Low Profile with Markly Morrison

My guest today is Phil Elverum. Phil has been making music under the moniker Mount Eerie, named for a mountain in Washington, since 2003. Prior to that, he made music as The Microphones. We’ll get to the origin of that band name later. I first met Phil in the mid-2000s in his hometown of Anacortes, WA, a small town where for years he helped organize What The Heck Fest, a music festival that drew acts and audience members from the world over. In the last 25 years he has been taking his music all over this earth and has released and produced a ton of music and visual art. On his latest album, he goes back to being the Microphones again. Simply titled Microphones in 2020, he delivers a sung memoir on his music career so far, over the course of a single 45 minute song. There’s a really beautiful video of it that you can find online, too. I called my friend Phil to chat about the new record, his winter isolated in a rural cabin in norway, photography, his hilarious cartoons, writing about life, and death, and his artistic development while living in Olympia. If you like this show and want to help it keep growing, you can subscribe to the show wherever you get podcasts. Patreon.com/lowprofile is a place you can throw a few bucks this way. I’ve also been putting more stuff on instagram @lowpropodcast for people who like to look at things. If you want a sticker or a button, just ask. Life hack: the buttons work really well to connect a face mask behind a kid’s head! And the stickers fit right over your eyes if it’s ever all too much for you. And it lets people know you love Low Profile. Here’s my conversation with the original line-up of the Microphones.

This week’s guest is Sean Schuster-Craig who performs under the moniker Jib Kidder. Sean describes his music as “ADHD Psychedelia.” He grew up in the south and is currently based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Jib Kidder first made a splash when his song “Windowdipper” was featured on the TV show “So You Think You Can Dance.” Since then, he’s primarily made sample-based music and incorporated that into his singer-songwriter collage style. We spoke on his process and influences, fruit flies, comic books, poetry, burgers, and his forthcoming album called “Jump The Gun,” which you can hear a sneak preview of on today’s show!Support the program by subscribing, leaving a positive review and rating, or by donating at patreon.com/lowprofile today.

Over the course of the last four decades, Kentucky-born David Grubbs’ musical activity has ranged from hardcore punk to the fine arts. In addition to his work as a solo artist, David is noted for his groundbreaking avant-pop group Gastr Del Sol and his collaborative efforts with a diverse group of influential musicians including The Red Krayola, Pauline Oliveros, Will Oldham, Tony Conrad, Royal Trux and John Fahey. In the 1980s Lousville KY punk scene he was a founding member of the band Squirrel Bait (look for their new jeans). David has also published three books in the past decade: “Records Ruin the Landscape,” about John Cage and early experimental music, and two book-length poems, “Now That The Audience Is Assembled” and “The Voice in the Headphones,” all available from Duke University Press. He’s a Professor of Music at the City University of New York, and his latest album is an improvised collaboration with the Tokyo based Taku Unami. I spoke with David about all of this and more in late July. If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to this show wherever you get podcasts. If you have any friends who might enjoy this show, please let them know! You can also support the show by making flexible contributions at patreon.com/lowprofile, where you can also find giveaways and bonus content. And it never hurts to leave a rating or review on iTunes.

Today on the twenty-fifth episode, I’m bringing you the goods: the definitive article on the sleeper underground pop duo Donnie and Joe Emerson. The two oldest siblings of their family, Donnie and Joe made the leap from agriculture to popular culture with their 1979 album “Dreamin’ Wild.” The strange thing is that it took over three decades for their music to catch on. Talk about being ahead of their time! And now there’s even a major feature film in the works about their story, which you’ll hear more about later.The song that put them on the map is called “Baby.” In recent years it’s been featured in several movies and HBO’s Big Little Lies, not to mention several cover versions by new artists. I had the privilege of speaking with not only Donnie and Joe, but also their parents who risked everything to help their kids live their dream, from custom jump suits to building a studio and producing a record on their farm in Fruitland, Washington.Also, this episode includes the premiere of a previously unreleased Donnie and Joe instrumental song from 1983 called "Auzie Theme."If you enjoy this program, you can follow it on instagram @lowpropodcast, and if you’d like to help support the show you can visit patreon.com/lowprofile. *(Patreon supporters will also be entered in a drawing to win a SUPER RARE Don Emerson solo LP called "Can I See You" from 1983)*Also telling your friends and giving the show positive ratings and reviews on iTunes couldn’t possibly hurt.

Season 2 finale. Band members Peter Stampfel and Robin Remailly recall the ups and downs of the Holy Modal Rounders, and remember their recently deceased band mate Steve Weber. Special guest introduction by musician and artist Jeffrey Lewis! Season three coming sooner than you think...

An interview with friend of the show Ashley Eriksson of the band LAKE (who has a new album called "Roundelay"). We discuss her early musical output, her new disco project, animation and much more!

If you want to know what Thelonious Monk, George Jones and the electric rake have in common, you need not look further than Eugene Chadbourne. He has been surprising audiences for over four decades with his alarming hybrid of free jazz and country music. He has an unfathomable catalog of collaborative and solo efforts. Musician and co-host Arrington de Dionyso joined me at the local Quality Inn to spend some quality time with the good doctor. Co-produced by Miles Rozatti, featuring bumper music by Warren Lee. Support the Low Income Housing Institute at lihi.org, and support this podcast by sharing, subscribing, rating and reviewing. Be a patron by donating at patreon.com/lowprofile

Here is a musical storyteller from Australia whose music is a vibrant collage of country, blues, hokum, calypso, rock and jazz that hearkens back to the early 20th century. His singing evokes imagery of carnival barkers and medicine men, singing tunes full of adventurous whimsy. I went with Miles Rozatti (who also produced this episode) to catch him on tour in Tacoma back in February 2020 and got to have a lovely chat together. If you'd like to support Low Profile, you can do so by doing any of the following: Subscribing,Sharing with friends online and IRL,Five Star Reviews, Giving donations at patreon.com/lowprofile---Hear more episodes at www.lowprofilepodcast.comor wherever you catch your pods!This episode is also supported by in-kind support from San Francisco Street Bakery in Olympia, Washington.

