The Ark

Peter Madcat Ruth's C.A.R.Ma Quartet
2022-11-06 19:30 - 23:00 (America/Detroit) | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Peter Madcat Ruth is one of the best harmonica players on earth, a mainstay of Ann Arbor’s blues scene since the 1970s and a carrier of tradition who learned his art directly from Chicago’s masters of the blues harmonica. He’s performed in many countries, won a Grammy award, and remains a major force in blues harmonica nationally. Madcat has released many albums, both solo and with his Madcat Midnight Blues Journey band. His “More Real Folk Blues” album features harmonicas, ukulele, jaw harps, baritone guitar, banjo, banjo ukulele, high hat, cowbell, wood block, shakers, guiro, tambourine, and brushes on a pizza box, and, of course, vocals, and in concert he often appears with younger players in shows where almost anything might happen. Don’t miss this chance to see a Michigan legend. Tonight Madcat appears with his C.A.R.Ma. Quartet, featuring drummer/tabla player John Churchville, bassist Brennan Andes, and guitarist/vocalist Dan Ripke.

Sons of the East
2022-11-07 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Australian band Sons of the East is an under-the-radar success story, racking up millions of streams and selling out shows across Europe and Australia without ever straying from their independent roots. And they built that impressive following through their incredible and energetic live shows, paired with a serious handful of exceptional original songs. So far the band has racked up more than 160 million streams on Spotify, 12 million streams on Apple Music and 40 million Youtube plays from around the world. The year 2022 has been a breakthrough for Sons of the East, with international touring leading up to the release of the group’s debut album. Says Vinyl Garden: “What we like about this band is their Australian twist and contemporary take on the more traditional Folk music style … But ultimately what really makes this band shine is their stage presence (they are a must see live).”

Rodney Crowell: Word For Word Tour
2022-11-09 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Rodney Crowell is one of country music’s most successful songwriters, but the deadly seriousness in his music was always there for those with ears to hear. “Dad drove a stock car to an early death / All I remember was a drunk man’s breath,” sang Waylon Jennings as he took Crowell’s “Ain’t Living Long Like This” to the top of the charts. Since the turn of the millennium, Crowell has been on a roll, releasing personal, ambitious albums to wide critical acclaim. With his autobiographical masterpiece “The Houston Kid,” he took an unflinching look at his own down-and-out upbringing. For this special event, audience members are invited to a rare experience as Rodney reads from his brand new book, Word For Word, shares stories, and performs the songs that have made him a renowned and prolific songwriter.
Buy Local! Preorder Rodney’s Book from Literati

Rachael Yamagata
2022-11-10 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Says the Associated Press: “Along with the badassery, Yamagata brings a world-weary passion to her singing. Her voice is a soul-baring, sultry instrument that commands center stage at all times. She has that deliberate, I’ll-sing-the-note-when-I’m-ready pacing that helped make Amy Winehouse great, and before her Billie Holliday.” Rachael has released ten albums, with each and every one of them containing surprises. Her songs are all over television soundtracks, and she has collaborated with artists as diverse as Jason Mraz, Rhett Miller, Bright Eyes, Ryan Adams, Toots and the Maytals, and Ray Lamontagne. Spending some years in Chicago’s competitive songwriting scene, Rachael is now based in Woodstock, New York.
Opening for Rachael is songwriter/musician Sandy Bell. Bell has moved through a vibrant and textured musical constellation, playing most notably with the late but eternally brilliant Jeff Buckley as well as singing on the Bat for Lashes album “The Bride.” Bell’s debut solo album, “When I Leave Ohio,” was hailed by Stereo Embers Magazine as “…beautiful, resonant work that’s stark and painful—Bell’s songs have crushing, emotional exactitude that is nothing short of staggering.” Her new album is titled “Entelechy.” Music journalist Alex Green found “Entelechy” to be “filled with stirring melancholy and musical grace,” an album that “explores the geometry of both musical form and sorrow, while the cathartic transmutation of grief into promise will take you somewhere between the worlds of Harry Nilsson and Kate Bush.”

