Tag: Minnesota

Speaking Up — Amrit Kohli Advocates for Resistance and Survival on “Mama! I Can’t Breathe” Album

Amrit Kohli confronts sociopolitical issues on “Mama! I Can’t Breathe.” Courtesy photo

One year ago, Amrit Kohli released a sociopolitical album reflecting on resistance and survival.

Known as Mama! I Can’t Breathe, the album’s dozen tracks span almost three decades of songwriting and explore oppression, resilience, Black liberation, and queer identity.

“It’s more than just an album,” said Kohli, a queer folk singer-songwriter and activist from Ferndale, Michigan. “At a time when the world still grapples with the repercussions of George Floyd’s tragic death, I transform pain into art, using music as both a tribute and call-to-action.”

Kohli examines those themes through improvisational lyrics, emotive vocals, and atmospheric instrumentation. On a deeper level, the album helps Kohli confront identity politics and find refuge in authenticity.

“I feel like an imposter in almost every community that I’m in because I’m outside [almost] all of them,” said Kohli, who has Kenyan and Indian heritage.

“I’m either an immigrant or I’m this or that. The queer community is pretty diverse and different, and the queer community I feel like I belong to. I think culturally, ethnically, and all of those things, there’s a lot of fragmentation in my identity that way.”

I recently spoke with Kohli about their latest album ahead of a Stop Starving Gaza benefit show on June 20 at the Ghost Light in Hamtramck, Michigan.

Continue reading “Speaking Up — Amrit Kohli Advocates for Resistance and Survival on “Mama! I Can’t Breathe” Album” →

The Voice Within – Mike Green Follows His Instincts on ‘Listening for the Bell’ Album

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Mike Green sings about life choices and lessons on Listening for the Bell. Photo courtesy of Mike Green

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

Mike Green listened to his inner voice but wasn’t sure where it would take him.

The folk singer-songwriter, guitarist, and booking agent ruminated for years about how to share his life experiences.

“I always thought as a younger adult that I wanted to write a book of my personal philosophy, but I never had anything to say,” said Green, who resides in Ann Arbor, Michigan. “Then when I started writing these songs [during the pandemic] … and all these things I’ve always thought about, they just sort of came out in poetic ways.”

What resulted were 12 insightful tales for his debut album, Listening for the Bell, which explores the ups and downs of following your instincts.

“There’s a bunch of those songs that were written that way, and I just trusted it,” said Green, who started as a touring musician in 1978. “And then what I realized early on—after studying all of this—is that I had been in songwriting school for nearly 40 years.”

That schooling came from representing artists like Utah Phillips, Carrie Newcomer, Jesse Winchester, and John McCutcheon as a booking agent and listening to singer-songwriters like Greg Brown, Kenny White, Chris Smither, and Stephen Fearing.

“Chris Smither, probably more than anybody, is the gold standard to me on how you marry lyrics and words and have them come out … to be that way,” said Green, who started as a booking agent in 1986 and opened his own agency in 2004. “There’s no other way you can say it, and if you don’t say it just the right way, it doesn’t fit.”

Continue reading “The Voice Within – Mike Green Follows His Instincts on ‘Listening for the Bell’ Album” →

Back Home – Marty E. Relocates to Upper Peninsula and Releases ‘Benevolent Criminal’ Debut EP

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Marty E. stands near the waters of Lake Superior. Photo – Virginia @lostinthewoodsmichigan 

Marty E. relishes returning to his old childhood stomping grounds in the Upper Midwest.

The Bessemer, Michigan garage-rock singer-songwriter and guitarist-drummer recently relocated to the western Upper Peninsula near Ironwood after living in New York City for more than 20 years.

“Everybody asks me, ‘Why did you move from New York City to goddamn Ironwood?’ The reason is I grew up in northern Minnesota, and my parents and grandparents all grew up in this area, like Ironwood, Michigan and the Hurley, Wisconsin area,” said Marty E., who’s also known as Marty Erspamer and hails from Grand Rapids, Minnesota.

“My great-grandfather had emigrated from Tyrol in Austria, and he went to Cleveland, but had heard the mining business was booming up here. Along with his brother and his cousin, he jumped a train, hitchhiked and somehow got here. The three of them started building houses up here, so I have deep roots here.”

Those deep, familial roots inspired some of the raw, honest tracks on Marty E.’s debut solo EP, Benevolent Criminal, which is now available on vinyl. The six-track EP features a seamless blend of gritty, lo-fi alt-rock, punk-rock and garage-rock instrumentation fused with introspective lyrics about change, loss and renewal.

“When I was singing, Jaime [Hansen] and Keith [Killoren] both really helped pull workable performances out of me and [taught me] how to think about it and how not to freak yourself out and have a whiskey or have a beer,” said Marty E., who’s inspired by The Replacements, the New York Dolls and The Velvet Underground.

“You want it to come out how you hear it in your head. Hindsight is always 20/20 when you’re recording, and you’re like, ‘I could have done this better, and I could have done that better.’ What it is … is a snapshot of the time, and I’m just really happy that I was able to come up with a recording that what you hear reflects what was here.”

