Month: March 2025

Spring Breakthrough — The 3148s Ditch the Michigan Winter Blues on “Cabin Fever” Single

Jason Seifert, Greg Jones, Tom Jones, and Ian Coote of The 3148s. Courtesy photo

Greg Jones wants to spring into action.

The Metro Detroit vocalist-guitarist is ditching the winter blues after being indoors all season.

“I find, for whatever reason, it feels like it gets worse every year,” said Jones, who performs in The 3148s. “When I was younger, I’d look at snowbirds and think, “That seems like a lot of travel and a lot of hassle.”

While he’s not headed south this time, Jones channels that pent-up frustration, misery, and restlessness on “Cabin Fever,” the energetic, hardcore-inspired single from The 3148s.

Along with bandmates Ian Coote (guitar, keys, mandocello, vocals), Jason Seifert (bass), and brother Tom Jones (drums), he sings: “Sunlight deprived and locked inside / All alone in a crowded house / Grinding my teeth, grinning in agony / Self-loathing in sheep’s clothing / As all the walls keep closing / In on me and my sweet sanity.”

“And now I say, ‘Let’s get these kids to graduate so that I can buy a house in Florida and live there for six months out of the year,’” Jones said. “You feel trapped, and it’s like the walls are closing in by the time you get to this time of year. I just wanna be outside, and I wanna be warm and comfortable. I haven’t seen the sun, and yeah, it drags.”

The adrenalized alt-rock-meets-punk instrumentation on “Cabin Fever” does anything but drag. The band’s fearless electric guitar, thumping bass, and charging drums pulsate alongside Jones’ angry vocals.

To learn more, I spoke with The 3148s about its latest releases and background ahead of an April 5 show at New Dodge Lounge in Hamtramck, Michigan.

Continue reading “Spring Breakthrough — The 3148s Ditch the Michigan Winter Blues on “Cabin Fever” Single” →

Michigan Musicians Host March 29 Benefit Concert for Producer Jake Rye and Others Affected by Adrian Apartment Building Fire

The American Hotel System, Innocent Vigilant Ordinary, Greater Alexander, Adoremus, and Above Pete’s Garage are hosting a free benefit concert for producer Jake Rye and five others impacted by a March 15 apartment building fire in Adrian, Michigan.

Jake Rye lost his home and entire recording studio, Social Recording Company, in that same fire. He’s been vital to the Michigan music scene by crafting the sound of notable acts, including Michigander, Brother Elsey, Pretoria, and The Hacky Turtles.

“Crossroads Presents: Indie Rock Benefit Concert” is Saturday, March 29 at Crossroads Community Church, 119 North Broad Street, Adrian. The show starts at 6:30 pm.

If you’re unable to attend the show, you can donate via a GoFundMe campaign to help offset Rye’s loss and raise money for the other residents affected by the fire. Half of all donations will be split up and distributed to each apartment leaseholder.

The Psych Doctor — George Mashour’s Vintage-Sounding Psychedelic Rock Album Was Inspired by His Consciousness Studies at U-M

George Mashour explores the evolution of the self on Eulogy for My Ego Death. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on the Ann Arbor District Library’s Pulp blog.

In 2019, George Mashour aspired to make a psychedelic rock album.

The anesthesiologist and neuroscientist had just turned 50 and wanted to step outside the medical world to pursue a musical project.

“I was reflecting on what I wanted to do in the next phase of my life … and [I’d] been writing all these songs—sometimes just in my head—some of them [were] decades old,” said Mashour, a University of Michigan researcher who studies consciousness and has been dabbling in music over the years.

“For my 50th birthday, my wife got me a gift certificate for studio time at Big Sky [Recording], which was cool, and in retrospect I’m really glad she did that.”

Later that year, he became chair of U-M’s Department of Anesthesiology, and then COVID hit in early 2020.

