Listen to five Minnesota artists with Local Show host Diane Miller
Gully Boys (Kathy Callahan, Natalie Klemond, Mariah Mercedes and Nadirah McGill) performed at the first show of new Uptown Minneapolis venue, Green Room, on Jan. 28.
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Whatever sound you are into, there is a Minnesota musician for you.
Diane Miller is our guide through the variety of music that is popping across the state. She hosts The Local Show on MPR News’ sister station, The Current.
Miller joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to highlight five artists with new songs or upcoming shows.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
[GULLY BOYS, "OPTIMIST"] GULLY BOYS: (SINGING) I try not to assume, close my eyes, and then let love lead. I thought better of you. It was the optimist in me. Things wouldn't be so hard.
INTERVIEWER: You already know we love music around here, especially music by Minnesota artists. And who better to talk about Minnesota musicians than Diane Miller. She's the host of a show called The Local Show on our sister station, The Current. She's back. Hey, Diane.
DIANE MILLER: Hey.
INTERVIEWER: Welcome back. How are you?
DIANE MILLER: I'm good. How are you?
INTERVIEWER: Good.
DIANE MILLER: Thanks for having me on.
INTERVIEWER: Well, hey, thanks for taking the time. So Gully Boys, they're beloved. This is a track called "Optimist" that started things off here for us today. Is that a new track from them?
DIANE MILLER: Yeah, it's a brand new single. They've been releasing singles. Gosh, I'm thinking about how this band really started from the ground up. I saw them playing at a block party in 2018, just the neighborhood streets. And now they're like headlining venues and doing amazing things.
And yeah, that's their most recent single. It's a rock and roll, grunge pop sound and just something you can kind of scream along to when you're out at a show, seeing them live.
[BOTH CHUCKLE]
INTERVIEWER: Scream along to. Is that-- for folks not familiar with Gully Boys, that's pretty much the signature sound. Would you say that to be true?
DIANE MILLER: Yes, absolutely. Very raw, emotional, gets heavy. It kind of starts out a little bit soft. And then they really use dynamics, and are meant to engage with the listener, and really write songs with universal appeal. So I'm a super fan of Gully Boys. They're such a hot band right now.
INTERVIEWER: I'm so glad for their success too because they are terrific. Say, I, of course, ready to talk music here, I want to listen to another track. This one should be pretty familiar to some people.
[THE OKEE DOKEE BROTHERS, "THE BRAMBLE"]
THE OKEE DOKEE BROTHERS: (SINGING) We were tromping through the woods in the lovely month of June, when deep in the briar, we saw a fire under the crooked moon. A wild parade was marching around, made up of crittery things, a-hooting, and a-hollering, and howling as they sing.
Ba-ba-ba-da-da-da. Hurrah, hurray, the gang's all here. Life is just a gamble living in the bramble. Hurrah, hurray, we're full of cheer, parading through the woods with you.
OK, now, into the forest we go, we go, we go, to a scene from long ago.
INTERVIEWER: Oh, now, the song might not be familiar, but of course, the musicians are familiar, The Okee Dokee Brothers. I mean, what kid and their parents don't love The Okee Dokee brothers?
[DIANE CHUCKLES]
Right? Grammy Award-winning band, been around for, I think, over a decade now. They're putting out a new 17-track record called Brambletown. And immediately when I started hearing it, I'm like, this just sounds like a Disney soundtrack.
And I talked with the boys recently, and they were like, yes, absolutely-- and through the voice of, basically, forest critters to, I don't know, rope in children and their families to start thinking about things such as nature and human compassion and also be able to sing along. And I mean, obviously, as you can hear, there's like all sorts of fun sounds that they incorporate into their music. Of course, there's banjo and guitar, but you'll hear like fun little whistles, and tin cans, and pots clanking with each other.
It's such a great record and it's such a feel-good record. And yeah, I'm just-- it's definitely one to put on with the kids, but there's definitely things that I think adults can relate to in the music of The Okee Dokee Brothers as well.
DIANE MILLER: Interesting you asked them about like a Disney soundtrack. I mean, isn't it just a foregone conclusion that somewhere along the line, these guys are going to do something like that?
INTERVIEWER: They should.
DIANE MILLER: I know.
INTERVIEWER: I think they're going to make a short film, actually, with Brambletown. So--
DIANE MILLER: Nice.
INTERVIEWER: They're kind of along the lines. But like, a full length feature movie, this totally would fit in with it. So The Okee Dokee Brothers, as you say, have been around for a while. So is this next band, Run Westy Run. They've got a song out, "Milkyway's Mainframe." Let's take a listen.
