Minnesota songsmith Erik Koskinen will release Burning The Deal thisFriday, June 28 via Real Phonic Records/Tone Tree Music. Produced by Koskinen and Bernie Larsen (Melissa Etheridge, Jackson Browne) and recorded by Jason Mariani (Mumford & Sons, Kenny Loggins), the album has a moody, shadowy vibe and the songs carry familiar musical touchstones: the drifting-cowboy loneliness of Hank Williams; the understated melancholy of J.J. Cale. They're populated by people we recognize, in circumstances we might share (or feel fortunate we don't).
The album is streaming in full exclusively at Cowboys &
Indians ahead of Friday's release, along with a feature Q&A with Erik. Enjoy the full album premiere
HERE.
Blending together American folk, country, rock-n-roll, and blues, Koskinen and his top-shelf band realize a sound that is distinctive and fresh while familiar and classic.
Growing up in Northern Michigan and upper New York state, then living in Minneapolis and now, rural Minnesota, Koskinen knows the rhythms of factory towns and farmlands, and understands the lives of their inhabitants. His nomadic years also included time in
California and Nashville, with plenty of stops wherever music or relationships took him.
But it should not be assumed that Koskinen's identification with American roots music leaves him open to genre-fication.
"It's not Americana music," he insists. "I learned how to play blues music. I learned how to play country music, and how to play folk, bluegrass, jazz, whatever. I learned how to play American music."
Burning the Deal's nine tracks sound oh-so-American, and yet, they avoid this country's penchant for excess. Marvels of subtlety, they share a stripped-down, almost naked quality, but complexities lie just under their skin, waiting to be discovered.
Koskinen has a run of release performances in his home-state of Minnesota, highlighted by Bayfront
Festival Park with
Trampled By Turtles on July 6. A full list of dates can be found below.
Tour Dates:
Jul 04 - Makato, MN @ Vetter Stone Amphitheater (Red, Hot & BOOM)
Jul 05 - Grey Eagle, MN @ Guy Waymore's Music Emporium
Jul 06 - Duluth, MN @ Bayfront Festival Park#
Jul 13 - Minneapolis, MN @ Roots Rock and Deep Blues Festival
# w/ Trampled By Turtles
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