Scenic Route

Cook County residents Liv Sulerud and M Baxley joined Will Moore on the Scenic Route on November 15th for some in-studio music. WTIP fans may know Baxley from their video work with the station and throughout the region over the years, while Sulerud is part of the local vocal group Basalta. Together they combine on guitar and banjo to share new original songs and some other favorites on the Scenic Route.

Carlisle Evans Peck is a musician, songwriter, and storyteller based in Minneapolis. On November 9th, they’ll be heading up the North Shore to the log cabin building at the Grand Marais Community Center for a a performance of their show “Iconoclasm”. Described as a “sweeping ritual-cabaret…out to queer what it means to be a bard”, Peck dons the persona of several queer individuals from their own family history to tell their story. Peck joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about the show, the inspirations behind it, and the research behind the stories being told through its music.

John Lowell is an award-winning songwriter from Montana visiting the North Shore with a performance at the Arrowhead Center of the Arts in Grand Marais via the North Shore Music Association. He chats with Will Moore ahead of the performance about his songwriting philosophies, his latest album Snow on the Wineglass, and life out West in Big Sky country.

Sister Species is a multi-instrumental seven-piece band from the Twin Cities whose music abounds with brass sections, layered guitars, and complex arrangements surrounding the vocals of Emily Kastrul. Emily joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about their new album Lena in the Bog, the story of the dog who inspired the album’s title and artwork, and more.

Andy Keith and Kari Carter are two longtime North Shore residents now sharing a joy of music together, with Kari performing publicly for the first time and Andy returning to a number of original songs to perform alongside her. They join Will Moore on the Scenic Route for their first radio performance together.

Steve Klick is a Gunflint Trail resident who is known for wowing at local open mic nights with his powerful voice and guitar playing, tapping into the sound of the 90s and 00s alt rock scenes. He joins Will Moore for a return on Scenic Route playing tunes and talking about his experiences a year after moving to Cook County.

Gavin Haley is a Kentucky-born, formerly LA-based musician who has traveled across the country making music and writing songs with an acoustic pop flair and expressive voice. Finding his way up to Cook County for the summer of 2024, he stops by WTIP and plays some of his latest original songs on the Scenic Route with Will Moore before moving to Brooklyn. He speaks with Will about his songwriting processes, myriad of cross country travels, and more.

Joshua Schmidt is a Minneapolis-based multi-instrumentalist who releases music under the name Cryote. Born and raised in Cook County, MN, his latest album “Transcendental Love Songs” is finally released, with an all-acoustic version also available. Joshua joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about the new album, as well as making music for NBC that was used during the Olympics, new plans with his band Step Rockets, and more.

Baseline Bad is an up and coming band from the Twin Cities area featuring two members who grew up in Cook County, Will Seaton and Kieran Scannell, along with Johnny Schuster and Parker Brown. Will, Parker, and Johnny all join Will Moore on the Scenic Route ahead of a performance at Up Yonder in Grand Marais, performing original songs.

Keith Secola is an acclaimed Ojibwe musician originally from Bois Forte on Minnesota’s Iron Range, now based in Tempe, AZ. Returning to Cook County for a performance at Grand Portage’s annual Rendezvous Days festival, he stops by WTIP for an impromptu interview and performance with Will Moore. He talks about the Tempe music scene, his songwriting process, and plays his famous song “NDN Cars” along with the debut of a brand new upcoming song.

Lynden Graham is a young songwriter who grew up in Grand Marais, now freshly based in the Twin Cities. The son of longtime Cook County musician Boyd “Bump” Blomberg, a long trip to Ireland helped him find his voice and musical style playing in pubs and bedroom studios. His new album “A Boy Named After a God Damned Tree” features a set of original songs with a unique DIY feel. Lynden performs several songs during this interview with Will Moore.

RLB – Formerly the Rich Lewis Band – is a soulful band out of the Twin Cities that doesn’t limit themselves based on genre or style. Continuing after lead singer Rich Lewis passed away last year, his daughter Faye now leads the band with a rich voice and terrific instrumentation from the rest of the players. Meet the group and hear them play four songs live on the air during the Roadhouse hosted by Will Moore and Phil Oswald.

