Stephen Mougin has done many things in the music business. He runs  a recording studio, he’s an in-demand sound engineer and producer. He’s a songwriter and guitarist but the role Mojo takes the most pride in; is “teacher”. He gained those skills and confidence while attending U Mass Amherst where he degreed in Music Education. Stephen was awarded an”IBMA Mentor of the Year Award” for his work in 2016.

Born and raised in South Ashfield Ma, Stephen experienced an early omen. While attending the Peaceful Valley bluegrass festival in 1988, he sat in on a workshop with none other than Bill Monroe! Bill showed an interest in this youngster and his mandolin, so much so that the “Bluegrass pioneer” used young Stephen’s mandolin for the entire workshop!

We talked about his early bluegrass band, Thunder Mountain Bluegrass Band and his move to Nashville, Tn.  Eventually, contacts got him a gig with the Sam Bush Band ,a role he’s “picked” since 2006. Our discussion ranges from his Dark Shadow Recording studio to his hope for a July 31 release party for his first solo album, “Ordinary Soul”.

Of course there is plenty of music in the segment with a healthy dose of the new disc. We include “New Beginning”, “A Place for a Fool” with the Gibson Brothers, “I’m Gonna Ride” with the Sam Bush Band. We add a new tune from Sam’s band called “On the Road”. The segment finishes with Dark Shadow artist, Becky Buller, nominated for an IBMA for her song, “The Barber’s Fiddle”. Two new songs from “Ordinary Soul” finish the segment including Stephen’s favorite on the disc, ” A Song That I Call Home” and “Railroad Man”.

Jake Blount visited on Nine Volt Heart to discuss his recent release, “Spider Tales”. It was a fascinating discussion on race, activism as well as music’s role in educating the listener on topics sometimes difficult to broach in other situations. The material on “Spider Tales” is superbly researched and curated from centuries of old time music with a focus on the black and indigenous roots of the music. The songs have themes which unfortunately remain stubbornly relevant including oppression and resistance to power.

Our conversation touches on the role of traditional African American dance as well as this old time stringband music. I ask Jake about his research process and the excavation of these tunes and their selection appropriate to the theme of Anansi the Spider, whose fables are handed down from one generation to the next. In much the same way, these songs and tunes have been preserved and researched through Jake’s field research.

We talk about his top notch band for “Spider Tales” which include Tatiana Hargreaves on fiddle, Rachel Eddy on guitar, Hase Ciacco on bass, Nic Gareiss on dance/percussion. The Horseflies’ Judy Hyman and her husband Jeff Claus add their instrumental and production help.

Jake and most of his band are part of special online stream put together by “BluegrassPride” which will offer ten hours of live music dedicated to the cancelled San Francisco Pride Day. It is called “Porch Pride” and airs on 6/27 and 6/28 on bluegrasspride.net The event also features NineVolt favorites  Joe Troop from Che Apalache,Rachel Baiman and George Jackson, Front Country, Molly Tuttle, Sam Gleaves, Della Mae, and Amythyst Kiah.

Of course, the segment includes four of the tunes off Jake’s new release. We start the segment off with “Roustabout”, “Move, Daniel” and “Where Did You Sleep Last Night” and we finish the segment with the compellingly chilling “Mad Mama’s Blues”.

Nate Lee soars on the mandolin. His fingers take flight in every tune he plays. His latest effort, “Wings of a Jetliner” features an all star cast from Tennessee including members of the award winning Becky Buller Band, Wyatt Rice (Tony Rice Unit), Todd Phillips (Far too many collaborators to mention) and Bronwyn Keith-Hynes (from Mile Twelve). Produced by Dan Boner from the esteemed E.T.S.U music program, Nate Lee sings, plays fiddle, banjo and mandolin.

Our conversation covers some of his biographical information, his early influences, his teaching and practice regimen, as well as the tunes from this upcoming release.

The segment includes “Chinqaupin Hunting” from Nate’s first solo EP, the latest from Becky Buller, “The Barber’s Fiddle”, and the first single from Jetliner called “Love Medicine”. Our interview finishes with Nate introducing his latest single, “Serenity”.

