Bio
In addition to a prolific career as a singer-songwriter, producer and multi- instrumentalist, Grammy-nominated artist Mike Brown is an incredibly dynamic and versatile collaborator. His debut record, American Hotel, was self-recorded in all 50 states over the course of eight years, and features a staggeringly diverse roster of 75 special guests, including members of: The Band, Los Lobos, The Jayhawks, Wilco, Television, Nine Inch Nails, Bare Naked Ladies, Guster, Goo Goo Dolls, The Wallflowers, Counting Crows, Sparklehorse, Gwar, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Matchbox Twenty, The Meat Puppets, Soul Asylum, Cracker, Superdrag, Whiskeytown, Morphine, Moxy Fruvous, Belle and Sebastian, 10,000 Maniacs, The Minus 5, Freedy Johnston, Letters To Cleo and Soul Coughing.
Brown is also the founder of Temperamental Recordings, a recording studio and label based out of a former Methodist church built in 1828. In 2011 the impressive space and collection was featured on The History Channel show American Pickers, with Brown appearing as an expert and appraiser of musical instruments and vintage recording equipment.
In 2014 Brown released a CD with a childhood friend Zac DeCamp titled Automatic Music Can Be Fun and, with the help of Brian Grunert from White Bicycle Design Firm, was nominated for a GRAMMY in the Best Recording Package category against Jay-Z, David Bowie, Metallica, and Reckless Kelly.
Mike is currently working on his next album Songs for Seven Fingers, which includes members of Band of Horses, Sparklehorse, Larry and His Flask, Morphine, Whiskeytown and several others.
“Brown’s songs, and even his demeanor while performing, simmer with an all-too-human edge that unsettles as much as it thrills—precisely what music should do when it comes from the heart. Where so many musicians working in the country-Americana mold fabricate heartache and wanderlust, Brown doesn’t have to fake it. ”
“Mike Brown, by himself, is a better folk act than most full-scale projects. His skill as a guitarist/dobro player and singer-songwriter is unparalleled. Using a loop pedal, Brown layers and synchronizes beats and progressions, cleverly creating a full band sound that stomps and moves like a raucous barn bash. His lyrics are thought-provoking as they weave over his plucked finger style. It’s roots music, and with all the percussive riffs, it revolves and moves much like Native American or African music does, keeping your head bobbing and your dusty boots moving.”