Nervous But Excited
2022-11-11 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Since their hiatus in 2012, Kate Peterson and Sarah Cleaver of Nervous but Excited have spent the years over 700 miles apart, singing the melody lines in their own ways, just awaiting the right time to bring the harmonies back. It’s been exactly ten years since their sold-out finale at The Ark, and the stars have aligned for Kate and Sarah (and special guests?) to reunite at their favorite venue. As a thank you to The Ark for the years of support, Nervous but Excited is donating $5 from each ticket sale to the club.
Before you even ask, yes, there will be nerves and there will be excitement! These two straight-from-the-heart songwriters on stage together is an experience no one can predict–even them. A few things are certain – there will be vulnerability; there will be silliness. There will be moments that honor gratitude and grief. There will be open hearts, awkwardness, and most definitely, there will be laughter. And singalongs, always singalongs! Whatever the feeling, it will be palpable.
Pleasantly Aggressive Folk Duo Nervous but Excited is two songwriters, two singers, three guitars, a banjo, a mandolin, a ukulele, dead-on harmony, some vaguely choreographed dancing, and an impressive amount of laughter. Their original repertoire ranges in topic from smart, introspective narratives to the tactfully political… interspersed with songs of love and loss that will undoubtedly tug on your heartstrings. Their harmonies have been described as the kind that build so smoothly until suddenly they start to shake your insides.
This performance will be interpreted in American Sign Language.

Alex Cuba
2022-11-12 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Alex Cuba is a multiple Latin Grammy/Grammy/Juno winning singer-songwriter who is not tied to tradition; Alex has a vast musical vision. Born Alexis Puentes in Artemisa, Cuba, was immersed in music at a very young age, joining his father’s (respected guitarist and teacher Valentin Puentes) group of 24 guitarists. Alex then went on to study electric and upright bass and touring and recording nationally and internationally. Over eight albums and stops in British Columbia, Montreal, and New York, his music has deepened and grown more diverse. His musical evolution for years was all about searching for the simplicity and soul in Cuban music –taking apart the complex arrangements, mixing it with North American influences, adopting the melodic simplicity of pop music, looking to Cuban folk traditions for inspiration—he’s always exploring, always creating something fresh and new, and always, it seems, getting it just right.

Rachael Davis
2022-11-13 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Multi-instrumentalist Rachael Davis is as renowned for her expressive—and explosive—voice as she is for uniting the often disparate worlds of folk, blues, country, and pop. Rachael grew up not only in a family of musicians, but in an extended village of remarkable musicians and songwriters who nurtured and mentored her from the time she was born. Her clear tone and uncanny memory for just about every song she’s ever heard came early, and has served her well throughout her career. At eight she joined the family band Lake Effect, performing regularly at folk festivals throughout her home state of Michigan and around the U.S. By age 12, and continuing each year since, Rachael has brought the Wheatland Music Festival to its knees closing the Sunday morning gospel set with her stunning solo a capella version of “Amazing Grace.” “My slant on acoustic music can be explained by a mixed cassette tape that my father played during my early childhood while driving in our family’s Chevy Cavalier station wagon we nicknamed Iggy. On one side of the cassette was the soundtrack for the film The Big Chill. On the other was John Hartford’s ‘Areoplane,'” Rachael says. She describes her music as “Motown-Banjo.” Recently Rachael has collaborated in the critically acclaimed supergroup The Sweetwater Warblers, with Lindsay Lou and May Erlewine. Rachael Davis now lives in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband, critically acclaimed bassist, Dominic John Davis, with whom she performs as The Davis Duo. Together they cultivate a diverse community steeped in music, art, travel and love, and are raising a son and daughter at the center of it all.

