West Michigan acts continue to make a splash beyond the region, from Europe to Nashville to New York City. Get the lowdown in this Local Spins early December music news update.
Red Tail Ring: Impressing German audiences.
RED TAIL RING PLAYS TO AVID NEW FANS ON GERMAN TOUR
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Anyone who follows Michigan’s folk scene knows that Kalamazoo’s Red Tail Ring – with its captivating twists on traditional music – is an emerging force in a region rich with indie-folk stars.
But the duo of Michael Beauchamp and Laurel Premo is also making a splash in Germany, of all places.
In the midst of performing 19 European shows in 19 days (18 in Germany and 1 in the Czech Republic), the three-year-old band which released its acclaimed “The Heart’s Swift Foot” album earlier this year is playing to enthusiastic audiences. It’s part of the Bluegrass Jamboree Tour that also features Austin’s The Carper Family and Toronto’s Foggy Hogtown Boys.
“The response has been fantastic and we’ve been playing to lots of folks, 200 to 400 a night here,” Beauchamp tells Local Spins. “The German audiences have been getting into both our traditional and original songs. Something we’ve noticed is how much they respond to singing and vocals, so we’ve been having fun playing our favorite, harmony-filled songs.”
No word as to whether the duo has incorporated any German folk songs into its act. The band concludes its tour in Roth, Germany, on Sunday. Get more information online at Red Tail Ring’s official website. West Michigan fans can catch the band performing at the Winter Wheat fundraiser for the Wheatland Music Organization at The Intersection in Grand Rapids on Jan. 11. Details online here.
Mustard Plug has signed with a national record label. (Photo/Katy Batdorff)
MUSTARD PLUG SIGNS WITH NO IDEA RECORDS, NEW ALBUM DROPS SOON
Grand Rapids’ Mustard Plug has delivered its punk-driven ska music to adoring audiences across the land for more than 20 years.
Now, the band is getting some overdue recognition – and maybe even international attention – for its contribution to the ska scene by way of a new record deal.
Mustard Plug’s upcoming, lively new album, “Can’t Contain It,” will be released on one of the nation’s leading punk labels, Florida’s No Idea Records, the home of bands such as Against Me! and North Lincoln. (The latter band happens to be close pals with Mustard Plug).
Mustard Plug, “Can’t Contain It”
Frontman David Kirchgessner says the signing came after he simply inquired about a distribution deal for the new record, which the band initially planned to release independently. However, No Idea was “tickled” by the idea of signing the band, one thing led to another, and the deal was done.
“I think it will expose us to new bands that we’ll end up playing with here and there,” Kirchgessner offers. “It will definitely give us new international exposure to a whole new group of potential fans. The label has a built-in fan base that I’m sure will take notice on some level.”
Mustard Plug unleashes its new recording in an album-release show at 6 p.m. Dec. 29 at The Intersection in Grand Rapids, with The Mixtapes, The Pinstripes, Three Cents Short and Dagger Down also performing. Tickets are $10 in advance, $12 day of show (though fans can save $2 per ticket at the door by bringing donations of canned goods). Get tickets online here.
Top 20 Artist: West Michigan’s Frankie Ballard.
WEST MICHIGAN’S FRANKIE BALLARD SCORES BIG HIT, KRIS HITCHCOCK WINS ASCAP AWARD
To no one’s surprise, West Michigan country singer Frankie Ballard is starting to make some noise as one of Nashville’s emerging stars.
The Battle Creek native and former Western Michigan University baseball player earlier this month scored his first Top 20 hit on Billboard’s country radio chart, with the single, “Helluva Life,” also used in last week’s episode of the popular ABC television show, “Nashville.”
The upbeat, drenched-in-warmth song – which Ballard describes on his Facebook site as a tune about people leaning on one another and a tale that “parallels my journey over the last 18 months” – is the lead single off of Ballard’s upcoming Marshall Altman-produced album that will be released by Warner Bros. in 2014.
Previously, Ballard’s debut album generated two Top 30 singles, “A Buncha Girls” and “Tell Me You Get Lonely.”
The singer and guitarist plays his annual Christmas show at Kalamazoo’s State Theatre at 8 p.m. Saturday. Get ticket information and more details online at the State Theatre website. And check out the brand new video for his single, “Helluva Life,” below.
Another West Michigan country singer, Kalamazoo’s Kris Hitchcock has earned some national love, too, with an award from the prestigious American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.
Kris Hitchcock
Hitchcock, who was selected earlier this year to participate in a prestigious ASCAP program that pairs unsigned talent with established Nashville publishers, took part Wednesday in the ASCAP Foundation’s 18th annual awards ceremony in New York City.
In addition to honoring singer-songwriter Ne-Yo with the ASCAP Foundation Champion Award in recognition of his efforts to increase awareness of disadvantaged children in American cities, the foundation presented Hitchcock with the Leon Brettler Award, presented annually to an outstanding songwriter-performer participating in the ASCAP Foundation Nashville Songwriter Workshop. Previous winners have included Lizzy McAvoy and Jacob Davis.
Hitchcock posted on his Facebook page that he “got to meet many other talented writers and performers, including Ne-Yo, and play ‘What Songs are For’ onstage for the presentation. Awesome night.”
Email John Sinkevics at jsinkevics@gmail.com.
Copyright 2013, Spins on Music