Corey Laitman was my guest on Nine Volt Heart on 2/15/20. They are a recipient of 2018 Passim Iguana Fund to help fund their latest project. The songs on their latest release are “lush, compelling and deeply human”We talked quite a bit about songwriting and poetry focusing on their latest release called “Seafoam”released in 2018.

Our set of music included “Marching Band” from Seafoam, a live in-studio version of “Carnival”, “The Well” from the latest release, a gorgeous version of “Tuscon” live. The CD version of “Barn Owl” is followed by a new song on ukele called “Soft as the Mouths”.

Corey is curating a series of live shows at Northampton’s Majestic called “Shut Up and Listen to the Music”; the next one happening on 2/20  along with Sister Jawbone and Julie Cira and the Wake. Corey also appears at Greenfield’s Root Cellar on 2/22,and Cambridge’s Club Passim on 2/25.

Dominick Leslie is one of the bright young mandolinists of his generation. Selected to be one of the Young American Mandolin Ensemble representing in France, Dominick has studied with the very best. David Grisman, Sam Bush, Chris Thile, Andy Statman, Mike Compton and countless others have made him one of the “go to” mando played for many a spontaneous ensemble. Last summer’s Green Mountain Bluegrass and Roots festival included Dom in their all star “Strength in Numbers” tribute, for example. Dominick is a highly sought-after collaborator as evidenced by his numerous side projects including Sam Reider and His Human Hands, Phoebe Hunt and the Gatherers, The Bee Eaters, Missy Raines and the New Hip, Grant Gordy Quartet, and The Deadly Gentlemen.

This month he’s touring with the fabulous instrumental quartet, Hawktail. The band also includes Brittany Haas on fiddle, Paul Kowert on bass and Jordan Tice on guitar. They will be appearing at The Academy of Music’s Back Porch Festival on Saturday 2/29 as part of the bluegrass bill with the Travelin McCoury’s and Della Mae. Hawktail will also be performing a Parlor Session on Sunday 3/1 at Northampton’s Parlor Room.

Our interview includes a trio of tunes from the recently released album “Formations” including Annbjorg,Dandelion and Last One on the Line.

Tim Eriksen is a local treasure in our Pioneer Valley but there aren’t too many chances to see him perform. Next Sunday 2/9 is just such an opportunity at Northampton’s Parlor Sessions. Tim has taught at Amherst College, Hampshire College and presently teaching Shape Note Singing from The Sacred Harp tradition at Smith College. He’s been active in providing music for theater (“Refugee”) as well as documentaries (“Behold the Earth”)recently ; but this work goes back to his role in the Academy Award nominated film, “Cold Mountain” back in 2003.

Tim will bring his music to the Parlor Session for an evening of stories , songs, and Magic Lantern projections from an imaginary New England village. Peter Irvine, long time collaborator from Tim’s Cordelia’s Dad days joins him as well as painter Susan Brearey who is working with the old school technology of the Magic Lantern projections.

Our conversation touches on his work on the film “Cold Mountain”, training the cast including Alison Krauss and Elvis Costello, in the Shape Note tradition. We discuss New England’s role in this traditional style of singing and preview the Parlor Session on next Sunday. The evening also will give tribute to John Cohen of the New Lost City Ramblers. Tim is a natural born story teller and he gives us a number of fascinating glimpses into what the Parlor Session will be like. The segment includes a handful of Tim’s music, of course, including  “Better Days Are Coming” from the Soul of January Hills CD, “Am I Born to Die” from the Cold Mountain soundtrack as well as “Gabriel’s Trumpet” from Josh Billings Voyage.

The trio of celtic wonderlings KALOS were my guests yesterday on my radio show Nine Volt Heart. Jeremiah Mclane on accordion, Ryan McKassen on fiddle along with Eric McDonald on guitar are working on a brand new release as a trio.They will be part of 2/16 Parlor Session in a fabulous series of music designed to chase away the winter doldrums. These gentlemen’s music will surely do that. We had a long discussion of their acculmulated influences and experience and it is broad and diverse. They have experienced a lot in their musical wanderings and this expansiveness is apparent in their music. Our segment includes two recent tunes, “Brooke Leigh” and “Mark the Hard Earth”. Give it a listen or better yet get yourself down to Northampton’s Parlor Room on Sunday February 16th.

