Each week, MI Local throws together a zesty salad of sounds and a smorgasbord of genres, all coming from musicians and songwriters based here in metro Detroit and all across the state of Michigan. This week, we start off with electro-pop, dip into some lo-fi instrumental hip-hop, get a little folky and orchestral before sampling some bluegrass, and then circle back to end on electronic, again.

This week’s newest tracks came from artists like the Plymouth-based songwriter Mark Jewett, who released a melodic ode to Michigan winters. You can see Jewett performing at the Ferndale Library on April 13. We heard a new sweet yet haunting song from Chloe Drallos (formerly known as Zilched). We also checked in with local electronic music producers like Jay Sound and Dial81, along with Jo Rad Silver, who hosts a monthly showcase at UFO Bar. 

I was also in a bit of a sentimental mood this week, so I spun some “older” tracks by local artists, particularly marking a couple of 10- and 5-year anniversaries: We heard from Kalamazoo-based indie-rockers The Go Rounds and Ypsilanti folk ensemble Matt Jones & the Reconstruction.

Tune in next week when Detroit-based indie-pop quirk-poet Danny VanZandt stops by for an in-studio chat and an exclusive premiere of a new song from his forthcoming album, “Proust in the Kitchen with the Wooden Spoon.”

See the playlist below and listen to the episode on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

MI Local Playlist for Jan. 28, 2024

• “Shock n Awe” – The Go Rounds
• “Shoreline” – Chloe Moriondo
• “Grass Boulevard” – Jo Rad Silver
• “Bittersweet Memories” – Jay Sound
• “Air Pockets” – Dial81
• “The Good Life” – Matt Jones & the Reconstruction
• “Trade Coyote” – John Salvage
• “Angel Song” – Chloe Drallos
• “What’s Your Name” – Sari Brown
• “Stretcher at 5 a.m.” – MAS
• “Dream of  You” – David Turel
• “Dust to Gold” – The Sad Hour
• “Snow Song” – Mark Jewett
• “I Did Not Win” – Brawny Lad
• “Serene Days” – Automatic Android

Millennials will no doubt recall the super catchy 2012 indie-pop single “We Are Young,” from the band known as fun.; Gen Z likely caught on to it, too, when the song briefly went viral on TikTok last year.

While that band went on an indeterminant hiatus in 2015, one of its founding members, Andrew Dost, is a northern Michigan resident who’s continued to make music, and recently unveiled his new band, Metal Bubble Trio. Last Friday, they released their debut album, “Cucumber,” and this week on MI Local, we spun the stylish and poignant new single, “Love, Please Don’t Be Long.”

We also ventured into dreamy and ethereal terrain with the new experimental-orchestral composition from harpist/singer/songwriter Ahya Simone; we listened to “Liminal,” from Simone’s brand new album, “Neptunian Blue,” which also features international electroacoustic musician Tapiwa Svosve.

As always, on MI Local, we spotlighted some upcoming shows that you can catch around the region, including Chris Bathgate at the North Star Lounge in Ann Arbor (Saturday, Feb. 1), and the album release party for Bandeau, at the Outer Limits Lounge (this Saturday, Jan. 25).

We also heard from singer/musician Drey Skonie of the kLOUDs band, recently crowned the Top Voted Act during WDET’s Sounds Like Detroit contest from last summer! Skonie stopped by the studio, live, to chat about the band’s two performances set for this Thursday evening at Cliff Bells.

See the playlist below and listen to the episode on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

MI Local Playlist for Jan. 21, 2024

• “Liminal” – Ahya Simone
• “Big Ghost” – Chris Bathgate
• “Power” – Neu Blume
• “How to Get Lost” – Ditch Lily
• “Walk Me Home” – Money Soup
• “Frens” – Bandeau
• “Love, Please Don’t Be Long” – Metal Bubble Trio
• “Orange Juice” – Rob Zinck & the Collaborators
• “Sea Sick” – Nick Piunti
• “Honest Woman” – Thornetta Davis
• “Lucy is Sentimental” – Big Scaries
• “The Process” – Sunil Sawani
• “Rippin’ & Runnin'” – Drey Skonie & the kLOUDS
• “Better Days” – Drey Skonie & the kLOUDS
• “ReProduction” – Aspect Radio

The multi-faceted, genre-fusing singer-songwriter Elisabeth Pixley-Fink premiered a new single from her forthcoming album this week on MI Local.