Nikki Lemire is a musician from the Twin Cities area whose new album “Live at Lakewood” has her performing new original songs for voice and harp at the Lakewood Cemetery Chapel in Minneapolis. Joining Will Moore on the Scenic Route ahead of a performance at the Lutsong music festival, she performs and talks about some of her new songs inspired by her children, how lockdown during the pandemic fueled her creativity, and her memories listening to WTIP’s bird programming.

Willow Waters is a multi-instrumentalist songwriter based in the Twin Cities who has played with a great number of groups including Sister Species, Ginger Bones, and Carlisle Evans Peck. Willow’s new album with her band The Earth Tones is entitled “I RISE, I FALL” and is the group’s most ambitious project to date. Willow joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about the emotions behind the songs, the complexity of the arrangements that involve strings and brass, and how the various soundscape interlude tracks were recorded.

“I RISE, I FALL” has a release show at the Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis on July 25th at 7pm.

Molly Maher is a guitarist and songwriter from the Twin Cities area who also serves as one of the curators and lead personnel of the Lutsong Music Festival in Lutsen, MN. With the festival now entering its third year, Molly talks about what’s new this year and gives an overview of the lineup and what to expect. She also gives a preview of her own upcoming set at the event and other recent projects she’s been working on.

Ray Bonneville is a Juno Award-winning Canadian-American songwriter based in Sault St. Marie, Ontario known for his blend of folk and blues sounds that’s led to a decades long career and great success. He joins Will Moore and Carl Solander on the Scenic Route ahead of a performance at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts in Grand Marais, talking about his latest album On the Blind Side and the stories of his life that inspired many of the songs. He talks about his chaotic younger years, his time in the military, a harrowing airplane incident, and his penchant for thrift shopping.

Jim McGowan has been a familiar name for music lovers in Cook County for many years, as one of the areas most consistent local performers. Last year however, Jim moved to the Bay Area in California for work and to be closer to family. He returns to the North Shore for a string of gigs this month and catches up with Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about what he’s been up to and plays several songs.

Strikepoint is an 11-piece handbell choir based out of Duluth that has travelled the world performing all sorts of types of music on a variety of bells large and small in what longtime member Nancy Eason calls a combination between a “ballet and an Olympic sport”. Will Moore talks with Nancy and fellow StrikePoint member Derek Bromme to learn more about what to expect from this unique performance, the ensemble’s worldly travels, and more.

Kenna Rose is a singer/songwriter from San Diego, California returning to Cook County after moving from the North Shore several years ago. She comes back to WTIP to join Will Moore on the Scenic Route to play a number of new original songs and talk about playing music on the West Coast.

The Landscapes formed in Duluth out of the COVID pandemic through a lucky listing on Craigslist looking for fellow musicians, and are now three years into creating what they call “instrumental groove and soul” in the Northland. Drummer Garth Anderson joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to tell us more about the band and their unique style of original music ahead of a weekend of shows at the Gunflint Tavern in Grand Marais.

The Splints are a six-piece band from Grand Marais that defies genre, mixing everything from jazz, blues, and rock to polka, swing, and zydeco. The group has gone through many different iterations in its roughly 30 year history, led by lead singer and accordion player Leah Thomas. She joins host Will Moore in the studio along side fiddlers Max Bichal and Ben Obinger to talk about their new record Sparta Sessions recorded Sparta Studios with Rich Mattson. They talk about the recording process, how Ben joined the band, and their upcoming release show later this month.

Cook County Sheriff Pat Eliasen is also an accomplished musician who has been taking his solo act up and down the North Shore of Minnesota and beyond. He joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about his upcoming gigs, new material he’s been working on, and balancing music with a career in law enforcement.

