RECENT ARTICLES

Seattle resident Craig Montgomery is the former longtime live sound engineer for the legendary grunge rock band, Nirvana. For years, Montgomery toured the world with Kurt Cobain, Dave Grohl, and Krist Novoselic. He spent time in the back of vans and, when it came to showtime, enlivening thousands of music fans as Nirvana played.

Here, as we celebrate music festivals this month on American Songwriter, we wanted to connect with Montgomery to ask him what it was like to work with Nirvana for some of the biggest festivals they ever played. Here, we get the inside scoop from someone who was on the ground floor with one of the biggest bands of all time.

So, sit back and enjoy these stories of the road and of big music festivals, dear reader. Without further ado, here is what Montgomery had to say about those epic years.

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Rocker Ted Nugent has a new album out on April 29. That LP, Detroit Muscle, showcases the musician’s signature hard-pounding, frenzied songs buoyed by his guitar prowess and gravely voice. But these days, Nugent is more than a musician. He’s a social media presence, an outspoken, often harsh voice in the face of what he perceives as right and wrong in America today.

Here, we caught up with Nugent (of “Cat Scratch Fever” fame) to ask him questions about his new album, his relationship to Detroit rock and roll, his thoughts on COVID-19, Kyle Rittenhouse, the past three American Presidents, and much more. (Hint: he doesn’t hold back.) So, prepare yourself, dear reader, for all that is Ted Nugent.

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HBO’s new television show, The Baby, is billed as a horror series in the vein of the acclaimed movie Get Out. And it’s true. The show, which debuts on the premium channel on April 24, is both terrific and eerie, odd and sumptuous.

But beyond the excellent acting, storytelling, and plot, how does a show like this come together musically? How do the folks in charge of writing the songs, scoring the show, and editing the sounds make everything work to bring those eerie feelings to life?

Well, that’s exactly what we asked the show’s composer Lucrecia Dalt, music supervisors Pete Saville and Zoe Bryant, and music editor Ed Hamilton. So, without further ado, let’s see what they had to say about their work below.

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Megan Jasper is a true success story. This is funny because she works for the (legendary) record label, Sub Pop, which often bills itself as “Going out of business since 1988.” Clever marketing aside, Jasper is a beacon in the industry. From starting at the label as an intern to becoming its CEO, Jasper oversees quite a bit of music history and future-making from her Seattle-based office.

In the conversation below, American Songwriter asked Jasper about her first days on the job (make sure you check the Kurt Cobain story ). Jasper is also gracious enough to give insight into what a label looks for when potentially signing a new band, how the label looks to honor its local and global music communities and what she loves most about music.

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Ethiopian-American songwriter and performer Meklit Hadero is a dynamo. A force. A person to know and cherish. Her music is as spiritual as it is entertaining.

Hadero’s latest project is MOVEMENT, which is a traveling series that highlights the complexity and relationship between migration and music. It begins on May 7 in Seattle at the University of Washington.

We caught up with the artist to ask her about the series, its origins, and what she hopes will manifest from the work that went into creating it. So, without further ado, let’s dive into the wisdom of Hadero here below.

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The hit song, “Take Me Out,” by the Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand is like a slug to the head. In fact, that was what helped originate the idea.

The track, which was released in 2004 as the band’s second single from their self-titled LP, is likely the band’s biggest song to date. It reached No. 3 on the U.K. top singles chart and it hit that same number on the U.S. Modern Rock Tracks chart. It also hit No. 66 on the Billboard Hot 100.

But where did the inspiration for the song come from? How did the band, which included frontman Alex Kapranos, conceptualize the tune? For starters, it all began, Kapranos says, with a sniper movie.

American Songwriter caught up with Kapranos to ask him about the origins of “Take Me Out.” Here’s what the songwriter, guitarist, and frontman had to say about its beginnings and fitting the sonic puzzle pieces together.

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We all struggle with writing at times.