Augustana
2022-11-14 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Augustana is back with new music, and through its formation, its creator Dan Layus has stepped into a new musical universe. While the artist is well-known for anthemic indie-rock leaning hits like “Boston,” “Sweet and Low,” and “Steal Your Heart,” Augustana’s consistent march of new and ever-evolving material has embodied a refusal to settle artistically. Never has that been more clearly evident than with the artist’s latest studio album, “Everyday an Eternity: Solo Piano Works,” a genre-shaking full-length record that redefines what can be expected from this artist. Composing and performing a series of piano pieces that can easily live in the contemporary classical world, Dan Layus confidently chooses to leave his singing voice aside for the project and instead finds his lyricism echoing through the hammers and strings of the piano. The album finds the composer’s unique melodic and structural stylings effortlessly blending between the classical, the romantic, and the modern. Along the way, the unfamiliar terrain for the artist seems to become more familiar with each note, each modulation, each variation, as he makes his way out to the edge of musical expression and safely back home again.

Ryan Montbleau
2022-11-15 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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For as long as he can remember, Ryan Montbleau’s been a seeker. From the jungles of Peru to the volcanoes of Hawaii, from the beaches of Costa Rica to the streets of Brooklyn, from the backseat of a 16-passenger van to backstage at Carnegie Hall, the acclaimed singer/songwriter has spent much of his life crisscrossing the globe on a perpetual search for meaning, purpose, and understanding. It’s a quest that’s guided him both personally and professionally over the years, one that’s come to define not only his music, but his very sense of self. And yet, listening to Ryan’s ambitious new multi-part album, Wood, Fire, Water, and Air, there is a profound sense of satisfaction in sitting still, a recognition that perhaps all those spiritual treasures he’s been chasing for so long were closer than he thought. “My whole adult life has been this journey of trying to figure out where home is,” Ryan reflects. “I think I’ve finally found it.” Rolling out across four distinct EPs, Wood, Fire, Water, and Air marks Ryan’s first studio release since putting down permanent roots in Burlington, Vermont, where he recently purchased a house after more than two decades of living on the road.

The Ark's Open Stage
2022-11-16 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Whether you’re looking for your big break, want to perfect your live performance skills, or just want to perform live for the sheer fun of it, Open Stage nights offer supportive audiences and a terrific space. Twelve performers have eight minutes (or two songs) each to do their thing. Sign-up: doors open at 7:30 p.m. At 7:45 we randomly select the names for the first half, and at 8:30 we draw names for the second half. If your name isn’t chosen, bring your raffle ticket with you to the next Open Stage (often the first and third Wednesdays of the month–check our calendar or website, theark.org), and you’ll double your chances.

Will Hoge & Dave Hause
2022-11-17 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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You can hear Dave Hause’s passion and dedication to his craft—as well as his determined approach to it—flowing through the ten stunning, sumptuous songs of his latest album, “Blood Harmony.” Written with his brother over a series of weekly FaceTime sessions, the songs began to come together in January of 2021. “We decided to get together on Mondays,” explains Hause, “to figure out what we wanted to work on, and by Friday we had to have something you could sing to someone who wasn’t a songwriter. It could be bad, but I didn’t want to just have vague ideas. We called it ‘Pencils-Down Fridays’. Over the course of three-and-a-half months, we ended up with 26 songs.” They traveled with ten of those to Nashville, where acclaimed songwriter Will Hoge took up the helm of producer. Will Hoge earned a reputation as a true 21st-century road warrior, with heartland rock that drew comparisons to Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty. Trimmed down to trio size, his music still has the rock-and-roll passion but gives more space to his considerable abilities as a lyricist. Playing a couple hundred shows a year, he can read an audience at a glance and connect with it in a flash.

Glen Phillips
2022-11-18 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Glen Phillips is the lead singer and main songwriter for the band Toad the Wet Sprocket, which he joined when he was only 14. In the words of James Christopher Monger, “Phillips has matured into . . . a quiet storm that dutifully blends Cat Stevens’ confident huskiness and Jackson Browne’s weary but warm observer of all things broken.” Of Glen’s album, “Swallowed by the New,” Chris Steffen of Allmusic.com writes, “Songs like ‘Leaving Old Town’ and ‘Unwritten’ explicitly describe moving beyond the past and into the unknown.” Glen Phillips has evolved into one of the great folk-rock songwriters of our time, still staying true to his Toad-like roots, and The Ark is the place to hear him and music from his new album, “There Is So Much Here”. Local singer songwriter, Kylee Phillips (no relation), opens the show.

