#57 - Jay Gavan | Mitten Backstage

<p>I had a great chat back in May with <strong>Jay Gavan </strong>about his career in the Michigan music scene, history, his recent album <em><strong>A Public Thing</strong></em> (which you can read my <a href="https://www.dutchersnedeker.com/blog/2022/3/7/a-public-thing-jay-gavan-album-review" target="_blank">review for here</a>), and swap stories of the pandemic and how our lives have been shaped by the industry shutting down for over a year. His latest record was a wonderful mix of passions and it was well-realized conceptually, so it was fun getting to dissect the music and learn more about the parallels between modern living and ancient Greece!<br> <br> Many folks will know him as a performer in bands like <strong>Guitar Up! Surf Band</strong>, &nbsp;<strong>The Brothers Kalamazov, The Red Sea Pedestrians, The Birdseed Salesmen</strong>, the <strong>Susie Parr Trio</strong>, and the <strong>Corn Fed Girls </strong>around the Kalamazoo area. Others know him as the founder of the <strong>Kalamazoo Fretboard Festival</strong>, a luthier who founded <a href="https://www.kaltone.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Kal-Tone Instruments</strong></a>, an instructor at both the <a href="https://kzoorock.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Kalamazoo Academy of Rock</strong></a> and <a href="https://kalamazoomusicschool.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Kalamazoo Music School</strong></a>, and even a history professor at <a href="https://www.kvcc.edu/" target="_blank"><strong>Kalamazoo Valley Community College (KVCC)</strong></a>! If any of ya'll are in the Kalamazoo area, keep an eye out for Jay around the scene, show him some love for the work he has done to create opportunities for musicians in the city!<br> <br> Thanks to <strong>Makenzie Mattis</strong> for their work editing this episode! Make sure you check out what they're up to here:<br> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/makenzie.mattis/ " target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/makenzie.mattis/</a><br> <br> ▶▶ <strong>Support Jay Gavan</strong>!<br> <strong>Facebook</stro