Willie Watson w/ Viv & Riley + Palamara
Globe Hall Presents Willie Watson with Viv & Riley and Palamara on Saturday, November 16th. Soon before Willie Watson turned 18, he met God in an apple orchard. Or at the very least, he met there a man named Ruby Love, the older friend of a high-school buddy who had an enormous Martin guitar and a seemingly bigger understanding of the American folk songbook. Watson was existentially thirsty: A high-school dropout from upstate New York’s Finger Lakes, he was fast on his way to his first heartbreak and in a first band that didn’t take itself seriously enough. But that night in an apple orchard that had always seemed magical, at a graduation party for one of his bandmates and best friends, Watson and Love sang a few of those old songs together—“Worried Man Blues” and “Tennessee Waltz.” It was the first time Watson had cried while singing, the first time he had made the connection between making music and making sense of his life. He never saw Ruby Love again, but within months of that foundational 1997 rendezvous, he met the musicians with whom he’d soon start Old Crow Medicine Show. Call it revelation, fate, resurrection, whatever you will; for Watson, more than a quarter-century later, it was a duet with the divine. As told in the talking-gospel masterpiece “Reap ’em in the Valley,” that scene is the transfixing finale of Watson’s self-titled debut as a songwriter and as a human at last making music to make sense of his life. Yes, Watson has released two albums since he left Old Crow Medicine Show a dozen years ago and since his long-term collaborations with David Rawlings and Gillian Welch. But those records, both titled Folk Singer, were sets of tunes he knew, interpretations of the songbook he has diligently mined since even before that night in the apple orchard. At 44, however, he feels that Willie Watson is his first-ever true album, having finally lived and lost and simply witnessed enough to know he has something to sing with his exquisite rural tenor. Watson has not abandoned those old songs entirely. He dazzles during a robust take on the forever-curious “Mole in the Ground” and treats “Harris and the Mare,” the standard of tragic Canadian singer Stan Rogers, with total tenderness. But by and large, these are his stories of heartbreak and hurt, backlit by the corona of hope that only growth can provide. These days, Watson looks askance at his old reputation and knows other people do, too. “‘I thought you were just some nice little singer who sang in the little fucking cowboy hat,’” he deadpans, characterizing the perception he knows he has in many ways courted. And he recognizes that people probably don’t think he can write his own songs of meaning and depth, since he spent so long reworking those of others. For a long time, he bought that, too. But the hat is off, as is the desire to be a mere entertainer or interpreter. The nine songs on Willie Watson find a bona fide songwriter dealing with the difficulties of his past to suggest a renewed future; what’s more, he uses his keen and expansive understanding of an old lexicon to add his own new entries to it. As with the best folk songs, you will recognize your own burdens here. As with the best folk singers, you will feel compelled to sound them out, too. Who knows, maybe you’ll even meet God in an apple orchard. – All ages, ticketed guests under 16 admitted with ticketed guardian
Ben Nichols -Bikeriders Tour w/ your host Oliver Peck + Bison Bone
Globe Hall Presents Ben Nichols -Bikeriders Tour with your host Oliver Peck and Bison Bone on Saturday, August 10th. Bikeriders Tour is a chance for a couple of old friends, Lucero lead singer Ben Nichols and tattoo artist Oliver Peck, to hit the road doing what they love… riding motorcycles around the country, singing songs, and tattooing. In each city, Oliver does tattoos at local shops during the day and each night Ben plays an acoustic solo show at a nearby venue, with Oliver acting as host and MC. Ben did the first Bikeriders Tour by himself in 2011, riding his ‘07 BMW R1200GS. The following year Oliver and a handful of other tattooers joined on their Harleys and since then they’ve carved out a week or two each year to travel together. Music, motorcycles, tattoos, and good times. This year renowned Cleveland tattoo artist Greg Christian will be coming along as well. Simpson Motorcycle Helmets and White Knuckler Brand knives were kind enough to sponsor the tour. They donated helmets and handmade knives to be raffled off each night, with the money raised going to American Core, a nonprofit involved in veterans mental health. The tour is named after a Lucero song called “The Bikeriders” which was based on Danny Lyon’s famous book of photographs from the ‘60’s. The book inspired the song and the song inspired the tour. Ben still rides the same bike he started the tour on in 2011. – 16+, under 16 admitted with a ticketed parent or guardian
JORDY w/ FLAVIA + Cassidy King
