Champaign Is Also A Band

Episode 39 Anika Emily - “Finish Line”

Sven pulls up a chair to chat with Anika Emily about her favorite song "Finish Line." We talk about songwriting, open mics, a tattoo, and kittens!
SONG: Finish Line
ALBUM: Perimeter Road Studio Singles
BANDS: Solo, but briefly Pop Punk Band: Free Fall Out Boy Concert
Favorite treat: Coffee
Photo credit: Andrew John
REFS:Harmony
Improvisation
Capo
Open Chord
Barre Chord
Keys
Head Voice
Chest Voice
Tessitura
Melisma
R&B
The Canopy Club
Champaign-Urbana Open Mic Nights
Tori Leppert
Riptide - Vance Joy [Song/Video]
Espresso Royale
Odesza [Band]
Floozies [Band]
Perimeter Road Sound Recording
Adam Porter (EP 26)
F*ck Finals at The Canopy Club
Espresso Open Mic
Latte Art
Simple Latte Art instruction [Video]
Coffee Fest
Navy Pier
Graham's 318 Coffee House

Episode 38 Chase Baby ”F*ck”

CW:  anxiety, mental health, and mention of suicide
*Updated version of song that has cleared samples*
In this episode Sven interviews Chase Scott about his song "Fuck." We talk about panic attacks, Chase's first big shot, and The Instant Pot. So grab your Playskool cassette player, grab your favorite Onyx tape, pretend it's not "Bacdafucup" and sip on some kombutcha as we talk about life and hip hop.
SONG: Fuck
ALBUM: 4 Shitz N Gigs
BANDS: Chase Baby and Trouble Chasin'
FAVORITE TREAT: Kombucha
PHOTO BY: Boots Howard
REFS:
Panic Attack
Playskool Cassette Player
Camelot Records
MTV Party to Go - Compilation
Wu-Tang Clan
Onyx
Bacdafucup [Album]
Digital Underground
The Body/Hat Syndrome [Album]
Freestyling
Fuck [video]
The Canopy Club
Blackbird
Cowboy Monkey
The Accord
The Highdive
Mike 'N Molly's
Machine Gun Kelly
Sedgwick & Cedar
DJ Kool Herc
J Dilla
Q-Tip
A Tribe Called Quest
De La Soul
Common
Jay Moses [Spotify]
TheGr8Thinkaz
Gr8SKY
Mother Nature
Jeff K%nz
Truth AKA Trouble/ Sandman Slimm
Gatson (EP 24)
JRel
Gwalla Boys
Moe Pesci
Thee Delinquents 
Rogue Tendency
The Champaign Cypher Series
Instant Pot
Big Treezz
Chasin' Treezz

Episode 37 Michael Carpenter of Decadents - “I'd Rather Be Lonely”

Even though my guest Mike Carpenter would rather be lonely he was willing to chat with me about his song "I'd Rather Be Lonely," being in a band in high school, creating the perfect set list, audiences, and his favorite non-musical thing. Grab yourself a Captain and Diet and settle down for CU music insight 18 years in the making. 
 
SONG: I'd Rather Be Lonely
ALBUM: Elegantly Wasted (Re-released: Apple, Spotify, Amazon, and YouTube.)
BANDS: Sagacity, Made, Civilian, Decadents, and Mojo: A Tribute to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Favorite treats : Captain & Diet / w/ mixed nuts
REFS:
Audioslave
Captain Rat and the Blind Rivets
Led Zepplin [Band]
Ramble On
Blues Scale
George Thorogood
The Virginia Theatre
State Farm Center
Joe Walsh
American Girl [Song]
Cowboy Monkey
The Simpsons
Free Fallin'
Full Moon Fever [Album]
The Mars Volta [Band]
Trope
Agnosticism
Ryan Groff (Ep 35)
Perennial Sound Studio
Decadents [Decadents First Album]
Channing Murray Foundation
Deck 16 [Band]
Missing the Point [Band]
Weiskemp Screen Printing
PC Paintbrush
McKinley Foundation
The Canopy Club
ZOSO [Led Zepplin Tribute Band]
Memphis On Main [Closed 2018]
The Iron Post
The City Center
Blackbird
Mike N Molly's
Seven Saints
Pour Bros. Craft Taproom
Neil St. Blues
Clark Bar
Rose Bowl Tavern
The Elbo Room
The Cubby Bear
The 200 Level
Bruce Springsteen
Roselita [Song]
Champaign Showers Podcast Network
Ayo Dosunmu injures knee [Video]
The 200 Level Episode about Ayo Dosunmu
Alfred Hitchcock
Jurassic Park
Vertigo
Stairway To Heaven [Song]
2001: A Space Odyssey [Movie]
Stanley Kubrick
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Super 8 Camera
Blockbuster Video
There Will Be Blood [Movie]
Paul Thomas Anderson [Director]
Boogie Nights [Movie]
Martin Scorsese [Director]
Good Fellas[Movie]
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood [Movie]
Quentin Tarantino [Director]
Little Women [Author: Louisa May Alcott]
Little Women [Movie]
Gretta Gerwig [Director]
 
