Society of Broken Souls

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season

About a week ago during my morning writing, it occurred to me how much more I’m playing music these days. Perhaps that sounds strange, but outside of rehearsals and performances, our touring schedule allows for very little playing of music…

Songwriters sometimes joke that when we’ve elicited tears from someone in the audience, well then, we have done our job. Sometimes those tears translate to a gut punch for you, though, so you need to be careful what you ask…

Dennis and I celebrated the end of 2019 by going to a friend’s farm to clear some long-dead oak and hickory trees from his property. We were negligent in getting ahead on wood cutting this season, we needed firewood, and…

The forecast for Christmas day here at our place is partly sunny with a high of 60. I’ve been craving eggnog for a couple of weeks but I’d made up my mind to save it for Christmas and make it…

We had our last show of 2019 this past Saturday, a bar gig in Ames and a 144 mile drive (each way) from our house. I was stepping over guitar cases on my way to my piano stand when I…

The Sunday before last, Lauryn and I indulged ourselves in a rare treat. Along with a dear friend, we drove up to Iowa City to see a concert by one of our favorite acts from awhile back — Canadian songwriter…

“You can be amazing you can turn a phrase into a weapon or a drug
You can be the outcast, or be the backlash
Of somebody's lack of love 
Or you can start speaking up 

Nothing's gonna hurt you the…

I’m tucked away in the back of the RV parked at my mom’s in Northern Michigan. It’s a magical spot hidden away in the woods; the leaves, swishing in the breeze like a brush on a snare, are just beginning…

It’s early September and so it’s still technically summer but this time of year will always bring to me the sense of a new season and new beginnings. It’s a little hot today, but the sun is lower in the…

I am sitting on a sofa in a cabin frozen in time outside Pine, Colorado, and while I had planned to write about house concerts — we have had three very different but equally beautiful experiences recently — all I…

It’s been a whirlwind the last couple weeks here at SoBS headquarters, with a great run of shows leading up to a very exciting appearance at a festival hosted by another husband and wife duo we hold in very high…

I want to talk about Lady Gaga. I also want to talk about my first piano teacher. And I want to talk about how those two seemingly disparate personalities are connected. 

First off, I love Lady Gaga. If the truth…

We met a man by the name of Lucky during a show in Mississippi on this past tour. He introduced himself as we were loading into the venue by showing me a guitar pick and saying “I’m in the club…

We’re heading south on route 45 in Mississippi, on our way to New Orleans, and I’m writing this post from the passenger seat of the Rialta. We have four shows under our belt, four more left on this tour of…