Globe Hall Presents JORDY with FLAVIA and Cassidy King on Sunday, October 27 — Through dynamic, diverse, and diaristic songwriting, JORDY amplifies the back-and-forth of his internal conversation as loudly as possible, penning plainspoken lyrics and with no shortage of personality. In 2018, the acclaimed pop artist broke through with the independent single “Just Friends,” tallying 18+ Spotify and counting. He maintained his momentum with “Close To You,” reeling in another 13+ million streams. His 2021 full-length debut, Mind Games, spawned the relatable “Long Distance,” which lit up TikTok. In its wake, he made his national television debut with a showstopping performance on The TODAY Show and later earned a nomination at the iHeartRadio Music Awards in the “Social Star” category. After piling up north of 100 million career streams, JORDY held nothing back on his second full-length album, BOY [2023]. Its lead single “Story of a Boy” flipped the story and sound of a familiar anthem—Nine Days’ “Story of a Girl”—with a fresh, fiery, and inclusive spirit that resulted into a viral TikTok trend celebrating Trans creators. Following the song’s live debut on the Kelly Clarkson Show and the new music receiving widespread praise in the press, JORDY also landed a nomination at the 2023 GLAAD Media Awards for “Outstanding Breakthrough Music Artist.” JORDY is currently working on his next project, with more details to be announced very soon. In the meantime, fans can stream two of his highest-streamed new singles to date – the slick pop anthem “Nice Things” and the provocative “Second Minute Hour.” – All ages, ticketed guests under 16 admitted with ticketed guardian
Blameshells w/ Brat House, Grey Skygarden + Paintings of Decay
Globe Hall Presents Blameshells with Brat House, Grey Skygarden and Paintings of Decay on Sunday, July 14th.- 16+, under 16 admitted with a ticketed parent or guardian
Greg Koch ft. the Koch Marshall Trio w/ Kaitlyn Williams
Globe Hall Presents Greg Koch ft. the Koch Marshall Trio with Kaitlyn Williams on Tuesday, July 16Milwaukee native Greg Koch has forged a successful career as “a guitar player’s guitarist.” He is not only a fiercely creative player with a whole trick bag of impressive techniques, ranging from Albert Lee chicken-pickin’ to Albert King string-bending to all-out Hendrixian abandon, he is also is a clinician for Fishman Transducers and his wildly popular “guitar test drive” videos (4,000 to date) for Wildwood Guitars of Louisville, Colorado have generated 50 million views. Koch also has a signature axe which was released in 2019 by Reverend Guitars, named the Greg Koch Signature Gristlemaster. The guitar colors were given somewhat humorous names like: KochworkOrange, and Blucifer. He is also a best-selling method book author and video instructor for music publisher Hal Leonard and a contributing columnist for a variety of guitar magazines including Guitar Player. Guitar great Steve Vai, who released Koch’s 2001 album The Grip on his own Favored Nations label, heaped praise on his fellow guitarist: “Greg Koch is one of those rare guitarists that can blend various styles with a light-hearted approach and a tremendous amount of technique. Hearing him play is inspiring to a guitar player to try to achieve greatness on the instrument.”Dylan Koch gravitated to the drums early on in his life using kitchen utensils to play along with music as soon as he could walk. After digesting an early diet of Ginger Baker, Keith Moon, Mitch Mitchell and John Bonham, Dylan was mentored by the legendary Tom Brechtlein (Chick Corea/Robben Ford). In high school, Dylan participated in the Jazz Institute at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music and furthered his studies at the McNally Smith School of Music in the Twin Cities. While still in his teens he performed with young guitar guns Tallan Noble Latz and Jared James Nichols and has performed alongside his father with such artists as Robben Ford, Little Feat’s Paul Barrere, Jon Cleary, David Grissom, Roscoe Beck and Malford Milligan. Dylan was recently nominated for drummer of the year by the Wisconsin Area Music Awards (WAMI). Says proud papa Koch, “This is the third official recording with the kid. And what’s great about it is, you can’t teach the grease. And he gets it. He gets the filth. I guess he’s just got my filthy DNA.”Hailing from the Twin Cities area, Toby Lee Marshall came from a musical family, playing piano for years until falling under the spell of the sound of the organ while at a baseball game at age seven. His fascination for the Hammond B3 took hold after his Dad took him to see Steve Cherewan playing with Dr. Mambo’s Combo during their legendary residency at Bunker’s in Minneapolis. Steve mentored Toby in the ways of the B3 and he hit the ground running, landing a gig with bluesman Lonnie Brooks while still a teen. He would go on to travel the world as a member of Bernard Allison’s band. Following a long hiatus from music, Toby has returned to the music scene with a vengeance in the smoking Koch Marshall Trio. “Toby had actually retired from music,” Koch explained. “He decided to stop touring for several years to help raise his two young kids. But now he’s so excited to be playing in this trio because it’s just such a perfect format for him to let his freak flag fly.” – All ages, ticketed guests under 16 admitted with ticketed guardian
Natural Child w/ JLR Band