Mark Zierath is a resident of Cook County who has been living on the North Shore for nearly 15 years, most of which has been spent off the grid. He’s also a talented fingerstyle guitar player, though he’ll be the first to tell you he prefers playing for himself rather than lining up gigs and playing public shows. However, he did join the lineup of the seventh annual Grand Marais Ole Opry on May 18th, and came in to WTIP to play some songs in the studio ahead of the show. He talks with Will Moore about his musical background and the Dave Seaton-made guitar he uses to perform.

Honky Tonk Jump is an energetic Western swing band from the Twin Cities with an accomplished lineup musicians headed up to Grand Marais to headline the Grand Marais Ole Opry on May 18th at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts. Accordionist and singer Dan Newton joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about the band, the history of Western swing, and his myriad other accordion-based musical projects.

Danny Frank is an accomplished guitarist and songwriter based out of Duluth, known for playing with his band The Smoky Gold featuring the talented Erin Aldridge on fiddle, Harrison Olk on banjo, and Smokin’ Joe Scarpallino on bass. He chats with Will Moore about the band’s latest release “Live from the Heart”, a live album recorded at Sacred Heart Music Center, and more of the bands upcoming plans for the summer starting with a show at Blacklist Brewing for the Duluth Homegrown Festival.

Emily Haavik is a Twin Cities-based songwriter who got her musical start in the Duluth area, and along with her expansive group the 35s, creates a captivating Americana sound with powerful original songs. She joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about the band’s origins, their show for the Duluth Homegrown festival, her own background in radio and broadcasting, and upcoming music debuting at the Turf Club in St. Paul later this summer.

Marc Gartman has been a longtime creative force in the Duluth music scene, with projects such as Coyote, Glitterati, Marc Gartman’s Fever Dream, and the Grateful Dead style band Lazy Lightning 420. One of his latest ventures is the band Damien, an upbeat and funky electronic project whose second album Damien II: Son of Damien releases this weekend along with a performance for the Duluth Homegrown festival. Marc chats with Will Moore about how the band was created around a lucky thrift store find, working with Alan Sparhawk of Low and his son Cyrus, and an unexpected band that first got him into making music.

Jason Wussow and a team of talented musicians and engineers have been recording the One Week Live concert and album series at Wussow’s Concert Cafe in West Duluth for over 20 years now. Recorded in October, the 21st edition of the local live music compilation album being released this weekend, with several of the participating artists coming back to the cafe for shows throughout the weekend to promote this annual Duluth music tradition. Jason joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk more about the making of the album and what to expect from the weekend slate of shows.

Morningbird is a folk trio from the Iron Range of Minnesota who’s debut full-length album is entitled Echoes in the Meadow, referencing a trip through the mountains the band took to write many of the songs found on the album. Fiddler Jill Burkes and guitarist Rob Wheeler join Will Moore to talk about that trip, what else went into making the record, and fun times at the Kansas City Folk Alliance ahead of their album release how at Wussow’s Concert Cafe in Duluth.

Shemekia Copeland’s rich, vibrant voice and powerful electric blues sound has led her down the path of becoming one of the premiere modern blues artists in the country. Ahead of a performance at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts in Grand Marais, she joins Will Moore to talk about her appearance on a recent Grammy-winning album, growing up playing shows with her father Johnny Copeland, and details on her upcoming album.

Douglas Gilbert is a Twin Cities based musician who’s been visiting Cook County for years and has a deep love of the area. His debut album is called “Would You Like to Dance?” and features an all-star cast of Minnesotan musician backing him up original songs rich with history and personal stories. He joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to chat about what went into making this album.

Shane Nelson is a guitarist and songwriter from the Duluth area who’s upcoming album has him bursting at the seams with excitement and appreciation for his friends and fellow players in the local music scene. He joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route ahead of a performance at the Duluth Songwriter Showcase at Sacred Heart Music Center to share his excitement for the album, how some of his songs have connections to experiences at the movies, and more.

