Fae Wiedenhoeft

SeaStar is a Folk/Celtic/Maritime/Rock/Americana band from Seattle, Washington. 

SeaStar originally formed in 2007, when songwriter Fae Wiedenhoeft began performing original, Celtic-influenced material with fellow guitarist Doug Hayman. These early shows consisted of performances at coffeehouses and smaller clubs in the Pacific Northwest, as well as appearances at the Northwest Folklife Festival and the Yakima Folklife Festival. The group's debut album, SeaStar Blue was recorded in 2008. In 2009, the duo released SeaStar Black with a mix of experimental material. 

In 2010, the duo met Michael Falcone at the Blue November MicroFilmFest, who joined the group as a percussionist. Violinist Geli Wuernzer and bass guitarist Adam Chambers joined the band later that same year. Hayman left the band in early 2011. 

SeaStar returned to perform at the Northwest Folklife Festival and the Yakima Folklife Festival with this reconfigured lineup. Additionally, the group played numerous clubs in the Seattle area, including the Sunset Tavern, High Dive, The Rendezvous, The Skylark, and The Comet Tavern. The band also started an avid following on the North and East side of King County. In 2011, the group recorded and released the album Home, produced by Pat Sample at Paradise Sound studio in Index, Washington. Production and recording of this album was paid largely in part by 75 friends and fans of the group. The album was dedicated to the memory of Wiedenhoeft's father, Richard. 

Wuernzer left SeaStar in early 2012 to pursue other projects, leaving the remaining members to continue performing as a trio. Falcone expanded his role in the group as a keyboardist and vocalist, in addition to providing percussion. The band toured Europe with this modified lineup, playing at the Pan Celtic International Music Festival in Carlow, Ireland. This trip proved influential in creating new material and harbored a tour film called The Dublin Three.

Upon returning to the United States, SeaStar performed with several session musicians, including guitarist T.C. Cochran and clarinetist Ben Smith, in an effort to capitalize on the new, experimental material they started writing during the Ireland trip. 

In late 2012, Wiedenhoeft briefly toured in Turkey, to promote her album Christmas Tapestry ~ East Meets West. She played at the Harvest Festival in Goreme, Turkey as well as other small venues/hotels in Istanbul and Selçuk. Upon her return, SeaStar created their first music video for the song "Gold", a fan favorite.

In the start of 2013, Kelly Blanchard, creator and front man of Blue Star Creeper, joined SeaStar after playing several shows with them. The band recorded their follow up release North Winds on analogue reel to reel tape at Green Arbor Studios, engineered by Blanchard. The album was mixed by Four Lumen Studio, engineered by Ron Allen, and mastered by Seattle music pioneer, Chris Hanzsek. North Winds was released in October of 2013 to popular and critical acclaim. The album, featured on Guitar Center Singer Songwriter 3 and the No Depression music site, became album of the week on Celtic Music Radio (Feb 2014). It also won the Robert Kotta Songwriting Contest for the song "Sailor". The album quickly sold out its initial stock in Scotland and on CD Baby. Wiedenhoeft's nuanced, classically-trained vocals and song-writing backed by Blanchard's dreamy, pop-infused guitar and vocals set a lavish table for Falcone's vocal harmonies and piano/percussion work, with all of it grounded by classic-rock-rooted bass player Chambers' warm and mellifluous fret work. The band returned to Europe in late 2013 playing to thousands of music fans from twenty-two different countries at the Perthshire Amber Music Festival in Scotland. The concert took place at Perth Hall, where musicians the likes of Van Morrison have played. The tour was captured again on film and SeaStar released SeaStar Takes Scotland in March 2014.

The start of 2014 brought Fae back to Scotland to perform on the Danny Kyle stage of the prestigious Celtic Connections Music Festival in Glasgow. She continued to promote North Winds when she later ventured to Poland to teach music for one month in Załęcze Wielkie as part of a Fine Arts English Camp. Towards the end of 2014, Ron Allen, guitarist for Wynne C. Blue and Her Troublefakers, played a few shows while Blanchard was traveling. In December 2014, Blanchard parted ways with SeaStar to continue work on his own project, Blue Star Creeper. Allen joined SeaStar full time and his Americana nuanced playing style was a wonderful compliment to the band. Allen, who is a gifted sound engineer, recorded and mixed Fae's solo album, Castle Walls, during 2014 and it was released in November of that year. 

In 2015, Fae toured in London and Paris and continue to bring the music of SeaStar to the world. Fae won the Robert Kotta Songwriting Contest for the song "The Little Western". Fae also received an Honourable Mention by the Woody Guthrie Festival for her song "Bittersweet Rubbish". In the summer of 2015, SeaStar filmed their second music video for the song, "Viva la Vie Boheme". The also set sail on the Trainwreck of Glitter Tour that brought them to Idaho and Utah. In the fall of 2015, SeaStar returned to Paradise Sound Studio in Index, WA and began recording their third studio album. 

