30-MINUTE MUSIC HOUR
June
6/4 - Backyard Tire Fire
6/11 - Meridene
6/18 - Art Stevenson and High Water
6/25 - The Lucas Cates Band
July
7/2 - Sleeping in the Aviary
7/9 - National Beekeepers Society
7/16 - The Right Now
7/23 - Rising Gael
7/30 - The Duhks
August & July
8/13 - That 1 Guy
8/20 - Owen Temple
8/27 - The 30MMH Bonus Track Special
9/3 – Stink Tank
COMING UP THURS. JULY 9
Owen Temple
Owen Temple wrote the songs on his critically acclaimed fourth CD, 2,000 Miles, while living in Madison during the winter of 2006 and 2007. The Texas-born songwriter now lives in Austin and is touring with his fifth CD, Dollars and Dimes, released earlier this month. While his albums include support by some of the best musicians in the Lone Star State, Owen will perform solo on the 30 Minute Music Hour, which is all the better for viewers to immerse themselves in his cow-punk charm and clever lyrics.
Stink Tank
One of the most inventive hip-hop acts in Wisconsin, Madison-based Stink Tank is fueled by the insight and audacity of Producer/DJ Man Mantis and the multi-persona attack of MC Laduma Nguyuza. Their program often morphs into shows-within-shows and moves seamlessly from character to character, from perception to misperception.
The Duhks
The Duhks are a Grammy Award-nominated (Best Country Vocal Performance) group based in Winnepeg, Manitoba. The quintet is known around the world as a pace setter for roots music. The Duhks' unbridled enthusiasm is easy to hear in their latest release, Fast Paced World. But, to see The Duhks perform is to fully appreciate the band's soaring spirit. The quintet plays tight and fast, and flies high even on the down-tempo tunes.
PAST ARTISTS FEATURED ON THE 30-MINUTE MUSIC HOUR
The Right Now
Recorded June 16, 2009
Pairing Stefanie Berecz' soulful vocals with guitarist Brendan O'Connell's talented songwriting, this Chicago-based band performs songs from their debut album.
Video available July 17.
Rising Gael
Recorded June 16, 2009
The Madison-based Celtic band creates innovative, exciting music with guitar, drums, vocals and fiddle.
Video available July 24.
National Beekeepers Society
Recorded June 16, 2009
National Beekeepers Society combine pulsing, minimalist pop with world weary lyrics. The Madison-based quartet will perform songs from an eclectic catalogue including selections from their critically acclaimed CD Pawn Shop Etiquette.
Video available July 10.
The Lucas Cates Band
Recorded April 14, 2009
Based in Madison, Lucas Cates is one of Wisconsin's hottest up-and-coming
rockers. A prolific songwriter, Cates crafts driving electric and acoustic
rock 'n' roll and tours all over the U.S. The Lucas Cates Band is a multiple
winner over the past several years at the Madison Area Music Awards. The
four-piece also has garnered the unique honor of having one of their songs
selected as an accompanying piece for the Cincinnati Ballet.
Watch
Flash video
Meridene
Recorded April 14, 2009
The hardest rocking group on Eau Claire's wildly successful Amble Down
label, Meridene crunches electric guitars and weaves lyrics that are high
bred without being highbrow. Leader Trevor Ives writes songs filled with
grit and whimsy, a paradox propelled by a smooth balance of keyboards,
guitars and drums. The band will feature material from its new CD, You're
Not Pretty, You're Worse.
Backyard Tire Fire
Recorded April 14, 2009
From Bloomington, Ill., Backyard Tire Fire has been called the country's
"best kept rock secret." Recently finishing a new studio project, 30-Minute
Music Hour fans will be treated to a few of BTF's unreleased numbers. The
band's set will also feature music from their sensational 2008 release, The
Places We Lived, which finished in the top five of several music
publications' "Best Releases of 2008" lists.