Taylor James Donskey sees himself as a sideman first and foremost, musically speaking. He’s an accomplished bass player playing with all sorts of groups and genres of music, but is also a talented solo singer-songwriter as well, with a new single entitled “Don’t Wanna Lose” released this month. He’s also one of the main forces behind the Twin Cities Songwriter Rounds, a series that showcases up and coming songwriters at various venues in the metro area. He joins Will Moore to talk about all this and more.

Skarlett Woods is a Brainerd-based musician who’s latest album Letters to the West chronicle a move out to the woods of the Pacific Northwest and California and back home again, musing on relationships, the presence of social media, and the places she’s lived. She speaks with Will Moore on Scenic Route about her music, unlearning guitar to adapt to a 7-string instrument, building tiny homes, and the more.

Michael Forney is an accomplished fiddler from the Twin Cities who grew up playing bluegrass in North Carolina and spent many years in the Irish music scene in Massachusetts. Playing with the band Prairie Potluck, he talks about the connections between Irish and bluegrass music ahead of a few St. Patrick’s Day weekend performances at Cascade Lodge with a trio called Bless Your Heart.

Paul “Stretch” Diethelm is an accomplished guitarist hailing from St. Cloud, MN, known for being a longtime guitarist in the Central Minnesota area and currently a member of The Fabulous Armadillos. He joins Will Moore on Scenic Route ahead of a performance on Cascade Lodge to talk about his time playing and touring with Johnny Lang, the music scene in the St. Cloud area, and the various events the Armadillos host throughout the year.

Twin Cities based Irish duo Patsy O’Brien and Dick Hensold return to the North Shore for a run of shows ahead of St. Patrick’s Day, stopping for a live music session at WTIP’s studios ahead of a show in Thunder Bay and another at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts here in Grand Marais. They join Will Moore and Carl Solander to share their music.

Luke Callen is a guitarist and songwriter originally from LaCrosse, WI who is now calls the Twin Cities home. He calls his style of music “Upper Mid-Western”, and latest album Also Going Nowhere features songs with characters that embody the region, including the many walks of life found in his Minneapolis neighborhood. He joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about the new release and the stories behind several of the songs.

Steve Lehto and John Wright (along with drummer Matt Jacobs) have played together for over 20 years as Lehto & Wright, a band that blends Celtic, English, and American folks songs together with progressive rock instrumentation and complex, multi-stage compositions. Returning to the Arrowhead Center for the Arts, they spoke with Will Moore on the Scenic Route about their journey as a band, writing process, a possible upcoming album, and more.

Leslie Vincent is a talented jazz singer based out of Minneapolis with a brand new album called “About Last Night” that takes the listener on a journey of a whirlwind evening through music. Vincent joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route ahead of a performance at the Sacred Heart Music Center in Duluth to talk about her musical career and stories behind her songs on the new album.

Zach Baltich is a Duluth-based drummer and composer known for eclectic and experimental percussion-based soundscapes and playing with the band Ginger Bones among many others. He joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about an upcoming show as in his hometown of Ely, MN alongside novelist Alec Osthoff that pairs written word with original music. The show is part of the Northern Lakes Concert Series at the Vermilion Fine Arts Theater.

John Kerns is a Minneapolis based songwriter and guitarist returning to the North Shore for a show at Cascade Lodge and Restaurant. He returns for another remote performance on the Scenic Route to share original songs and the stories behind them.

Iron Range rockers Rich Mattson & the Northstars and Duluth-based jam group SaltyDog join forces for a double-header of a night of music at Up Yonder in Grand Marais this weekend. Will Moore speaks with both bands (who share a bass player) about what they’ve been up to this winter and what to expect at the show.

Today, Maria Nickolay is a musician based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, but several of the songs on her new EP entitled Wolves deal with her longing for her home where she grew up – Cook County, Minnesota. She speaks with Will Moore on the Scenic Route about life in Ireland, the long process of making this EP during the pandemic, and how she overcame losing her vocal strength after falling ill with COVID to finish the project. She performs two songs from the EP at the WTIP studios along with another song she wrote while living on the North Shore.

