Tasty Brew Music

On February 3, 2023, I presented a four hour edition of the Tasty Brew Music Radio Show, interviewing an array of local, national and international touring artists that were in Kansas City for the annual Folk Alliance International Conference.

First up were Chris Hudson of Kansas City’s Gullywasher and Australia’s Nick Vulture.

Hudson is a Guitarist, visual artist, Singer Songwriter for Kansas City- based Gullywasher, the Bard Owls and other projects, and Teacher at Kansas City Young Audiences.

Vulture has moved into territory that couldn’t be any further removed from his roots in the garage punk scene of Adelaide, South Australia with his band The Molting Vultures. His solo endeavor is gritty acoustic folk done raw and stripped back to its very core.

Enjoy these on air musical interludes and conversations with Chris Hudson and Nick Vulture.

The music of Caleb Caudle was originally recommended to me some years ago by music loving friends that know whereof they speak. Following their suggestions usually yields solid gold. Caleb was recently in Kansas City in 2022 on tour in support of Hayes Carll and then solo to promote his latest critically acclaimed album, Forsythia. He was also finally able to personally promote his album, Better Hurry Up, that was way laid by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Forsythia is a portrait of Caleb at his most solitary and reflective. Thematically, it meets anticipation for the unknown future with nostalgia for the past, and reconciles both with meditation in the present. The album, recorded at Cash Cabin and produced by John Carter Cash, features acclaimed session players Jerry Douglas, Sam Bush, Dennis Crouch and Fred Eltringham, and the vocal talents of Carlene Carter, Elizabeth Cook and Sarah Peasall McGuffey.

On his last release, Better Hurry Up, Caudle found himself feeling like time was moving too fast. By early 2020, with a new home base in Nashville, a few years of sobriety under his belt and the release of his best album yet imminent, Caudle was prepared for the next phase of his career. But a few days before Better Hurry Up came out, a devastating tornado ripped through Nashville; a week later, just before he was set to depart for a lengthy tour, the world went into lockdown.  The couple moved back to the mountains of North Carolina for the duration of the pandemic, where he spent most of his time in the woods– hiking, observing, thinking and writing. Caleb took some time to call into the Tasty Brew Music Radio Show from the road on his way to Kansas City for a show. Enjoy my on air conversation with the very talented songcrafter….Caleb Caudle.

No stranger to change or the exploration that comes with it, Carrie Welling has been navigating life’s twists, turns, demons, and discoveries from a young age. A self-described ‘military brat’, Welling’s struggle to feel rooted in any one place carved a unharmonious path of heartbreak, doubt, and insecurity that defined her 20s and early 30s. Her bold, sultry voice, reminiscent of Sheryl Crow’s grit, Natalie Maines’ twang, and Stevie Nicks’ heart, is upstaged only by the genuine love and connection this natural performer has with her fans both on and off stage. But embracing confidence has not always been easy for this singer-songwriter, who speaks candidly about her battle to be good to herself, and to quiet the inner voice nagging her to be “perfect”.

Late in the summer of 2022, a Tasty Brew Music listener and local house concert presenter from Lawrence, Kansas gave me the heads up about Carrie. We weren’t able to get her live in the studio while she was in the area, but after some initial technical difficulties, we were able to have a nice on air conversation about her lyrical journey… including the importance of having an organizational and logistical support team and auxiliary financial support via platforms like Patreon.  I was so encouraged to hear of her connections with personal favorites Mary Bragg and Barnaby Bright.

Welling put out a Patreon campaign, embracing her dream to finally quit the side hustle and focus on music full-time. Her patrons, which Carrie refers to as her “champions”, have proven to be an integral part of the artist’s journey - not only supporting her online but also at live performances across the globe. “My Patreon champions started out as my fans and now we’re all friends. Some of them I talk to everyday, and they give me music ideas! They keep me going,” she says. Enjoy my conversation with Nashville’s Carrie Welling.

Serendipity brought Jeremy Facknitz into my musical life. Late this past summer, he posted on a local Kansas City Musicians Facebook Page looking for a fill in gig on just a few days’ notice to help support a solo run of gigs in the Midwest. I checked him out, was happy to help him land a last-minute slot in a songwriters’ circle at a local venue and welcomed Jeremy into the radio station for a conversation during my weekly Tasty Brew Music Radio Show.

Jeremy has entertained audiences with his lovingly crafted music and high-energy performances for decades. Since the 2002 break-up of his Detroit-based band "The Ottomans", Jeremy has performed primarily as a solo act, marrying folk-rock and jazz stylings to showcase his intimate stories of life, love, and self-discovery.

