Piano-driven grooves and melodies are met with climbing guitarmonies and a supple rhythm section. These elements cleverly fuse together with dire vocals guiding the way. Battlerat’s third release, Done Deal, showcases Celeste Heule’s idiosyncratic writing style with a collection of distinct songs that deliver both tension and balance.

Battlerat Official Bandcamp Page

Surprise special guest Eric Mayson!

As the “poster child of entropy”, it’s no surprise that Eric Mayson’s music and live performance is a journey from disbelief into knowing and back again. He understands music as a way to move through space. In an aerial shot, Mayson’s wide-ranging style stretches from minimalist electropop to smooth R&B, progressive soul, and straight hip-hop, while visiting grinning pop, rock and roll, and operatic arrangements.

He builds things from the ground up. Layers are everything, details are the big ideas. To Eric, “if something feels like a full idea, it is one.” His lyrics are hints. Whether direct and considered or fragmented and esoteric, they are not meant to direct your experience or tell you about a thing – they are foundation for contemplation. The impact of his music shifts within the context it’s presented.

He’s a multi-instrumentalist, but frequents the keys. “His deft keyboard playing is only topped by the sky-high soar of his voice”(Okay Player). He has played for the likes of Lizzo, Caroline Smith, Toki Wright, Big Cats, DaNCEBUMS, and as the musical backbone of Minneapolis hip-hop group Crunchy Kids. Whether piano, cello, or bass, his playing is fully embodied; you can see the music happening in and radiating through his body. He stomps. His knees bounce. He traverses the terrain of music he creates.

Born in Corpus Christi, TX, he bounced around the US with his musical father and curator mother before finding roots in Minneapolis at age 16. He left to pursue an education in acting; but in the aftermath of a house fire, returned to Minneapolis in 2010 where he found a love for producing and playing hip-hop.

His first solo release, Detail (2015) is a 40 minute cassette tape with only one track break. “An ambitious sonic collage of psychedelic R&B grooves, experimental hip-hop and straight-up sexy pop tunes with Mayson’s smooth but piercing voice out front” (Star Tribune). He is joined by frequent musical collaborators (Chance York, Caroline Smith, Big Cats, and others). Recorded at RiverRock Studios, Detail was “produced at a quality that we rarely hear from the snowy land of 10,000 lakes”(Okay Player). Eric Mayson is back with new tunes as he prepares to release his sophomore venture with RiverRock Music Group.

Eric Mayson Official Website

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