WGLT Music Podcast
Blues Music
WGLT's Music Director Jon Norton interviews big names and emerging talent from the music world as their travels take them into Central Illinois. Discover eclectic music spanning blues, rock, jazz, and more.
Location:
Normal, IL
Description:
WGLT's Music Director Jon Norton interviews big names and emerging talent from the music world as their travels take them into Central Illinois. Discover eclectic music spanning blues, rock, jazz, and more.
Twitter:
@wgltnews
Language:
English
Contact:
309-438-5426
Email:
news@wglt.org
Episodes
Brett Conlin looks into his rear-view mirror on new full-band EP
10/27/2021
Brett Conlin’s new full-band Americana-rock album is a nostalgic and sometimes wistful look at his youthful days growing up in Kewanee.
Duration:00:08:23
First Backyard Tire Fire Album In A Decade Is A Rootsy Gem
9/8/2021
Backyard Tire Fire's new album drops Friday. They perform at the Black Dirt Music Festival in Bloomington on Saturday. Wilco headlines the fest.
Duration:00:09:11
Author Says 'Americana' Is Grown-Up Rock & Roll
8/11/2021
Author John Milward connects American music legends like The Carter Family and Hank Williams with today's big stars including Jason Isbell and Brandi Carlisle.
Duration:00:06:23
Darius Exorcized Demons On New Album 'Left Alone'
6/18/2021
Bloomington-based hip-hop artist Darius Williams says his new album was self-therapy during a difficult time. He says it's his most personal work to date.
Duration:00:06:47
Old Smoke Band Finds Purpose, New Dynamic During Pandemic
4/16/2021
Like many bands, the Bloomington-based quintet Old Smoke used downtime during the pandemic to write and record a new album.
Duration:00:06:12
Dan Hubbard's New EP A Family Affair
3/24/2021
Family took center stage on Dan Hubbard's new five-song EP “Fall in Love Again (Quarantine Lullabies)”.
Duration:00:08:38
Bloomington-Normal Music Planners Optimistic About Return Of Live Music
3/17/2021
The COVID-19 vaccine rollout has many optimistic a return to something resembling “normal” is approaching. That includes a Bloomington Normal live-music scene gutted by the pandemic. Most music organizers in the Twin Cities said they are shooting for summer and fall performances.
Duration:00:05:42
Thoughts Detecting Machines Finds Coping Mechanism In New Album
3/4/2021
Rick Valentin says dreary central Illinois winter weather is why he began writing and recording new music in January 2020. But that exercise for his solo vehicle, Thoughts Detecting Machines, evolved into an album that acted as a coping mechanism when the pandemic hit.
Duration:00:08:51
V8 Vast Change Says Passion Is The Key To 'Life'
2/18/2021
Dominique Stevenson is a very visible Twin City activist who uses his music to spread a message of unity and encouragement. He was on the front lines of social justice marches last summer and even founded the youth-based advocacy group Next Gen Initiative.
Duration:00:06:55
Brett Conlin's New EP Explores Our Turbulent Year
2/12/2021
Bloomington singer/songwriter Brett Conlin said a three-month isolation at home with his family last spring became the fodder for his just released acoustic EP "The Great Divide."
Duration:00:05:52
New Bloomington Rock Band Finds Purpose During Pandemic
2/3/2021
Singer/songwriter/guitarist Joe Borbely said creating the debut album for the Bloomington-based Progressive Space rock outfit CAPS LOCK was almost literally a life-saver.
Duration:00:11:02
Peoria Unlikely Home For New Flamenco Band 'Tambora'
1/22/2021
Peoria may not seem fertile ground for birthing a Flamenco band. But a side jam during the making of a compilation CD among area musicians grew into one of Peoria’s newest outfits.
Duration:00:06:18
How Central Illinois Musicians Have Adapted To The Pandemic
12/18/2020
The pandemic has hit full-time performing musicians especially hard. There are very few places to perform and in-person audiences are sparse, at best.
Duration:00:05:43
Leah Marlene Defies Expectations On Debut LP
12/3/2020
Singer-songwriter Leah Marlene's first full-length album is quite a curveball for those that came to her through her 2018 up-tempo, hook-laden debut EP “Arrows.”
Duration:00:06:58
WGLT's Blues Doctor Frank Black Dies At 79
11/16/2020
Listen at 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 21, for an hourlong special dedicated to Delta Frank, our legendary blues host. Listen on 89.1 FM or stream at WGLT.org.
Duration:00:10:07
Blackberry Smoke Feeling Fantastic To Be Back On The Road
9/24/2020
Musicians and concert promoters are working their way back into larger live music events. Blackberry Smoke headlines one of two shows this weekend at the Corn Crib in Normal.
Duration:00:05:59
V8 Vast Change Brings His Social Justice Message To His New Album
9/17/2020
Dominique Stevenson has been a very public figure in Bloomington-Normal this year. He founded the youth-based Next Gen Initiative. The social-justice group initiated several marches and education forums in the Twin Cities this summer.
Duration:00:11:28
Grill Billyenz Digs Into Darkness On New Album
9/3/2020
Rapper and visual artist Grill Billyenz of Normal says the darker industrial sound on his latest album "Metamorph" comes from the ghost-town feeling he gets working the third shift at his "day job."
Duration:00:08:01
Hoosier Daddy: Finding Comfort In Collaboration
5/19/2020
Releasing a new album during the coronavirus pandemic has a silver lining for the bluesy Peoria roots-rock trio Hoosier Daddy.
Duration:00:05:12
Edward David Anderson Releases 'Live And Solo' Album; Geeked About Backyard Tire Fire
3/9/2020
Bloomington Americana singer/songwriter Edward David Anderson says his new "Live and Solo" album intentionally tried to capture where he's at in his current iteration.
Duration:00:05:46