Justin Alan Payne is originally from Newark, Ohio.  These days, he's based in East Nashville.  Justin is currently on tour, and is stopping by Dayton this weekend, so this is an excellent time to talk to him for Episode 128.  Yes, we are trying to promote the show, but the vast majority of our conversation here is evergreen.

We talk about Justin's songwriting process.  What tool does he reach for first?  How does he figure out which of his multiple projects the song belongs to?  How does he know a song is…

Dayton is privileged to have had a listening room for decades, a wonderful music venue called Canal Street Tavern.  Alas, both that venue and its visionary owner are no longer with us, and while it's surely impossible to replicate that experience, it is definitely possible to carry on a similar spirit.  That's what Windsor Knotts has been doing for years by hosting Showcase Thursdays at Yellow Cab Tavern.  He is my guest on this episode, a conversation that has not been edited.

What exactly is a listening…

I love to perform… I'm in my community and I'm talking to people and I'm connecting with people, and people are connected with my music… I love it, I never want to stop.

Eleanor Dakota is a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter from Dayton, Ohio, though these days she can be found in Cleveland.  In addition to being a prolific songwriter, Eleanor is the lead vocalist for Columbus based band crabswithoutlegs. When you listen to this conversation, it'll become clear to you how important music is for Eleanor…

You don't wanna waste time trying to impress people who aren't already into what you're doing…

Mery Steel is Canadian and Ohioan and pretty awesome. We cover a great deal of ground in this conversation. Some of the topics we discuss are: Canada, hockey, imposter syndrome, being fearless, their songwriting process, playing bass, chronic pain, their last album She's Back, their next album, and being sad, among other things.
 

LINKS

Official Website

Bandcamp

Instagram

Facebook

YouTube

Alex Winters is a talented songwriter based in Texas. Her most recent album, Unexpected Trespasses, was released on February 27, 2024.  We had this conversation way back in April, and it's 100% my fault that I'm just now getting this episode into your ears, dear listener. 

This conversation will show you what makes Alex tick as a songwriter, and I think you'll be able to tell just how important the act of putting feelings into song is for her.  We dive into the recording process for Unexpected Trespasses…

(photo by Fred Shank)

there's always gonna be a little darkness, there's always a little melancholy…

My conversation with Tod Weidner remains the highest listened-to episode of this podcast. This is clearly a testament to how much this gentleman means to many people here in Ohio.  He's back in the Buckeye State this week to play a couple of shows, so we're having a brief chat in advance of that to invite folks to come out and listen. He's playing with the wonderful Peter Mulvey on Thursday May 2nd at…

Valerie Vonn is in Germany. We did not have our conversation in German, though I imagine that she can surely hold her own in a German conversation, because, well, that's not a language that I speak.  However, I do speak musician reasonably well, and for that reason, I think the two of us understand each other.

Valerie is a singer, songwriter, and producer.  Why does Valerie choose to live in Germany? What did her childhood smell like?  What does her songwriting process look like? What are some of the…

If you don't yet have the language for what you want to say - you will

Buick and I have a few things in common.  We love music.  We're obsessed with language.  We write songs. We both put out a concept album this year. Hers is called Mass, and it comes with a whole book and a lot of stories. Buick was kind enough to take time out of her weekend to talk to me about all sorts of things a few weeks ago, and I procrastinated WAY too much, so this is going up super late.  I had intended to get this episode…

Golden Guy is an enigma of your fascination, that's what I am…

Golden Guy roams the land, backed by his band, the Bucking Bloviators.  Together, they wander to and fro in search of bourbon, a safe place to hide from their ex-wives, and stages on which to perform country and western music. Golden Guy is hard to pin down, and I'm glad I was able to chat with him on today's podcast episode.

Golden Guy and his Bucking Bloviators are releasing the album Personal Pain on Friday 20th October.  If you're in the…

Meet the outrageously talented multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Cherimondis J.   She's a classically trained concert pianist among many other things.  We dig into her music background, her songwriting process, what it's like being a Black musician in the classical world, and the album she put out last year, Dove Archer.  You'll find that Cherimondis thinks very deeply about both music and life, and she has quite a lot of introspective things to say about how her art relates to her life. Why does she…

Linsey Rogers, who uses The Wandering Linstrel is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, actress, and pinball aficionado.  We get at least somewhat into all of those things in our conversation.

Linsey occasionally makes it to the Dayton area to play shows, and that's how I met her.  Her sparkling personality keeps the attention of a roomful of listeners between songs, and I think that it'll keep YOUR attention during this podcast episode.

LINKS

Official Website
YouTube
Facebook

Pinball Links

Twitch
YouTube
Facebook

…

Kyleen Downes is a professional musician, and our music community here in the Dayton area is better off for having her here.  I truly enjoy seeing her play live, I like her songs, and I'm sure you'll agree after you hear this conversation that she has an infectious enthusiasm.  She has benefitted from the encouragement of others in her career, and is passing that on by teaching a new generation of folks here in Dayton how to play rock and roll.   Kyleen tells us about how she got started making music, who…

I write when I need to exorcise… a particular emotion or feeling or experience…

Tracey Bunn is my first Australian guest. She's a seasoned touring musician and songwriter with lots of stories to tell.  You'll get to hear a few of them in this conversation.  You'll learn how exactly songs come to her and what her songwriting process is like.  You'll learn what her childhood smelled like. You'll learn about the time she spent living in the United States.  All of that awaits you and more!