Globe Hall Presents Natural Child with JLR Band on Friday, September 6th. Hailing from Nashville, Tennessee, Natural Child are a band whose good and greasy style is informed by Southern rock, vintage country-rock, laid-back Laurel Canyon sounds, ’70s-style boogie, a dash of hard rock, and most likely a careful balance of liquor and bong hits (the bookmark icon for the band’s official blog is a tiny pot leaf, and their lyrics often confirm their fondness for recreational marijuana). Natural Child were formed in 2009 by bassist Wez Traylor and drummer Zack Martin, who had just left another Nashville-based band, the Turbo Fruits. Traylor insists he recruited longtime friend Seth Murray to play guitar for Natural Child when he repeatedly called Murray on the phone one evening after Traylor had eaten too many cannabis-laced brownies. Murray agreed to sign on under the condition the new band record and tour as often as possible, and the trio lived up to that pledge. Natural Child released their first 7″ within months of their first practice, and in their first two years, they managed to play over 200 shows per annum. In 2010, Natural Child brought out a cassette-only EP, Bodyswitchers, released by Infinity Cat Records, with a full-length album, 1971, following in 2011. In 2012, they signed on with the respected California indie Burger Records, releasing two records that same year, For the Love of the Game and Hard in Heaven. After listening to a lot of Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings in their tour van, Natural Child decided they wanted a fuller and more colorful sound, and in 2013 they added Benny Divine on keyboards and Luke Schneider on pedal steel to the group. Natural Child’s five-piece lineup was unveiled on Dancin’ with Wolves, released in early 2014. In 2016, Burger Records gave the Bodyswitchers EP a reissue on vinyl. – All ages, ticketed guests under 16 admitted with ticketed guardian
Saints of Never After w/ Void Atlas, Miniluv + Native Blu
Globe Hall Presents Saints of Never After with Void Atlas, Miniluv and Native Blu on Saturday, July 13th.- 16+, under 16 admitted with a ticketed parent or guardian
Tom the Mail Man w/ Tahj Keeton + Collur
Globe Hall Presents Tom the Mail Man with Tahj Keeton and Collur on Saturday, January 25 — Tom the Mail Man is from Monroe, Georgia – a country town about an hour outside Atlanta. He’s a multi-genre artist who emphatically avoids putting a label to his music, instead focusing on creating a world for his fans to come together as one community. Recently, he’s been featured in PAPER magazine and Pigeons & Planes, performed at Life is Beautiful, partnered with Trojan Magnum and UPROXX for a documentary feature, and racked up more than 65 million streams across DSPs.- 16+, under 16 admitted with a ticketed parent or guardian
CANCELED: Alex Warren – “You’ll Be Alright, Kid” Tour w/ Michael Sanzone
CANCELED: Globe Hall Presents Alex Warren with Michael Sanzone on Tuesday, October 8 — Named to PEOPLE’s list of “Talented Emerging Artists Making Their Mark,” Alex is among the most followed Gen Z celebrities on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. From being homeless and sleeping in friends’ cars to his current rise to stardom as a multi-talented musician, Warren has shared the intimate details of his life with the world for over a decade, building an online community of 26M+ cumulative followers. Now known for his vulnerable pop melodies, passionate vocals, and lyrical candor, Warren has won over fans with a series of deeply personal singles including “Yard Sale,” which boasts over 18M global streams and counting. Last year, Alex wrapped his first tour opening for Daniel Seavey before embarking on his first-ever string of headline performances including a night at the legendary Troubadour in LA. Warren kicked off the year with his breakthrough track, “Before You Leave Me,” which has already amassed over 87M global streams following an impressive first week of over 2.7M global streams. On TikTok, the track has accumulated over 7.5M total views, 19M total engagements, and 10K creates. Produced by Adam Yaron and co-written by Warren with Yaron and Roland Spreckley (Ava Max, BTS, Steve Aoki), the track is inspired by Alex’s previously long distance relationship with his fiancé Kouvr Annon and is joined by a spectacularly choreographed official music video. Directed by Hunter Moreno and now surpassing 3.2M views, watch the equal parts Bridgerton and The Greatest Showman visual HERE. His latest track “Save You A Seat” serves as a tribute to his late parents ahead of Alex’s wedding. Resonating with listeners who have experienced loss in some capacity, the track has already received an outpouring of love across social media with over 46K creates, 16M total engagements and 170M total views ahead of release. The track has already accumulated over 29M global streams and was released alongside an official performance video HERE. – All ages, ticketed guests under 16 admitted with ticketed guardian
Foxxes w/ PrairieSmoke, The Dollhouse Thieves + The Cattledogs
Globe Hall Presents Foxxes with PrairieSmoke, The Dollhouse Thieves and The Cattledogs on Wednesday, July 3rd.- 16+, under 16 admitted with a ticketed parent or guardian
