So I was at this gig at Wild Tymes this past weekend and there was this really nice lady who was walking around with a pitcher and collecting money for the bands (which is really great because bands don’t get paid much). The guy organizing the show, Steve MClellan (executive director for DEMO, a really cool NPO that aims to get new artists up on stages and in front of people, http://www.demomn.blogspot.com/), come over to me and says. “The lady with the pitcher recognizes you from your promo photos. She says she did a review of your album, so I asked her ‘Well, was it a good review?’ and she assured me that it was.” I asked who she was and it turns out that she’s none other than Monica Millsap Rasmussen, a writer and reviewer for the St. Paul Examiner, an online publication that writes about everything local in the twin cities. I remember sending her a CD, but hadn’t heard back. It turns out she wrote a review back in October and I didn’t even know about it! Good job “Google Alerts”…it’s your job to catch these things.
I read the review on the phone before taking the stage and it was a great source of energy for the night. She had some very complimentary things to say, and that’s always nice to hear, but her review is so much more than that. I could tell that she really, really listened to the songs and worked to give them meaning and place. I could tell that she listened to the whole album and thought about the lyrics, the music, the intent, and the album as a whole. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it when people take the time to listen that actively and truly engage with the music.
Her review is a great gift. I urge you to read it. http://www.examiner.com/article/tim-cheesebrow-s-debut-album-examines-heavy-subject-life
Thank you for all you do, Monica!