Great Northern ‘goin’ up the country’ for Nov. 7 barn show

The Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank, Ian and Teague Alexy, will headline the Nov. 7 Great Northern Radio Show at Larson's Barn near McGregor, Minnesota.

The Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank, Ian and Teague Alexy, will headline the Nov. 7 Great Northern Radio Show at Larson’s Barn near McGregor, Minnesota.

The blog will be entering another “hot idle” for the same reason as last time. I’ve got a show to write. On Saturday, Nov. 7, my Great Northern Radio Show will broadcast live from Larson’s Barn outside McGregor, Minnesota. The show airs 5-7 p.m. on Northern Community Radio and its northern translators.

To be clear, we are broadcasting from an actual barn in the middle of nowhere. Sure, it’s a barn that has heat and has been remodeled as a dance hall, but it’s a barn, and it’s located 15 miles from anything resembling a town. We’re all pretty excited.

Though not part of the plan, that night we find ourselves up against the “A Prairie Home Companion” traveling broadcast up in Bemidji, where we did our last show. Garrison Keillor and crew will be at the Sanford Center with its jumbotron, while we run wires through hay bales down in Aitkin County. Not part of the plan, but I’ll take the comparison. It’s all a pretty apt metaphor for our respective shows.

You’ll like what we’re got going in the barn.

Porcupine Creek is an Americana band formed by the children of two well-traveled family bluegrass bands. They'll appear at the Nov. 7 Great Northern Radio Show on Northern Community Radio.

Porcupine Creek is an Americana band formed by the children of two well-traveled family bluegrass bands. They’ll appear at the Nov. 7 Great Northern Radio Show on Northern Community Radio.

What follows is our press release:

Great Northern Radio Show set for Nov. 7

Traveling broadcast heads to rural McGregor for Larson’s Barn show

McGREGOR, Minnesota (Oct. 21, 2015) — It’s Saturday night in the barn. Hay bales stack along the walls. The band tunes up. Boots click on the wood floor. The lights dim. We’re on the air in three … two … one …

The next Great Northern Radio Show will broadcast live from Larson’s Barn near McGregor, Minnesota, on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2015. This traveling variety program produced by independent NPR affiliate Northern Community Radio explores life in small towns and off-the-beaten-path places through comedy, stories and music.

Producer and host Aaron Brown leads a regular cast along with guest performers, musicians, and storytellers in a two hour romp through local legend and real life, highlighting the talent and culture of northern Minnesota. Each show seeks to celebrate its unique location and the people who make it special for a much wider audience.

“This is our first show from such a remote location,” said Brown, an author and blogger from the Iron Range. “We’re doing a live broadcast in a barn down a long country highway. We’ve got hot new bands, good material and fun guests in an intimate, old timey venue.

“We always joke about our show being like a 21st Century version of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland doing a big show in the barn. Well, we went and did it for real.”

Timmy Haus

Timmy Haus

Musical performers include the Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank, Duluth’s Teague and and Ian Alexy. Teague recently published a book of folklore and will perform musical versions of some of his stories in the show. The bluegrass band Porcupine Creek will perform, featuring the children of two Minnesota bluegrass family bands who formed their own group.  The show will also include McGregor native singer-songwriter Timmy Haus.

The Great Northern Radio Players include Duluth’s Jason and Louisa Scorich, Sara Breeze of Bemidji, C.J. Anderson and Lauren Nickisch of Pequot Lakes and Rachel Brandt of Ada. Other guests include McGregor native Diamond Knispel, Hill City’s Robert Jevne and Kathy Larson of Larson’s Barn.

The program airs live on KAXE/KBXE at 5 p.m. Saturday, September 19. Tickets cost $10 for adults, but are free for children and college students with IDs. Audience must be in their seats by 4:30. Seating is limited. Call to order tickets in advance at 800-662-5799 or see www.kaxe.org.

The Nov. 7 program will air live on 91.7 FM KAXE in Grand Rapids, Aitkin and the Iron Range, 90.5 KBXE Bagley and Bemidji, 89.9 FM Brainerd and 103.9 FM in Ely. The show is also rebroadcast on independent public radio stations throughout Minnesota and distributed as a live stream and podcast at www.kaxe.org.

The Great Northern Radio Show is made possible by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund with support from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Culture and Tourism grant program and the Blandin Foundation.

Comments

  1. Larson’s Barn.. what a great venue. I wish I could come, been a long time since I’ve been to McGregor. I’ll be tuned in though.

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