The RFD Boys
2022-11-19 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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It’s hard to believe, because each show is fresh and new, but the RFD Boys have been delighting Michigan audiences since 1969 with their fabulous musicianship and sly, exquisitely timed between-song humor. They’re legends of Michigan bluegrass, but they’re more than that too. With an appearance on the cover of Bluegrass Unlimited, with songs recorded by the likes of the Country Gentlemen, and with performances alongside bluegrass greats like Bill Monroe and Ralph Stanley, the RFD Boys are a part of America’s bluegrass tradition. The RFD Boys one of southeastern Michigan’s most durable musical ensembles, and their shows capture a deep slice of musical Ann Arbor. Their 50th-anniversary appearance at the Folk Festival was a special moment and introduced many listeners to Dan Roehrig, who joined the band on guitar, mandolin, and bass in mid-2018. Dan grew up listening to Doc Watson, Clarence White, and Tony Rice, and you can hear it in both his singing and guitar playing.

Windborne
2022-11-20 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Windborne has been called the most exciting vocal group in a generation. With a 20-year background studying polyphonic music around the world, Lauren Breunig, Jeremy Carter-Gordon, Lynn Rowan, and Will Rowan share a vibrant energy onstage with a blending of voices that can only come from decades of friendship alongside dedicated practice. The ensemble shifts effortlessly between drastically different styles of traditional song, drawing their audience along on a journey that spans continents and centuries, illuminating and expanding on the profound power and variation of the human voice. Windborne’s captivating show draws on the singers’ deep roots in traditions of vocal harmony, while the uniqueness of their artistic approach brings old songs into the present. Known for the innovation of their arrangements, Windborne creates harmonies that are bold and anything but predictable. But there’s another, crucial dimension to Windborne that guides and roots their artistry. They are adherents to folk music’s longtime alliance with social activism, labor and civil rights, and other movements that champion the oppressed, the poor, and the disenfranchised. Their songs burst with lyrics that, while penned decades or centuries ago, still ring true in modern times, and Windborne’s dynamic harmonies breathe new life into these songs.

The Wildwoods
2022-11-22 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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The Wildwoods are an enchanting Folk/Americana trio based in Lincoln, Nebraska, whose flowing songwriting tandem has been praised by Paste Magazine as “focused and charmingly human”. The Wildwoods’ delicate melodies and descriptive lyrics come from nature, love, experiences from the road, and growing up in Nebraska.
The band released their debut album, Sweet Nostalgia, followed by a duo EP, Birdie & Goose, in 2017, and quickly established themselves as a creative, harmonious, and instrumental force in their local music scene. Since then, The Wildwoods have released another full-length record, Across A Midwest Sky (2019), as well as a handful of singles, Little Home (2020) and Like My Old Man (2021), and have supported touring acts such as Elephant Revival, Arts Fishing Club, The Accidentals, The Way Down Wanderers, and Jamie Wyatt.
Comprised of husband and wife team Noah (guitar) and Chloe Gose (violin), as well as Andrew Vaggalis (bass), The Wildwoods draw inspiration from a wide range of influences including the styles of: Watchhouse, The Decemberists, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, Peter, Paul, & Mary, Nickel Creek, Joni Mitchell, and Gregory Alan Isakov. The folk/Americana trio work to harmoniously and delicately blend their voices to create a sound so nostalgic that you may find yourself dreaming and longing for those sweet memories from your former days.
This program is made possible with support from the Ford Motor Company Fund. It is presented live, and also livestreamed on The Ark’s Facebook page.
This is a FREE show. Nonperishables accepted for Food Gatherers.