 

Episode 36 Olivia Tasch of The Chickadee Sermon - “Town to Town”

**LINK TO DONATE TO GIRLS ROCK C-U**
Sven settles down to talk with Olivia Tasch about the song Town to Town.  We discuss the existence of "Comfort Folk" as a genre (briefly), gush over the amazing campers at last year's Girls Rock C-U Camp, sip coffee, and nibble on chocolate... all while Erin Valle (ciLiving.tv) shoots B roll.
SONG: Town to Town [Spotify]
ALBUM: Town to Town [Spotify]
BANDS: The Chickadee Sermon, Sunshine Daydream, Pinch of Grace
Favorite treats : Coffee/Dark Chocolate
Photo By: Olivia Tasch
Refs:
Cole Bridges and the Overpass (EP 25)
Devil in a Woodpile
The Merry Travelers (EP 33)
Bones Jugs
Perennial Sound Studio
The Grateful Dead
Dark Hollow [Wikipedia]
I Know You Rider [Video/The Grateful Dead]
I Know You Rider [Wikipedia]
Distance from Urbana, IL to Denver, CO :: 998.3 mi (via I-70 W) [Source Google Maps]
Rose Bowl Tavern
The Iron Post
Girls Rock Champaign-Urbana Affiliate [Facebook]
Girls Rock Champaign-Urbana Affiliate [Official Website]
Girls Rock Camp Alliance
The IMC
"Amy Found a Bird" [FB Live Video]  
DONATE TO Girls Rock C-U HERE(in case you missed the link at the top)
Amara Yoga & Arts
Living Yoga Center
Eco-Community (Ananda Liina)
Competitive Dance [wikipedia]

Episode 35 Ryan Groff of Elsinore - “Turn It On”

Sven takes the pod on the road and chats with Ryan Groff in his Perennial Sound Studio. We talk about the song: Turn It On off the album A Life In the 21st Century. We sip on Oat Milk Harvest Moons from Avionics, talk about getting political, and Ryan reveals who Elsinore will be at The Great Cover Up February 14th, 2020.  Listen all the way to the end to hear the big reveal!!!!
SONG: Turn It On
ALBUM: A Life In the 21st Century
BANDS: 206,The Last Resorts, Turtle Triumph, Ryan Groff & Brent Byrd (brief duo), Green Jenkins, Elsinore, Milford Men, Linea Crux
Favorite treats : Oat Milk Harvest Moon from Avionics and a Pekara Cinnamon Roll
Photo credit: Della Perrone
REFS:
Trump's Tweets
Trump Tweeting from the Toilet?
Queens of the Stone Age
Songs for the Deaf [Album]
First it Giveth [Song]
Mastodon
Marshall Full Stack
Les Paul
Radiohead
15 Step [Song]
In Rainbows [Album]
The General [Song]
Yes Yes Yes [Album]
Phoenix
The Smiths
Anti/Beyond [Band]
David Byrne
Talking Heads [Band]
Psycho Killer [Song]
Rocky [Movie]
Rocky [Soundtrack]
Gonna Fly Now [Song] [several versions exist]
Ben Folds 5
Precinct Committeeperson
Mike Ingram [For Recorder]
Mike n' Molly's [Closed] [reopened as part of Seven Saints]
Seven Saints
Cowboy Monkey
Highdive - The Accord [Closed]
Rose Bowl Tavern
The Blackbird
The Art Theater
The City Center
The Great Cover Up
Harry Potter
Ha ha! Did you really think Ryan would reveal who Elsinore was for The Great Coverup 2020??? ;-) THANKS FOR LISTENING!
 
 

Episode 34 Brad Olson - Part 2 : The Excerpt : Kyle

CW: Substance Abuse
Ep 34: Part 2 (the excerpt)
Sometimes interviews go in a different direction and don't necessarily fit with a regular episode.  This excerpt from my January 4th interview with Brad Olson where we talk about Kyle and his passing. I (sven) didn't know Kyle, but after hearing all of the great things about him. I really wish that I had. Fortunately, he has friends that will always love him dearly and we will always have the music that he made with Neoga Blacksmith. His talent some will describe as "like an Olympic gymnast..." doing the impossible, but making it look so easy. Kyle was like that with music.  
Brad, thank you for talking about Kyle with me and sharing your experiences.
The cover is from the Neoga Blacksmith album: Chronontonius the last album that Kyle played on and is dedicated to him.
Resources:
HERO: Heroin Epidemic Relief Organization
5 Myths About Opiods
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
SAMHSA = Find Treatment
Champaign Drug and Alcohol Rehab
Seeking Safety: A Treatment Manual for PTSD and Substance Abuse
 

Episode 34 Brad Olson of Neoga Blacksmith - “Formaldehyde”

