Tune in Saturday, October 4th, at noon on 88.1 WVPE
Experience Americana at its best when Maygen & The Birdwatcher perform live on The Wild Rose Moon Radio Hour! Folk • Bluegrass • Country Collide... Don't miss it!
Maygen and the Birdwatcher Spread the Joy on the Wild Rose Moon Radio Hour
Maygen Lacy, Noah Neumann, Jesse Moravec, Joe Barron, and Al Guindon of the Minneapolis-based band, Maygen and the Birdwatcher, brought their own special brand of musical fun to the Wild Rose Moon on this episode of the show. The band performs following the theme song and some introductory banter between Derek Jensen, the announcer, and host George Schricker. Amy Beaucham reads the requisite “Note from Rosie,” featuring words of wisdom from Maygen Lacy’s favorite author, J.R.R. Tolkien. Thereafter, Maygen & Noah Neumann discuss forming the band from the duo and slip into the song “Feel Good,” from their latest album, The Americana. The song’s lyrics unfold to tell the story of travelling back to one’s nurturing home in search of respite: “Mamma cooking in the kitchen and music on the speakers, a bright smile when I walk in, and I cannot wait to see her.”A discussion regarding the songwriting process follows, during which Noah Neumann reflects: “I always feel one person builds the house and one puts on the wallpaper,” referring to the fact that he and Maygen both share songwriting credit for each song.” The wonderfully orchestrated song, “Elizabeth,” unfolds from that and features some beautiful Mandolin work supplied by Jesse Moravec, as well as beautiful, tight harmonies by the band.
At the break, Music Director John Bahler provides a haunting lullaby, “In Dreams We Rise.”A song he explains is partly about celebrating the intuitive side of the mind, governed by the heart and imagination, and how sleep gets us close to a wonderful place. “Close your weary eyes…no more weary sighs…waves fall and break and to dreams we’ll rise.”
The “Shoot the Moon” game show features two contestants, Bret Bradley, an avid gardener from South Bend, and Jason Ward, a world-traveler from Elkhart, Indiana. The contestants, each claiming to have previously been a wristwatch in a former life, answer questions related to the biographies of Maygen and the Birdwatcher. The titles of the questions –Lord, Is That Ringing?/Surströmming AWAY/Muir-icles Still Happen/White Bear Tale – belie the fun to come as the contestants work with the band to answer the quirky queries until both have won the game.
The band returns in the final segment to discuss the joys of living in the North (apparently, young men wear shorts in the winter there) and then perform their masterful ballad, “Where Good Things Grow.” Written for the South Dakota Grassland Coalition, the deceptively simple lyrics and the beautiful melody fill the room:
Oh, the wonder,
Of the wild and windy grasses
Feel the dirt on my hand
Is there any other way …
If you take care of the land,
It will take care of you.
The radio show closes with the rousing “Millie Moon” off their latest album, The Americana. Music reviewer, Ed Donnelly, of Americana UK, says of the song, “(It) features Appalachian-tinged vocals and bluegrass-influenced instrumentation over a solid drumbeat . . . perfect music for warm summer evenings.” And indeed, the song floats along like a friendly, healing balm, inviting the listener (and Millie) to welcome joy into their life and summer into their heart.
Millie Moon, don’t you know?
There’s a world of Green and it grows in your soul,
Millie Moon, don’t be shy,
The devil's gone – open up your eyes.
By the end of the show, you can feel the party in the room. Maygen and the Birdwatcher know how to have a good time.
The Wild Rose Moon Radio Hour is recorded live before a studio audience in historic downtown, Plymouth, Indiana. The show is hosted by George Schricker and features musical performances, interviews, a game show and more. For more information visit: wildrosemoon.com