Sessions From Studio A

Chicago multi-instrumentalist and music teacher Renee Nanzer is our special guest this week. We'll hear a performance from her recorded live here in Studio A, and we'll also talk with Renee about her experience working with Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music. Renee is part of the school's outreach program, where she visits underserved neighborhoods in the city and brings her love of music to the youth living there. 

Blues artist Cathy Grier joins us on this week's edition of Sessions from Studio A. Grier's musical adventure has taken her many places, from sneaking backstage to meet John Lee Hooker and Bonnie Raitt at age 17, to winning MTV's Basement Tapes competition, to co-writing a #1 dance hit in France. Thoughout her journey, Grier has never forgotten her blues and groove roots, and this year she makes a big statement with the new album "I'm All Burn".

Rockford duo Glitter makes a big statement with their debut album "The Men We Could Have Been". After years of playing in rock and punk bands, guitarist/vocalist Ben Johnson and drummer Jordan Acosta were sick of the over-the-top egos and macho attitudes, so they wanted to go in a completely different direction.

Singer-songwriter Anna May was scheduled to stop by Studio A on her way through Illinois back in April. 2020 had different plans for us, but we liked her new album so much we knew we needed to get her on the show anyways, so she joins us on the phone from her hometown of Waterford, Connecticut. Listen to her new album, "I'm Still Thinking of You" and join us for a conversation with Anna May in this hour of Sessions from Studio A.

The Flips are a five-piece rock band from Chicago with a big, big sound. I asked them to describe their music and they answered with one word: "loud". Hear their live performance at WNIJ on this edition of Sessions from Studio A and join us for a conversation with the band about their backgrounds, life since COVID, and more. 

Singer-songwriter Eric Peter Schwartz joined us in Studio A with his trusty road sidekick, Tourbot. Eric's music is incredibly dynamic, he plays everything from quirky songs about Dungeons & Dragons to deep ballads about a marriage ending. He even released two ambient albums this year, along with a triology of albums called "The Isolation Tapes". 

Punk rock duo Sweetie joins us on Sessions from Studio A this week! We'll hear songs from their new album "Bad Thing Sweet Thing" which is out now on Bandcamp and all your usual streaming platforms. Also join us for a conversation with guitarist Alli Carroll and drummer Joe Pennington about their new album, social activism, the DeKalb music scene and more. 

Songwriting duo Derek Luttrell and Mossy Vaughn return to Sessions from Studio A this week with their new band and debut album, Sickhorse. They've graced our studio previously with the band Name the Moon - and what originally started as writing for Name the Moon turned into something else entirely as the songs took on a different character. We'll talk with songwriter and guitarist Mossy Vaughn on his front porch in Rockford, and also get on the phone with Zach Staas, head of Corporate Panda Records in Nashville.

Bottom Bracket is a emo rock trio from Springfield, IL who just recently released a new album titled "I Don't Care Enough to Stay". Emo rock is a style that grew from the punk and post-punk scenes of the late 80's and early 90's, but features more complex melodies, experimental song structure, and an emphasis on emotional vocals. Bottom Bracket brings their own unique sound to the genre, with influences from math rock that is evident in guitarist Mario Cannamela's intricate playing and tapping. Listen to Bottom Bracket's live performance in Studio A right here!

A recent graduate of Northern Illinois University's School of Music, singer-songwriter Amelia Harlovic is now based in Chicago, where she has kept busy during the pandemic writing and recording new songs. She joined us in Studio A for a performance alongside DeKalb's Chris Kenney on drums. Listen to her full performance and an interview with Amelia Harlovic on this new edition of Sessions from Studio A!

Folk artist Joe Jencks makes his living as a touring musician, sometimes on the road as many as 300 days a year. Like so many others, his world was turned upside down this year, but he uses his music to get through these tough times. Listen for a great conversation with Jencks where we discuss social activism, Pete Seeger, and the power of folk music as a voice for and of the people. We will also hear songs performed live here in WNIJ's Studio A.

Back in March of this year, Dan Maguire joined us with Lucy Brearley and John Kielty to kick off our first ever Studio A Cafe concert. That live concert series had to be cut short, but we are excited to bring Dan Maguire's live performance to you on Sessions from Studio A.

Listen to Maguire's performance in front of a live audience and also hear our talk with the Rockford singer-songwriter about his background, influences, and much more. Keep up with Dan Maguire at his website: danmaguiremusic.com   

Things are getting heavy on this week's edition of Sessions from Studio A featuring alternative metal band Extinguish the Sun, from Dixon, IL. We will hear songs performed live from their debut album, Antihero, and their latest EP Oceans, which was released last October. Check out their full set in Studio A and an interview with the band right here. It's a headbanger edition of Sessions from Studio A this week with Extinguish the Sun! 