Grab yourself a Bud and settle in for a chat about writing lyrics, raising the dead, longing, and finding a place where your music can find a home. Brad Olson, founder of the Hogchute Opry (bonus Ep. 1) tells me about his song "Formaldehyde" off the album "Piasa" by Neoga Blacksmith.
SONG: Formaldehyde
ALBUM:  Piasa
BANDS: Neoga Blacksmith, Primitive Lights, Vestiges, Waterfowl
Favorite treat : Budweiser
REFS:
Paul McCartney
Yesterday
Backmasking
Musicians Selling Their Souls (Deal With the Devil)
Eric Clapton
Robert Johnson
Shangri-Nah Studio (Matt Wenzel)
The Falbonaughts
Mike n' Molly's [Closed]
Memphis On Main [Closed 2018]
Rose Bowl Tavern
Loose Cobra
Bentley's Pub
Hogchute Opry
Hogchute 2018 Bonus EP 1
Kalyx Center
WEFT 90.1
The Fights
Penny Horses
Colonel James Presents
Primitive Lights
Tim McGee (EP 10)
Cole Bridges (EP 25)
Angie Heaton (EP 22)
Christy Hays
Tom Duggan (EP 31)
Paige Spangler [Motes LP Cover]
Tractor Kings
WPA Posters
Iconography
Compilations (past Hogchute)
Ephemera
Accoutrement
WPGU

Episode 33 Holly Monet of Merry Travelers - “Flight of the Bodhi”

Sven takes 5 and sips Pinot Noir with Holly Monet as they talk about the song "Flight of the Bodhi," smell the locally grown wildflowers, and declare "That's not fog!"
SONG: Flight of the Bodhi
ALBUM:  Unreleased
BANDS: The Merry Travelers (2016-present) Rainbow Flag (acoustic folk duo with Rachael Wilson, 2014-2017)
Favorite treats: Drink: Red Wine// Treat: Take 5
Photo credit: Holly Monet
Refs:
Vignette
WEFT 90.1
Merry Travelers on WEFT Sessions [VIDEO]
Bodhisattva
Kenna Mae (EP 13)
Rose Bowl Tavern
Champaign Street Fest
Big Grove Tavern
Sleepy Creek Vinyards
Hogchute Opry
The Red Herring (Restaurant and Venue)
Klezmer
Vivian McConnell (EP 14)
Grandkids
Caffe Paradiso
Urbana First Fridays
Imbibe Urbana
Vegfest
Primitive Lights (EP 10)
Mermaid Heaven
Emily Anne Band (EP 12)
Cannabis
Illinois Legalizes Cannabis January 1st, 2020
Delight Flower Farm

Episode 32 Taylor Loveall and Sarah Cramer of Maps of the Midwest - “Painted Trains”

Sven enjoys a Little Kings Cream Ale and a Snicker-doodle blizard with the newly formed Maps of the Midwest : Sarah Cramer and Taylor Loveall.  We talk about the song "Painted Trains" which was recorded live in the Blue Box Studio.
SONG: Painted Trains
ALBUM: Unreleased 
BANDS: Taylor: Bright Blue Mourning and Taylor Loveall (Solo) Sarah: Duke of Uke and His Novelty Orchestra, Dollypop, Relevator, Sleeping Okami
Favorite Treats: Sarah: Kombucha and DQ Snicker-doodle Blizzard Taylor: Little Kings Cream Ale and Cherry Pull 'n Peel Twizzlers
Photo credit: Sven
Refs:
Dave King (Duke of Yuke)
Solo version of "Painted Trains"
The Rose Bowl Tavern
Loose Cobra
The Canopy Club
The City Center
The Great Coverup
Pygmalion Festival
Ryan Groff of Elsinore
Ryan Groff as Whitney Houston [Video]
The Iron Post
Dave Pride (The Fights, Primitive Lights)
Rebekah Songer Band
Cowboy Monkey [past music venue]
Garden of the Gods (Shawnee National Forest)
Kenna Mae (Ep. 13)
Kombucha
SCOBY
Tim McGee (Ep. 10)

Episode 31 Tom Duggan of Vestiges - “Rituals”

Sven grabs a slice of berry pie and hunkers down for a conversation with Tom Duggan about his song "Rituals" as recorded by the band Vestiges. We talk about free writing, finding treasures, and the origins of Hand Sandwich Records. 
SONG: Rituals
ALBUM: World Tour EP
BANDS: Smoke Aggression, Wasteoid Workforce, Patriot Patrol, The Uncreatures, Eternal Mirrors, Crystal Warlock, Conroy Wolf, Vestiges, 
Favorite : Vegan Berry Pie
Photo credit: Gillian Gabriel
Refs:
Billions and Billions: Thoughts on Life and Death at the Brink of the Millennium: Chapter 17 Gettysburg and Now (Carl Sagan)
Marshall Amps (goes to eleven) This is Spinal Tap [Video]
Hogchute
The Rose Bowl Tavern
N. M. Garcia
The Merry Travelers
Little Black Spiders
The Iron Post
Fostex X14
Hand Sandwich (Metallica Behind the Scenes Reference) [Video]
Decayed Lace - WEFT 90.1 FM
FAWM.org
Radio Maria / Torta Maria -– roasted Poblano peppers, corn, goat cheese, sweet potato and mole layered between flour tortillas and topped with Chihuahua cheese
Agar Flakes
Miso Paste