Facknitz carved out a living performing at bars, coffeeshops, and corporate events while teaching lessons on the side. Life turned on a dime when on July 17th, 2017 Jeremy was diagnosed with viral meningitis. "I came face to face with my mortality, and I realized it was time for a change. I quit performing at bars and spent the next year making the leap to house concerts, touring, and performing solely for listening audiences."  

Jeremy was named a top 24 finalist from over 800 entries in the 2020 and 2022 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Songwriting Competitions at Kerrville Folk Festival. His songs "Ballet of an Unhatched Chick" and "Michigan (Something In The Water)" were awarded semi-finalist distinction at songoftheyear.com, also in 2020 and 2022.

As you’ll hear in this conversation, while occasionally performing with his 6 piece band in Colorado, Jeremy continues to tour solo - performing at house concerts and listening rooms in the United States, Canada and Europe. He's currently promoting his 5th album of original material "From Those Sweet Ashes" and has begun recording a follow-up album set for release in 2023. Enjoy this brief interlude with Songwriter Jeremy Facknitz.

Savraya is a singer-songwriter referred to me by a mutual songwriting friend from Louisiana, Tommy Ike Hailey. She’s just starting her lyrical life and it’s always an honor and privilege to be the first radio or podcast experience for a young artist like this.

Living in places like Nashville, Ft. Worth and the Mississippi Gulf Coast near New Orleans gives her a unique perspective on Southern American music with roots, blues, jazz, country, hip hop, pop, and even Cajun in the mix.

Gifted with her first guitar at 16, she started writing songs and playing open mics. Dad’s job transferred the family back to Nashville and she started playing songwriter rounds and recording with Michael McAdam and great Nashville musicians including Jimmy Lester, and Dave Roe who had worked with Johnny Cash, Steve Earle, Dwight Yoakum and many more. Another transfer back to Mississippi and Savraya started to write new material and gigging all over the Gulf Coast. She claims no specific genre with an open mind to past and present influences. Her second release “Glass Ball” finished first in the 2021 Ozone Songwriting competition. She works with regional videographer Chaz Singleton (Astroclown Productions) who has shot videos for hip hop artists including Juvenile, Choppa, Young Bleu, and the Ying Yang Twins.

Savraya is a unique artist with powerful vocals and meaningful lyrics for one so young! Enjoy this early morning conversation and musical performance with Savraya.

Joy Zimmerman, in regular rotation on KKFI’s Tasty Brew Music Radio Show, is a folk and acoustic roots singer/songwriter who cultivates joy with a clear, rich voice. She believes in the power of music and community. At home on guitar and violin, Joy’s most recent album, The Canvas Before Us, debuted at #8 on the FAI Folk Chart.

I concur with this assessment…."Joy Zimmerman combines consummate instrumental skill with moving lyrics...and she does it with wonderful creativity, beauty, and her clear, ringing, passionate voice." ~Mark Helpsmeet, Northern Spirit Radio

Also a personal favorite, Danielle Ate the Sandwich is the stage name of pop-folk songwriter, Danielle Anderson. Getting her start in Fort Collins, CO, now based in Kansas City, MO, Danielle has been touring nationally since 2009, after cultivating an online following from her homemade videos on YouTube. Danielle Ate the Sandwich has released seven albums of original music and toured internationally.

These two powerhouses recently met via the Heartland Song Network and as you’ll hear in this conversation, have joined forces and voices to collaborate on a new project of unknown destination and duration….we’ll just have to see. One of the wonderful byproducts so far is their collaboration with Erin McGrane and Eboni Fondren lending their voices on Joy’s song, “Hear our Voices” released on the heels of the statewide vote to preserve reproductive rights in Kansas. Enjoy this mid-day morning conversation with Joy Zimmerman and Danielle Anderson!

Nationally renowned, Québécois folk-pop musician, Geneviève Racette, has captivated listeners with her gentle, yet compelling voice and has garnered impressive industry support for her folk-pop tracks ever since her first EP in 2014. Through her lyricism and ethereal vocals (which you will hear throughout this session), Geneviève has emerged as a rising star in both French and English-speaking Canadian music scenes.

I was lucky enough to meet Genevieve early in 2022 and had her on the expanded 4 hour version of the Folk Alliance International Take Over of the Tasty Brew Music Radio Show on KKFI Radio. When she returned to Kansas City in late summer of 2022, I was only too happy to renew the acquaintance as I hosted my monthly episode of the Siren Song radio show.

It was enlightening to discover both the differences and similarities of pursuing a lyrical life and surviving a global pandemic in Canada vis a vis the United States and to become familiar with an artist’s educational background, collaborative and mentor experiences. Enjoy my conversation with the lovely Genevieve Racette.

