The Color Pharmacy Fills My Prescription

By Doug MacRostie

The Color Pharmacy is definitely one of the most exciting bands out of Minnesota. They create experimental indie-rock music with a unique, unpredictable, and edgy style. Over the past two years, The Color Pharmacy has toured all over the U.S., and will be performing at SXSW for the third time this year. They did an alternate soundtrack to a segment of the original version of Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory in 2006, and more recently a soundtrack to the French film ‘The Red Balloon’. Following their EP “DeTour” the Color Pharmacy is back with the full-length record “Texatonka” which is currently available online. And multi-media mastermind Jake Dilley of the Color Pharmacy will join me on Centerstage MN this week from his home studio in Minneapolis.

The name of the album, "Texatonka" was a result of their initial recording session getting flooded out with water seeping through the walls and electrical outlets. They had to move for the rest of the recording, and the bulk of it was done in Jake's basement (often interrupted by his cats). His house is on the corner of Minnetonka and Texas avenue in Minneapolis: Texatonka.

We'll also hear from a couple Bemidji bands that are operating out of the Twin Cities. The Magic Castles are a psychedelic dream-pop band and we'll hear from the album "Dreams of Dreams of Dreams." And we'll hear from Murzik's self-titled CD. They are a dark-folk band that includes accordion and saxophone along with the usual drums and guitar.

Centerstage MN is Thursday evenings at 6, streaming live online at www.KAXE.org; or 91.7 Grand Rapids, 89.9 Brainerd and 105.3 Bemidji and can be heard again Sunday mornings at 6. All interviews are archived at www.KAXE.org. Centerstage MN is also heard on KSRQ in Thief River Falls Saturday nights at 11 & Wednesdays at Noon, and on WTIP in Grand Marais Thursday afternoons at 4. Often featured on MNartists.org.

You Gotta Have Faith...Boblett

by Doug MacRostie

It's a pretty good deal, hosting a MN music program; not only do I have access to some excellent tunes, but the creators of the music come and join me in studio from time to time. This Thursday night at 6 on Centerstage MN I'll be joined in-studio by singer/songwriter Faith Boblett from Outing. Just out of High School, Faith has a beautiful voice and she'll bring her guitar along for some live music! She is in a continuous process of writing music, releasing new material to her fans by posting home-recorded videos of new songs on her YouTube channel. I'm really excited to have Faith on and hear her sing in person, and I'll try to get inside the head of an 18 year old songwriter.

I'll also be talking with Janiva Magness, a Blues and R&B singer with a rich and soulful voice that can lead an audience from deep sorrow to overwhelming joy. Originally from Detroit, she spent much of her youth in the Twin Cities area after both her parents commited suicide (there is a lot of tragedy in her past, you can read more about it here - she definitely has the "street-cred" to sing the blues...). While in MN, she got to spend some time in the great blues clubs of the era, which is when she hitchhicked across Minneapolis to see Otis Rush, an experience that opened her eyes to being a singer and performer. Janiva now has 7 full length albums to her credit and at the Blues Music Awards last month she recieved both Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year & B.B. King Entertainer of the Year awards. Janiva is also National Spokesperson for Casey Family Programs, promoting National Foster Care Month, and I'm honored to have her on the show.

I'll be playing some new music from Russ Brown, a singer/songwriter out of Minneapolis who just released his debut CD "The Fugitive Peace," and Marcy Playground's new CD "Leaving Wonderland...in a Fit of Rage," another excellent release from the New York/Minneapolis trio.

Last week my guest was Jason Edmonds of The Magic Castles, a highly creative and wonderfully unique psych-pop band out of Minneapolis. I had Jason back on the show to talk about their excellent new sophomore release "Dreams of Dreams of Dreams;" you can hear our conversation and some of the tunes by clicking here. It's like Jason said, "I've taken so much from the art community [in MN]...all my life I feel like I've been surrounded by awesome artist and I had a real desire to give back to that pool of art in a meaningful way and it's a real blessing to be able to do it w the Magic Castles."

