MYSPACE  ::  FACEBOOK  ::  TWITTER

FIRST COMMUNION AFTERPARTY  ::  FACEBOOK  ::  MYSPACE

TWO HARBORS  ::  FACEBOOK  ::  TWITTER

MAD RIPPLE  ::  FACEBOOK  ::  MYSPACE

Sam Keenan the band has become a fluid concept; open to discriminating players and singers found gathering on stage. It may include some or all of Tim Lyles, Tony Guscetti, Sally Magraw, Craig Grossman, Kristof Marden, Pete Wannemacher, Jared Lukes, Jesse Lukes, Josiah Lukes (any other Lukes?), Rob Byers, Marc Sanchez, Justin Korhonen, Ben Foote, Sam Keenan and others. Their live shows are usually quite different from one another depending on what side of the proverbial hookah the material is being scraped.

OFFICIAL SITE  ::  MYSPACE  ::  FACEBOOK

Sam Keenan has had a colorful and somewhat ill-fated underground musical existence. In the late 90’s his band Liquid Ernie never made a big splash, but they were influential to many artists and bands around them in the Minneapolis music scene. They released only one EP recorded with Matt Fink (Dr. Fink of Prince’s Revolution fame) called “Ghostwritten” and a collection of 17 demo tracks assembled and called “Spit and Polish”. When that band dissolved in 2001, Sam started performing solo and in various group incarnations made up of musicians from different corners of the Twin Cities scene.

Sam has been successfully completing songs for some time, recording and releasing many of them in a dreadfully unstructured manner over the last decade. He spends his time trying to blend the rich history of rock, hip-hop, folk and improvised music. Mostly, however, people say he just rips off Andy Partridge. Since he is an independent artist, he spends his days working for Minnesota Public Radio, and, as a recording engineer, he has worked with a long list of talented artists and groups, including Regina Spektor, Mercury Rev, Vinicius Cantuaria, Mike Doughty, M.I.A., Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Bob Mould, Ben Harper, Archer Prewitt, BR-549, Echo and the Bunnymen, Aqualung, Inara George, Michael Penn, A Whisper in the Noise, Citizen Cope, Cloud Cult, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and many more. Also, he is a co-founder of a non-profit net-radio station and local MN music supporting company called Misplaced Music, where he has served as the Program Director for the past two years.

I grew up (but didn't grow up) in Madison, Wisconsin. I was a high school cheerleader and choir jock but went off the party deep-end at the University of Wisconsin (as one is wont to do in Madison). Moving to Minneapolis in the mid-'80's, my girlfriends and I formed the band Zuzu's Petals. We sucked for three years or so (depending on who you ask), and got our act together around 1991 (vans, tours, recording contracts). I hooked up with musician Paul Westerberg and got the nesting urge in a major way. After the band, I went from songwriting to prose writing. A house, parenthood, and an MFA in Creative Writing followed. When not parenting or writing, I teach Memoir in local schools as a resident writer through a non-profit arts organization.

OFFICIAL SITE  ::  MYSPACE  ::  FACEBOOK

David Campbell is host of "Radio Free Current," Saturdays 7-11 p.m. and "The Local Show," Sundays 6-8 p.m. Campbell is a long-time veteran of the Twin Cities scene. A fan, musician, record store clerk, record label staffer, and a 10-year staffer of KQRS and Drive 105's "Homegrown," Campbell's love for Minnesota music makes him a perfect fit for The Current.

Best FM Radio Personality 2010, City Pages

see also: The Electric Light Orchestra played by six hacks from Minneapolis

Janey Winterbauer on MYSPACE  ::  FACEBOOK  ::  TWITTER

PHANTOM TAILS  ::  FACEBOOK  ::  PLASTIC CHORD

OFFICIAL SITE  ::  MYSPACE  ::  FACEBOOK  ::  TWITTER

Chris Koza is a Minneapolis-based singer/songwriter, and has released three albums since 2004 -- Exit Pesce, Patterns, and A Friend of a Friend"(EP). Music critics have compared Chris sound to Wilco, Paul Simon, Nick Drake, Beck, and Ryan Adams, among others. He performs live with a band, which includes anywhere from 2-7 members.

Deep into autumn of 2004 Chris released his debut album Exit Pesce in an apartment. But it wasn't until early the following year when a little blurb by Rob van Alstyne of the Pulse Magazine was printed before anyone really took notice of the album, calling Exit Pesce "An under-the-radar-music-stunner-phenomenon"

In April 2006, Chris released Patterns, which went on to receive more acclaim, including a Minnesota Music Award for Best Pop Recording (Chris also won the Best Male Vocalist award).

At the end of 2006, Patterns was kindly included in some local best-of lists, coming in at 10 in the Star Tribune's annual Twin Cities Critics Tally, and at 1 in Chris Riemenschneider's (Star Tribune Music Critic) top ten local albums list.

Lead singer/songwriter of Minneapolis band THE HONEYDOGS