From DCist contributor Justin Kielsgard

If you walk the D.C. streets past midnight, there is a good chance you have already heard 23-year-old singer songwriter Ethan Edwards. Setting up shop on street corners and in bus enclosures, the Mosquito Bay, Maine native sings through his smoke stained throat, meditations of the rocky road of love, life and the French countryside.

Armed with only his guitar, harmonica and tambourine, Edwards has played steadily in the D.C. area since his return from Europe last fall where he performed at various venues and plazas.

His live performances expose a young man impressed and provoked by the world around him. Investigating conventions of sex, war and religion, Edwards’ lyrics prove a glimpse of youth coming to grips with adulthood. And though his voice may sometimes stutter and stray, and his guitar fall faint, Mr. Edwards proves that the volume of your guitar and voice do not dictate the volume of your meaning.

Ethan Edwards can be next seen performing this Thursday, August 4th, at the Grog and Tankard.

DCist: According to your bio, you’ve played in several cities throughout the United States and Europe. How much has travel affected your sound?

Ethan Edwards: Traveling is an awakening, really. It opens you up to a lot of different things, different people. It’s charging. That’s really the only way to describe it: charging. I feel like it’s colored my perception of the world as much as anything else in my life has, which in turn has affected the way I write a song. It has also exposed me to a lot of different types of music, mostly gypsy and various regional folk music.