Centerstage MN is Thursday evening's at 6, streaming live online at www.KAXE.org; or 91.7 Grand Rapids, 89.9 Brainerd and 105.3 Bemidji. All interviews are archived at www.KAXE.org and the show is rebroadcast Sunday mornings at 6.

Party at the Magic Castle, Psych-Pop will be Provided

by Doug MacRostie

First off, an apology in advance for the sound of my voice; I seem to have Santa's bag behind my nose, but instead of toys for all the girls and boys...it's snot. And I've been coughing more and more so yeah, don't sit too close to the radio so you don't get sick :p

This week on Centerstage MN I'm excited to have Jason Edmonds from Bemidji back on the show. He is singer, songwriter and guitarist with The Magic Castles, a psychedelic pop band out of Minneapolis. I had Jason on last year to talk about their debut record "The Lore of Mysticore," and he joins me this time to talk about their excellent follow up, "Dreams of Dreams of Dreams," which takes the band to a whole new level of expirmental music. The band has a very unique style that is all-the-more defined with this new album. And check out that album cover! A perfect match for this creative and artful music, The Magic Castles have local artists design and screen-print their album covers (so yes, they are limited edition). I'll talk w Jason about the album, the cover and the inspiration behind the music (spoiler alert: he likes old-school Syd Barrett Floyd :D).

Also this week I've got new music from Ely musician Aaron Kaercher, his debut (?) release "User Friendly Radio." And we'll hear another song from Matt Ray, who's self-described as 'a fork in a world of soup." His new CD is called 'Old Crow,' and he is an upcoming guest for Centerstage MN.

Speaking of which, my guest next week will be singer/songwriter Faith Boblett from Outing for some conversation and she'll bring her guitar along for some in-studio music! She's a recent highschool grad (I hear she plans to attend the McNally School of Music) and has a BEAUTIFUL singing voice!

Oh, and be sure to click here and check out my conversation with Ian and Teague Alexy of the Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank from last week - it was an indepth look at the style and sound that is their experimental limited edition EP 'One for the Time Capsule." As Ian said, "It's almost like a rebellion to spend time on your art...we're not even really taught to do that, which is ridiculous...its a form of rebellion to spend time on art, but I think it's completely necessary..." The Hobo Nephews are one of the four MN bands that we're featuring for the 5th Annual 91.7 KAXE Mississippi River Festival.

Centerstage MN is Thursday evening's at 6, streaming live online at www.KAXE.org; or 91.7 Grand Rapids, 89.9 Brainerd and 105.3 Bemidji. All interviews are archived at www.KAXE.org and the show is rebroadcast Sunday mornings at 6.

Hobnobbin' w the Hobo Nephews

by Doug MacRostie

This Thursday night at 6 on Centerstage MN I have an exclusive interview with Ian and Teague Alexy of The Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank about their limited edition EP 'One for the Time Capsule.' This will be an extended conversation ranging from making music to the best Dylan album ever... The Hobo Nephews will be performing at the 5th Annual 91.7 KAXE Mississippi River Festival on July 18th. Having established a foundation of roots music to build on, the Hobo Nephews spent some time experimenting with 'One for the Time Capsule' and it's sure to be an interesting conversation. Oh, and yes - they are brothers, and they do have an Uncle Frank back in Jersey...

I'll also be talking with Grace Opal-Saxon. From Bemidji, she is a founding member of The Blue Ox Cooperative, a recently formed group working to establish a dedicated working space for area and traveling musicians and artists not only to perform, but potentially for practice space, lessons, workshops, PR/Marketing and other potential uses. They first major fundraiser is coming up Fri. June 26th starting at 2 at the Wild Rose Theater in Bemidji and Grace will tell us more about that.

