Eddie Berman

Eddie Berman, a folk singer and songwriter whose raw vocal edge is softened by reflective warmth, established an independent career through hands-on effort during the early 2010s. The Portland-based artist issued two self-released albums while performing across the United States and Europe. Recognition also came from his spare acoustic reinterpretations of material by Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon, and additional songwriters. After joining the Nettwerk roster, he saw the label issue Frontiers in 2019 and the more layered Broken English in 2021.

Raised in Los Angeles, Berman took up guitar and piano during his teenage years and started composing original songs. Folk forebears such as Bob Dylan and Dave Van Ronk shaped his approach, which relies on minimal acoustic settings, fingerstyle guitar work, and gritty singing. Extensive road time in the U.S. and Europe led to a friendship with British folk artist Laura Marling; the pair later recorded a stripped acoustic version of Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark.” His first release arrived in 2013 with the self-issued album This Past Storm, followed in 2014 by the EP Blood & Rust and the album Polyhymnia.

Nettwerk signed Berman in 2016 and gave Polyhymnia a wider domestic release, broadening his reach. Before the Bridge marked his initial full project for the label in 2017 and featured the introspective piano-and-guitar track “Untamed,” which gained substantial streaming traction. The following year brought Surrounded by the Sound, a collection of pared-down covers spotlighting songs by Paul Simon, Kurt Vile, and Nick Drake. Production choices grew bolder on 2019’s Frontiers, a direction that extended into the psychedelic textures of Broken English two years later.