No Cover, No Minimum Radio

Not happy with life in south Texas, Robert Ellis dropped out of high school during his junior year and relocated to suburban Houston.  He found an arts-friendly pocket where he was able to write songs and play clubs and eventually meet fellow musicians Will Van Horn and Geoffrey Muller.  "Whiskey Wednesday" shows helped Ellis and his mates hone their skills.  After two CD releases, country and bluegrass influences gave way to more pop, rock and experimental sounds.  Jacquire King, who had produced for Kings of Leon and Norah Jones, found Ellis m

Like his inspiration Albert King, blues great Coco Montoya is a left-handed guitar player who plays with a right-handed neck.

Born and raised in Texas, Lincoln Durham started playing fiddle at the age of four. Nirvana inspired him to switch to electric guitar while he was in high school. Durham would later switch to acoustic guitar and working on his slide guitar style. He developed his one-man band neo-country blues sound with his cigar box guitar, mandolin, blues harps, stomp boards and whatever else he could manage to play. Durham's latest album, Revelations of a Mind Unraveling, was released in March.

Kerry Alexander, Chris Hoge and Noah Boswell, the members of Bad Bad Hats, met while attending Macalester College in St.

The Claudettes mix Chicago piano blues with the full-throttle energy of rockabilly and punk, jazz-age echoes of burlesque and vaudeville, and the sultriness of '60's pop-soul to write a new chapter in American roots music. The band loves to push the boundaries, and Johnny Iguana's piano is the antagonist.

The Claudettes also include Sioux Falls native Zach Verdoorn on bass and vocals, Berit Ulseth on vocals and Matt Torre on drums.

Cracker is one of America's seminal alternative rock bands.  David Lowery and Johnny Hickman wasted little time in putting the band together after the breakup of Camper Van Beethoven.  In no time, Cracker was signed to Virgin Records.  Their debut release, Cracker, had "Teen Angst" and "Happy Birthday to Me" find plenty of airplay.  The follow-up release, Kerosene Hat, gave us "Low" and "Get Off This."

Though just 22 years old, Minnesota singer/songwriter John Mark Nelson has already released four full-length recording projects.  His 2011 debut, "Still Here," was released independently while Nelson was still in high school.  Four years later, a fourth CD, "I'm Not Afraid," was released to critical acclaim.  The album took on an entirely different approach as Nelson explains in this week's program.  Nelson's work has caught the attention of many satisfied critics and he has appeared on public broadcasting favorites like World Cafe and Mountain Stage.  John Mark Nelson played The Garage in

The Sioux River Folk Festival begins Friday, August 5, at Newton Hills State Park.  No Cover, No Minimum Radio premieres a performance from last year's festival this week, and it's a hat trick, if you will, for Wyoming singer/songwriter Jalan Crossland.  This is the third No Cover, No Minimum Radio appearance for the guitar and banjo slinger whose posse includes drummer Pat Madsen and bassist Shaun Kelley.  There's plenty of songs about drinkin', fightin', hobos, roughnecks and...love.  It ain't country.  It ain't rock.  It's more like a cowboy ca

A full-time musician since 1996, Jill Cohn is on her 11th independently released CD, Heartstrings Touching Ground.  Michael Sikorsky of Country Music News International Magazine wrote, "Heartstrings Touching Ground could easily be subtitled Textures or Tapestry.  With melodies steeped in Seattle coffee house folk, lyrics as caressing as the melodies, and Jill Cohn vocals making you think Joni Mitchell meets Emmylou Harris, put this CD in your player and let it repeat over and over again."

Tracy Silverman and Roy "Futureman" Wooten performed the Concerto for Two at the Matthews Opera House in Spearfish last November.  Silverman, who is lauded by the BBC as "the greatest living exponent of the electric violin, is a forward thinking musician, composer and producer.  He designs his own six string electric violins and they sound like nothing you've heard before.  Silverman's eclectic side is mirrored by five-time Grammy Award winning percussio

With JazzFest in the offing (July 14-16), why not hear a main stage performance from last year's event featuring Hadden Sayers?  Sayers' road show was still chugging along on the strength of his 2013 release, Rolling Soul, when he appeared at Yankton Trail Park.  Fans love his Texas-style blues wherever he goes.  Maybe that's because Sayers tries to be as musically interesting as possible even though his style of music is based in tradition.