Washington Phillips was a jackleg preacher and a gospel singer in the early 20th century. He invented a one-of-a-kind instrument he called the Manzarene which sounded as celestial as the heavens. Little was known about him until music writer Michael Corcoran started knocking on doors and looking for clues, striking gold again and again. He compiled his findings into a book that is included with a CD called "Washington Phillips and his Manzerene Dreams." Markly and Miles spoke with Michael about his research on Phillips and other early gospel blues greats for this insightful feature-length interview. If you enjoy this podcast, please give us your support by subscribing, telling friends, posting on social media, rating and reviewing on Apple podcasts, or by making flexible monthly donations at patreon.com/lowprofile today.

Cornershop have been making catchy and original music since 1993. Their sound includes elements of punk, disco, Bollywood, glam rock, and funk, always upbeat, no black keys used on the piano. Their lyrics often address issues of ethics, racism and politics. I spoke with Tjinder Singh in London about the group's evolution and their new LP on Ample Play, "England Is A Garden." Please support this show by rating and reviewing it on Apple Podcasts, subscribing, and making a recurring donation of any ammount by visiting patreon.com/lowprofile.This episode was mastered by Miles Rozatti, as usual!

Heatwarmer is a jazz-laden pop trio that originated in Seattle. They say their biggest influence is Star Wars, and they have a new EP called "Electric City." Markly chats over face time with Luke Bergman, Aaron Ottheim and Evan Woodle about all things Heatwarmer and how they are riding out the Covid-19 fiasco.

Danbert Nobacon spent 28 as a founding member of the anarchist pop group Chumbawamba before the band called it quits in 2010. He shares stories about the group's origins and antics, from his first group Chimp Eats Banana to dousing the Deputy Prime Minister with a bucket of ice water at the Brit Awards. If you thought you knew Chumbawamba based off of "that one song," you'll be surprised. This episode is supported by... you! Please rate and review the podcast, subscribe, and make a small donation at patreon.com/lowprofile to help keep this show afloat.

Nick Krgovich of Vancouver, BC has been writing and recording music since his early teens. His previous bands include Gigi, p:ano, and No Kids. He's been a member of Mount Eerie and Dear Nora. His latest solo release is a concept album about his first experience with heartbreak, entitled "Ouch." Nick and Markly got together at 9am over coffee some 200 miles apart and had this conversation, along with plenty of music clips and some exclusive previews of his upcoming projects. Please subscribe, rate and review this show. You can also support the program financially by visiting patreon.com/lowprofile

For the first episode of season two, we travel to Claremont, CA to get to know Henry Barnes, better known as Amps for Christ. Topics include the connotations of having such a band name, homemade instruments and oscillators, and the songs and sounds that shaped him. Recorded on location at the Folk Music Center.

For our season finale, just in time for the end of the world series, we focus on a smattering of songs written for the love of America's pastime and talk to legendary singer/songwriter Terry Cashman.

Born in 1904, this expert fisherman from Mississippi made his first guitar out of a cigar box and went on the become the most beloved entertainer in his hometown of Lake Mary. He only released one album in his lifetime, but as we found out, there is much more to the story. If you like real home-grown blues, look no further as we go searching through time for Scott Dunbar.

A generation before New Edition hit the scene and one of its members went solo with a hit called "My Perogative," there was another recording artist named Bobby Brown who came from a whole different school of thought. For obvious reasons, he now includes his middle name. Bobby Frank Brown, a psychedelic-spiritual one-man band, has garnered praise from the likes of Kenny Loggins, George Winston, Ram Dass, and Allen Ginsberg, and is somebody I never thought I would be able to get in touch with. His debut masterpiece "The Enlightening Beam of Axonda" (1970) is a sonic anomaly that captures the sound of an innovative solo performer, using oscillators, hand percussion, primitive drum machines, zithers, electrified droning metal pipes, and a six-octave vocal range he is not shy to demonstrate. He traveled all over, living out of his van-cum-soundsystem, and sold thousands of his self-released records and 8-tracks to passers by over the course of his heyday. I managed to track him down on the phone in Reno, NV for an interview, following a panel discussion with Jaysen Lee Peters and engineer Miles Rozatti, and he told us about his participation in the Mexico City Olympics, opening for Fleetwood Mac, his concept for a massive anthology, and why he wants to start a new religion. It's never a dull moment with Bobby.

Meet your new favorite band, Soul-Junk. Founded in 1993, with albums dating back as far as 1950 (we'll explain later), singer/songwriter/producer Glen Galaxy has eluded all preconceptions of gospel music by remaining true to his artistic vision. I met with him at his San Diedo studio, Singing Serpent, and dropped a bunch of songs into the mix. If you've never listened to this band, sit down. You're in for a lot of surprises.

She first hit the airwaves in the early 70s and never stopped making music. Her voice is like cotton candy or a glass of brandy, singing soulful reggae music perfect for summertime. We chatted her up about her beginnings, family, and the road to her newest album, "The Girl Who Cried."