But one of the reasons that that is the case is because we don’t know all the great workarounds that some of the best in the business have figured out (even if that means just keep at it). Sometimes, just a nudge in a new direction is all it takes to get back on the right path toward completion and creativity.

Well, you’re in luck!

Here, we ask some successful artists—from Molly Tuttle to Wolf Alice to John Doe, Five for Fighting, and other Grammy Award-nominees and winners—for their techniques, insights, and tips.

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Nashville-based guitarist Molly Tuttle is known as one of the best six-string players on planet earth. If individual fingers were athletes, she’d have 10 Olympians. Yet, as you can see below, Tuttle has also suffered from the concept of “Imposter Syndrome,” or the idea that one doesn’t belong.

Here, in this conversation, we talk with the California-born musician about just that. We also talked with her about her forthcoming new bluegrass record Crooked Tree, out April 1, which she recorded with her new band Golden Highway.

Tuttle talked about her stint living with another great guitar player, Billy Strings when the two were just making their way in the Music City. Tuttle and Strings are longtime friends and collaborators and he, along with others like Old Crow Medicine Show’s Ketch Secor, is featured on Tuttle’s new LP.

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Daryl Hall has a new solo compilation album, due out Friday, April 1 and it’s called BeforeAfter. The skilled singer and hitmaker, who rose to fame in the 20th century with his pop duo Hall & Oates, talked about the new LP and much more with American Songwriter.

For the 75-year-old Hall, music is his life. It began when he was very young and has continued with his Grammy Award-winning Hall of Fame duo and now into later years with his solo work and popular web series Live from Daryl’s House. In fact, Hall’s new LP features work from his solo albums and from the popular series.

Fans can see the full tracklist for the double album below, along with upcoming tour dates during which Hall will be joined by famed singer Todd Rundgren. The upcoming two-disc set spans Hall’s five solo albums, from Sacred Songs (1980) to Laughing Down Crying (2011).

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Formally formed in 2001 in Glasgow, Scotland, the indie rock band Franz Ferdinand has made a global name for itself after some humble, chummy beginnings.

And this month, the band released its first greatest hits album, Hits To The Head, which boasts some 20 of its biggest songs—though, admittedly, it could even stand to include a few more (as you will see below). The new album also features two new tracks from the popular band, “Curious” and “Billy Goodbye.”

We caught up with the band’s frontman, Alex Kapranos, to talk about how he first came to enjoy music, how his father impacted his early years in the art form, how Franz Ferdinand got together (hint: it includes a bottle of whiskey) and how the group came to write some of the biggest songs of this century.

In addition, Franz Ferdinand just announced a big summer tour (see the full list of dates below). Strap in for this thorough, wide-ranging conversation music fans.

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Composer, songwriter, and performer Andrew Joslyn has worked with some of the biggest names in music—as you will see below—from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis to Mark Lanegan, Heart’s Nancy Wilson, Leslie Odom Jr., and The Head and the Heart. He also penned string arrangements for the new Fresh Prince of Bel-Air reboot.

In fact, Joslyn is one of the most sought-after string composers in popular music, offering his compositions on many of the aforementioned artists’ songs. Here, we caught up with the musician to ask him about his writing process, how he’s linked up with these award-winning musicians, how much it takes to hustle to make a career, and much more.

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Moms are the greatest.

Not only would we not be here without them, but moms also tend to be the most supportive people on earth. I know, for me, my mother has shown me what it means to love and care for someone. Growing up, she showed me unconditional love. Through my highest highs and lowest lows, my mother has been a voice of reason, support, and appreciation. I love you, mom!

But, of course, I’m not the only one who feels this way about their mother. And given that March is Women’s History Month, we thought what better time than now to give a shout-out to moms all across the land? So, we did just that.

Below, you’ll find stories from artists talking about the important impact their mothers had, on not only their careers but their origins as artists. Hear from legends like Heart’s Ann Wilson to rising frontwomen like Julia Massey of Warren Dunes about how mothers have impacted their lives. (Get the Kleenex ready.)

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