Art Stevenson and Highwater
Recorded March 3, 2009
From Babcock, Wis., Art Stevenson is the Midwest's preeminent practitioner
of hard driving, traditional bluegrass music. Along with his wife,
Stephanie, on string bass, the duo sing powerful harmonies that transcend
the most urgent callings of mountain music. The quartet is rounded out by
Dale Reichert — one of the Midwest's masters of the five-string banjo — and
Bruce King, a breathtaking rhythm and solo player on mandolin. The 30-Minute
Music Hour is proud to help Highwater kick-off their non-stop spring and summer
festival season.
That 1 Guy
Recorded March 3, 2009
Also known as Michael Silverman, That 1 Guy is a Berkeley, Calif.-based,
classically trained string bassist. After performing with some of the
nation's top progressive jazz ensembles throughout the 1990s, Silverman
created an instrument out of wire and iron pipes that could serve his
ever-expanding musical techniques. Think "gutbucket" bass with a lot more
firepower. The result is an astonishing solo act. That 1 Guy's influences
include Captain Beefheart, Frank Zappa, Dr. Seuss, Rube Goldberg and Stanley
Kubrick.
Sleeping in the Aviary
Recorded March 3, 2009
The Madison-based four-piece makes self-styled "post-crunk" music,
a country-punk-rock sound that pushes the overused "indie" label right off
the stage. Sleeping in the Aviary has a large and devoted fan base that chases
the band to its rousing live shows throughout the Midwest. The band will
showcase new songs from their forthcoming EP as well as slam home favorites
from their latest record on the Science of Sound label, Expensive Vomit in a
Cheap Hotel.
Ritt Deitz
Recorded Jan. 6, 2009
Upstream is Madison-based musician Ritt Deitz's fifth release of
original roots rock and mountain music. Deitz is an accomplished songwriter
and performer who is known for richly textured story songs. The Kentucky
native often performs with his sons and daughter but he'll be solo for his
performance on the 30-Minute Music Hour.
The Stellanovas
Recorded Jan. 6, 2009
Multi-instrumentalist Chris Wagoner and his wife Mary Gaines are masters
of string swing music. They call it "café jazz," but that seems too
calm. Their music is equal parts Hawaiian luau and Parisian wedding
party. The love they bring to their music is as apparent as the precision
with which they make it. The Stellanovas also feature veteran drummer
Jim Huwe.
The Urban Hillbilly Quartet
Recorded live Nov. 16, 2008
High school English teacher by day,
roots rocker by night, Erik Brandt will bring both skill sets with
him as his Urban Hillbilly Quartet leads off our production day.
UHQ has played together for over a decade in Minneapolis theaters
and bar rooms. The band has a loyal, un-combed fan base of hipsters,
scenesters, and grad students who crave old-school country music
but who aren't averse to lyrics that carry the listener past the
obligatory bender, break-up and murder. Brandt owns an accordion
and he isn't afraid to use it and likely will in a set that will
feature rousing tunes from UHQ's most eclectic album yet, the brand
new Bring
in The Sails.
Haley Bonar
Recorded live Nov. 16, 2008
From the Twin Cities, it's our great pleasure to share the wit and
warmth of singer-songwriter Haley Bonar (BON-are). Minneapolitans
have adopted the talented, 25-year-old singer-songwriter-producer
(and they place her gifts aside another Minnesotan, Neko Case). However,
Ms. Bonar's music reflects
the moods of her unlikely upbringing. She was born in Winnipeg, raised in
the Black Hills of South Dakota, and began serious composition during
freeze-dried winters in Duluth. Her new record, Big
Star, is an incandescent
mix of laments, country stomp, and guitar crunching folk. Though she defies
fame in some of her songs and certainly with her artistic integrity, it
seems certain that Haley Bonar is one of those who you'll be able to say, "I
saw her play the 30 Minute Music Hour." Ms. Bonar strums a driving acoustic
guitar and plays a vintage Rhodes electric piano. She will be performing solo.
