Greetings, friends!

Make plans to join us on Saturday, July 18 at Ballard’s Tractor Tavern, where we’ll open for Scott McCaughey’s legendary troupe, the Minus 5, as they celebrate the release of their eighth full-length platter, Killingsworth, on Yep Roc Records. (Read more about Killingsworth on the Yep Roc site.)

Scott & co. have been a huge inspiration since Red Jacket Mine’s fuzzy, four-track inception, when I nearly wore out my copies of Down With Wilco and Let the War Against Music Begin, the always-smart, often-dark pop therein spurring countless failed (but necessary) songwriting experiments, and a few successful ones. The influence of a little band from the South called R.E.M. (that shares several members with the Minus 5, including Mr. Peter Buck) looms even larger, soundtracking my adolescent years and teaching me that artistry and accessibility don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Emotional resonance comes from conviction, not literal sentimentality. Simply put: be weird, and be good at it.

Scott and Peter are still among my favorite songwriters, and I don’t expect that will ever change. Needless to say, we are honored to share this very special night. This will be our last local show until the Lovers Lookout CD release party in October, so please come out and say hello! Advance tickets (highly recommended) are available here.

Many exciting announcements about the record release and accompanying tour are coming soon, so stay tuned. See you at the Tractor!

xo

RJM