Scenic Route

The Grand Marais Music Collaborative offers lessons to area youth with local musicians as instructors. In this piece, Will sits in on a lesson between woodwind instructor Erik Hahn and sixth-grader Rio Tersteeg, who's found a fondness for the piccolo. 

Splimit it a talented young trio from St. Paul who says they play "spicy rock" music, and their performance brings the heat. Inspired by groups like Primus, they've got a unique and playful songwriting style with plenty of high-octane power to back it up. They join Will Moore during a weekend of shows at the Gunflint Tavern in Grand Marais.

Splimit is:

Mitch Benson - bass/vocals
Mike Herold - guitar/vocals
Mike Kleis - drums

Courtney Yasmineh is a Chicago-born songwriter and author based in the Twin Cities who's love for the Northwoods came a young age when she ran away to a family cabin to play guitar and immerse herself in the land of Bob Dylan. She speaks with Will Moore about her latest book A Girl Called Sidney, her upcoming album to be released in September, and life on the road ahead of a performance at the Wunderbar in Grand Marais.

Smokin' Joe Scarpellino is a songwriter based in the Twin Cities, present throughout the Minneapolis jam band scene. He's known for collaborating with a wide array of musicians and bringing them together for various music projects and being the man behind the Galactic Get-Down music festival in southern Minnesota. He also produces his own "Smokin' Joe Show" regularly on Facebook live. He talks about all this and more along with some live original tunes featuring Space Monkey Mafia bassist Joe Barron live on WTIP.

The Grand Marais Music Collaborative is a non-profit organization that pairs local musicians with area youth for instrument lessons of all kinds. In this piece, we hear jazz musician Chris Gillis and ninth-grader Danny Berka decipher and learn to play an unusual and historied set of steel drums.

The Gentleman's Anti-Temperance League are a gypsy jazz revival quintet from the Twin Cities. Amidst a rich and blistering live session of new music and selections from their latest album Roadmilk, they talk about science fiction stories, staying in haunted buildings, and getting abandoned at gas stations. Hear their full live session with host Will Moore below:

The Gentleman's Anti-Temperance League are:

Kellie Reichert - vocals
Daniel Rosen - guitar
Alan Peterson - electric guitar
Jon Halquist - violin
Pete Whiteman - bass

The Sprigs are a newly-formed trio hailing from the Gunflint Trail comprised of three friends working at Wilderness Canoe Bass. They feature Jake Persteiner on guitar/vocals, Dan Arhednt on bass/vocals, and Bill Middlesworth on drums. Listen below for their session with Will Moore on local music show The Scenic Route:

The Grand Marais Music Collaborative offers a program that connects local musicians as instructors to young students wanting to learn an instrument. In this piece, we hear a trumpet lesson from North Shore jazz musician Chris Gillis and his student Jack Willis, an upcoming junior at Cook County High School.

Twin Cities songwriter Mary Bue is back from an extended trip to South Asia and back on the North Shore, with a new album not too far behind her. She joins Will Moore on the Scenic Route to talk about her time in Bali, teaching yoga at Naniboujou lodge this fall, and all about her upcoming record The World is Your Lover, of which she plays four new songs live.

Local musician Gene Lafond was lucky enough to have acclaimed, long-time Twin Cities musician Willie Murphy produce all three of his records. In this segment with host Will Moore, Gene talks about Murphy's career, his experiences working with him, and demonstrates how he help bring out the best in his music. He also finishes with a performance of a brand new song.