Tag: Second Story Sound

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” →

Fantasy World – Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys Explores Fictional Romance on ‘Gone By Dawn’ Single

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Tyler Mazurek, Harry Dean and Lee Vanderkolk of Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys step into a fantasy world on “Gone by Dawn.” Photo courtesy of Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys

Harry Dean doesn’t consider himself a fantasy writer.

The lead vocalist-guitarist for Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys assumed a fictional persona while penning the country-rock trio’s latest single, “Gone By Dawn.”

“For the longest time, I was writing only from my own experiences,” said Dean, who’s based in Grand Rapids, Michigan with guitarist Lee Vanderkolk and drummer Tyler Mazurek.

“One of my favorite writers, Zach Bryan, has multiple songs where he is making up stories about fictional characters, and I thought that was an awesome concept.”

With a concept in mind for “Gone by Dawn,” Dean landed on a man out west who meets a mysterious woman one night. They share a passionate night at a hotel before going their separate ways the next day.

“I never had that one passionate night,” he said. “I have been with my wife since we were juniors in high school and we got married in June of 2023.”

Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys instantly brings that passionate night to life in “Gone by Dawn” through fearless electric guitar, enthusiastic acoustic guitar, driving bass and thumping drums.

Dean sings, “She might look good in my shirt / And I knew this wouldn’t work / But oh it felt so right / That mysterious girl / She might have stolen my world / Even if only for one night.”

“It was a lot of fun for me to step out of my comfort zone and write a story that was pure fantasy to me,” he said. “We are really proud of how this story came along.”

I recently spoke to Dean about his background, the formation of Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys, the band’s 2023 EP and latest single, upcoming live shows and future plans.

Continue reading “Fantasy World – Harry Dean and The Dusty Boys Explores Fictional Romance on ‘Gone By Dawn’ Single” →

Spring Forward – Earthwork Music Celebrates the Season with Michigan Tour and Sampler Album

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A Michigan music collective is ready to spring forward with a new tour and music sampler.

Earthwork Music, a collective of artists and musicians that fuses music with cultural and environmental awareness, is kicking off its first collaborative tour in five years this week with a run of Michigan shows.

Tour stops include April 19 at Kalamazoo’s Dormouse Theatre, April 20 at Lake Orion’s 20 Front Street, April 21 at Grand Rapids’ Midtown, April 22 at Traverse City’s The Alluvion and April 23 at the Ludington Area Center for the Arts in Ludington.

“The spring tour features 18 musicians and will be a cabaret-style show featuring each person leading one song with a varying backing band supporting. It will be beautiful, chaotic and absolutely magical,” said Nicholas James Thomasma, a Grand Rapids folk singer-songwriter and an Earthwork Music collective artist.

“Sometimes it will just be one or two people on stage; sometimes it’s a full band. Sometimes there are strings, sometimes drums, sometimes acoustic guitars and sometimes all 18 of us will be on stage together. Part of the excitement about this tour is that even the artists aren’t sure how it’s all going to work yet!”

Thomasma will share that anticipation alongside 17 other Earthwork Music artists, including: Dede Alder, Earthwork Music founder Seth Bernard, Ralston Bowles, Sari Brown, The Antivillains’ Sarah Cohen, Samantha Cooper, Chris Good, Jordan Hamilton, Amber Hasan, Josh Holcomb, Audra Kubat, Elisabeth Pixley-Fink, The Crane Wives’ Dan Rickabus, The Appleseed Collective’s Vince Russo, The Go Rounds’ Mike Savina, Jo Serrapere of Stella! and Ben Traverse.

“The thing I enjoy most is the thoughtful and creative people that make up our collective,” Thomasma said. “It’s a treat to play music with these folks, but even more so it’s a treat to simply know them as friends and spend time with them off stage.”

Continue reading “Spring Forward – Earthwork Music Celebrates the Season with Michigan Tour and Sampler Album” →

Perfectly Imperfect – Rin Tarsy Celebrates Life’s Contradictions on ‘Paradox’

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Rin Tarsy embarks on an emotional and spiritual quest of self-discovery on “Paradox.” Photo – Justin Snavely

For Rin Tarsy, life is filled with beautiful contradictions and imperfections.

The Grand Rapids folk singer-songwriter and guitarist embraces authenticity, yet re-examines her purpose on the aptly titled album, Paradox.

“For a while, people would ask, ‘What’s the theme of Paradox?’ And for a while, I didn’t know. Finally, it dawned on me one time when I was listening through all the tracks – it’s about self-trust and self-discovery,” said Tarsy, who grew up in Portland and started singing in church.

“I hope all these songs make sense together, and I really like them, but I wasn’t sure if they did. It’s comforting and scary at the same time. Are these thoughts ever gonna go away? Am I always gonna be questioning everything? Maybe I will.”

Tarsy’s lingering questions slowly spark an emotional and spiritual quest of self-discovery on Paradox that spans several years. Each poetic track celebrates intuition and explores emotion.

“The first songs I wrote for this album – ‘Stay,’ ‘Dear Heart’ and ‘Suitcase’ – were in the summer of 2016 after I got back from Africa. It was the first time I had examined who I was when I took away all of the pursuits that I had and the things I had wanted to go after,” said Tarsy, who visited Tanzania, Zambia and Namibia.

“At the time, I had asked myself, ‘Who am I if those things don’t go exactly the way I want? Or if my idealisms of what they could be don’t match up with the reality of what they actually are?’”

Continue reading “Perfectly Imperfect – Rin Tarsy Celebrates Life’s Contradictions on ‘Paradox’” →

In Season – Chain of Lakes Debuts Intimate Live Video of ‘Next Few Winters’ EP on Sunday

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Chain of Lakes’ “Next Few Winters” EP commemorates the all-weather experiences of home, relationships and family. Courtesy photo

Chain of Lakes beautifully recreates the cozy, peaceful feel of winter in the midst of summer.

The Alto indie folk singer-songwriter brings a relaxed, reflective mood to a new live virtual performance of his latest EP, Next Few Winters, premiering 8 p.m. Sunday via The Stratton Setlist’s Facebook page and newly launched YouTube channel.

“We went in there with the idea of recreating the tracks. It’s a cool way to revisit the songs and get together with the boys. There are only three people that can play ‘Next Few Winters,’ ‘Black Ice’ and ‘Where It Starts,’ and it’s us recreating that space sonically while being in the same room together,” said Kyle Rasche, aka Chain of Lakes.

Rasche (vocals, guitar) teamed up with Jeffrey Niemeier (violin) and Kyle VanderVeen (ambient guitar) to record the intimate live show at Grand Rapids’ Second Story Sound in June. Mixed and mastered by Greg Baxter and filmed and edited by Drew VanderVeen, the video features Chain of Lakes performing inside a dimly lit, wood-paneled, red-walled studio.

“I was not envisioning sweating in shorts and a tank top while I was practicing for Next Few Winters. We had to dress a little warmer for the video so people might actually believe it was recorded back in the winter,” said Rasche with a laugh.

Continue reading “In Season – Chain of Lakes Debuts Intimate Live Video of ‘Next Few Winters’ EP on Sunday” →