To me there seems to have been a lull in indy music. I know, I’m just an old out-of-it fart. But it seems like we had a big indy boom, then house/hiphop, then a strong new push in alt.country.punk (from Chicago) and then a tiny lull. Now I see funky roots hippy bluegrass coming on strong. …And right here in Michigan! Of course all of this has probably been going strong the whole time. But it really does seem like there’s a big fresh move going down in the hippy-roots-grass scene. And Michigan is a player. Not only that but UP NORTH Michigan. Since when has Up North Michigan made big music? Sure, it’s had GREAT worldclass folk fests for decades to HOST all sorts of amazing music. But maybe it only makes sense: the KIDS of the people who lived the big Michigan fests are now starting to do their thing and it’s a big thing indeed.
And it seems to me to be centered in this new label, EarthWork Music. HQ Nowheresville just south of Cadillac, or maybe Big Rapids a little further south. This label even seems to have its own big ol’ family farm. Where they host family camps and folk fests, too.
[PHOTO CREDIT FOR THIS ARTICLE IMAGE GOES TO *REDBEARD*]
The EarthWork label now releases the following musicians:
Daisy May & Seth Bernard
Daniel Kahn
Sari Brown
Breathe Owl Breathe
Joshua Davis
Phil Wintermute
Jen Sygit
Luke Winslow-King
Darlene
Dominic
Tapes Records
…And they seem to be pals with everyone else. Like Steppin’ In It.
These all seem to be way up-northy bands. They get up to the U.P. to record whenever they can, it seems like. They know the U.P. has the vibe. And it does!
Now, I’m out of it. But I detect big, fresh new energy perking around this scene. It happens to be hippy-roots but it doesn’t care what you are. It’s inclusive. It’s the next big thing from around here and it’s pulling in LOTS of folks, it seems.
It’s NOT at all just your usual “local band wins a national talent contest” scenario that might put a long-lived bar band on the map briefly.
It includes THE WORKS. Why, one of their latest compilation CD’s includes a cookbook and was done to benefit the community gardens scene. C’mon! These people have the music and the talent and the pipes and the hard-working instruments…and they include the gardens and the farms and the micro-brews and the fests and the remote towns. Plus the big towns, too. They’re working HARD. And they’re doing it themselves. Check ’em out…
https://earthworkmusic.com/
