Years ago, John Magnuson was in a Minneapolis band called the Carpetbaggers. John played rhythm guitar and wrote/sang many of the band’s songs. The Carpetbaggers enjoyed some notoriety in the mid-to-late 90s when the band did three tours with Son Volt and shared the stage with such notables as Los Lobos, Alison Krauss, the Jayhawks, and Paul Westerberg. In November of 2020, John released a record called Barely Noticeable. Half of the album is Indie/Folk-Rock-ish, and the other half is pretty much the same, except with a little more twang. When performing, John primarily plays his original material, with a few covers mixed in for good measure.

John Magnuson

Minnesota songwriter and singer Becky Kapell picked up her teenage son’s guitar on a whim and began teaching herself to play at the tender age of 42. She had no intention of writing songs but as she taught herself basic chords, melodies began to emerge and then somewhat magically lyrics attached themselves to the melodies. She recorded 12 of those songs with old friends in Portland, OR (where Becky lived as a young adult) for her first record For Now, released in 2012. Based on the strength of that recording Becky caught the attention of Minnesota guitar ace Paul Bergen and as the two began playing together her song-writing morphed from the folkier sound of her first record to the more guitar-driven sound of her 2018 release That Certain Ache. Recorded and produced by Bergen, the record also features his signature guitar work as well as guitar and drums by esteemed Minnesota musician Erik Koskinen who mixed the record and helped with additional recording at his Real Phonic Studios.

“This late-bloomer Minneapolis country crooner fell in with esteemed local twang vets Paul Bergen and Erik Koskinen to craft her album, That Certain Ache. Her smoky but tender voice recalls Jeannie C. Riley while her songwriting has a Lucinda Williams-like balance of down-and-out grit and hopeful beauty, with standout cuts including the bittersweet, slow-waltzing title track and the cool-rambling Capable Man.” -Chris Riemenschneider, Minneapolis Star Tribune

Becky Kapell Official Website

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