If you missed it, last week my guest was Take Cover, pop-rockers out of Minneapolis (their bassist Chad Snell grew up in Marcell) and they performed a live acoustic set and you can here it by clicking here (plus a debut of a song off their new CD).

Next week my guest will be Jason Edmonds from Bemidji. He's songwriter, singer and guitarist w The Magic Castles, a psychedelic rock band out of the Twin Cities that is truly independent; they do their own album covers with screen prints and recorded the music themselves...very cool!

Centerstage MN is Thursday evening's at 6, streaming live online at www.KAXE.org; or 91.7 Grand Rapids, 89.9 Brainerd and 105.3 Bemidji. All interviews are archived at www.KAXE.org and the show is rebroadcast Sunday mornings at 6.

Take Cover! Live Music Comin' @ YA!!!

by Doug MacRostie

This Thursday night at 6 on Centerstage MN I'll be joined in-studio by pop rockers Take Cover for an acoustic set of music! It'll be 4 guys, 3 guitars and 3-part harmonies!!! Out of Minneapolis, they are having a CD release party at the Ground Floor in Grand Rapids that night for their new EP "The Last Word." Their bass player, Chad Snell, grew up in Marcell and Grand Rapids and it is going to be a lot of fun having these guys in-studio tomorrow! Most of the time w them will be spent playing some tunes, but we'll also talk a bit about the band and what draws them to making music. Do you have anything you'd like me to ask?

After that I'll be featuring The Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank, Clawthroat and Sick of Sarah - those band, along with Hans Blix and the Weapon Inspectors are the line-up for the 5th Annual 91.7 KAXE Mississippi River Festival, which is going to ROCK! I hope to see you there!

Also, new music from The Magic Castles latest "Dreams of Dreams of Dreams," and singer, songwriter and guitarist Jason Edmonds will be my guest (again) in a few weeks on Centerstage MN.

AND, when the Brothers Burn Mountain came in last week for a live performance (which was AWESOME, btw - if you missed it, you can listen to it here, it was definitely one of my top experiences bringing bands in the studio) they dropped off a copy of their first CD which came out in 2005 called "The Blood of a Thousand Clouds," and we'll hear a song off of that.

Centerstage MN is Thursday evening's at 6, streaming live online at www.KAXE.org; or 91.7 Grand Rapids, 89.9 Brainerd and 105.3 Bemidji. All interviews are archived at www.KAXE.org and the show is rebroadcast Sunday mornings at 6.

Full Speed Ahead w Two Many Banjos!!!

by Doug MacRostie

Thursday night at 6 on Centerstage MN on KAXE I'll be talking with Marc Gartman, lead songwriter, singer and banjo player with Two Many Banjos out of Duluth. Their new CD is called "Can't Slow Me Down" and TMB continue to push the limits of bluegrass/folk music. It's their 4th CD in 2 years (with another due out later this year) and Marc's songwriting is in full stride with "Can't Slow Me Down." Marc has been on Centerstage MN a couple times before and he always has interesting/entertaining things to say about his music.

And, Heidi will tell the story of taking Alex Kelly (from StoryCorp) to Hibbing to meet one of Bob Dylan's earliest influences, BJ Rolfzen.

I've also got new music from Clawthroat, The Magic Castles and The Darbuki Kings:

From Grand Rapids, Joseph Downing is the singer and guitarist with Clawthroat and he'll join me in studio next week to talk about their new EP "Know Yr Roots" - and I asked him to bring his guitar along and the word on the street is he'll debut a brand new song LIVE for us next week! w00t!

The Magic Castles first CD, "The Lore of Mysticore" was a self-produced, self-released dirge into psychedelic rock - some of it more slow-moving than others, all over it floating out at the limits of musical-space, and I am glad to say nothing has been lost with their sophomore release "Dreams of Dreams of Dreams." In fact, I think they've only gotten better! While the songs may be a little shorter and the hooks a little clearer, they stuck with their unique sound and presentation and took it to another level! These guys screen their own album covers on recycled paper board by hand, and there is definitely a high level of art and presentation beyond the music.

