Liv Victorino

Liv Victorino graduated college in June of 2022 with her debut EP "Sheer Force of Will" under her belt. At the time, she had nothing but free/hacked software and a USB microphone, developing a genre-philosophy she coined "Freeware Folk". Despite these material constraints, Victorino's debut touched thousands of ears through recurring broadcasts on Seattle's flagship radio station KEXP. Since playing her first show in 2021, she's grown to be a Seattle favorite with local radio, podcasts, and bookers. This year, a photography exhibition was titled "Before the World Ends" according to the closing track. Victorino had been playing drums for 4 years in several bands before picking up a guitar at 18. Through the unofficial songwriting school of Elliott Smith, she began to craft her signature fingerpicked melodies and emotional writing style. Robin Pecknold of Fleet Foxes noted a "great melodic sense" after a first encounter with her EP. In 2019, she founded the University of Washington's "The Songwriters Circle" who's mission is to introduce college musicians like herself to the music scene in Seattle at large. Since, they have produced dozens of concerts, open mics, and events, and the group has since spread its roots to the East Coast. 2023 saw the debut of The Songwriters Circle at The University of Vermont. She spends her time between her eponymous solo project, and the alternative shoegaze band PONZI. Her accolades expand readily to her circle of collaborators, creating a new sound in Seattle's University District, a phenomenon hardly present since the 1990s.