timorous or Bold, deviates from the hook-driven, simple tracks it features. “It’s from one of my favorite lines of poetry,” Presley explains. “I really wanted to capture what each song is about, and also express the significance of this project to me, and how it feels to share my music.” Written on the back of her EP is the full stanza:

The way we are living,
timorous or bold,
will have been our life.
- Seamus Heaney, “Elegy” for Robert Lowell

Timorous or Bold, can now be heard on Triana’s website, iTunes, and Spotify.

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