[RUN WESTY RUN, "MILKWAY'S MAINFRAME"] Ah. Come on and drink with me. Come on and drink with me. Come on and drink with me. Come on and drink with me.
We've got our bells on our knees and elbows, a Glad bag full of dinner with clothes. Another [INAUDIBLE] zero. This shit's--
INTERVIEWER: Tell me about this one.
DIANE MILLER: I think one of the words that come to mind when I think of Run Westy Run is swagger.
INTERVIEWER: Yeah, yeah.
DIANE MILLER: Because I've literally watched these guys perform live a handful of times, and they are so fun live because they just let loose and just-- up there, just with all their swagger and rock and roll flair. They've been around for 40 years.
INTERVIEWER: What?
DIANE MILLER: Like around that long.
INTERVIEWER: No.
DIANE MILLER: Yeah.
INTERVIEWER: Wow.
DIANE MILLER: Yeah, I think these guys started in the '80s and still are making music. That's a brand new single from these guys. If you're familiar with the band Golden Smog, it's a super group consisting of members of Soul Asylum and The Jayhawks. Jeff Tweedy of Wilco was in the band at one point.
They did a big show at First Avenue recently, celebrating First Avenue's 50th anniversary. And I mean, I just love this band. They're so fun to see live. And you can catch them at Palmer's Bar in Minneapolis on May 5 with The Scarlet Goodbye, also an awesome, awesome band.
INTERVIEWER: So they've been around for a while. Obviously, so have I, and I've covered the legislature for a number of years. And I can say we've never had a hip hop artist be a lawmaker before, except Maria Isa took the oath of office. She's a House member now and a musician. I mean, obviously people know her.
She's amazing. And I know she has this-- this must be a new one. "Hello to the Weekend," is that right?
DIANE MILLER: Yes.
INTERVIEWER: OK, let's hear it.
[MARIA ISA, "HELLO TO THE WEEKEND"] Let's roll. It's been a hell of a weekend, running all day, staying up all night. Running all day staying up all night. I just want to have fun tonight. Friday night's when I feel alive, baby.
Done like 100 Zooms, quick break at noon, committee conference to the press rooms. And in between, I'll be [INAUDIBLE] you, [INAUDIBLE] on you with the phone on focus. Can't lose focus. Gotta let my flower bloom like a lotus. And it feels so good to be control of this. Yeah, it feels so good to be control of this. See you in the House.
I'm going to let it go like a free throw. Come a little closer, Papapito. Yeah, I got the sauce, [INAUDIBLE]. When the sun go down--
INTERVIEWER: Representative Maria Isa. "Hello to the Weekend." Tell me about this one.
DIANE MILLER: Well, obviously, it's a feel good track for just having a good time and saying hello to the weekend, dancing. Yeah, she's obviously-- incorporates pop music, and hip hop, and singing. She's a fabulous singer on top of being a really good rapper, and emcee, and poet.
And yeah, this record that she dropped in January, it was the same day she was sworn in to office. It's called Capitolio. It's an EP.
And it's-- yeah, she's a prolific writer and she's been-- obviously, before she was sworn into office, has had a flourishing music career. I interviewed her earlier this year, and she's like, I plan to keep being a musician and being a politician at the same time. And it's so great, as someone who's been in the music industry for how long, to see someone from my own industry being represented in our Minnesota State legislature. Really goes a long way and is inspiring to all of us.
When you think about how the Twin Cities values its music scene so much, it's-- we need representation in the Capitol to keep having our music scene championed. It means a lot, goes a long way. And she's such an awesome human, and I love her music.
INTERVIEWER: Maria Isa. So we're going to hear one more group, Turn Turn Turn. Tell me about them.
DIANE MILLER: Turn Turn Turn. I love the Turn Turn Turn because especially if you were like a fan of like, folk rock from like the 1970s, 1960s-- I think Mamas & the Papas, maybe if you're a Bob Dylan fan or even like Simon and Garfunkel-- you could compare them to a lot of different groups. But what's great about Turn Turn Turn is they have three-part harmonies and really sing-along-able tracks.
And the one, "Dopamine Blues," that we're about to hear is a fabulous song. If you're a fan of like vintage folk rock and roll, you're going to love Turn Turn Turn. They play live around town quite a bit, including in Saint Paul.
They have a show coming up at Mears Park on June 8. And it's a free concert. And it's a part of the Lowertown Sounds series as well.
[TURN TURN TURN, "DOPAMINE BLUES"]
INTERVIEWER: All right, we're going to go out to "Dopamine Blues," Turn Turn Turn. Diane, thank you.
DIANE MILLER: My pleasure.
TURN TURN TURN: (SINGING) I can't stop thinking about you.