Loudon Wainwright III
Recorded live Nov. 16, 2008
Two-time Grammy nominee Loudon Wainwright III has performed in virtually
every nook and cranny of American popular culture. He portrayed Captain
Calvin Spaulding, the singing surgeon, in the premiere season of TV's "M*A*S*H."
His compelling song, "The Man Who Couldn't Cry," was recorded by Johnny
Cash on his critically acclaimed 1994 CD American
Recordings. Wainwright has been
commissioned to write music for clients as varied as NPR and Ted Koppel's "NightLine". He
has a long sleeve of movie credits, too, including roles in
Big Fish, The
Aviator, 40-Year-Old Virgin, Elizabethtown, and Knocked
Up, for which he also wrote the sound track. Other TV credits
include "Ally
McBeal" and "Conan O'Brien." His
children Martha and Rufus Wainwright are also wildly popular touring musicians.
For all his artistic versatility, music is Loudon's bread and butter, and his
knucklehead-savant lyrics and ear for an aggressive melody have set him in a
class all his own. On Nov. 16 he'll be performing solo on guitar and banjo in
a set that will draw from his 25-album career, including songs from his just
released CD, Recovery.
SoDangYang
Recorded live Oct. 6, 2008
SoDangYang is led by Madison music icon Marques Bovre. "Put Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, St. Francis, Amelia Earhart and Earl Hickey in a blender," Bovre says, describing his band. "Shake with fire and ice. Pour into the broken vessels of humanity (salt on the rim to taste). Drink." Eclectic, yes, but full throated Rock 'n' Roll as well. Bovre's precision guitar style is complimented by another Madison icon, the legendary Jim Schwall.
The Daredevil Christopher Wright
Recorded live Sept. 27, 2008
Like Bon Iver, The Daredevil Christopher Wright is one of several Eau Claire-area indie-rock bands that are rising in Midwest and national acclaim. Brothers Jon and Jason Sunde form two of the band's three corners. Their friend Jessie Edgington completes the trio. The Sunde brothers didn't begin making music together until they left home to attend the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Their objective now is to "create joyful music with voice, guitar, bass, and second-hand clothing."
The Get Rites
Recorded live Sept. 27, 2008
From the Twin Cities and in the tradition of the late Gram Parsons and Uncle Tupelo, The Get Rites make twang with a bang. With Snare drum, cymbal, guitar and double bass, the stripped-down trio makes a big country sound. The band features the expressive singing of Tom Feldmann and with three albums under their belt, Dirty
Linen Magazine describes the group as, "masters of the no-excuses, no-holds-barred, folk-blues-roots, Americana music."
Dietrich Gosser
Recorded live Sept. 27, 2008
From Chicago, Dietrich Gosser has been quietly amassing a Midwest
underground following with his lush — sometimes haunting — compositions.
He plays and records with percussionist Dan Kuemmel who also will
be performing Saturday. The
Onion AV Club describes Gosser: as "folk-y bedroom pop that
sounds big and inviting, often with the help of drummer and avant-percussionist
Dan Kuemmel."
Josh Harty
Recorded live Aug. 27, 2008
Josh Harty is a Madison-based singer songwriter. He's part of a growing
clutch of traditional country song writers who are bringing national attention
to Madison's alt-music scene. Performing solo, he's also one of the fastest
finger-style guitar pickers in the Midwest.
Pieta Brown
Recorded live Aug. 27, 2008
From Iowa City, Iowa, Pieta is the prolific daughter of folk music
giant Greg Brown. In addition to her own work, Pieta recently supplied
vocals to a new CD by Calexico — the sensational border music band
out of Tucson. Brown will be performing with her trio which includes
guitarist Bo Ramsey
Pale Young Gentlemen
Recorded live Aug. 27, 2008
At the center of a rising group of nationally recognized Madison musicians is Pale Young Gentlemen. This five piece dances and dices the lines between indy-pop, chamber-rock, and high gloss Americana.