Continue reading “Back Home – Marty E. Relocates to Upper Peninsula and Releases ‘Benevolent Criminal’ Debut EP” →

Bring to Life – Jeff Socia Provides Thoughtful ‘Release’ on New Debut Album

Jeff Socia performs live in northern Michigan. Photo courtesy of Jeff Socia

Four years ago, Jeff Socia decided to reenter the Michigan music scene.

The Traverse City Americana singer-songwriter created a home studio, started playing live shows and honed his songwriting chops.  Socia continued to build his momentum until last March when COVID-19 hit and instantly shuttered the live music world.

“I started booking some stuff on my own, and then last year happened. It’s probably a story you’ve heard a lot from other people – the lockdown was the time they were going to record and release something. I decided to go along with that story and take it one step further,” he said.

Nine months later, Socia dropped his thoughtful, melodic full-length debut album, Release, via all streaming platforms. The fervent 10-track project whips listeners down cozy, winding alt country roads filled with life-changing tales of love, growth, gratitude and risk.

“Everyone needs a release a right now, and this one happened to be mine. Hopefully, when someone listens to it, this can be their release. It’s been cool for me to hear from people who listen to my songs from elsewhere,” Socia said.

“I’ve gotten feedback from people in Ireland and other places. What we do here touches other people, and it’s their release. You never know what you’re going to put out there and how it’s going to affect someone. That’s why I called it Release.”

Continue reading “Bring to Life – Jeff Socia Provides Thoughtful ‘Release’ on New Debut Album” →

Desmond Jones Calls for Global Accountability, Change on New ‘George Floyd’ Single, Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB1cyY4WWuA

Desmond Jones emphatically speaks for countless voices lost to racial injustice.

The Grand Rapids rock-funk-jazz quintet of Isaac Berkowitz (guitar, vocals), John Nowak (drums), Chris Bota (guitars) George Falk (sax) and Taylor Watson (bass) strongly calls for global accountability, peace and unity on their thought-provoking new single and video, “George Floyd.”

Out today, it serves as a growing rally cry from the band and protesters worldwide after the May 25 death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Desmond Jones has released “George Floyd” exclusively via Bandcamp and will donate half of the proceeds to the NAACP Grand Rapids and the other half to The Bail Project, a national organization that provides free bail assistance to low-income individuals who are legally presumed innocent.

“At the very least, I hope that it acts as a reminder of George Floyd’s story and the countless stories just like it that happen every day in this country without any repercussions. I hope that it makes people say his name and talk about why or how this could have happened,” said Berkowitz, who wrote the track.

Floyd, 46, died after Derek Chauvin, a Minneapolis police offer, kneeled on his neck and back for more than eight minutes during an arrest. Two other officers further restrained Floyd while a third prevented onlookers from intervening. Chauvin has been charged with second-degree murder while Kiernan Lane, Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao have been charged with second-degree aiding and abetting felony murder as well as second-degree aiding and abetting manslaughter.

In response, Desmond Jones’ compelling “George Floyd” single features thoughtful, echoey electric guitars, soft drums and somber sax as Berkowitz seriously reflects, “I can’t breathe he said, the cycle of oppression/Leaves only one direction to be led/I can’t breathe he said, as we heard the pain of generations past and present pled.”

“I hope that it helps people understand that this behavior and complacency of that behavior is unacceptable in this country and on this planet. With the help of the amazing video Nathan Purchase made, I think this song can show how important these issues are to people and what a serious impact our voices can have when we come together to peacefully make the change that needs to happen,” Berkowitz said.

The impactful “George Floyd” video features raw, candid black and white photos of protesters peacefully marching in Grand Rapids, Detroit, Muskegon and Columbus, Ohio. Five local, independent photographers – Nathan Purchase, Nick Small, Adam Berta, James Saville and Ryan Broton – captured and compiled the historical images during last week’s protests.

“They were able to not only capture and convey the tension and the anger of the situation, but also the unifying demand for peace and unity. Each one of these photographers was able to capture a wider image of the state of our country currently. To see how all these different people from all over were coming together in the middle of a pandemic is a powerful thing to see,” Berkowitz said.

“George Floyd” also serves as Desmond Jones’ second new single and video in less than two months. In April, the band released “Major Burbank” as an ode to Jim Carrey’s legendary performance in the 1998 Academy Award-nominated film, “The Truman Show.” While “Major Burbank” celebrates a lighter side of Desmond Jones’ sound, “George Floyd” pushes the band musically and thematically toward a burgeoning political and social conscience.

“I know we are currently working on more songs that approach these political and social issues, which will be a big step forward for us lyrically and content-wise. However, besides more songs, we have been raising and donating money through livestreams and promoting our favorite local and national black artists, musicians and social leaders on social media,” Berkowitz said.

“We also have been directing people toward charities that are helping as well as local black-owned businesses to shop at. In a way, I think we’ve started to find our voice politically and don’t plan on quieting down. We are lucky enough to have a platform and right now we believe it’s right to use that to help fight against social injustice and shine a light on those who are doing all that they can to make a difference.”