Local guitarist Adam Kirsch returns to the Scenic Route to talk about his Minneapolis-based band Diie and their second release of this year entitled The Right Hand of the Devil. Adam talks about how this record has been in development since the pandemic, gets into its 1970s horror movie inspiration, and touches on other new upcoming projeects.

Wednesday Night Jazz Host Eric Anderson is also an accomplished low brass player, playing everything from trombone to euphonium to tuba. He’s joined by a cast of local musicians for a special live holiday jazz show featuring some of your favorite songs of the season done in a jazz style.

Featured musicians:

Eric Anderson – trombone, euphonium, tuba

Erik Hahn – alto sax, soprano sax, flute

Dan Nelson – guitar

Mike Roth – bass guitar

Mike Debevec – keys, hand percussion

Local musician and Lutsen-born pianist Al Oikari has played with an uncountable number of musicians up and down the North Shore but is best known for being the keyboard player for the acclaimed ’90s jam band The Big Wu from the Twin Cities. Al shares stories of his time playing and touring with the band over the phone, getting into the ups and downs of the bands career as he prepares for their reunion show at First Avenue in downtown Minneapolis

Guitarist Steve Klick recently moved to Cook County and sports a powerful voice perfect for playing the grunge and alternative rock styles of the 1990s and early 2000s. He joins Will Moore on Scenic Route for his radio debut talking about his musical background, playing a number of his favorite songs of that era and style, and wrapping up with an original song entitled “Hot to the Touch” with an explosive story behind it.

Duluth-based band Indecent Proposal joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route program to talk about their latest string of singles and music videos. Joining Will are lead singer and guitarist Josh Brown and bass player Terry “Slumbucket” Beckman, talking about the band’s origins, songwriting, and fostering a creative environment free of industry influences. They go over their new songs “Late in the Morning”, “Behind Her Eyes” and “Feeling Good”.

You can find out more about Indecent Proposal on their website. 

Pete Kavanaugh is a longtime musician of Cook County known for playing electric blues and fronting a number of local bands over the years. His latest band is called Zulu Link alongside bassist Jonathan Steckelberg and drummer Ted Czaplicki. Watch a performance by Pete and Jonathan and listen to their interview on The Scenic Route from November 17th below.

Bradley Charles is a retired educator, guitarist and songwriter from Salt Lake City, Utah who vacations in Cook County and has been steadily entering the local music scene. He returns to the Scenic Route with Will Moore to perform and talk about his music, including two brand new original songs. You can hear the whole interview and performance below.

Local musician and DJ Bryan Kelly, who performs under the name DJ Mouth, stopped by WTIP to perform a mix for The Scenic Route ahead of a post-Halloween costumed performance at Up Yonder. Kelly says this will kick off “Unity”, a monthly series of different DJs and dance nights at the local music venue. He also talks about his favorite styles of music to use in his sets and answers the question: what is the difference between techno and house music?

Listen to the whole interview and Kelly’s full mix below:

Buffalo Galaxy is a talented jam-oriented bluegrass group from Minneapolis whose sound is where “heavy hitting psychedelia meets old timin’ bluegrass”. The band is comprised of Johnny Kovarik on vocals/guitar, Pete Whiteman on bass, Zach Tauer on banjo, and Jake Rohde on mandolin. They performed live on WTIP during the 2023 Fall Membership Drive on The Scenic Route with Will Moore. See them perform 3 original songs here as part of the Live at WTIP series:

John Ellison is a West Virginia Music Hall of Fame inductee and has been making music since the early 1960s. In 1967 he wrote the song “Some Kind of Wonderful” with his band the Soul Brothers Six, which would go on to be recorded by Grand Funk Railroad and become an instant classic popular song, recorded by dozens of artists since then.

On the Scenic Route with Will Moore, he tells the incredible story of how the song came to be, how its popularity changed his life, and why he recently re-recorded the song himself for an upcoming album due out this fall.

John Ellison will be performing alongside the Carpenter Ants at Radio Waves Music Festival on Sunday, September 10th. Complete festival details are available here.  Note that the online ticket option ends at midnight on Tuesday, September 5th!

