Don't let the catchiness of Zach Trandum's music deceive you; it is just as deep and insightful as it is fun. Heavily jazz-influenced and soulful, his lyrics and music are intensely intertwined in a way that doesn't quite let go for the rest of the day. It's because his songs don't just tell stories but capture feelings; from walking home buzzed on a warm summer night (“Lush”) to the bittersweet sting of saying goodbye to a first love (“I'll Never Forget You”). It's the kind of music you can listen to with friends, driving in the car, or alone with headphones after a long day.

Every song is absorbed with influences from Zach's life. For one, growing up in the small town of Snohomish, Washington provided the lyrical backdrop to a musical coming-of-age. His first guitar was a dusty, broken acoustic he fixed up after finding it in the back of his parent's closet. Unable to afford guitar lessons, he taught himself to play. Zach is a natural musician who also picked up singing, piano and jazz trombone along the way.

But nothing helped him find a voice more than singing. His smooth but smokey sound and his sheer musicality (he scats Ella-Fitzgerald-style) took years to develop. He worked his way up from singing in his high school concert choir to winning first place at the University of Idaho’s Lionel Hampton International Jazz Festival three years in a row. His passion and talent led him to major in vocal performance at Bellevue University in Washington.

Zach's experience as musical director of his church brings a lot of soul into his music. The warm choirs that back him and the nostalgic sound of the Hammond B-3 organ add an inspirational quality to his music. His songwriting ability led him to become a finalist on Sweatshop Studios’ Facebook Idol competition, and soon after he was signed on by Sweatshop and invited to come record at their studio in New York.

In addition to being a musical director, Zach continues to play various gigs at his hometown but finds himself venturing out to the big city every once in a while. Even a nice town like Snohomish can’t keep him all to itself.