Matt Watroba
2022-11-25 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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What could be better than to kick off the holiday season with a Michigan folk music institution? Matt Watroba, host of WDET-FM’s “Folks Like Us” program and a Detroit Music Awards winner as Best Overall Folk Performer, is the kind of guy who makes friends easily: not only is he on a first-name basis with most of the major folk musicians in North America after a couple of decades of sharing stages with them, but he also has the kind of rapport with audiences that makes them feel as if they’re sitting among friends in a living room. We think a Matt Watroba concert makes a great November tradition. Matt’s previous Thanksgiving shows have brought great special guests, so stay tuned!

Mr. B with George Bedard and Steve Nardella
2022-11-26 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Born in Flint and a true Michigan institution, Mr. B (Mark Braun) is a rare living link to the early days of boogie woogie, having learned directly from legends like Little Brother Montgomery and Blind John Davis. He plays in concert halls, he plays outdoors, he’s even played on a piano being paddled out to Mackinac Island, but wherever you heard him, it’s an exciting show. Each year Mr. B stops in at The Ark for a Thanksgiving weekend concert, and it always brings something new. Mr. B often brings in musicians from around southeast Michigan and beyond for a boogie and jazz blowout to kick off the holiday season with a big dose of boogie woogie joy. You may think every town has a Mr. B, but you would be very, very wrong.
Tonight’s show offers an opportunity to hear three of the legends of Michigan music together on the same stage—guitarists George Bedard and Steve Nardella will be joining Mr. B on stage for a Thanksgiving weekend blues and boogie blowout! This trio has a grand history of playing together in the past, and when they have, the results have been amazing. This will be a long-awaited reunion show for these three giants of blues and boogie and it’s not to be missed!

Gemily
2022-11-27 13:00 - 14:00 | Facebook LIVE
This event is free and streamed to The Ark’s Facebook page.
Gemini (twin brothers San and Laz Slomovits) have been Ark regulars, appearing at the club at least once and usually several times every year since moving to Ann Arbor in 1973. Especially acclaimed for their shows for children and families, they are now entertaining their third – or is it their fourth – generation of fans. They’ve played an annual family concert for Ark audiences on the Sunday after Thanksgiving every year since 1994 to benefit Mott Children’s Hospital, where San’s daughter, Emily was born. Emily will join the brothers for this show as she has every year since 2003 when she was just nine years old. The trio, now redubbed Gemily, (Gemini+Emily) combine wonderful singing and instrumental prowess on more than half a dozen instruments with lively, sparkling original songs and traditional folk music from many countries and cultures. In addition to their exceptional musicianship, the trio brings an easy stage presence to all their shows and draws their audiences into joyful music-making with them.
This year’s concert will again be online.
Tip jar will be available with donations going to support both C.S. Mott Childrens Hospital and Food Gatherers.

The David Mayfield Parade
2022-11-27 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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The David Mayfield Parade offers music that stretches from the avant-garde to David Mayfield’s own musical roots, which are buried deep in the bluegrass tradition from a childhood of touring with his family’s band. David’s music is a tour de force, incorporating a vast range of roots and pop influences. David is truly a wordsmith, forging the mundane into the evocative, with innovative lyrics that grow acoustic beginnings into bigger pop structures and a great trembling tenor to cap it off. David Mayfield is clearly going places, fueled by a deadly combination of infectious energy and songwriting chops that only come around once in a blue moon.

The Ark Annual Membership Meeting
2022-11-28 18:30 - 20:30 | MI
Become a Member
The Ark will hold the Annual Meeting of its Members on Monday, November 28, 2022 at 6:30 pm. This year’s Annual Meeting will be held virtually by Zoom. At this meeting, the Membership will elect Executive Board Members, hear about the current state of The Ark, and conduct any membership-related business that may come before the group.
All current Annual Members and anyone who has become an Introductory Member since September 1, 2021 are eligible to attend. You must pre-register by email to receive a link to attend the meeting. An invitation will be sent in early November to all eligible members who provided us with an email address and permission to use it.
If you do not receive an email invitation by November 18, 2022, and would like to attend, please contact Annual Giving Manager Tom Stoll at tom@theark.org.