Emmett Doyle is a Minneapolis-based folks songwriter who describes himself as “a working class rebel musician- a union carpenter, former river deckhand, raised on a farm in central Minnesota”. In conversation with Will Moore on the Scenic Route – he talks about growing up on that farm and how from a young age became deeply invested in progressive and labor union-focused folk songs. He performs songs from his new album Rust Belt Ballads which chronicle labor strikes both past and present, along with recent class and environmental struggles in both Minnesota and around the United States.

Mae Simpson wowed WTIP and Lutsen’s Papa Charlie’s with live performances this winter – now she is back with a brand new album entitled Chandelier & Bloom that features more of her soulful high energy brand of Americana-infused rock and roll. She talks with Will Moore about what makes this new record so special and all the things she and her band have been up to this summer.

The Swongos are a powerful surf rock trio hailing from the St. Croix Falls area of Wisconsin. Comprised of Thomas Mangelsen on Guitar, Lisa Mangelsen on bass, and Brian Liggett on on drums, they join Will Moore on the Scenic to talk about their music, silly choreography, skateboarding, Elvis, and more. And Brian brought snacks!

Bradley Charles is a retired educator and musician from Salt Lake City, Utah and a perennial visitor to the North Shore of Minnesota. He joins Will Moore and Annie Possis on the Scenic Route to perform live in the studio, talking about the music scene out West and performs new original songs as well as a cover of an up and coming Salt Lake artist.

Cherry Dirt is the duo of Staci and Ryan Cihlar from Richfield, MN that plays classic favorite songs on ukulele and vocals often with a fun original twist. The always banter-full duo returns to the North Shore for another gig and stop in to WTIP (with their dog Mary!) to talk about what they’ve been up to, including Ryan’s new gig as an airport accordionist.

Returning for its second year is the Twin Ports Music Festival held at Earth Rider Brewing in Superior Wisconsin. Festival Organizer Jon Miller, who plays guitar in the Wisconsin-based bluegrass band Feed the Dog, talks about this years lineup and what to expect, including new acts and headlining blues guitarist Ana Popovich coming all the way from her native Serbia to perform.

More information is at https://twinportsmusicfestival.com/

Eliza Blue is a Minnesota-born musician who has spent the last decade and a half living on the prairies of western South Dakota. Her latest EP is called The Grass Widow: Rough Drafts, and is a precursor to an upcoming “folk opera” due out next year. She speaks with Will Moore on the Scenic Route about the upcoming project as well as a myriad of her other creative endeavors including a PBS program, and how she finds new ways of connecting to the land and the people of the prairie.

Keith Secola is an acclaimed Anishinaabe musician and activist born in Cook, MN and now based out of Arizona. He’s the recipient of several Native American Music Awards and has a long career spanning over three decades and eight studio albums. He joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route, calling in from a songwriting session on Lake Vermillion ahead of his performance at the Grand Portage Lodge and Casino with Rich Mattson and the Northstars. He talks about his recent projects, collaborating with a new young indigenous artist, writing music for high school students, and more.

Twin Cities songwriter and guitarist John Kerns once again joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to share some of his songs ahead of two gigs on the North Shore, July 28 at Bluefin Grille and July 29 at Cascade Lodge. He tells us about playing children’s shows vs grown-up shows, more about his Red Hot Chili Peppers cover band, and playing the North Shore during the pandemic, among other things.

Jerry Vandiver is an annual visitor to Cook County, the Boundary Waters, and WTIP. Hailing from Nashville, he’s a prolific songwriter of paddling songs, and fun and humorous tunes about camping, canoeing, backpacking and loving the outdoors. He joins Will Moore and Annie Possis on the Scenic Route to perform, share stories, and talk about songs from his latest album Peaceful Waters, which he made with his frequent collaborator Caitlin Evanson.