Dengue Fever
Recorded live July 12, 2008
From Los Angeles, Calif., psychedelic surf-rock overlaid with traditional
Cambodian melodies creates music that Paste
Magazine calls, "the maturing, polyglot sounds of America’s
urban future." Dengue Fever is fronted by Cambodian songstress
Chhom Nimol who sings mostly in her native language. She’s backed
by a hurricane ensemble that includes guitar, farfisa (a small, Italian-made
organ), bass, drums, and saxophone. Dengue Fever’s music has
been featured in several movies including City
of Ghosts and Broken Flowers. The
band has also been featured twice in Showtime’s hit series Weeds.
Their third album, Venus on Earth, has
just been released and is enjoying critical success.
Les Breastfeeders
Recorded live July 12, 2008
Proving that Americans do not have the market cornered
on guitar distortion, Montreal’s most ferocious garage band will bring
the Badger State to its knees. You don’t have to understand the all-French
lyrics of Les Breastfeeders’ songs to appreciate the band’s
colossal grip on rock’s fury. Here’s how the Village
Voice put it: "dueling fille and garcon vocalists Suzie McLelove
and Luc Brien careen around the stage like a demolition derby-version
of Sonny and Cher, leaving a trail of heartbreak and hip shake
in their wake." The
band’s colorful, irreverent videos are among the most popular in
Canada.
The Blueheels
Recorded live June 17, 2008
The pride of Neenah, Wisconsin, The Blueheels
proudly defy description. Blueheels co-founder Rob Schiller, son
of an airplane mechanic, grew up in Neenah listening to his father's
Merle Haggard records. While his music with the Blueheels is more
rock than country these days, you can still hear the voice of the
low down working man in Schiller's lyrics. Haggard's gallows humor
is in there, too. Schiller met his band co-founder Justin Bricco
at a Neenah open mic; in 2004 they formed the Blueheels and have
been rocking bars and house parties in and out of the Badger State
ever since. "Hank Williams, Sr. joins the Who," is how one critic calls it.
Awesome Car Funmaker
Recorded live June 17, 2008
"Existential party rock designed to make you think about the head you are banging," is how Awesome Car Funmaker describes their own sound. One of the hardest working punk-rock-dance outfits in the state, Awesome Car Funmaker is at the top of Madison's very active indy-rock heap. Formed in 2003 and with over 300 shows (many of them all-ages) under its belt, Awesome Car has just pulled to the curb with a brand new CD, E Is For Everybody. While the record pops with party-hearty tunes, the band isn't afraid to bring heavier themes to the beer keg. Like God, war, and Mars. Awesome Car Fumanker is a "Top Rock Band" winner in the Madison Area Music Awards.
Natty Nation
Recorded live June 17, 2008
For 13 years Natty Nation has been glorifying, adapting,
and spreading the music of the Rastafari movement to audiences
all over the country. Based in Madison, and under the musical direction
of Jah Boogie, Natty Nation has become known as our state's most
talented ambassadors of reggae, funk, dancehall and dub. Natty
Nation has released four studio albums but the band's positive,
gritty messages are best experienced live, and the five-piece will
bring the same intense energy to our sound stage that they're known
for at festivals and clubs.
Blake Thomas
Recorded live April 22, 2008
Blake Thomas for coming to perform for
us today. We'd be lucky to have him under any circumstance but he's
especially generous to come in on a moment's notice. Blake was actually
in the wings for our June taping and so we get him a bit early.
His music has been described as "contemporary folk goes to honky
tonk heaven," and the more closely you listen to Blake, the more
you hear. He's a trickster lyricist and a beautiful, emotive singer.
