Matt the Electrician "Animal Boy"

Bohemian, iconoclastic, ironic and witty! Matt the Electrician used to be...an electrician, for real. Glad he's gotten to give up his day job. He needs to be making music full time, which he does get to do now, thank you very much. Though, for our session with him on the bus, he was chomping at the bit to help us with an electrical problem we were having. Good to still hold the knowledge, right?

I love the sparseness of Matt's website, which is a kind of 'just the facts, ma'am', affair! His bio lives here. And I love a man who is so in touch with his feminine side that he can write his posts as a "Diary." His latest entry tells of his visit to Amsterdam, and watching a man named Boudewyn Zwart play the bells in the bell tower. With some mighty disquieting video, to be sure. Matt Sever has six CDs out, the most recent being Animal Boy. We have the title song for you here, recorded in February on the Music Fog bus at Folk Alliance, in Memphis. And WHAT the heck is he playing?

- Jessie Scott

[Editor's Note: Matt is playing a "banjolele," which is just what it sounds like; a banjo ukulele. His uke is autographed, "Hey Matt, Keep Pickin' - Danny Barnes." And if you're wondering, that's an authentic Steve Poltz jackass t-shirt!]

Margo Valiante "Lay Me Down"

A few weeks back, I caught up with Jack Barton from FMQB on the phone. It had been several years since we talked, but it was one of those calls when you pick the conversation and camaraderie right back up where you left off. He told me he was excited about booking the talent for the upcoming Boulder Triple A Conference, and we talked about the artists he was excited about. One of them was Margo Valiante. I would so love to be able to attend that gathering. But then, I think you know that I just want to be everywhere that cool music aggregates! Not that you need to feel sorry for me, as my dance card is pretty full these days. Music Fog is SO looking forward to hitting the road for WoodyFest in Okemah, OK next week, and then we turn around the week after that, when Beans and I head to the Telluride Americana Weekend in Colorado. Then, coming up in August, I am feeling like there just might be an East Coast visit to DC, Baltimore, and New York. After that, we head to Nashville in September. Makes me excited just to think about it! See the vistas, eat the food, immerse in the music! But you know, we don't get around as much as artists do. They somehow stay busy, as they keep writing, keep recording, keep gigging, hell, keep moving. Maybe it's not for everybody, but I sure do love it.

Margo Valiante next surfaces in Wyoming and then on to Boulder, Colorado for the above mentioned industry conference. The song we bring you is not from her latest EP I Can't Pray, rather, from her album back in 2008 New Blue. No matter, it's all good! Here is "Lay Me Down."

- Jessie Scott

James McMurtry "Peter Pan"

Peter Pan is still one of my favorite childhood tales. 'I'll never grow up. I'll visit the wondrous Never Never Land of the fantabulous for unimaginable adventures. I'll take my gang with me, and we can be together forever with no parental supervision.' These are all potent images. Easy to dream of it, hard to actualize, and as my mother told me countless times, moderation in all things is the best policy. And also, she said be careful what you wish for. We Baby Boomers may just be the ultimate Peter Pan generation. We defy the conventional sedentary wisdom of old. We want to rewrite the book, turn back the clock, keep on truckin'. I heard today that venereal disease is on the uptick for the Viagra Generation. Maybe pharmacies should dispense dual prescriptions! Whatever, all I can tell you is our ways are embedded. We are what we are. I used to want to have a sticker on my rear bumper that would read "Victim Of A Prolonged Adolescence." We are so set in our youthful ways, and that may not be such a great thing all the time.

This rant is brought to you after watching James McMurtry do the song "Peter Pan." By the way, James LIVES in the telling of his songs. The intensity comes as if he is looking out of the mask of the biopic contained within. It is remarkable to have the Music Fog cameras be close enough to see the embodiment. The hopelessness. The desperation.

Have I told you this month how much I love James McMurtry, what a master I think he is? Have you checked out his blog? His latest is called Catfish. Plus, there are not to miss tour dates, and the latest album is Live In Europe. He was live in Austin for the Music Fog showcase in March, at Threadgill's. The song "Peter Pan" is from his 2006 CD It Had To Happen.

- Jessie Scott