Northern MN artist CHARLIE PARR, back from a month of touring in the UK and Ireland, is hitting the US for fall dates, including a show on Friday, Oct 28th in Bozeman at The Eagles Club 326. Long a part of the vibrant Duluth, Minnesota music scene (Alan Sparhawk and Low, Trampled by Turtles), Charlie’s inspiration is drawn from the alternately fertile and frozen soil of Minnesota; his songs exude a Midwestern sensibility and humility. Percussive and raw, the 11 songs on Stumpjumper, 10 originals and his version of the venerable murder ballad, “Delia,” could be lost field recordings from another era. He grew up in the Hormel meatpacking city of Austin, MN (population 25,000) where most of the world’s favorite tinned meat, Spam, is still manufactured. (He won’t eat hot dogs to this day.) The combination of growing up with both of his parents working union jobs in an industrial meat factory and his largely rural environment had a broad impact on Parr.
As one of the defining voices of the folk and roots scene, Stumpjumper harnesses the excitement of Charlie’s live show, highlighting his blistering finger-picking, foot-stomping blues and finely crafted songs like “Over the Red Cedar,” “Falcon” and “Remember Me If I Forget.” His songs are populated with a list of characters you wouldn’t ordinarily meet: old ladies going to buy “the cheap wine” (“they ain’t no better than the bums”), a woman with “an uncontrollable temper,” and people getting left out of getting the American Dream. While his albums sound like vintage field recordings, his live shows are anything but retro. Deservedly, he’s a cult hero in some circles.
Charlie is available for press — let me know if you’d like to set up an interview or see the show. I’m sending a DL link as well for Stumpjumper.
Press kit, tour poster and photos available here: https://www.redhouserecords.com/Parr.html
Friday, October 28th
Bozeman, MT
The Eagles
(406) 587-9996
