The Oak Center General Store

Born out of love for the back roads music of America’s past, The Fattenin’ Frogs play rock & roll in its original spirit by cranking up the electricity on the music of the juke joints, hootenannies, medicine shows and tent revivals of yesteryear. The Minneapolis sextet puts their heart and soul into every song so come on out, sing, dance, and clap along!

Gritty, soulful, and always danceable, The Fattenin’ Frogs have been described as Davina and the Vagabonds meets Howlin’ Wolf. Lead vocalists Amanda White and Chris Holm generate a freight train of emotional excitement over a landscape of multi-layered harmonies, scorching electric guitars, thundering drums, wailing harmonica, grooving bass, rollicking piano — and even a little banjo or accordion from time to time. A band in the truest sense, each member is a contributing songwriter and vocalist and injects their own personality into the music. Never safe or stamped out, they are not afraid to cap off a hot night of rock & roll with a zippy little kazoo solo because above all, rock & roll is supposed to be fun!

http://thefatteninfrogs.com/

Folk/ Americana/ Rock
T Bruce Bowers and Ric Gillman are quite a pair. With almost a century of musical experience between them, they bring a wide variety of flavors to the table. From Doc Watson guitar picking, to blazing Led Zeppelin electric violin, it’s a banquet every night. With T Bruce Bowers on electric and acoustic violin, acoustic mandolin and Ric Gillman and Acoustic 6 and 12 string guitar. It is always interesting, and sometimes down right unpredictable, each performance is an adventure.

http://www.ricgillman.com/
http://www.barefoot-wonder.com

Bluegrass, Folk and Swing

The three members of the Hampden Rounders have been playing music for a total of 140 years. That's almost 3500 chipmunk years. Pop Wagner, Anni Spring and Adam Granger, who have been friends for about as long, started playing informally at St Paul's Hampden Park Coop and, after a couple of years, decided they'd better give themselves a proper name and actually be a band. The Rounders guarantee a fun, easygoing show chock-full of old-timey fiddle tunes and swing, bluegrass and folk songs, with a few originals thrown in for good measure.
WARNING: The Hampden Rounders cannot guarantee that silliness and frivolity will not ensue.

http://www.popwagner.com

Bluegrass

Since forming in 2006, The High 48s have been making music that
combines the soulful sound of classic bluegrass with a modern
attitude, original songs and a wide range of influences far beyond
Bill Monroe, the Stanley Brothers, and Flatt and Scruggs. In a genre
created and dominated by artists from the South, The High 48s were
born and raised in the Upper Midwest. And in a music scene where
playing standards is the norm, The High 48s are a band of
songwriters who perform their own material in addition to the
“festival favorites.” They return to Oak Center for another
entertaining, high-energy show.

http://thehigh48s.com/

Roots, Indie, and Folk

Rich vocal harmonies merge with intimate layers of guitar, fiddle and banjo to define the lush sound of the recently formed duo, Dusty Heart. Barbara Jean & Molly Dean are two songwriters recognized in their own right for their poetic lyrics and distinct vocal styles that when combined, fuse to create a powerful and haunting sound that takes on a life of its own. With a shared wanderlust and love of adventure, a passion for the open road, vast landscapes, and a mutual love for musical harmony, they join forces crafting a sound that bridges together the diverse musical worlds of roots, indie, and folk. As soon as they embarked on their collaborative journey, Dusty Heart was off to a running start, receiving an invitation to open a series of sold-out shows supporting Dave Simonett and Dave Carroll of Trampled by Turtles across Colorado.

http://www.dustyheartmusic.com/

Original and provocative folk and storytelling

Singer/songwriter/farmer Chuck Suchy returns to the Oak Center General Store to perform his special original songs and stories. Suchy has been heralded as “One of the great American songwriters” by Rod Kennedy, founder of the Kerrville (TX) Folk Festival – the premiere songwriting festival in America. Dirty Linen Folk Magazine says of Suchy: “ Ya gotta love this guy, he writes a fine song , plays steady guitar, sings with rare confidence and lives his material!” He is the recipient of the 2015 North Dakota Governor’s Award for the Arts. Suchy raises grass fed beef on the farm he grew up on near Mandan, ND.

http://www.chucksuchy.com/

Blues /folk/ country/ fusion

Best known as an ace guitarist and Producer/Engineer of Trampled By Turtles, Erik Koskinen should also be recognized as a masterful songwriter and rousing country singer. His dulcet tone and demeanor rival artists like Sting and Bon Jovi. Come experience his original brand of American music at Oak Center.

http://www.erikkoskinen.com/

Alt-Country
Jillian Rae hails from the Iron Range of Northern Minnesota and has been a singer and violinist since the age of 7. She has been a heavy hitter on the Minneapolis music scene, playing in as many bands as she humanly can. Jillian formed her own band in 2013 and immediately began writing and recording. Her first album, Heartbeat was released in December 2013 and in February 2014 she was a finalist in Vita.mn's Are You Local Contest (best new bands). The band continues to tour extensively regionally and nationally and is showing no signs of slowing. One of the favorite shows each year at the OC General Store, expect a new album from Jillian Rae in the spring of 2016.

https://www.facebook.com/jraemusic/

Blues, Cajun, Jazz, Zydeco& Folk
Drawing from a multitude of influences ranging from elegant classical and jazz styles to the rawest, most basic blues, country and soul, Radoslav Lorković has taken on an unusually broad musical spectrum and refined it into his distinctive piano style. With his great voice, incredible piano, and other worldly accordion, it just gets better every time. He is joined tonight by T. Bruce Bowers of Barefoot Wonder on electric and acoustic violin and acoustic mandolin. Together, they’ll perform an amazingly diverse and artistically performed collection of originals in all the musical genres of the planet.

https://www.radoslavlorkovic.com/
http://www.barefoot-wonder.com

Traditional folk & bluegrass sounds with poetic lyrics
Featuring Ellen Stanley on banjo and vocals, Mother Banjo is a New England-raised, Minneapolis-based songwriter. Called “an outstanding poet” (Inside Bluegrass), she was a Midwest Finalist for the prestigious Mountain Stage New Song Contest and has been featured nationally on SiriusXM Radio and CMT.com. Ubertalented pianist Ben Cook Feltz opens the show and will join Ellen on stage to share songs from their recently released holiday EP.

http://www.motherbanjo.com/

Authentic, Northshore Blues
Authentic gets used way too much, but when you hear Charlie you'll understand its meaning. Charlie shows up with his lived-in rasp of a voice, a National Resonator guitar, a twelve string acoustic, a banjo, a batch of his own songs, and well-traveled numbers by revered bluesmen from other times. He executes his music the way it should be with a self-taught mix of slide, finger-picking, quasi-frailing techniques, and a voice that says, "this is the blues". Charlie Parr is the real deal. We’re not pulling your leg. But don’t take our word for it... listen to his music. You’ll be glad you did. Always a sold out show at Oak Center, get your tickets early!

http://www.charlieparr.com/