LINKS

Official Website

…

The first three months of 2023 are gone, and Taylor Ruckle has returned.  We both think that this past quarter was a particularly strong one for new music.  Since we had this conversation, I have listened to the albums of Taylor's top five that I hadn't gotten to yet, and of those, the Screaming Females album was my favorite.  That said, I like them all to some degree, and they're all definitely worth your time.

Taylor's interview with Quasi.

Taylor's albums

Algiers - Shook
Sunny War - Anarchist Gospel
James…

I make noise. People seem to dig it. That's good enough for me.

Dirty Doc most often performs her original songs as Dirty Metal Lefty, and is a musician from Richmond, Virginia. We've spent time together in the occasional hotel lobby at music conferences, bonding over our mutual love of Chris Cornell.  This conversation is a chance for all of us to get to know her better.  You'll learn about her several musical projects, what her songwriting process is like, and how she got to be a guitarist.

LINKS

Official…

The ways that we can be broken are also part of the pieces that put us back together…

Briget Boyle is a songwriter with new single called “Mandolin” out today!  This is the second single from her upcoming album, Heartbreak Residue.  We get into Briget's writing process, the meaning behind this particular song, and detail on Briget's background in the music industry. There is some real poignant moments in our conversation, and you'll really get to see into Briget's heart in this conversation.

LINKS

Official…

If you leave a Wag show and you're not smiling, it's probably you…

Here's how The Wag's official website introduces the band:  Got songs? Got harmonies? Got fun and unbridled enthusiasm? Then you’ve got The Wag! Hailing from the Bayshore area of New Jersey, this 4-piece unit has been entertaining and moving audiences for 20 years but still sounds as fresh as it did on day one! With 4 alternating lead vocalists, catchy melodies, and sophisticated harmonies, they will take you on a journey of pop rock…

It fascinates me how people have such different backgrounds, but we still come together... and we make music together as one unit...

Simona Smirnova is from Lithuania, but currently based in New York City.  She's a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer, teacher, generally interesting person, and true music professional. She specializes in the kanklés, which is a traditional Lithuanian instrument.  (I'd tell you more here, but I want you to listen to Simona talk about it.)

Simona has just…

All these songs really mean a lot to me and help me to kind of decipher my thoughts...

Jovi Espina is a songwriter from Virginia who is currently based in Los Angeles. She has been making music since she was ten years old. I got a chance to see her play at an open mic, and I can tell you from my first person observation that she is a very poised performer who plays with confidence.  In this conversation, you'll learn about her writing process, what her childhood smelled like, and all sorts of interesting…

Why am I being so secretive when it's just a song?

I met Nina Nepa in Los Angeles at an open mic event.  Both of us managed to overcome our nerves from being in a room full of strangers and play our songs.  Since listening to her play that day, I've wanted to chat with her about her music for this podcast.  Well here you are, Nina is the guest on today's episode.

Nina is from Pittsburgh, currently living in Los Angeles.  She plays piano and writes songs. She describes herself as a mechanical engineer…

Let me tell you a tale of blunder, confusion, and woe. I procrastinated when it came to editing my conversation with Brenda Carsey, but it was going to get done in the early afternoon, and everything was ok.  I'd have this episode up and out, ready to tell folks to go listen to Brenda's new album Cognizance on January 9th anywhere you stream music. I'm in my DAW, working on the file, and I clicked the wrong thing... I couldn't see exactly what it was, but strange things were happening, so I tried to cancel…

Photo by Libby Danforth

these three hundred songs, they're all assets... they're all pieces of magic that started on a blank piece of paper

A few years ago, I arrived at Yellow Cab Tavern to play a show at my favorite curated open mic, Showcase Thursday. I had been told that we had an artist from Nashville in town to play with us that night. It's not every week that we get someone on tour to stop by, so I was very much looking forward to meeting this intrepid individual. The intrepid individual…

Exactly one year ago, on 30th December 2021, Juliet Fromholt joined me for a chat about our favorite albums of 2021.  I released that conversation the next day, 31st December, and it was Episode ½ of this podcast.  It was so much fun, I just HAD to have her back this year. Taylor Ruckle joins us for this conversation.  You might remember him from Episode 27 and Episode 43, where we talked about our favorite albums of the first and second quarters of 2022 respectively. 

All three of us are completely…

Yuppie is happy music about hard things.

Zack Sliver is the gentleman in the red shirt in the above picture, taken during Dayton Music Fest at Blind Bob's.  His project is called Yuppie.  Zack is altruistic, kind, and talented, and comes with a polished elevator pitch.  How did wearing a wig in Okinawa help make him a better performer and musician?  What's his songwriting process like?  Does he still like Peculiar, the album that he released this year? Why should you eat Lee's Famous Recipe chicken…

At some point, you know, it's hard to carry a piano around...

Mary Beth Carty is a fascinating individual, a songwriter, an artist, and a multi-instrumental musician. She can be heard singing in four (4!) different languages on her new album, Crossing the Causeway. How did the diversity in the area she grew up contribute to her music?  How did she get started playing accordion?  What did her childhood smell like?  You'll get the answers to these questions - as well as hear me list some names of a musical…