You should already know these songs. If the old saying about talent equaling success were true, then The Steepwater Band would already be a household name, rubbing shoulders with Aerosmith, Bad Company and other like-minded travelers in our collective Rock 'n Roll Fantasy. But that's not how things always work, and this band knows it and still leans into it, smiling, with everything in them, not for brass rings and marquees, but because they must! For them, the music life is a calling and not some stupid costume one puts on to shake loose gold, fame, and groupies. In a land of caricatures, it's striking to come face-to-face with the real thing. Something primal lurks in their music, but always wrestling with emotions and stories that are everyday-ready ~ music at once strut-inducing sexy and brass knuckles honest, a sound evolved smartly & patiently through countless gigs, running the bulls whenever and wherever they've been welcomed since 1998. AC/DC once said, "If you got the dollar, we got the song / Just wanna boogie woogie all night long," and The Steepwater Band surely embodies this lip-smacking urge to get some in this mean old world, befitting the group's Chicago roots and their earthy understanding of crackling city blues. The abiding, resounding passion inside this band is never in question. Dive into their seemingly endless catalog of songs just about anywhere, and the heart and muscle pumping away inside every track are palpable and present in a most pleasing way. Their sound is like a soundtrack for arm wrestling The Devil and then drinking shots with him 'til sunrise after you've pinned him down. Their songs bridge the miles between lovers, throw lines to brothers and sisters in need of some understanding and a spark that makes them shuffle, eyes closed, shaking off the day's heavy load, ready for another round because the right song by the right band made them feel they had enough fight left in them. That's the kind of band you're dealing with here, and they'll be doing this long after all the pretty boys, package acts, and pretenders have left the stage. - Dennis Cook

Joe Stamm Band’s newest country-rock album is as brutally authentic as the Midwestern plains and people that inspire these songs. A year-round working musician, Stamm has become something of an anthropologist of the tiny towns dotting middle America. Thanks to his fondness for this so-called flyover country, and his crew of down-home troubadours, Stamm has created the soundtrack to the heart of America: Midwest Town (release date 9-10-21). JSB, established in 2013, offers distinct storytelling mixed with a signature Black Dirt Country Rock sound - a sound that Stamm defines as “a nod to our Midwestern roots, as well as the Red Dirt music scene, which has had a big influence on our music.” Fans can expect the fearless Black Dirt Country Rock sound from Dave Glover’s inventive lead guitar, Bruce Moser’s fortifying bass, and Tim Fiers’ heart-pounding drums on the new album. Cutting his teeth playing in middle-of-nowhere dives, Stamm earned the stage presence and grit it would take to support artists like Chris Knight, Blackberry Smoke, Sunny Sweeney, Tyler Childers, Whiskey Myers, Jamey Johnson, and more. It’s the same blue-collar outlaw spirit from his early days that Stamm brings to any stage and every audience today. “There’s a sinewy, rootsy texture to his inflections, always evocative and drenched in a rock ‘n roll spirit.” -- B-Sides & Badlands As a native to the creek banks, cornfields, and barstools of central Illinois, Stamm quite literally represents the Midwest’s collective story. Taking his high school football team to state, suffering an injury in college, learning to play guitar in his downtime - it’s all part of Stamm’s journey to the stage. Yet, throughout Midwest Town, he solidifies that he’s more than the heartland’s football-star-turned-rockstar. Stamm digs deeper, unearthing relatable stories of a Vietnam vet, a long-haul trucker, a medicine man, a family broken apart. Storytelling at its rawest? Yes. Biographical to America? Absolutely. Describing the band’s second full-length studio album, Stamm explains, “Midwest Town isn’t about one kind of person. It’s about all of us and our shared experiences. It’s about relating to someone else’s story--maybe even someone you’ve never met before.” Obviously curated with care, the album kicks off with a chugging, distorted guitar and Stamm’s friendly twang. Whether or not you’ve experienced a tour across the middle of America, “Pocketful of Quarters” will sit you down on that stool in a roadside diner, swapping stories with a seasoned trucker. The narrative stream continues into the album’s namesake, “Midwest Town.” This single will make you think of Turnpike Troubadours in their prime, cicadas buzzing on a hot summer day, and a place - maybe a “two-lane Midwest town” - you left long ago. “Empty Places,” a ghostly ballad many will recognize from Stamm’s acoustic album, Stories: Live & Unplugged, spotlights his gift for place and character formation. An eerie reminder of America’s darker qualities, this song is as honest and unforgiving as the January wind blowing across snow-scorched plains. Stamm also delivers the two-steppin’ drinking songs that pair well with classics like James McMurtry’s “Choctaw Bingo” and Garth Brooks’ “Ain’t Goin’ Down’ (‘til the Sun Comes Up).” And throughout the middle of the album, his words will make you see yourself as a blue-collar worker just trying to get by, a wild townie chasing down a dream, and a father who finds that “it pays more to fill a pipe with smoke.” Toward the end of the record, Stamm and the band take a subtle detour in time and place. While the album was produced in Iowa and Nashville, “The Ghost” could’ve just as easily been written, recorded, and mastered in the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound Studio. This bayou rock anthem is as menacing as it is bluesy, betraying a strong Whiskey Myers influence on the band’s sound. Finally, Stamm makes his way back home, ending with a lonesome acoustic track that’s probably as autobiographical as any song on this record. A song that reinforces Midwestern Gentleman’s musing: “[Stamm’s] story is an American tale.” Joe has honed his craft for writing the way folks speak, using specifics to relate universally, and finding happiness in the little things. Joe Stamm Band has taken those words and stories and matched them to country-rock riffs that will keep Midwest Town spinning round ‘n’ round your turntable.

Patrick Sweany lives for the Grooves.