[/audio)

Chris Brashear and John Benjamin played an entertaining set of music in anticipation of their hosting duties at upcoming Parlor Room events. John Benjamin and Max Wareham will be hosting the Parlor Sessions for select Sunday shows this winter. Chris Brashear will be teaching a workshop along with Matt Flinner on 2/29 as part of the Back Porch Festival. Chris will also be hosting the Townes Van Zandt tribute night on 2/27 along with a host of singer/songwriters. Details for these events can be found at Signature Sounds Presents website.

Their set of music included “Lil’ Joe”, “The Road to Columbus”,and “The Midnight Special” live as a first time duo! The segment also includes Chris’ “Tell All My Pickin’ Friends Goodbye”, Matt Flinner’s “Inferno Reel”, Townes Van Zandt’s “To Live Is To Fly” as well as a cut from Chris’ collaboration with the Piedmont Melody Makers, “Just Keep Waiting Till the Good Times Come”.

Bruce Molsky will lead a workshop and a concert on December 15th in Northampton’s Parlor Room. Bruce is a leading advocate of old time fiddle music whose work spans genres and generations. He’s a serious musicologist and has a serious work ethic which he refers modestly as a “bunch of projects”. Touring worldwide with Molsky’s Mountain Drifters (pictured top right) a trio of Allison DeGroot and Stash Wyslouch as well as releasing a disc with Scandanavian supergroup Mozaik are just two of his recent projects.

Our conversation covered some of his early influences from Billy Taylor’s Jazz Mobile to studying years later at the feet of old time legends in the Upper South. We talk about his role as educator at Berklee’s School of Music and his efforts to establish the American Center for Folk Music in his hometown of Beacon NY.

Of course, the segment includes some old time fiddle tunes including Bruce’s versions of “Piney Mountain”, “Shelving Rock”, “Forked Deer” as well as the Mountain Drifter’s “Old Jawbone” and a version of “The Drunken Hiccups” finishes this set of old time standards.

Pictured above (top left) is Bruce in-studio on Nine Volt Heart,(Center photo) Bruce with Altan along with Alison Brown at Freshgrass, (top right) Molsky’s Mountain Drifters

Amythyst Kiah’s star is rising…fast. Make sure to catch her tomorrow night at Northampton’s Parlor Room with Alexa Rose.

While Amythyst’s career was going well with two independent releases,” Dig” an acoustic collection of traditional and originals and “Her Chest of Glass” which is more of a group bluesy rock sound. But it was Amythyst’s recording of Vera Hall’s “Trouble So Hard” which caught the ear of Rhiannon Giddens who invited her to open for the “Freedom Highway” tour. More recently, Amythyst Kiah was invited along with Allison Russell (from Birds of Chicago and Po’ Girls) and former Carolina Chocolate Drop associate Leyla McCalla to collaborate on a new project together.

Songs of Our Native Daughters was released on Smithsonian Folkways this year and it is astounding. The four banjo playing roots musicians visited the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture to research and investigate a collection based on slave narratives. The resulting collection is collaborative and inspiring. Amythyst leads the collection off with her penned “Black Myself” which sets the bar very high. She also cowrote a number of other songs such as the retelling of the John Henry story from the perspective of his wife Polly Ann.

Our conversation touches on her biography and her Tennessee roots, her education at ETSU in Johnson City, Tn as well as her influences such as the previously mentioned Vera Hall. We talk about the Native Daughters project as well as her upcoming solo release,”Weary and Strange”.

The songs included are “Trouble So Hard” from Amythyst and “Another Man Done Gone” from Vera Hall. We hear “Mamas Cryin’ Long”, “Black Myself” and “Polly Ann’s Hammer” from Songs of Our Native Daughters as well as a new original “Wild Turkey’ and “John Henry”.

Alexa Rose is a very talented singer songwriter and she is on the Parlor Room bill as well. A great night to see two amazing performers in a small intimate venue. Nov 11 at the Parlor Room in Northampton, Ma.