INTERVIEWER: That's Diane Miller. You can hear her every Sunday evening on our sister station, The Current. She hosts the local show airing from 6:00 to 8:00 PM on Sunday. You can also find it online at thecurrent.org.
[SIGH]
What a show, boy. It's been a busy, busy show too. We appreciate you joining us here on Minnesota Now. If you've got story ideas for us, you can always drop us an email, minnesotanow@mpr.org. Have a good day.
INTERVIEWER: You already know we love music around here, especially music by Minnesota artists. And who better to talk about Minnesota musicians than Diane Miller. She's the host of a show called The Local Show on our sister station, The Current. She's back. Hey, Diane.
DIANE MILLER: Hey.
INTERVIEWER: Welcome back. How are you?
DIANE MILLER: I'm good. How are you?
INTERVIEWER: Good.
DIANE MILLER: Thanks for having me on.
INTERVIEWER: Well, hey, thanks for taking the time. So Gully Boys, they're beloved. This is a track called "Optimist" that started things off here for us today. Is that a new track from them?
DIANE MILLER: Yeah, it's a brand new single. They've been releasing singles. Gosh, I'm thinking about how this band really started from the ground up. I saw them playing at a block party in 2018, just the neighborhood streets. And now they're like headlining venues and doing amazing things.
And yeah, that's their most recent single. It's a rock and roll, grunge pop sound and just something you can kind of scream along to when you're out at a show, seeing them live.
[BOTH CHUCKLE]
INTERVIEWER: Scream along to. Is that-- for folks not familiar with Gully Boys, that's pretty much the signature sound. Would you say that to be true?
DIANE MILLER: Yes, absolutely. Very raw, emotional, gets heavy. It kind of starts out a little bit soft. And then they really use dynamics, and are meant to engage with the listener, and really write songs with universal appeal. So I'm a super fan of Gully Boys. They're such a hot band right now.
INTERVIEWER: I'm so glad for their success too because they are terrific. Say, I, of course, ready to talk music here, I want to listen to another track. This one should be pretty familiar to some people.
[THE OKEE DOKEE BROTHERS, "THE BRAMBLE"]
THE OKEE DOKEE BROTHERS: (SINGING) We were tromping through the woods in the lovely month of June, when deep in the briar, we saw a fire under the crooked moon. A wild parade was marching around, made up of crittery things, a-hooting, and a-hollering, and howling as they sing.
Ba-ba-ba-da-da-da. Hurrah, hurray, the gang's all here. Life is just a gamble living in the bramble. Hurrah, hurray, we're full of cheer, parading through the woods with you.
OK, now, into the forest we go, we go, we go, to a scene from long ago.
INTERVIEWER: Oh, now, the song might not be familiar, but of course, the musicians are familiar, The Okee Dokee Brothers. I mean, what kid and their parents don't love The Okee Dokee brothers?
[DIANE CHUCKLES]
Right? Grammy Award-winning band, been around for, I think, over a decade now. They're putting out a new 17-track record called Brambletown. And immediately when I started hearing it, I'm like, this just sounds like a Disney soundtrack.
And I talked with the boys recently, and they were like, yes, absolutely-- and through the voice of, basically, forest critters to, I don't know, rope in children and their families to start thinking about things such as nature and human compassion and also be able to sing along. And I mean, obviously, as you can hear, there's like all sorts of fun sounds that they incorporate into their music. Of course, there's banjo and guitar, but you'll hear like fun little whistles, and tin cans, and pots clanking with each other.
It's such a great record and it's such a feel-good record. And yeah, I'm just-- it's definitely one to put on with the kids, but there's definitely things that I think adults can relate to in the music of The Okee Dokee Brothers as well.
DIANE MILLER: Interesting you asked them about like a Disney soundtrack. I mean, isn't it just a foregone conclusion that somewhere along the line, these guys are going to do something like that?
INTERVIEWER: They should.
DIANE MILLER: I know.
INTERVIEWER: I think they're going to make a short film, actually, with Brambletown. So--
DIANE MILLER: Nice.
INTERVIEWER: They're kind of along the lines. But like, a full length feature movie, this totally would fit in with it. So The Okee Dokee Brothers, as you say, have been around for a while. So is this next band, Run Westy Run. They've got a song out, "Milkyway's Mainframe." Let's take a listen.
[RUN WESTY RUN, "MILKWAY'S MAINFRAME"] Ah. Come on and drink with me. Come on and drink with me. Come on and drink with me. Come on and drink with me.
We've got our bells on our knees and elbows, a Glad bag full of dinner with clothes. Another [INAUDIBLE] zero. This shit's--
INTERVIEWER: Tell me about this one.
DIANE MILLER: I think one of the words that come to mind when I think of Run Westy Run is swagger.