The young players in Mipso bring so many influences into the mix that this is not your average string band.  Modern pop sounds are merged with traditional bluegrass and amazing harmonies.  The resulting textures are so attractive that Mipso's second album, "Old Time Reverie," debuted at #1 on the Billboard Bluegrass chart last year.  Formed in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Mipso is Jacob Sharp, Joseph Terrell, Wood Robinson and Libby Rodenbough.  They played the Matthews Opera House in Spearfish in April.

What's not to like about Charlie Parr?  He likes to sleep in his car while on tour and, like George "Skrap Iron" Gadaski (All-Star Wresting fans will remember), he's pretty good at whipping up a healthy tin-foil meal using his car's exhaust manifold!  Maybe that's just Parr being frugal...or maybe it's his way of experiencing a slice of life that his father passed on through his stories of growing up during the depression and hopping trains to see the country.  Parr's stories are fueled by his resonator guitar - Piedmont blues style.  Enjoy Charlie P

Noah Hoehn has earned national acclaim for his harmonica playing as a two-time winner of the McNight Fellowship.  Hoehn won his third McNight Fellowship for his mesmerizing solo looping show.  His union of blues harmonica and marimba pop is a style that's unparalleled.  A disciplined classical percussionist and a fierce blues harp player, Hoehn began to work on his singing voice while attending Augustana College.  On weekends he sang rock and blues with his band.  After college, Hoehn began writing songs.  He also embraced live looping as a way to comp

What started out as a group of friends playing bluegrass in San Francisco's Mission District now outshines Front Country's humble string band roots.  Lead singer/songwriter Melody Walker has a big voice that brings the emotion out of every number.  "The thing I like about this band," says Walker, "is our ability to build textures that create spaces, moods, other worlds - but with all acoustic instruments."  In the same interview with CMT Edge, Walker also states, "Maybe our genre is bluegrass for people who don't like bluegrass?"  Find out what

Peter D. Harper, known to the music world as just Harper, is best known for his prolific performances on the harmonica and didgeridoo.  Combining those instruments with his strong vocals and his Detroit, Michigan-based backing band, Midwest Kind, creates their own genre, one they call "World Blues."  Harpers songs are inspired by American Indians and Australian Aborigines.  The haunting sounds of the didgeridoo enhance Harper's emotional lyrics.

Todo Mundo's mission states, "One day, all of humanity will understand that we are ONE.  Inside each of us, there is an indestructible beauty that strongly connects us, no matter where we come from, no matter what we do, believe or think.  Our diversity unites us all as equals.  We are all one heartbeat, a beating pulse in this life.  One connection...all of us are Todo Muno."

Todo Mundo, which translates to "All the World," was voted Best World Music at the 2014 San Diego Music Awards.  Todo Mundo blends the flavors of Spanish Rumba, Reggae, Brazilian, Balkan and Middle Eastern styles into an irresistible groove that has been moving dance floors and connecting with audiences across the world since 2009.  Todo Mundo is led by singer, guitarist and songwriter Santiago Orozco, a native of Columbia.  The band's union came about by a leap of faith by Orozco.  Guided by a song he heard titled "I Wanna Go to San Diego," Orozco traveled to the city seven years ago and b

Billy Talbot, a founding member of Crazy Horse along with Danny Whitten and Ralph Molina, began to jam with Neil Young while he was in Buffalo Springfield.  Through decades of recording and touring, Neil Young and Crazy Horse have played some of the most influential music of our time.  Talbot retired from Crazy Horse a few years ago, but remains an active musician and songwriter.  Late one night he made a connection with South Dakota native Ryan Holzer on Myspace which, as Holzer jokes, seems a little dated.  With last October's release of "Dakota," Holzer has now played on two Billy Talbot

Renaissance man Slim Man is a classically trained musician, composer, recording artist, writer of screenplays, television and radio personality, author and touring recording artist.  Did I miss anything?  He has sang for Pope John Paul II and written and recorded for Motown Records.  His 80's band BootCamp was one of the first to be featured on MTV.  His instrumental group Bona Fide has released four albums and received the Best New Artist Award at the 2001 Smooth Jazz Awards.  Slim Man seems to be getting the most out of life and he shared a small piece

Main Avenue Warehouse is an ensemble made up of some of South Dakota's finest musicians.  Their music is reminiscent of Tower of Power, Earth Wind & Fire, Chicago, Parliament and the Average White Band.  Their roster reads like a Who's Who of the area's music scene.  Chris Miller performs on guitar and vocals.  Christina Bulatao joins him in harmonies and also steps to the forefront on lead vocals.  Andrew Reinartz, Alex Olsen and Mike Hart bring versatility on the bass, keyboards and drums respectively while the Main Avenue Wareho