Rollie Tussing Trio
2022-12-01 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Award-winning guitarist, educator, and performer Rollie Tussing makes a raggedy brand of music informed by the era of 78 rpm records, juke joints, and street performers. He composes a lot of his own songs and has a knack for reworking an old obscure tune, finding beauty in the forgotten scratches, pops and grooves of his esoteric record collection. After winning the National Slide Guitar Competition in 2001 Rollie moved with his wife to Portland, Oregon. He spent the next decade touring, performing, writing songs and playing with some of the best regional and touring musicians the West Coast offered. In 2011 with their second child on the way, Rollie and his wife decided to relocate to the Midwest to be closer to family and to tap into the artistic resources in the nation’s midsection. There’s fingerstyle guitar, forgotten old music, and great old songs—a fabulous evening all around.

Dick Siegel
2022-12-02 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Midwestern songwriting legend Dick Siegel has been bringing his joyous, eccentric and penetrating musical vision to audiences across North America for more than three decades. Songs like “When the Sumac is on Fire,” “Angelo’s” and “Carry Me Away,” drawn from the traditions of American folk, roots and pop music, have become radio show theme songs, quotable classics and—most importantly—all-time personal favorites deeply imbedded in the hearts of his fans. Dick will be accompanied by longtime musical compadre Brother Dave Roof on upright bass.

An Acoustic Christmas with Over the Rhine
2022-12-03 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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Over the Rhine
2022 Christmas Tour Thoughts
One December, not long after Over the Rhine began recording and touring, we were invited to perform some seasonal songs on a public radio station in Cincinnati. It was Christmastime and apparently they thought we were up to the task. We worked up a few carols and traditional tunes and Karin even read a poem by Thomas Hardy called, The Oxen.
It actually felt really good and conjured up an unusual mix of feelings from childhood: innocence, loss, wonder, joy, sadness. I think we were surprised.
People must have tuned into the radio broadcast, because we began receiving inquiries as to whether we had recorded any of our Christmas songs. I don’t think we had considered it at the time, but any young, struggling songwriter is open to the suggestions of the marketplace, and people were persistent.
In December of 1996 – can it really be 25 years ago? – we recorded and released our first song cycle of some of the Christmas carols that still haunted us. We included a few original tunes and called our wintry mix The Darkest Night Of The Year. We played a special “darkest night” release concert on winter solstice in an old 1300-seat theater in Cincinnati. Every last seat was full. Folks began snatching up copies and seemed to agree that they hadn’t heard anything quite like it.
We began playing concerts around the Midwest every December and found that the rooms were usually packed full of people who had bundled in out of the cold with prized compatriots. Hats and scarves abounded. If you stepped outside during intermission, you could make ghosts with your breath in the crisp night air. And it was dark – oh so dark: a time of year with its own music.
A decade later, in 2006, we released our first full collection of original Christmas/holiday songs called Snow Angels. What is it about Christmas music and the undeniable gravitational pull it exerts on some songwriters? So many Christmas songs have already been written. I think we are genuinely curious about the ones that haven’t yet been written.
We continued to tour every December and these special year-winding-down concerts began to feel like an annual tradition – gatherings of extended musical family, without whom, we’d be homeless.
By the time we released our third holiday album of original songs, Blood Oranges In The Snow, in December of 2014, Karin suggested we had discovered a new genre of music: Reality Christmas.
It’s true: if you’ve buried a loved one, or lost a job, or battled a chronic illness, that stuff doesn’t go away during the holidays. It can be a complicated season for many of us.
And then there’s family.
When Karin and I make the annual holiday pilgrimage home to visit family and pull into the driveway and turn off the car, one of us inevitably looks over at the other and says, “Tie a rope around my waist, I’m goin’ in.”
In 2022, more than twenty years after releasing our first holiday CD, we are still at it. This year, we will be leaning into some harmonies and making an intimate but hopefully holy ruckus. It won’t be all Christmas music: we’ll certainly mix in tunes from many of our records along the way. But hopefully it’s still true: hopefully you haven’t heard anything quite like it.
Maybe a midnight snow will fall and turn each streetlight into its own private snow globe. Maybe, regardless of whatever reality Christmas brings, we’ll hear a faint echo of a song once rumored to have been sung by angels, a song of peace on earth, goodwill toward all…
We’ve never heard anything quite like it.
And after the surreal and challenging season we’ve all been through, with stages all around the world going dark, I’m not sure about you, but live music in a warmly lit space with real live breathing humans? We’ll be there.
We hope you’ll join us,
Linford Detweiler
With Karin close by
Nowhere Else
Clinton County, Ohio

