The Oak Center General Store

Alt Country/ Indie-rock/ Americana
Iowa-born, Minneapolis-based folk rock artists the The Pines have created a loyal following for their lush, layered sound and poetic lyrics inspired by the land and folklore of the American Midwest. Bridging the folk, roots and indie worlds with their modern take on American music, frontmen/songwriters Benson Ramsey and David Huckfelt share a common musical language rooted in the songs and songwriters of their native Iowa. The Pines' sound balance Ramsey's ethereal, somberly beautiful songs with Huckfelt's darkly romantic, cinematic (more…)

Pushing Chain is a folky-tonk duo formed in 2012 by longtime musical collaborators Boyd Blomberg on guitar and Adam Moe on fiddle that features marvelously exuberant vocal harmonies, impeccable timing and wit, and an infectious gonzo vibe that leaves audiences grinning. Folky-tonk is a term used by the duo to answer the question, "What kind of music do you play?" It's folk music with a country vibe, and vice-versa.

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The Federales: Classic country for the modern world.
We're not from the Black Hills, the Texas Panhandle, or Appalachia. We're from the Twin Cities. Damn proud of it, too, but we play country music, because it's one of America's native languages.

We use it to tell our stories of love, good times, Grain Belt, and friends. Some are fact. Some are fiction with the truth hiding in there somewhere. All of them are heartfelt.(more…)

Midwest-stylized, blues/country/rock/bluegrass
Straight from the great Mill City comes the Pistol Whippin’ Party Penguins. Don't let the name fool you! This is not a violent group of flightless aquatic birds looking for a party, but rather 5 self proclaimed gentlemen, 2 guitars, a mandolin, a bucket of fiddles, an upright bass, a banjo, and a 4 part vocal harmony that will make angels cry. This quintet from Minneapolis strives to maintain the original spirit of the "string band" while continuing to play new original music and creative cover songs. The combination of folk, rock, blues, bluegrass, and the (more…)

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, often rowdy 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.

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Anyone not familiar with the music of Bill Staines is in for a special treat.

For more than forty years, Bill has traveled back and forth across North America, singing his songs and delighting audiences at festivals, folksong societies, colleges, concerts, clubs, and coffeehouses. A New England native, Bill became involved with the Boston-Cambridge folk scene in the early 1960's and for a time, emceed the Sunday (more…)

Dazzling audiences with precision picking and sharp harmonies developed over 8 years of playing, performing, and growing up together, the Sawtooth Brothers have created a strong musical rapport with one another, which is channeled through their infectious original material. The sound of the Sawtooth Brothers is rooted in traditional bluegrass instrumental and harmony work and is influenced by modern acoustic sounds, blending pop and indie rock sensibilities with heartfelt americana.(more…)

Curtis & Loretta’s music comes straight from the heart. The husband and wife duo’s extraordinary harmonies and proficiency on a parade of stringed instruments create an alluring frame for their poignant original songs, and traditional pieces from America and the British Isles. The current menagerie includes mandocello, folk harp, guitars, clawhammer banjo, ukulele, and mandolin, plus a bit of kazoo, harmonica, and shakers. Curtis’ down-home sense of humor and Loretta’s theater background engage the audience in an experience(more…)

Traditional Bluegrass with Roots, Jazz and Blues Led by Chris Silver,
The Good Intentions are inspired by the sounds of Hot Rize, Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, Tony Rice, and JD. Crowe. They deliver traditional bluegrass with polish and drive and play songs from the bluegrass masters to material penned by Silver. Silver plays fiddle and mandolin with a deep appreciation for traditional bluegrass music, but it doesn’t stop there. His solos stretch beyond the boundaries of (more…)

Americana/ Bluegrass
Katey grew up with a bluegrass and old-time music soundtrack playing in the background. Singing has always been very natural to her and she sing songs all day long about everything from putting on her socks, to what she’s going to eat for breakfast. She won her first music competition singing at the Boyceville, WI ‘Pickle Festival’ when she was five years old. Soon she began singing harmony with her dad Rod Bellville, a popular fixture in the Westbank Old Time Music Scene, and (more…)

A “roots and blues oddity” is a very deserving description for the Minnesota-based acoustic roots and blues musician Jeff Ray. Ray’s quartet, Jeff Ray & the Stakes materialized in the Minneapolis area over the past 6+ years with no formal rehearsals and no pre-determined musical ideas. Their first gig together was on Minnesota Public Radio’s Radio Heartland, again, with no rehearsal. The gig was quickly followed by a string of shows that started out as “get-togethers on stage” and quickly developed into full-throttle improvisations on (more…)

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Rich vocal harmonies merge with intimate layers of guitar, fiddle and banjo to define the lush sound of Dusty Heart. Barbara Jean and Molly Dean are two songwriters recognized in their own right for their poetic lyrics and distinct vocal styles that when combined create a powerful and haunting sound that takes on a life of its own. Through their shared wanderlust and love of adventure, a passion for the open road, vast landscapes, and mutual love for musical harmony, the two decided to join forces and craft a sound that bridges together the(more…)

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Homegrown, Get-down Blues
Vicki and Joe Price are a husband and wife blues duo from SE Iowa. They do some dynamite blues in the old traditions as well as a good measure of high-powered originals. Vicki’s exemplary guitar playing and smooth vocals perfectly compliment Joe’s raspy voice and mean slide guitar. They have a well earned following who come again & again to see the incredible energy that comes alive on the stage in this quiet like-able guy that Greg Brown at times has called the “Buddha”. (more…)

The Dead Pigeons have come to be known for their infectious, foot stomping sound - an original mix of upbeat barroom bluegrass and lyrically driven ballads. One day they excel at corralling a rowdy festival crowd and the next they are captivating a discerning theater audience.