The Kissers
Recorded live April 22, 2008
Irish
rock purveyors the Kissers are one of Wisconsin's best-known and hardest-working
music exports. The rowdy five-piece group is led by bassist/lead singer
Ken Fitzsimmons and includes banjo, mandolin, fiddle, drums and electric
guitar. The Kissers started out nearly ten years ago as a Pogues cover
band. Fitzsimmons says the band is made up of members who "were
rock musicians who learned Irish music." The result gives their
sound a special American blast that's captured in their new CD, Live
Candy Ratz, recorded over a two-night
pub stand.
Victoria Vox
Recorded live April 22, 2008
Victoria Vox's influences range from Laurie Anderson
to Don Ho and the Pittsburg Tribune calls her "one of the purest musicians
touring the country today." Baltimore-based Victoria Vox is coming
off a special guest appearance at the New York City Ukulele Festival.
A recovering rocker, Vox now puts the four string ukulele front
and center in her music as can be heard in her popular CD, Flea.
She's become so accomplished on the ukulele that KoAloha Ukuleles
of Honolulu now proudly sponsors her—quite a feat for a mainlander.
Vox is touring with songs from her new CD, Chameleon, a
tour that will take her from all over the East Coast to Madison
and, in May, to the Paris Ukulele Festival.
Poi Dog Pondering Acoustic Quintet
Recorded live March 25, 2008
Under the artistic direction of Frank Orrall, Poi Dog Pondering has been
making music since the mid-eighties when members began composing and performing
in their hometown of Honolulu. "Poi Dog" is Hawaiian slang meaning "mutt." After
a barnstorming tour of the mainland, they made Austin home before moving
once again to their current base of Chicago. That's where their project
work has ranged from composing the soundtrack for a Brazilian silent feature
film to a re-invention of "Carmen" performed with the full Chicago
Sinfonietta. At one point, Poi Dog recorded Orrall's soulful compositions
for Columbia Records before executives decided the band's sound was too
eccentric to market. Poi Dog's visit with us coincides with the band's April
1 release called "7."
Lis Harvey
Recorded live March 25, 2008
Lis Harvey will be the first 30 Minute Music Hour guest who is recognized
in the "Guinness Book of World Records." In the fall of 2002,
Harvey completed a record-setting fifty-states-in-sixty-days-tour. That's
the most consecutive concerts in the most states in the least amount of
time ever. Yet, Harvey is as much about quality as she is about quantity.
Her music explores the border of romanticism and road-hard realism. The Washington
Post says, "she's a romantic, all right, but not the empty-headed
kind." Harvey began her classical piano training at the age of five
before – several years later – being poisoned forever by a Fender
Strat. Prior to landing in her current home of Madison, Harvey attended
art school in North Carolina and performed music and pizza delivery in Los
Angeles. Her willful, wistful original songs have won awards all over North
America.
Peter Mulvey
Recorded live March 25, 2008
The Irish Times says, "Peter
Mulvey is consistently the most original and dynamic of the U.S. singer-songwriters
to tour these shores."
Mulvey cut his songwriting teeth busking the streets of Dublin before
moving to Boston and eventually heading back to his hometown of Milwaukee.
Mulvey's incredible talent on the guitar runs the gamut of styles – from
slack-key to jazz to precision finger picking. His songs revolve
around, as he calls it, "the small facts of living." Rolling
Stone describes his voice as, "lush and hushed, with
surrealistic beauty." In addition to the respect Mulvey enjoys
critically, he's also known as a hard charging touring performer.
His recent, "Look Ma, No Gasoline Tour," was a ten-day,
300-mile concert tour of Wisconsin to which he rode entirely on his
bike. Mulvey will be performing music from his 10 CD catalog, solo
with guitar.
melaniejane
Recorded live Feb. 19, 2008
Milwaukee-based singer/songwriter melaniejane performs solo in
a set that will showcase her unique talents on guitar, cello, and piano.
melaniejane is a past recipient of the Wisconsin Area Music Awards, "Female
Vocalist of the Year." In addition to her pop music composition and
performance, she's also is a cellist with the Racine Symphony
Orchestra and teaches at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School
of Music.