“I was super busy, and of course, everything was shut down,” Mashour said. “And yet I still had that physical gift certificate for eight hours of studio time … so it was just always on my mind. And then it was 2023 when I said, ‘You know what, I’m going to do this,’ so I got in touch with Geoff [Michael], who’s the owner of Big Sky.” 

Michael connected Mashour with Marty Gray, an Ann Arbor producer, engineer, singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, to help record his debut album.

“I had never been to a studio before, never recorded music before, and had no idea of what was going to happen,” said Mashour, who worked with Gray over several studio sessions. “And I walked out of that first four-hour session with a sense of joy that I can’t even remember the last time I had experienced.”

What resulted is Eulogy for My Ego Death, a ‘60s-inspired psych-rock album filled with existential lyrics, dreamy vocals, fuzzy electric guitars, and groovy instrumentation.

“Generally speaking, in that psychedelic genre, it’s about experience, it’s about great melody, and it’s about the self,” Mashour said. “It’s not what I would call a concept album per se in terms of a narrative thread going from start to finish, but there certainly are conceptual relationships to a lot of the different songs.”

To learn more, I spoke with Mashour about the inspiration behind his album as well as his psychedelic hip-hop project VaporDaze.

Continue reading “The Psych Doctor — George Mashour’s Vintage-Sounding Psychedelic Rock Album Was Inspired by His Consciousness Studies at U-M” →

Restless Souls — Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys Channels Adventure and Growth on “Feel Alive” EP

Lee Vanderkolk, Tyler Mazurek, and Harry Dean perform at Butcher Block Social in 2024. Courtesy photo

Harry Dean understands the impulsive urge to hit the road.

The Grand Rapids, Michigan singer-songwriter explores the desire for wanderlust and adventure on “Feel Alive,” the title track from his debut EP with The Dusty Boys.

“There were these two open mic-ers I had gotten to know in town, and they really did that,” said Dean, the vocalist-guitarist for the country-rock trio, which includes lead guitarist Lee Vanderkolk and drummer Tyler Mazurek.

“They packed up everything and sold a bunch of their stuff, and they hit the road for four or five months. They went and did some busking, played open mics, and tried to pick up gigs. I thought, ‘If I were in that situation, I’d be so scared.’”

Dean channels that fear and courage alongside hopeful acoustic guitar and wistful electric guitar on “Feel Alive.” He sings, “The road’s callin’ and / We’re running steady / Dressed in all black / Jumpin’ in the back / Of that ’84 ole rusted Jimmy / Headed out west / Land we know the best.”

“I have never ditched everything and hit the road. I’ve been with my wife for 12 years now and I’ve lived in Michigan for my whole life,” Dean said.

“It gave me a sense when I put myself there, too, that it would be such a ‘Feel Alive’ moment. I pull things from my life and how I would feel in other people’s lives.”

“Feel Alive” also serves as the energetic opener from Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys’ EP, which features storied lyrics, fiery electric guitar, and driving country-rock instrumentation.

I recently spoke to Dean about Feel Alive ahead of a March 28 show at Turnstiles.

Continue reading “Restless Souls — Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys Channels Adventure and Growth on “Feel Alive” EP” →

Shared Sentiment — Claudia Hoyser Processes the Universality of Heartbreak on “Girl in Blue” Single

Claudia Hoyser features empathetic lyrics and earnest instrumentation on “Girl in Blue.” Photo – Justin Hammond

Claudia Hoyser wants people to feel seen and heard after a breakup.

The country singer-songwriter shares that sentiment while processing heartbreak on her single, “Girl in Blue.”

“There are so many people out there that are doing that every day and putting on a strong face for everyone else,” said Hoyser, who’s from Rochester, New York. “I wanted to give like a ‘Hey, hello, I see you’ to people that are feeling that way.”

Hoyser gives that sonic nod to listeners through empathetic lyrics and earnest instrumentation. Backed by atmospheric electric guitar and hopeful acoustic guitar, she sings, “Looks like a real good time / Laughing over her glass of white wine / Crazy how nobody can tell that she’s dying inside.”