The Darbuki Kings new CD is called "Been Laden You Too Long." Antone and Adnan are at it again, connecting with the inner rhythms of the universe and using them to transport their listeners through the cosmos with multiple world drums, Bouzouki and Octave Mandolins, Indian Tabla and Flutes and more. I leave their connection with Boiled In Lead for you to figure out ;)

Oh, and I'll be starting the show off with the title track to Uncle Shurley's debut CD "in Bemidji" from back in 2005. Uncle Shurley will be performing at KAXE's Annual Meeting and Dance on Saturday, June 6th. The Potluck Diner and Meeting starts at 4 and is free, the Uncle Shurley concert starts at 7p and is just $5 for members of KAXE, or $10 for the general public. This is going to be f***ing awesome, be sure to come out and enjoy!

Centerstage MN is Thursday evening's at 6, streaming live online at www.KAXE.org; or 91.7 Grand Rapids, 89.9 Brainerd and 105.3 Bemidji. All interviews are archived at www.KAXE.org and the show is rebroadcast Sunday mornings at 6.

Your Ears Will Cry If They Miss This...

by Doug MacRostie

On Centerstage MN this week we'll hear Scott Hall's conversation with local virtuoso jazz guitarist Sam Miltich about "Darn That Dream," Sam's new release with saxaphone legend Dave Karr. The new CD is 12 instrumental duets that Sam has wanted to do with the 78 year old Karr for a long time.

Plus I'll play some new music from Grand Rapid's Clawthroat, Duluth's Two Many Banjos, Minnesota's Bob Dylan and Minneapolis's Sick of Sarah. And I'll check for a message from Bob Dylan (having left msgs with him the last two weeks...)

And a new song from Roma Di Luna's latest release Casting the Bones. Roma Di Luna take early 20th century country/folk music and give it a modern twist and edgy feel. Now evolved into a full band, the husband and wife song writing duo is Alexei and Channey Moon Cassell. They both sing and play instruments. She has a beautifully haunting voice that draws you in and holds your hand while showing you their musical creations. He used to be known as hip hop/rap artist Crescent Moon. They combine old and new to make beautiful music with layers of banjo, violin, electric guitars and percussion with a ride range of moods, feelings and energy.

I'll also be playing a song off of The Magic Castles debut album "The Lore of Mysticore" - a wonderfully slow-moving psychedilic journey. I'll have singer, songwriter and guitarist Jason Edmonds back on Centerstage MN sometime soon to talk about their forthcoming sophmore release "Dreams of Dreams of Dreams," which I can't wait to listen to! They are a truely independent band, recording and releaseing their own albums (and yeah, they don't come in your stand jewel case, but hand-made, hand-drawn, hand-screen printed, hand-folded on brown card stock - it's awesome...and green).

Things are really heating up for Centerstage MN this summer with upcoming guest including Clawthroat, Two Many Banjos and The Tisdales and live music with The Brothers Burn Mountain, Take Cover and The Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank.

I've been prepping for the interview w/ Marc Gartman of Two Many Banjos by listening to the CD, and it is HARD to pick just a few of the songs to talk about off Can't Slow Me Down, I think it's my fav TMB album thus far (their 4th in 2 years, w another due out later this year). I think Marc is the only artist who has put out 3 full-length albums since I started doing Centerstage MN and this next interview will be Marc's 3rd time on Centerstage MN, making him my most frequent guest (followed closely by Timmy Haus...who is due back sometime soon, don't you think?).

Centerstage MN is Thursday evening's at 6, streaming live online at www.KAXE.org; or 91.7 Grand Rapids, 89.9 Brainerd and 105.3 Bemidji. All interviews are archived at www.KAXE.org and the show is rebroadcast Sunday mornings at 6.