JIM WALSH’S THE MAD RIPPLE HOOTENANNY THIS WEEK: “Born On Fire!” (7/29/15) — Last week at Harriet, Steve McClellan took to the microphone and reminded the drinkers, dancers, and good listeners about the good works that DEMO does, and gigs happening that night after the Hoot, including those by Katy Vernon, James Loney, and Terry Eason, who was celebrating the release of his new CD, “Terminal Leave,” at the Kitty Kat Club, and who returns to the Hoot this Thursday night at Harriet, along with Justin Law, Iris Kolodji, yours truly, and more. Read more…

BECCA MARX: Hoot Review from Harriet Brewing, July 23, 2015 — By all accounts, Thursday evening at the Hoot was HOT, tropical even. The audience members, usually so cool and collected, were sweating as much as those onstage. Even this Finnish woman found it a bit too reminiscent of a sauna. Everyone kept his or her clothes on, though Jim Walsh did at one point suggest visiting a local watering hole, sans wardrobe. For all of the perspiration, the couples in the crowd, and onstage cuddled up close and made it even hotter. Read more…

JIM WALSH’S THE MAD RIPPLE HOOTENANNY THIS WEEK: “The Kismet Of Karl’s Bench (Or How I Met Matthew Beach)” (7/22/15) — Last Saturday I was lucky enough to take in the Amphetamine Reptile showcase Bash 16 at Grumpy’s in downtown Minneapolis, where Gay Witch Abortion, Cowz, Run Westy Run, Hammerhead, the Melvins and more poetically howled across the bar’s parking lot at the specter of the taxpayers-funded zit that is US Bank Stadium. I caught up with old punk rock friends (“these are my people!,” said Dave Paulson, throwing open his arms wide to take in the whole of the black T-shirted throng), including Mary Beth Mueller, widow of Soul Asylum’s Karl Mueller, who was holding down the Kill Kancer booth. Read more…

BECCA MARX: July 23rd Hoot Preview — I’m shaking my head mirthfully while I write this preview because of the fact that one of the Hoot talents lined up for this Thursday was invisible on the worldwide web. I contacted Hoot boss Jim Walsh to inquire if he was testing me, and he replied, “Ha! He’s…I met …” What? Walsh promised that he’d fill me in later…in actuality there are a few question marks that I have in regards to the players this week. So, pull on your boots, and wade into the unknown with me! Read more…

BECCA MARX: Hoot Review from Harriet Brewing, July 16, 2015 — Even before the Hoot happened on Thursday night at Harriet Brewing, I had an idea that it’d be a memorable one. Hoot patriarch Jim Walsh had written a piece about his affection for Hoot veteran Jeaneen Gauthier (Jan), and it occurred to me once more that Walsh doesn’t randomly pick these players. This particular line-up was one that I wasn’t familiar with, but as Walsh himself said, there was a “wealth of talent” onstage, a fact strikingly evident as all the players collaborated on Walsh’s own beauty of a song, “Homebodies (Don’t Be Careful With Your Love).” Read more…

BECCA MARX: July 2nd Hoot Preview — July 4th, 1776, a date ingrained into our brains as Independence Day, but what does independence mean to you? The freedom to vote, to marry whom you want, to have access to contraceptives, to live in a desegregated society, to not be enslaved? That’s the rub isn’t it? No two individuals value independence as the same exact thing. Read more…

BECCA MARX: Hoot Review from Harriet Brewing, June 18, 2015 — In Minneapolis, summer is the season of abundance, and like beasts awakening from hibernation, we must climb out into the sunlight and use it up! Pick the berries, drink in the lilac’s rich scent, and open our arms wide to one another. That last part isn’t always easy for native Minnesotans, but this time of year brings out the best in us. Read more…

JIM WALSH’S THE MAD RIPPLE HOOTENANNY THIS WEEK (6/17/15) — Dear Good People: I’m starting work on what I hope will be a forthcoming (next year) collection of my music columns, reviews, essays, and liner notes, with the working titles of Ancient Celtic Banshee Wail and/or Bar Yarns and Manic Depressive Mix Tapes: Jim Walsh on Music and Life, from Minneapolis to the Outer Limits, and I wanted to share what I wrote for the (very rough) introduction the other night. Read more…

BECCA MARX: June 4th Hoot Preview — June has arrived, and each day brings more light as we reach towards the summer solstice. Soak in every sunbeam, sound and moment possible, and join us as we celebrate living in the light.  Read more…

BECCA MARX: Hoot Report from Harriet Brewing, May 28, 2015 — People say there’s a magical quality about the Mad Ripple Hootenanny. If I had to choose one word to express the essence of the Hoot, it’d be: SPONTANEITY. I often find myself giving the venue a quick 360 degrees, and I’ve never been disappointed in my observations. Read more…