Photo Credit:  Creator: ANNIE DIOTTE  Copyright: 5146059015

Quite often my involvement in the Roots Music Community affords me the opportunity to witness the launch of an artist that has the promise of a bona fide lyrical life. Forrest McCurren has that kind of potential with songs that can give you the spiritual and emotional reboot you may have difficulty achieving on your own.

Stylistically you’ll hear a tip of the hat to the greats he mentions in this conversation… Prine, Dylan, Clark, Van Zandt… Forrest sings of stories from waitresses, heartbroken high school football standouts, tattooed trailer park lovers…written for good people that are still trying to figure out if life is sweet or sour.

His backing band, The Daily Special,  includes wife Margaret McCurren, a multi-instrumentalist that is as comfortable with drumsticks as she is with a fiddle bow and with a voice that warmly compliments Forrest’s sound. As noted on their website...Margaret is the cold, refreshing, light beer to Forrest’s shot of whiskey. Like a piece of modern art at a county fair, they are complimentary opposites. Rounding out the line up is fellow Mid-Missourian Ryan Tannehill aka RT on a very tasty sounding Telecaster.

They call it Small Town Soul – Rural Rock n Roll. Catch them when you can as I’m pretty sure the release of the debut effort, Oh Me Oh My, is going to be their entry to a long and lyrical road…around the world. Oh and be sure to tell them your favorite joke...it may make it in to the banter of a show near you.

Enjoy this conversation with this cosmic troubadour from the heart of the heartland – Forrest McCurren.

The music of Wade Bowen has been spinning in my playlists since I went on the radio in 2010. My niece Shae was attending Texas State University in San Marcos at the time and Wade Bowen, Randy Rogers, Jason Bowland and others were working hard to become the “go to” purveyors of that very distinctive sound that some came to label as Outlaw or Red Dirt Country.

Today Wade is a familiar and awarded name in music, performing along the active touring highways of Texas and the Southwest and selling out top venues like the legendary Gruene Hall in New Braunfels and performing multiple times on the Grand Ole Opry. Carving out a dedicated fan base with his magnetic appeal and proven abilities, Bowen has now enjoyed a 20-year stint as a leader amongst a flourishing Americana and Alt-Country music community.

Wade continued his productive and lyrical life through the pandemic on his most recent full-length album, Somewhere Between The Secret And The Truth.

Wade recounts “I went through a big writer’s drought; kind of just being shell shocked from everything, not knowing how to handle it, and then finally came out of that and just had this flood of just wanting to write.” “This reset button really rejuvenated my passion for my entire career, all the way across the board. I was trying to find where I fit musically again. I’ve been doing this so long that I feel like I got off track from where I felt I fit–I was all over the place with my songwriting and my career.” “Ironically enough, COVID really gave me a chance to just turn my brain off a little bit and stop thinking. When I came out on the other side, I really found not only a renewed sense of my music and wanting to get out and play again, but I found a renewed sense of self. I found who I wanted to be as a writer, as a singer, as an artist.”

Wade cowrote all 12 songs on the record and serves as the sole producer for the first time in his career.

Pi Jacobs draws inspiration from her unconventional upbringing in the Land of Weed and Wine aka Northern California. Blending roots-rock swagger and storytelling soul, her music has drawn comparisons to Tom Waits, Dolly Parton and Lucinda Williams. She has been heard on NPR, Austin Music TV, Americana Highways and regularly on radio stations across the nation including 90.1 FM KKFI Kansas City Community Radio.

Tim Easton is repeat offender on the Tasty Brew Music Podcast having first appeared during a live recorded interview from the Woody Guthrie Folk Festival in Okemah, Oklahoma in 2019. Tim Easton was born on the Canadian border in upstate New York and spent his formative years living in Tokyo, Japan and Akron, Ohio. Traveling early and often, he learned the ways of the road and roads and spent 7 years as a bona fide troubadour, making his way around Europe, playing the streets and clubs, living in Paris, London, Madrid, Prague, and Dublin. Before the pandemic he toured Russia under the auspices of the US State Department. His songwriting style is folk based storytelling and personal traveling tales, often peppered with bold confessions or “tell it as it is” reality. Rolling Stone magazine praised him as “having a novelist’s sense of humanity”.

Pi and Tim were part of a contingent of artists who came in to the KKFI studios during the 2022 Folk Alliance Conference in Kansas City as part of a special 4 hour “takeover” of the Tasty Brew Music Radio Show. Enjoy these conversations and musical interludes with Pi Jacobs and Tim Easton!