Whether it's the ones he records on his albums, the ones he lays down with his band on the stage, or the ones that define his days writing songs and living life in his E. Nashville neighborhood, the Grooves are what have propelled Sweany through 20+ years of performing and recording across 8 studio albums and dozens of countries around the world. Being in the Groove is Sweany's recipe for success.

To say 2020 has disrupted these Grooves, is a severe understatement. The cancellation of live music in the U.S. for the past several months initially ground Sweany's Groove to a halt. However, it hasn't all been bad. The time away from the road and away from the studio has forced some introspection and reflection.

Serendipitously, Sweany had begun a new experiment in 2019 teaming up with Andrew Trube and Anthony Farrell (the Austin duo known as Greyhounds) to rework and re-record some of his oldest compositions. Taking songs from his first two records, Sweany headed into Bud's recording Services, Greyhounds' studio while on tour in Texas.

Together with his touring band, Sweany reworked about a dozen older songs, and even tracked a cover and a never-released tune. The experience was rewarding and fun, but with tour dates pending, the rough tracks sat on the shelf for several more months. Once back in Nashville, Sweany began working with local producer Dexter Green at 3 Sirens Studio. Dex began meticulously shaping and mixing them, and Get That Feeling was born.

Nine Mile Records is releasing two batches of these recordings (volumes I & II) in 2020 and 2021 while Sweany writes and records another full-length album of new compositions.

The songs represent both a look back over Sweany's long career, and new collaborations that showcase some sides of Patrick's songs you might find surprising.

​It's never too late to find a new Groove.

Matt Keen is a multi-genre musician from Chicago, IL who has been honing his eclectic style for years. When playing with his rock and roll band Rebel Soul Revival, Matt Keen (Band) or working around the country as a solo acoustic artist, Keen brings an unparalleled honesty and grit to his every performance. As he begins to gain notoriety around the Midwest and cities he’s visited, this one of a kind performer is trying to bring a renewed passion to live and original music. His debut solo album 'Restless Days' - released in April of 2020 is an 8 track southern rock renaissance with nods to early Skynyrd and Allman Brothers Band. With hints of John Mayer and Santana style songwriting throughout 'Restless Days' is a confident step forward in a new chapter of Keen's career.

Al “Hurricane” Spears is a working Chicago blues musician currently playing guitar with “The Hurricane Project”. Whether backing up another local musician or playing in a band, he can often be spotted at various Chicago Blues establishments like Buddy Guy’s Legends, Kingston Mines and Rosa’s Lounge delivering a slow blues groove or an explosive thundering guitar solo. Al Spears has earned the respect of his fellow musicians as a friendly, reliable craftsman who knows his way around the fret board. Being a Chicago Blues musician carries the responsibility of continuing the legacy of some of the worlds renowned Blues artists, and “Hurricane” is a blues guitarist who embraces this legacy by playing promoting the Blues art form wherever he can.

For Hurricane, the blues is a way of life. He began listening to old 78s as an early child. He picked the guitar in the early 90s, and just kept playing. He began playing some of the local blues jams at Carter’s Place in Lockport, and the Harlem Avenue Lounge in Berwyn after working his full time job.

He’s developed a strong style that could be described as a mixture of jazz and blues with an edge. Hurricane has shared the stage with some of Chicago’s finest musicians, including Toronzo Cannon, Lurrie Bell, Mike Wheeler, Billy Branch, Johnnie Drummer, Aron Burton, Jimmy Dawkins, and the father-son combo Lonnie and Ronnie Baker-Brooks.

Hurricane is a family man, raised on corn bread, collard greens and black eyed peas. He recently retired from his fortune 500 job, and is enjoying life as a Chicago blues musician.

Hurricane works hard to keep the blues art form alive. He operated three of the longest running blues jams in the western suburbs, in an effort to keep this great music in front of the public. He still plays quite a few shows in the Chicago area.

Hurricane wants to give special thanks to his wonderful wife Donna, Michael Wheeler, Toronzo Cannon, Chico Banks (RIP), Twist Ferguson, Dave Riley, Lindsey Alexander, Billy Branch, Carl Weathersby, Carlos Johnson, Third Coast Guitars, Glen Gerini, Doug Horan, Jeff Ruffin, Gibson Custom Guitars, and hosts of friends who helped make the music possible.

Meshing the heart of traditional Americana songwriting, the energy of contemporary country music, and the attitude of Hard Rock, Patrick Bale & The Pale Ales are a giant bullet point on the growing list of artists bringing the genre down paths not taken.

Daniel Cronson is an independent Chicago Artist. Since 2016 he has weaved elements of blues, jazz, soul and RnB into his own personal sound. Since then, Daniel has had the honor of performing with Grammy Winning and Nominee artists such as Los Lonely Boys, Chicago's own Billy Branch and more. In between releasing original, inspired blues and jazz songs he also street performs yearly on Michigan Avenue, as well as maintains a musical residency in some of Chicagoland's most prestigious spots.

The King of Mars (TKOM) has evolved from a four-piece rock band into a larger group with synths, auxiliary percussion, and a horn section. Their sound shakes the foundation of traditional rock music by encompassing Jazz, Funk, and Soul musicality alongside insightful lyricism.

“They are a fun band, and they have a refreshing sound that captures you, pulls you in and smacks you over the head with a diversity of instruments and sounds.” -A Look into Me “Bleach and Aspirin” Review

“Can’t tell you how happy we were with the [TKOM] show. I appreciate… the bands pulling out all of the stops on promotion. The night was a big success for all parties involved.” -Kickstand Productions

“[TKOM] can put in their music something unique and also innovate, making several interesting mixtures of genres within Rock.” -Rock Vibrations “Bleach and Aspirin” Review