Like so many events this summer, DeKalb's annual Gurler Folk Music Festival had to be postponed due to COVID-19. But we wanted to find a way to celebrate the festival's 20th anniversary, so we are bringing the festival to you this year. Join us for a celebration of folk and traditional music with performances from Dave Balika and Friends, roots and jazz guitarist Jim Kanas, and folk trio Heath, Nathan, and Jessie.

Join us for two modern guitar virtuosos on this week's episode, Fareed Haque and Goran Ivanovic. The duo released a pair of albums in the 2000's to critical acclaim, but busy schedules and other musical endevours put their playing together on hiatus. That hiatus came to an end this year with the duo's new album IndoBalkan.

In 2017, singer-songwriters Jim and Sam accomplished something few artists could ever imagine doing: they played a concert every single day for a whole year. The journey took them all across the United States and through 14 different countries.

Pioneer Salesmen are a four-piece band from down south of the state in Alton, IL. Their music is high-energy with infectiously catchy hooks and riffs. They have a sound inspired by the classic rock of the 60's mixed with more modern rock bands like Arctic Monkeys.

We left Studio A for this week's episode and headed to Severson Dells Nature Center in Rockford, where we caught a set from Baltimore husband and wife duo, The Honey Dewdrops.

The Honey Dewdrops performing "Silver Lining" live at Severson Dells Nature Center

We have a unique episode of Sessions from Studio A this week. Like so many others, the current pandemic has put our normal work on hiatus. Join us for a special "quarantined" edition of the show featuring ambient music from Rockford's Micky Torpedo.

Micky is releasing four ambient albums this year, based on the changing moods of each season. We'll hear music from his Winter and Spring Cycle albums this hour. We also sat down to chat virtually with Micky about his approach to writing music, as well as his involvment in Rockford's Rock and Roll Institute. 

Listen to a special edition of Sessions from Studio A this week, as celebrate the first ever Public Radio Music Day. Sessions has been on the air for 4 years and has had over 100 artists featured on the show. In this episode, we'll take a listen back through the years to a variety of performances recorded for Sessions from Studio A.

Dark Heart News is a high-energy rock and roll trio from Chicago. They have a wide range of influences from rock legends like Led Zeppelin, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and The White Stripes, to blues masters such as Stevie Ray Vaughan. Hear Dark Heart News' full performance in Studio A right here!

You can keep up with the band and purchase their music at their website. 

Join us for the music of Crystal Gravy, of DeKalb, IL. They are a love-struck duo who even spent their first date writing their first song. We'll hear their performance in Studio A and talk with Crystal Gravy about their writing process, their relationship, and much more. We will even learn what "Hotel Stew" is.

Keep up with Crystal Gravy by following their Facebook page. Find more of their music streaming on Spotify and available for download on Bandcamp!

Join us for the music of Fuzzlove on this week's Sessions from Studio A! This genre-blending band from DeKalb has a huge range of influences from jazz, to funk, to hard rock. They stopped by Studio A and played some new, unreleased songs that the band has planned for their upcoming sophomore album.

Keep up with Fuzzlove by following them on their Facebook page.

The Weekend Run Club joined us in Studio A to perform tracks from their new, debut album "Zoo". You can find that album streaming online and available for purchase here.

Join us for the music of The Lone Canary this week. This Rockford duo plays their own unique brand of folk/americana music, and we were lucky to catch them live at Prairie Street Brewing Co. this past summer. We also had them revisit Studio A, where they played a few songs from their upcoming album, Leave the Gray, which is out now.

Hear the music of Taylor Rogers on this week's Sessions from Studio A. Taylor Rogers is a singer/songwriter from Chicago who blew us away with her live looping of guitar and vocals to create rich and textured soundscapes. 

Taylor Rogers performing "8900" in WNIJ's Studio A.

We are bringing you two sets of music from Miles Nielsen on this week's edition of Sessions from Studio A. Check out his set at Rockford's Prairie Street Brewing Co. with his band, The Rusted Hearts, and then a stripped-down acoustic set recorded right here in WNIJ's Studio A. 

Miles Nielsen & Kelly Steward performing "Over the Moon" in WNIJ's Studio A.

WNIJ's Sessions from Studio A has a growing reputation as a showcase for energetic performances, and Funktional Family brought their A game. This band features members of Backwoods Bunny Fight, another band we featured.

Chicago folk duo The bellow + the whale joined us in Studio A and performed some of their new original songs. 

Check out more from The bellow + the whale at their website and Facebook page.

Invisible Cartoons performs "A Catastrophic Atmosphere" in WNIJ's Studio A.

Invisible Cartoons performs "Jackson Pollock" in WNIJ's Studio A.