In what feels like a dream scenario, The Cedar Cultural Center just announced Kelley Smith’s album release show for “Flowers” with the Mike Munson Trio as the opener. Since my teenage years I have attended concerts at The Cedar that have changed my understanding of music and the global community- Happy Apple, Tinariwen, Mavis Staples and so many more. World renowned artists choose this Minneapolis stage to share their work. How remarkable to find myself a co-worker with multiple esteemed artists who will…

Next week is the first single release from Kelley Smith’s forthcoming album “Flowers”! “Come Down Oh Maid” will be available on Bandcamp and streaming on Friday, September 25. Kelley and I have been working long hours to finalize lp and cd packaging, upload the music to streaming platforms, and prepare for the press work around the album release. She and I share an affinity for words and strong relationships, which means that much of this work, even the tedium, has been rightly rooted. We have had long…

The waning days of August offer some of the last chances to work from my favorite “office,” the back porch that overlooks the garden, now overtaken by deep purple morning glories and teeming with cucumbers, tomatoes and zucchini. Though it is still high summer, I am looking ahead to the colder months and the transition of this back porch into a repository for snow boots and wet coats, which is why I will be renting a small office space for the fall and winter at The ARC in downtown Winona. The beautiful,…

Last week I returned from 11 days on the road with Mike Munson, serving as un-official tour manager and very good company over the course of 3,700+ miles of travel and 7 shows. We reveled in mountainous landscapes, time with old friends, and 6 new venues. Highlights included Free Cycles, a bike collective in Missoula, MT where a puppet troupe from Washington was also using the co-operative space. The puppeteers attended the show along with some friends of ours who had traveled over 2 hours to see Mike! At…

On May 22 the Mike Munson Trio released “Sometimes, not always.” on Liatris Records. Two back to back nights of performances were held in Minneapolis and Winona, respectively. The Friday night show at Icehouse ended with Dosh welcoming Mike, Nick and Lars-Erik to the stage for a spectacular improvised musical conversation. Saturday brought Mike home to Winona where his community showed up en masse to celebrate and support his latest project. The atmosphere was familial, the weather was perfect. Peter’s…