INTERVIEWER: Yeah, yeah.
DIANE MILLER: Because I've literally watched these guys perform live a handful of times, and they are so fun live because they just let loose and just-- up there, just with all their swagger and rock and roll flair. They've been around for 40 years.
INTERVIEWER: What?
DIANE MILLER: Like around that long.
INTERVIEWER: No.
DIANE MILLER: Yeah.
INTERVIEWER: Wow.
DIANE MILLER: Yeah, I think these guys started in the '80s and still are making music. That's a brand new single from these guys. If you're familiar with the band Golden Smog, it's a super group consisting of members of Soul Asylum and The Jayhawks. Jeff Tweedy of Wilco was in the band at one point.
They did a big show at First Avenue recently, celebrating First Avenue's 50th anniversary. And I mean, I just love this band. They're so fun to see live. And you can catch them at Palmer's Bar in Minneapolis on May 5 with The Scarlet Goodbye, also an awesome, awesome band.
INTERVIEWER: So they've been around for a while. Obviously, so have I, and I've covered the legislature for a number of years. And I can say we've never had a hip hop artist be a lawmaker before, except Maria Isa took the oath of office. She's a House member now and a musician. I mean, obviously people know her.
She's amazing. And I know she has this-- this must be a new one. "Hello to the Weekend," is that right?
DIANE MILLER: Yes.
INTERVIEWER: OK, let's hear it.
[MARIA ISA, "HELLO TO THE WEEKEND"] Let's roll. It's been a hell of a weekend, running all day, staying up all night. Running all day staying up all night. I just want to have fun tonight. Friday night's when I feel alive, baby.
Done like 100 Zooms, quick break at noon, committee conference to the press rooms. And in between, I'll be [INAUDIBLE] you, [INAUDIBLE] on you with the phone on focus. Can't lose focus. Gotta let my flower bloom like a lotus. And it feels so good to be control of this. Yeah, it feels so good to be control of this. See you in the House.
I'm going to let it go like a free throw. Come a little closer, Papapito. Yeah, I got the sauce, [INAUDIBLE]. When the sun go down--
INTERVIEWER: Representative Maria Isa. "Hello to the Weekend." Tell me about this one.
DIANE MILLER: Well, obviously, it's a feel good track for just having a good time and saying hello to the weekend, dancing. Yeah, she's obviously-- incorporates pop music, and hip hop, and singing. She's a fabulous singer on top of being a really good rapper, and emcee, and poet.
And yeah, this record that she dropped in January, it was the same day she was sworn in to office. It's called Capitolio. It's an EP.
And it's-- yeah, she's a prolific writer and she's been-- obviously, before she was sworn into office, has had a flourishing music career. I interviewed her earlier this year, and she's like, I plan to keep being a musician and being a politician at the same time. And it's so great, as someone who's been in the music industry for how long, to see someone from my own industry being represented in our Minnesota State legislature. Really goes a long way and is inspiring to all of us.
When you think about how the Twin Cities values its music scene so much, it's-- we need representation in the Capitol to keep having our music scene championed. It means a lot, goes a long way. And she's such an awesome human, and I love her music.
INTERVIEWER: Maria Isa. So we're going to hear one more group, Turn Turn Turn. Tell me about them.
DIANE MILLER: Turn Turn Turn. I love the Turn Turn Turn because especially if you were like a fan of like, folk rock from like the 1970s, 1960s-- I think Mamas & the Papas, maybe if you're a Bob Dylan fan or even like Simon and Garfunkel-- you could compare them to a lot of different groups. But what's great about Turn Turn Turn is they have three-part harmonies and really sing-along-able tracks.
And the one, "Dopamine Blues," that we're about to hear is a fabulous song. If you're a fan of like vintage folk rock and roll, you're going to love Turn Turn Turn. They play live around town quite a bit, including in Saint Paul.
They have a show coming up at Mears Park on June 8. And it's a free concert. And it's a part of the Lowertown Sounds series as well.
[TURN TURN TURN, "DOPAMINE BLUES"]
INTERVIEWER: All right, we're going to go out to "Dopamine Blues," Turn Turn Turn. Diane, thank you.
DIANE MILLER: My pleasure.
TURN TURN TURN: (SINGING) I can't stop thinking about you.
INTERVIEWER: That's Diane Miller. You can hear her every Sunday evening on our sister station, The Current. She hosts the local show airing from 6:00 to 8:00 PM on Sunday. You can also find it online at thecurrent.org.
[SIGH]
What a show, boy. It's been a busy, busy show too. We appreciate you joining us here on Minnesota Now. If you've got story ideas for us, you can always drop us an email, minnesotanow@mpr.org. Have a good day.
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