Born on the West Bank of Minneapolis, The Dead Pigeons have been touring, picking, and perfecting their americana-roots sound for the past 6 years. Constantly evolving, The Pigeons remain steady at the (more…)

Chris Koza is a singer-songwriter living and working in Minneapolis. Born in rain-soaked Portland, Oregon, he discovered Minnesota by way of Northfield; earning degrees in Studio Art and Philosophy while at St. Olaf College. Since then, Koza has focused on music: writing, recording and self-releasing over a dozen albums both solo and with his band Rogue Valley. He’s performed at venues both prestigious and infamous all across the United States and internationally at the Iceland Airwaves Festival and the UK while supporting renowned artists such as Ingrid Michaelson, Brandi Carlile, Stephen Kellogg, and The Jayhawks. His song The Wolves and the Ravens was featured in Ben Stiller’s film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and Koza composed and produced the soundtrack to the 2014 documentary Beyond the Divide.

Chris Koza - vocals, guitar, keys
Peter Sieve - guitar & vocals
Cody McKinney - bass & vocals
Richard Medek - drums & percussion

Long Biography

https://www.chriskoza.com

Celtic music infused with punk-rock attitude
Since 1983, BiL have been innovators in bridging traditional music from many cultures with the sound and attitude of a rock band. A Boiled In Lead concert is a combination of darkly-tinged folk ballads and originals alongside instrumental dance music from Ireland and elsewhere. Enthusiastic, powerful, technically brilliant, playing a wealth of instruments with extreme dynamics, Boiled In Lead routinely demolishes genres with its highly-identifiable sound. An Onion A&E(more…)

Bluegrass

World-class bluegrass entertainers Monroe Crossing will appear in concert at Oak Center General Store. Named in honor of Bill Monroe, Monroe Crossing dazzles audiences with an electrifying blend of classic bluegrass, bluegrass gospel, and heartfelt originals. Their airtight harmonies, razor sharp arrangements, and on-stage rapport make them audience favorites across the United States and Canada.

Since the year 2000, Monroe Crossing has released 13 CDs and a live concert DVD and has made more than 1500 concert appearances throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. The secret to the (more…)

Americana with Rock, Ska, Blues, Rockabilly, Irish & Irony

This Minneapolis-based band takes their name from the Minnesota State Fair's large display of farm equipment. Their original style mixes Americana with Rock, Ska, Blues, Rockabilly, Irish and touches of irony. Machinery Hill features a variety of songwriters who delve into topics from building combines to the end of the world, all solidly delivered with an upbeat attitude and 3-part harmonies. If you look up “diverse” in the dictionary, it says “see Machinery Hill.” (more…)

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.”(more…)

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/

AMERICANA/COUNTRY/SINGER/SONGWRITER

"THIS LATE-BLOOMER MINNEAPOLIS COUNTRY CROONER FELL IN WITH ESTEEMED LOCAL TWANG VETS PAUL BERGEN AND ERIK KOSKINEN TO CRAFT HER DEBUT ALBUM, THAT CERTAIN ACHE. HER SMOKY BUT TENDER VOICE RECALLS JEANNIE C. RILEY WHILE HER SONGWRITING HAS A LUCINDA WILLIAMS-LIKE BALANCE OF DOWN-AND-OUT GRIT AND HOPEFUL BEAUTY, WITH STANDOUT CUTS INCLUDING THE BITTERSWEET, SLOW-WALTZING TITLE TRACK AND THE COOL-RAMBLING CAPABLE MAN. -Chris Riemenschneider, Minneapolis Star Tribune

"PRODUCED, RECORDED, AND MASTERED BY MINNESOTA ROOTS-ROCK ALL-STARS PAUL BERGEN, ERIK KOSKINEN AND TOM GARNEAU, THAT CERTAIN ACHE IS THE SOUND OF AN ASSURED SINGER COMING INTO HER OWN, AND KAPELL LIKEWISE DISCUSSES THE UPS AND DOWNS OF HER LIFE WITH NONCHALANT JOY AND MIDLIFE WISDOM. -Jim Walsh, City Pages(more…)

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/

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We're a group of musicians in the Twin Cities that likes to focus on the music found on Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music. Mikkel Beckmen--percussion, Jillian Rae--fiddle and vocals, Adam Kiesling--guitar, banjo and vocals. We're usually down at the 331 Club on the first and third Sundays of the month.

Folk / Americana / Rock

T Bruce Bowers has been at the Oak Center multiple times with Radislov Lorkovic, Barefoot Wonder (with Ric Gillman) and Ronny Cox.

This time the show will include Cuban drummer, Rayhner Lasserie

Yazmin has lived a life of music from day one, having grown up with musician parents. Her latest album The Nautilus (coming July 6, 2018) was recorded in Havana, Cuba with producers she met while living and studying music there. Over the years, Cuban music has played a big roll in her life. She spent over a decade (more…)

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/

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/