Prank Williams is the Twin Cities-based duo of Tony Petersen (Social Animals, Ditchbird) and Chris Hollister – a project that grew out of Irish band Broken Spoke, the two of them create lyrically focused and sonically expansive Americana. They join Will Moore on the Scenic Route amid car trouble on tour in southern Minnesota to talk about their EP “Palindrome”, which has released ahead of a full length album called “The Gospel According to Prank Williams” due out this fall. Tony and Chris go over every song on the new EP and the stories and inspirations behind them.

8 Months Winter is a trio from the Gunflint Trail that brings the loud guitars and sonic intensity of the grunge era of the 90s and alternative rock of the early 2000s. With Rick Austin on guitar, John Hanson on drums, and Nace Hageman on bass, they make their radio debut outrunning a thunderstorm on WTIP’s back porch.

8 Months Winter will be performing at Up Yonder on Saturday, July 22.

Acclaimed Grand Portage jazz guitarist Briand Morrison will release his latest album entitled “Old Feathers” this Friday – with an accompanying release party at the new Studio 21 in Grand Marais from 6-8pm. Briand joins Will Moore on Overtones to talk about the new direction of this album, recording all instruments himself, and what to expect from the release party.

With a dozen members spanning several generations and several high-level music degrees between them, the Duluth Transit Authority plays the hits from the band Chicago and other great bands of their era. Band member Paul Lemenager joins Will Moore on WTIP to talk about the history and various era of Chicago, and what makes their music stand the test of time.

Duluth Transit Authority will be playing a free 18+ show at Grand Portage Lodge and Casino on Saturday, July 8th. More information is at grandportage.com.

Back for its second year of bringing talented songwriters from across the region to the North Shore, the Lutsong Music Festival will return to Caribou Highlands and the North Shore Winery along Ski Hill Road in Lutsen, with nearly twice as many acts as last year. Festival co-organizer and Winery owner Chuck Corliss speaks with Will Moore about what to expect from this year’s festival.

You can find more information about Lutsong on the festival website, lutsongmusicfestival.com.

Alexander Craig says his new tour entitled “Country Funk Grease Punk” perfectly embodies his sound – a tough and energetic style of blues rock with songs holding messages of finding ways to getting over any obstacle that comes your way. This spring he’s been releasing a series of new singles, as well as a music video for the song “Motorcycle.” On the Scenic Route with Will Moore he plays one of his latest songs live, talks about the struggles of being a musician in an ever-evolving online landscape, and gives the crazy backstory to how his bombastic new music video came to be.

Willow Waters is a multi-instrumentalist from Minneapolis who leads the band the Earth Tones – a rotating cast of players that span brass, wind, and string instruments. Their rich and eclectic sound is found on every track of the new record “The Friction I Demand”. Waters joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about the album’s themes grief, loss, and experiencing transphobia. She says the record tells a story of moving through those heavy feelings in order to come back “with a sense of return and a sense of purpose”. You can listen to the whole interview below:

Jillian Rae is a Minneapolis musician who was born on the Iron Range, and is known for her work with the bands Corpse Reviver and the Okee Dokee Brothers, along with a solo career filled with original tunes. Initially a classical violinist turned multi-disciplined fiddler, she recently released a new single entitled “Barely Breathing”, her first new song since 2019. She talks with Will Moore about her musical background, overcoming writer’s block and the pandemic, and what makes this new song so important as she journeys forth with new music on the horizon.

Lojo Russo is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist from the Twin Cities now living in Davenport, IA. Living a lifelong passion of making music, she has travelled all over the upper Midwest (including Cook County) for decades sharing her music with as many folks as possible. With a passionate style that can’t be pinned down or pigeonholed, she has continued to focus on her career as a musician through the pandemic, a cancer diagnosis, and more. She joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route and shares four original songs.

The annual Homegrown Music Festival in Duluth has kicked off this week, lasting 8 days from April 30 – May 7. The event sprawls over dozens of venues and businesses all over the Twin Ports area with over 170 local musicians playing day and night. Breanne Tepler is a local Duluth musician and is on the festival’s steering committee – she joins Will Moore to talk about what to expect from the festival this year and previews a new song with her band The Front Porch Sinners ahead of their show Tuesday at the DECC.

