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Preview Fri Oct 02 2015
Mike Krol with The Gooch Palms and Archie Powell and the Exports 10/7 @ Empty Bottle
Getting signed to Merge Records was a dream to Mike Krol. And in the late spring the power pop artist was signed, but it was only after a youth spent pursuing a graphic designer career and recuperating from a breakup with a long-term girlfriend.
"They were the only label I ever wanted to work with," he told me over the phone. Fittingly, a DIY ethos binds Krol's music -- which has included anything from plugging in his mic into a small practice amp at each venue to plugging his guitar into an overheating box of vacuum tubes. He said, cheekily, "it's like Russian roulette when sound checking."
Before Krol became a garage rocker, he around the midwest and the East coast, having studied art in New York, moving to Connecticut to live with his then-girlfriend who studied at Yale, and then retreating to Minneapolis after the breakup to record with his friends from the Midwest.
"I never wanted to be in a traditional band," he said. He records most everything on his records except for bass and for when an occasional friend will come in on a session. Simply put, he started out as a fan of music -- as he often peruses record stores and appreciates album covers and liner notes -- and he brings that attitude into the studio.
The nomadic artist has now settled in Los Angeles, and his touring musicians come from Seattle, Minneapolis, and his hometown Madison.
"I need deadlines," Krol said, though he also noted that his bandmates write prolifically and add great company during tours. Some members of his touring band include musicians from Sleeping in the Aviary and Rupert Angeleyes.
Krol released his third album Turkey on August 28th, and he's been touring to support the record. LA's The Gooch Palms and locals Archie Powell and the Exports will open before Krol at the Empty Bottle on October 7th. The show starts at 9 pm, tickets cost $8 in advance or $10 at the door, and they're available here.