Trampled By Turtles
2022-12-04 19:00 - 23:00 | The Majestic Theatre, 4140 Woodward Ave., Detroit, Michigan, 48201, United States
Trampled by Turtles are from Duluth, Minnesota, where frontman Dave Simonett initially formed the group as a side project in 2003. At the time, Simonett had lost most of his music gear, thanks to a group of enterprising car thieves who’d ransacked his vehicle while he played a show with his previous band. Left with nothing more than an acoustic guitar, he began piecing together a new band, this time taking inspiration from bluegrass, folk, and other genres that didn’t rely on amplification. Simonett hadn’t played any bluegrass music before, and he filled his lineup with other newcomers to the genre, including fiddler Ryan Young (who’d previously played drums in a speed metal act) and bassist Tim Saxhaug. Along with mandolinist Erik Berry and banjo player Dave Carroll, the group began carving out a fast, frenetic sound that owed as much to rock & roll as bluegrass.
Trampled by Turtles released their first record, Songs from a Ghost Town, in 2004. In a genre steeped in tradition, the album stood out for its contemporary sound, essentially bridging the gap between the bandmates’ background in rock music and their new acoustic leanings. Blue Sky and the Devil (2005) and Trouble (2007) explored a similar sound, but it wasn’t until 2008 and the band’s fourth release, Duluth, that Trampled by Turtles received recognition by the bluegrass community. Duluth peaked at number eight on the Billboard bluegrass chart and paved the way for a number of festival appearances. When Palomino arrived in 2010, it was met with an even greater response, debuting at the top of the bluegrass chart and remaining in the Top Ten for more than a year. Two years later, their crossover appeal landed them at number 32 on the Billboard 200 pop charts upon the release of their sixth album, Stars and Satellites. In addition to major bluegrass and folk festivals, they began showing up at Coachella, ACL Fest, and Lollapalooza. The official concert album, Live at First Avenue, followed in 2013, recorded at Minnesota’s most famous venue. A year later, the band returned with the darker-toned Wild Animals, which bettered its studio predecessor on the album charts, reaching number 29 on Billboard. Countless tours with bands like Lord Huron, Wilco, Caamp, Mt Joy and Deer Tick to name a few have followed. 2022 will see the release of the band’s latest body of work called Alpenglow which was produced by Jeff Tweedy of Wilco.

Full Cord out of Grand Haven, Michigan has been stealing the scene with an extraordinary song base that spans through originals, newgrass, traditional, covers, country, Texas swing, jazz and more.
Their infectious stage show and breadth of material pushed Full Cord through to a win of the 2022 Telluride Bluegrass Festival Band Competition in June and a nomination as the Momentum Band of the year at the upcoming International Bluegrass Music Awards. With two shows never the same, their followers in Michigan and beyond try to catch every show, never knowing what teaser or new song will be in the set list.

