The 20-something musician grew up across the street from Palos Verdes High School.

Stocksdale took what he admits to being a circuitous route to becoming a songwriter and performer. When he was eight years old, he bugged his parents for a guitar, which they finally bought for him at Mr. B's music store on the Hill. "But, after a couple of months, I thought it was just too hard. I didn't pick it up again until I was 16 or 17," said Stocksdale. He went off to college at Indiana University choosing to study psychology rather than music.

By his sophomore year, he found himself surrounded by fellow students, many of whom - including his dorm roomate - were aspiring musicians. Stocksdale dusted off his guitar and started working out some tunes with his roommate. They entered an on-campus competition at IU for songwriting. The duo became finalists in the competition, which forced them to expand their original repertoire - "We only had three songs when we entered" - because the competition judging was based upon a 45-minute set. They did okay. "The songs were good, but the performance wasn't", said Stocksdale.

He explored the idea of becoming an architect, taking classes at El Camino College, all the while working on his "Searching for September" album in his spare time at home.

"Then, one day during a class at El Camino, I realized that architecture was not my passion. It would take me another three years of school, and I thought, if I'm going back to school, it should be for music," he said.

After college, Stocksdale spent a year in Chicago, playing gigs until his band broke up. Then, in the fall of 2003, he set out on a road trip to "soul search" because he wasn't sure he wanted to make music his life. The trip brought him back to Southern California and the studio in his old bedroom at his parents' house in Palos Verdes.

Stocksdale now lives in a small apartment in Hollywood.

"It's not often that an artist can tell a story so intricately that listeners feel as if they've taken a ride through the songwriter's mind. Mike Stocksdale does just that. His songs, although similar in style, have such wonderful composition and tone that each one can stand alone to showcase his talent.

www.mikestocksdale.com

band members:

Anders Mouridsen - Lead Guitar/Lap Steel - http://www.myspace.com/andersmou

Mike Stocksdale - Vocals/Rhythm Guitar - http://www.myspace.com/mikestocksdale

Kate Strand - Backing Vocals/Tambourine - http://www.myspace.com/katestrand

influences:

Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Radiohead, Ben Folds Five, Jeff Buckley, Rufus Wainwright, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zepplin, Patty Griffin, Cream, B.B. King, James Taylor, Weezer, Tom Petty, U2, Pink Floyd, Teitur, Counting Crows, Damien Rice, Beach Boys, Beck, Bob Marley, Cat Stevens, Billy Joel, Chet Atkins, Coldplay, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Dave Matthews Band, Elliot Smith, The Shins, Eric Clapton, Foo Fighters, Jars of Clay, Jude, Nick Drake, Oasis, Over the Rhine, Pedro The Lion, The Police, Pretenders, Queen, Randy Newman, Ray Charles, Robben Ford, Steve Miller Band, Stevie Wonder, Sublime, Tenacious D, Tommy Emmanuel

User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License and may also be available under the GNU FDL.