In early 2016, Fae returned to perform at the Celtic Connections Music Festival in Glasgow. The time in Scotland planted many seeds for songwriting and when she returned she wrote the title track for a new album, "Never Go Back". Later that spring, Fae received the 2nd prize award for "The Little Western", from the annual Seattle Maritime Festival Stories of the Sea sponsored by Seattle Propeller Club, Port of Seattle, Pacific Marine Expo, and National Fishman Magazine. By late June, SeaStar completed recording of their third album. Never Go Back was included on the first ballot of the 59th Grammy Awards. While it did not receive an official nomination, SeaStar felt very honored to be considered. SeaStar also filmed their third music video for the title track.

2017 was a banger of a year! Fae attended the 59th GRAMMY Awards in LA in February. In May, Fae went back to Paris to share songs then returned to receive another songwriting award for "Sailor" from the Seattle Maritime Festival. In July, Fae flew back to Europe to teach once again at the English immersion Fine Arts Camp sponsored by the Kosciuszko Foundation. With the funds raised by Fae's music school, Syren's Voice, she donated 15 ukuleles, guitar strings, sheet music, and musical "odds and ends" to the camp. After Poland, SeaStar rented a house in Ocean Shores, Washington in August and recorded a “live” album in three days. Ron took the helm and recorded and mixed the rowdy pub style songs that folks requested that SeaStar record. Just as soon as the band hung up their headphones, they made their second appearance at the Seattle Acoustic Festival in Capital Hill. In September, SeaStar headed to Chicago to play the infamous Elbo Room during Chicago's heat wave. What a broiler! The venue was 95 degrees F and it was the hottest inside show they had ever played. In October, SeaStar celebrated their 10 year anniversary with a reunion show with Wuerzner and Blanchard joining them on stage at Soul Food Books in Redmond, WA. The show was well attended and was a true testament to the good natured folks who have played in this Seattle band. A week later, Fae and Seattle's Gaelic Choir, Seirm, traveled to Scotland to compete in the Royal National Mod, Scotland's premiere Gaelic festival, in Fort William. In December, Ron retired from his musical adventures in SeaStar and, his other long term band, Wynne C Blue and her Troublefakers.

2018 found SeaStar playing with many musical friends like, fiery 7-string fiddler, Joel Gamble; gypsy jazz guitarist, John Anderson; and guitarist/composer from the band The Ginger Ups, David Tieman. They started the year off with a bang playing the Auburn Ave Theater, then a multitude of St. Paddy's Day gigs, and a featured act billing at Victoria Folk Music Society's Norway House. In June, SeaStar released their fourth album, Sinners and Angels. They went on to play many festivals throughout the summer, including the Tumbleweed Music Festival where Fae was awarded the Audience Choice Award and Second Place for her song "No Roots For Me" in the Jane Titland Memorial Songwriting Contest. This was shortly after she was awarded First Place in the Robert Kotta Songwriting Contest for her song "Fishing". In October, the band was a featured artist for Galway Bay's Celtic Feis.

2019 began quietly and diligently as the trio prepared for their featured spot in Galway Bay's ABC (Americana, Blugrass, Country) Festival in Ocean Shores, Washington. They had a busy Springtime with many St. Patrick's Day gigs and concerts. The trio made it back to Paradise Sound Studio in Index, WA to begin recording on their fifth album. In May, Fae was awarded First Place at the Stories of the Sea Contest sponsored by the Seattle Maritime Festival and the Propeller Club.  On the 10th of May, Fae said Farewell to the Great Northern Caboose X549 that she rented in Country Village. The space hosted her music lessons and band practice since 2010. It was a bittersweet ending to a beautiful time as the caboose was purchased by the Tenanio Railway Museuem who decided to restore it when Country Village was sold and closed. In July, Fae headed back to Europe and shared some songs in Cornwall and then made her way Poland to teach once again at the English immersion Fine Arts camp in Zalecze. She had an incredible time teaching guitar, ukulele, and voice to 60+ high school level students and interacting with all 101 campers. The closing ceremonies featured all 101 students and 30+ staff members singing the camp song she wrote in 2014. This was a sentimental time as Fae's high school drama teacher, mentor, friend, and director of the camp for the last 12 years, Thomas Rusnak, passed away in February that year. Fae took the reins of some of the directorial duties and made did her best to have a fitting send off. Fae returned in early August to the news that she was in the top ten finalists of the Jane Titland Songwriting Contest once again! The band played as a featured performer as well as a contestant in the contest over Labour Day Weekend.