Chris Pureka
2022-12-04 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
COVID-19 FAQ
It’s rare for an artist to bridge the divide between critical acclaim and dedicated fan engagement. Chris Pureka is a Portland-based singer-songwriter whose body of work has resonated deeply with these seemingly disparate milieus. Her music has straddled the folk, americana and indie rock genres over the course of her 20 year career, and over that time, her bold vulnerability in processing the intimacies of life in song has struck a chord with those listeners who crave authenticity and depth.
Chris’s elegant emotionality as a vocalist and her flair as a lyricist have garnered her favorable comparisons to Chan Marshall, Bruce Springsteen, and Patty Griffin. Over many years of touring on both sides of the Atlantic, she has shared the stage with such diverse and esteemed artists as The Lumineers, Gregory Alan Isakov, The Cowboy Junkies, Haley Heynderickx, and Ani DiFranco. She has had her songs featured on such television shows as Brothers and Sisters, Covert Affairs and Shameless as well as a song featured in the Sundance featured indie film, The Royal Road. Along the way, Chris has remained truly independent, selling nearly 50,000 albums through her own label, Sad Rabbit Records. Chris comes to The Ark fresh off a tour opening for Toad the Wet Sprocket.
Known for their gritty, melodic indie pop songwriting, opener John-Allison Weiss emerged at the end of the 2000s as an early crowd-funding hero with a strong D.I.Y. ethos that has defined them throughout their career. After establishing themselves among the punk underground, they became a staple of the Warped Tour and released highly rated albums like 2013’s Say What You Mean and 2015’s New Love. Touring with everyone from Lou Reed to Letters to Cleo, Weiss has also collaborated as a songwriter with artists including Tegan Quin and Kevin Devine. Following a live album and 2021’s Death Valley Demos EP, they signed with Get Better Records and issued the singles “Different Now” and “Feels Like Hell” from their upcoming album ‘The Long Way’ out February 17th.

The Bad Plus
2022-12-06 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
COVID-19 FAQ
The Bad Plus are the ultimate originals. A democratic unit with a clear vision and a refusal to conform to convention. For the past two decades they have played with spirit and adventure, made their own rules and done so with a bold sense of creativity and intent. Avoiding easy categorization, The Bad Plus has won critical acclaim and a legion of fans worldwide with their unique sound and flair for live performance. Now in their 21st year, The Bad Plus continues to push boundaries as founding members Reid Anderson (bass) and Dave King (drums) embark on a new piano-less incarnation of the band with Ben Monder (guitar) and Chris Speed (tenor saxophone)—re-energizing their sound and inspiration. The Bad Plus have constantly searched to bridge genres and techniques while exploring the infinite possibilities of exceptional musicians working in perfect sync. The Bad Plus comes to Michigan with a new self-titled album. “Evolution is necessary for life and creativity,” say Dave King and Reid Anderson. “We’ve evolved, but we’re still The Bad Plus.”

15th Annual Ebird & Friends Holiday Show
2022-12-08 20:00 - 23:00, 2022-12-09 20:00 - 23:00, 2022-12-10 14:00 - 15:30, 2022-12-10 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
COVID-19 FAQ
Celebrating its 15th anniversary, the Ebird and Friends Holiday Show has become known for connecting audiences with stellar artists in the Michigan music community. This year’s featured performers are Tunde Olaniran, Emilee Petersmark, Timothy Monger, Chris Dupont, and Kylee Phillips.
Four performances of this festive revue will occur December 8th through 10th. Produced by Erin Zindle, the singer, songwriter & multi-instrumentalist of Erin Zindle & the Ragbirds, this concert series has become the most warm-hearted way to begin the holiday season. Comedienne, businesswoman, and life-coach Shelly Smith will emcee the proceedings and introduce the top talent of our region. Each bandleaders in their own right: vocals by Jen Sygit and Jess Merritt; strings by Brad Phillips, Aaron Jonah Lewis, Jona Vibrato, and Mark Lavengood; brass by Ross Huff, Tim Haldeman and Terry Kimura; the rhythm section comprising Brennan Andes, Jon Brown, and Dan Piccolo; all of whom appear alongside The Ragbirds: Erin Zindle, Loren Kranz, TJ Zindle, and Shannon Wade.
This unique concert showcases a creative approach to seasonal music, old chestnuts, deep cuts, and original tunes from a wide range of genres and traditions. These songs bring us in from the cold and connect us in the spirit of the season.