John Sieger and the Subcontinentals
Recorded live Feb. 19, 2008
Milwaukee-based John Sieger and the Subcontinentals are one of the best alt-country twang bands in the Midwest. While Milwaukee is his home, Sieger is a recovering full-time Nashville session player and songwriter for hire. The band, including Sieger, is a five-piece oufit that includes three electric guitars, bass and drums.
Tani Diakite
Recorded live Feb. 19, 2008
Tani
Diakite (tan-NEE JAH-kee-tay) is a native of the Wassoulou region
of Mali. He now lives with his American wife and their toddler in
Madison. He grew up in a small village with earthen homes and thatched
roofs. Instrumentally, Diakite plays a Kamele Ngoni — a
stringed, long-neck gourd instrument that has been outfitted with
an electronic pick-up made from old radio parts. The instrument's
name means "young person's harp." His music is a mesmerizing
mix of traditional melodies from Mali, blended with traditional American
delta blues. He is also a wonderful vocalist with a warm, yet excitable
tone. He will be supported by a guitarist, bassist and percussionist.
Robbie Fulks
Recorded live Jan. 15, 2008
Chicago-based Robbie Fulks is a frequent visitor
to Wisconsin venues. The "alt-country
hillbilly giant" has played the stage at the Vatican of country music,
The Ryman Auditorium (The Grand Old Opry) in Nashville. Fulks is
known for his flashy flat picking but even more so for his songwriting,
having penned old-time country hits such as "She Took Too Many Pills
(and Died)" and "The
Buck (Owens) Starts Here." A big supporter of the folk and traditional
music scene in Chicago, Fulks makes frequent appearances at that
city's famed Old Town School of Folk Music. The six-foot-five Fulks
is a consummate live performer and is known for his irreverent
stage antics. Last year's New Year's Eve show in Madison included
an original rap song in which Fulks named (by heart) nearly 100
persons who died the previous year.
Willy Porter
Recorded live Jan. 15, 2008
Milwaukee-based Willy Porter is among the country's elite finger-style
acoustic guitar players. He's opened shows for performers ranging
from Jethro Tull to Tori Amos. Frets Magazine calls him "a genre
defying maverick," one
who the Guild Guitar Company is proud to sponsor. Porter's also
a gifted songwriter with four CDs of original material. He tours the country,
playing night clubs, bars and theatres solo and with his band.
Pat MacDonald
Recorded live Jan. 15, 2008
Sturgeon Bay-based Pat MacDonald is best known for his 1980s band
TIMBUK III. The band hit it big with MacDonald's song "The Future's
So Bright (I Gotta Wear Shades)." Singer/songwriter Jackson Browne
calls MacDonald, "one
of the country's preeminent lyricists." Browne travels to Sturgeon
Bay each summer to appear in MacDonald's annual "Steel Bridge Music
Festival," a two day fest that raises funds to preserve the old steel
bridge that crosses into Sturgeon Bay. MacDonald also owns (together
with Browne) and operates The Holiday Motel in Sturgeon Bay which
he's partially converting to studio space so musicians can stay
and record. MacDonald tours clubs all over the country. His latest CD, released
in January of 2008, is a solo effort called "Troubadour of Stomp."
Jeff Burkhart
Recorded live Jan. 14, 2008
Jeff Burkhart is a Madison-based singer-songwriter with a range
of musical styles as broad as his smile. Burkhart has performed in Cajun,
bluegrass, and old time bands. His current focus is traditional country
as practiced by his honky-tonk quintet, The Dirty Shirts. For his 30 Minute
Music Hour performance, Jeff brought along a nice handful of original
songs—a unique blend of mountain-side tunes with urban sensibilities. A
back-porch musician for the digital age, we welcome Jeff to the 30 Minute
Music Hour.