The 6th annual 605 Summer Classic witnessed some great moments on stage.  We captured a couple of sets to include in this week's program.  The Copoetics love to take their "old soul folk" on the road.  However, this was a "home game" for the husband/wife duo.  Louisa Soli-Holt learned to play the ukulele while the two lived in Hawaii.  At the same time, Dan Finch was transitioning from bass guitar to the six-string.  The Copoetics released "The Way of the Spirit Trail" during the summer of 2014 - a sound effort lyrically and nice on the ears.  The 11 song album includes updates to their fir

Marcia Ball's mantel is getting to be cluttered, but she doesn't mind.  As a pianist, Ball has been honored with six Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Awards and four Living Blues Awards for Outstanding Musician.  There are many other awards and nominations too numerous to mention.  Plus, Ball has been inducted into the Gulf Coast Music and Louisiana Music Halls of Fame.  Born in Texas and raised in Louisiana, Ball's piano style includes elements of zydeco, swamp blues, Louisiana blues and boogie woogie.  Her chief inspiration is New Orleans vocalist Irma

This week's No Cover, No Minimum Radio features two national acts that played at the 36th Annual Sioux River Folk Festival presented by the South Dakota Friends of Traditional Music. 

You Knew Me When has been touring constantly since hitting the road in 2012.  The Nashville-based two-piece husband and wife duo (Cie and Karisa Hoover) brags an attractive fusion of folk and indie rock rich with pulsing and stirring beats.  Their latest CD, "We Found Roads," is featured prominently in their set.

Dana Leong's music spans multiple genres.  The two-time Grammy Award winner, often referred to as the "high-def Yo-Yo Ma," creates mesmerizing sounds that combine jazz, funk, hip-hop and classical music.  The electric cellist and trombonist studied at the Manhattan School of Music.  At the same time, he got involved with studio work in New York, improvising with artists like Kanye West, Lil' Kim and Marc Anthony.  His first CD, "Leaving New York," worked in jazz, funk and rock.  His sophomore effort in 2007, "Anth

Chris Vos missed his circle of music mates after moving from Wisconsin to Los Angeles.  So he formed a new circle of music lovers which became the three piece rock 'n roll band, The Record Company.  On the strength of just two EP's, The Record Company has already played at the Montreal Jazz Festival, Milwaukee's Summerfest, Napa Valley's Bottlerock, Ottawa Folkfest, the Quebec City International Summer Festival and the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival.  Signed to Concord Records, The Record Company celebrates the release of their first full length CD, "Give it Back to You," on February 12. 

Sarah McQuaid's second set from her October, 2015 performance at the Rapid City Public Library included songs from her first three CDs, "When Two Lovers Meet," "I Won't Go Home 'Til Morning," and "The Plum Tree and the Rose."  A champion of DADGAD guitar tuning (she has even written The Irish DADGAD Guitar Book), McQuaid's voice is the perfect partner for her many numbers that delve into the Celtic, medeival and Appalachian folk sounds.  McQuaid was a tourning member of the Chicago Children's Choir

Cornwall, England, based singer/songwriter Sarah McQuaid is a captivating performer.  Her echoing voice and artful guitar ring out between stories of her life, places and experiences.  McQuaid was born in Spain and raised in Chicago.  At the age of 12 she was already touring with the Chicago Children's Choir.  Her most recent U.S.

Town Mountain headlined the 36th annual Sioux River Folk Festival at Newton Hills State Park.  Town Mountain was formed out of Asheville, North Carolina's blossoming music scene.  With songs that sound like unearthed classics, Town Mountain focuses on creating a unique sound and brand while still giving the traditional side of bluegrass its due.  The band earned the International Bluegrass Music Associaton's Momentum Award for Band of the Year in 2013.  Vocalist Robert Greer also took the IBMA Vocalist of the Year prize in 2013.  Town Mountain's visit to South Dakota was part of their 2015

Born in 1975, John Nemeth has become a decorated electric blues and soul harmonica player, singer and songwriter.  East Bay Blues says, "Nemeth is with little doubt the most accomplished male vocalist of his generation traveling the blues highway today."  His career has taken him on the road with guitar great Junior Watson along with fronting his own band.  Nemeth's most recent release, "Memphis Grease," embodies the sould scene that he fell into during his time in the Bay Area and the intuitiveness that flows between him and the Bo-Keys.  The Bo-Keys, earlier in their careers, performed wi