“It’s saying, ‘Oh my god, I can’t even face people right now. I’m so heartbroken, I don’t want to go. I don’t want to get out there,’” Hoyser said. “But you have to put on your strong face and prove to yourself and everybody else that you can still keep going, even though what you actually feel is completely broken and alone.”

To learn more, I spoke with Hoyser about her music and background ahead of a March 14 show at Black Crystal Café in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Continue reading “Shared Sentiment — Claudia Hoyser Processes the Universality of Heartbreak on “Girl in Blue” Single” →

Momentary Feelings — Lilly MacPhee Overcomes Heartbreak and Disappointment on “This Too Shall Pass” Single

Lilly MacPhee closes a difficult chapter and finds catharsis on “This Too Shall Pass.” Photo courtesy of the artist.

Lilly MacPhee knows moments of heartbreak and disappointment are fleeting.

The Detroit singer-songwriter acknowledges those emotions and their ephemeral impact on her latest indie-folk single, “This Too Shall Pass.”

“It was the first song I had written when I moved back from Nashville, and it was an accumulation of everything I had been through over the years. When I was living in Nashville, my best friend Jackie [Pappas] and I would talk on the phone several times a day,” said MacPhee, who briefly relocated to Nashville in 2023.

“I would vent to her, or she would vent to me about something. But when I would vent to her, she would always say, ‘Lilly, this too shall pass,’ and it [stayed] with me. And then I thought, ‘That sounds like a song. Thank you, Jackie.’”

On “This Too Shall Pass,” MacPhee closes that difficult chapter and finds catharsis in family and friends. Comforted by serene acoustic guitar, she sings, “I kissed lips that spoke lies / Met grief eye to eye / Cried to the ones who cared / When silence was too much to bear.”

“Songwriting itself is like therapy—it’s how I view it. You get everything out and it makes you feel better. A song like that is bittersweet,” she said.

“You hope people don’t relate to it, but you’re OK if they do because it’s a comforting feeling for them to know that they’re not the only ones experiencing heartbreak, grief, or whatever else they might be going through in life.”

Continue reading “Momentary Feelings — Lilly MacPhee Overcomes Heartbreak and Disappointment on “This Too Shall Pass” Single” →

The Struggle Within — Painted Friends Looks Inward and Finds Clarity on “The Devil in the Deep State” Album

Painted Friends’ Mitch Crosby and Jeremiah McWhorter performing in 2022. Photo – Connor Dean Harrington

For Jeremiah McWhorter, vulnerability leads to a purposeful existence.

The Painted Friends frontman embraced his fragility and uncovered hidden truths while penning tracks for the Detroit duo’s latest indie-rock album.

“Without getting too deep into my personal life, I took time to think honestly about the decisions I have made in the last eight months or so while putting the album together. I thought about how deep I got into some struggles and what I needed to do to get out,” said McWhorter, the band’s vocalist-guitarist-bassist about The Devil in the Deep State.

“I started to become more aware of when the natural vulnerability I have from just being a human is leading me somewhere I don’t actually want to go. The key is understanding how to use vulnerability for good instead of evil.”

Alongside drummer Mitch Crosby, McWhorter explores that emotional and spiritual journey and its ramifications through perceptive lyrics and cathartic instrumentation.

“The personal struggles I have in life have always been a big part of what I write about. It helps me process it all. In doing this, I am learning how similar we all are in regard to having personal struggles,” he said.

“I listen to music I can relate to because it sometimes can be that extra push I need to keep going. If I can be that extra push for others, I don’t think there is anything better than that.”

To learn more, I spoke with McWhorter about the thematic and sonic elements behind The Devil in the Deep State.

Continue reading “The Struggle Within — Painted Friends Looks Inward and Finds Clarity on “The Devil in the Deep State” Album” →