More information can be found here at duluthhomegrown.org

Acclaimed Minneapolis songwriter Ann Reed returns to the Arrowhead Center for the Arts this Saturday, April 29th as part of the North Shore Music Association’s series of concerts. She spoke with Will Moore on the Scenic Route ahead of the performance, detailing her past in the Twin Cities folk scene and recent projects.

You can find out more about the show at northshoremusicassociation.com

Trapper Schoepp is a Milwaukee-based songwriter and longtime frequenter of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness who’s been coming up to Cook County for wilderness adventures for many years. His latest album entitled Siren Songs chronicles his love of waterways and the Great Lakes and even features a song entitled “Devil’s Kettle” about the famous local landmark. He chats with Will Moore about how he came to record the record in Tennessee cabin owned by Johnny Cash, finishing a long-lost song by Bob Dylan, and wild stories from travelling around the country. You can find out more about the album on his website.

Original airdate: 4/17/23

John Kerns is a musician and songwriter out of the Twin Cities whose musical background is as varied as it gets. From putting out children’s albums, to working a steady job as a rock-oriented music director at a church, to being part of a Red Hot Chili Peppers cover band, after two decades he now is refocusing his career on gigging and playing out as much as possible. He joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about his journey and what lies ahead.

This feature originally aired 4/7/23 on WTIP.

MNSpin is a curated online music streaming service focused on recent releases by Minnesota artists. The service is made possible by the Friends of the Hennepin County Library and has been active since 2017, adding up to 100 albums by musicians across the state each year. Applications are currently open through April 17.

Jeff Radford at Hennepin County Library in Minneapolis joins Will Moore to tell us more and how artists can submit their work.

More information can be found on the MNSpin website.

OK Factor is a string duo of violinist Karla Colahan and cellist Olivia Diercks, who are celebrating ten years of making music together with their latest album “OKX”. They join Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about the new record and the meanings behind a number of the tracks on the album, which chronicle big milestones in their lives or have dedications to those close to them. They also talk about their educational program, Atlas, and working with students to bring music into schools.

Adam Aijala is the guitarist and one of the founding members of the acclaimed and nationally-touring bluegrass group Yonder Mountain String Band from Colorado. Ahead of the band’s first performance on the North Shore, he talks with Will Moore about getting into bluegrass music, how the genre has grown, thoughts on being nominated for a Grammy this year, and what to expect from the bands upcoming show at Lutsen Mountains.

Minneapolis songwriter David Huckfelt joins Will Moore on Sidetracks once again ahead of a performance at Papa Charlie’s songwriter series at Lutsen Mountains. David talks about his recent involvement at the Water is Life Southwest festival in Tuscon, AZ, an upcoming performance on Mountain Stage, and hopes for coming up North for his show.

Orkestar Bez Ime is a long-running band from the Twin Cities focusing on the many cultures and traditional music styles of the Balkan peninsula in Eastern Europe. From Ukrainian to Serbian to Romanian folk songs, as well as those of the Romani people, the group brings to life the music of a region rich with culture and history in energetic performances. Four members of the band, Natalie Nowytski (vocals) , Scott Keever (guitar), Katrina Mundinger (clarinet) and Colleen Bertch (violin), join Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about their music, including how scales and rhythms they play differ from music our ears may be used to.

Duluth’s Diona Johnson makes music under the name AfroGeode, and alongside her band The Gemstones, creates jazzy swirl of genres and memorable songs centered on her powerful voice and thought-provoking, empowering lyrics. She joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about her music and the band’s upcoming record ahead of a performance at Sacred Heart Music Center in Duluth.

Dave Simonett is returning to Papa Charlie’s for the Wednesday night Songwriter Series on March 8th. Ahead of the show he joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to chat about Trampled By Turtles’ lastest album Alpenglow, released in October, where they got to work with producer Jeff Tweedy of Wilco. Dave talks about hitting the road with the band again and what to expect from the quiet room show in Lutsen.

More information about the concert can be found at lutsen.com