2020 was a weird and wild time but it brought Ron Allen back to SeaStar. In late November of 2020, while everyone was distancing at home, Fae wrote the song "Distance Christmas". She called upon Ron to see if he would be interested in mixing some remote recordings from Fae, Captain, and Falcone (because we couldn't all be together pre-vaccine), and he said "YES!". He even put a killer solo on the heart breaking song. The song was released and it was a tonic to many across the land.

2021 began with SeaStar pushing forward with fun music videos on social media and live online concerts.  In June, Fae began recording a new record at Fort Lawton Studio with Jim Roth (Voodoo Gearshift, former guitarist Built to Spill). Kelly Blanchard and Ron Allen returned to the new project. At the same time Fae and Captain finished up the recording/mixing they had started in 2019 at Paradise Sound. That older recording became the EP No Roots For Me. It was mastered by Chris Hanszek and featured a new mix of Distance Christmas, engineered by Ron Allen. It was released in December. Just before that, in November, Ron and Fae started collaborating on new mixes of older songs and they released Hawthorn Tree Preset1 Lockdown Mix. While in person shows were just starting to filter in, Ron joined the band again and they played shows for the Three Rivers Folk Society, Thousand Acre Cider House in Bellingham, WA, and they closed out the year with a YuleTide Concert sponsored by Maritime Folknet.

More online gigs and the start of in person shows set an exciting tone of 2022. The band had a featured performance for the online version of Celtic Connections in Scotland. They released a special version of the classic song “Storms on the Ocean” and had a wonder interview with the Danny Kyle Stage Godmother, Liz Clark.
The band went on to have a banger of an in person St. Paddy's at Seattle's Conor Byrne. They returned to Seattle's Northwest Folklife as a featured performer in May. Victoria, BC Canada welcomed them back at the Norway House in July. Cafe Racer, the Blue Moon, and more iconic Seattle venues were open fully with SeaStar on stage and audiences with masked smiles. At the top of September, SeaStar finished their recording at Fort Lawton with Jim Roth and Gold Rust & Bone was sent to be mastered by Seattle legend, Chris Hanszek. The band made it down to Tenino Railway Museum to play the ribbon cutting ceremony for the newly restored version of their old friend the Caboose!  X549 was GLORIOUS and it was a stellar and emotional day!  Just after, Fae headed off to India and Nepal in late September and taught ukulele along the way. She returned in time to play the Celtic Feis in Ocean Shores. On 11.22.22, Gold Rust & Bone, SeaStar's sixth album was released globally. They finished the year off at St Mark's Cathedral in Seattle's Capital Hill neighborhood singing for the New Year's Eve Labyrinth Walk. 

2023 began with Fae picking up her electric guitar and writing the song “Star”. The music picked up speed and the band began recording their seventh album at Four Lumen Studio with Ron at the end of January. Fae pushed beyond genres lines once again and was creating in many styles that reflected world events. The band played many, MANY shows throughout the year, including a show at the Royal Room, supporting a new stage production that was produced by Seattle Rep called Islander. 

2024 was the year of more solo shows for Fae. Gold Rust & Bone and the single Star made it on the first ballot of the Grammys but did not catch and official nomination. The band continued to record the forthcoming album called The in Between. Their calendar was full with shows and Fae entered a contest which took her and her song Swinging Bridge to Chicago. She became a finalist in the Hey Nonny Songwriting Contest and had to return two weeks later to compete again. While she didn't win, this time was a pivotal moment to give her the push to take more solo gigs.

In 2025, the band finished recording The in Between. During the mixing process, they performed a notable show at Deep Cove Folk Club in British Columbia in April. The record was sent to Sage Audio in May, while Fae auditioned for Seattle Rep and was called back several times before leaving on her Spring Solo Tour. While she didn't get cast in the production of Come From Away, the theatre fire was rekindled. Fae's June tour dates features shows in Driggs (ID), Fort Collins (CO), Lakewood (CO), and Arvada (CO), sharing the stage with her good friends, Pennies on the Track at La Vida Dolce. The in Between was released at the end of June and it showed up on the first ballot of the GRAMMYs in September. Fae and Captain headed to Scotland for a mandolin intensive training course for Fae, to celebrate their twentieth anniversary, and to visit many places on the Isle of Skye to test Fae's Gaelic knowledge. Near the end of September, SeaStar had a successful album release show at Obec Brewing in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood. October brought Fae to Oregon to teach and perform at Raise The Rafters. They year closed with a wealth of solo performances for Fae and lots of new compositions prompted by the Bushwick Book Club and Reel Songs.

2026 is still unfolding but is already packed with new recording, tours, singles, and really special performances!

Though their star is rising, SeaStar is a band equally at home playing music in intimate settings as well as large televised concerts. Fae and the band continues to push limits and takes chances. Each show has a colourful and different feel. SeaStar values its time with its fans and strives to keep it fresh and exciting!