Pixley-Fink was born and raised in Kalamazoo and is currently based in Ann Arbor. “Heartskin,” Pixley-Fink’s upcoming full-length album, was recorded directly onto tape in Detroit, produced by John Hanson (Saltbreaker, Yimes, Izzy Johnson), mixed by Tim Carr (Perfume Genius, Hand Habits) and mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk (Haley Heyndericks, Damien Jurado). Inspired by a masterful blend of riot grrrl, ambient stillness, and the work of queer Spanish poet Federico García Lorca, “Heartskin” is 12 songs of a heart shedding its own skin.

The album will be out on Feb. 14 (Listen via bandcamp), and Pixley-Fink is set to be a guest on MI Local in early February!!

We also premiered a new single this week from another Michigan music maker with a new album on the horizon: we heard the latest from indie-rocker Danny VanZandt, with the song “Jessie,” from his new album “Proust in the Kitchen with the Wooden Spoon,” which comes out on Feb. 7.

Along with these new tracks, we also heard a bit of a “lost” track from Detroit hip-hop duo Passalacqua — “Acting Up,” a song that was never officially released and not streaming anywhere — the only place you’ll be able to hear it, actually, is HERE on MI Local! We still recommend returning to that duo’s self-titled 2021 album, here, via Bandcamp.

We also previewed an upcoming benefit concert, “Darkness on the Edge of Corktown,” featuring several local musicians and bands performing covers of Bruce Springsteen songs. The event is happening this Friday at the Lager House and will benefit Motor City Mitten Mission, dedicated to helping the homeless and others in need.

See the playlist below and listen to the episode on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

MI Local Playlist for Jan. 14, 2024

• “Those Were The Days” –  Elisabeth Pixey-Fink
• “Jesse” – Danny VanZandt
• “Acting Up” – Passalacqua
• “Hybernashun” – Nolan the Ninja
• “Opposite Day Parade” – Peace to Mateo
• “Different This Year” – The City Lines
• “Dark Cloud” – Starlings
• “Salt” – Elephant Den
• “Radio Man” – Buckshot 98
• “For All Things Left Unsaid” – Career Funeral
• “Spaced Out” – Jim Byrne
• “Walk a Little Farther” – Annie Bacon
• “The Octopus” – Olivia Cirisan
• “Melting Snow” – Deastro

Each year starts off a little bit slow, then suddenly accelerates! Very soon, we’ll have a cavalcade of new music premieres from local artists based in Detroit and all across Michigan.

This week, though, I’m digging back into December to bring you some late-2024 releases that you may have missed, including the latest album from acclaimed Ann Arbor-based hip-hop trio Tree City, with a song from their “magnum opus” album, “Pure Levels,” which has been 13 years in the making!

We also heard some eclectic world-music sounds coming out of the Arbor/Ypsi-scene, from the experimental producer/musician Dr. Pete Larson. You’ll also hear some brand new music coming out of Detroit, with alt-country-folk ensemble Poor Player and garage-pop duo Checker!

We kicked off the show with, perhaps, one of the catchiest songs ever(?), with singer/songwriter bRADFORd‘s “Don’t Take Me,” while also sampling some cinematic ambient tracks from Ancient Language and Kalamazoo dreampop duo Overly Polite Tornadoes.

If you want to stay to connected to the local music scene all year long in 2025, then circle every Tuesday on your calendars and turn your proverbial dial to 101.9 for MI Local!

MI Local Playlist for Jan. 7, 2025

• “Don’t Take Me” – bRADFORd
• “Betty Bubblegum” – The Bridge Between
• “We’ll Figure It Out” – Tree City
• “Woodboar” – Dr. Pete Larson
• “Gliding” – Polar Baron
• “Nothing Stays the Same” – Cloverland
• “This Must Be The Place” – Mountain Babies
• “The Block” – Human Skull
• “BeBe” – The Absentees
• “Hungry” – B.Aware
• “Hot Damn” – Checker
• “Face on Me” – Snobgoblin
• “Flame” – Poor Player
• “It’s Dark Now” – Overly Polite Tornadoes
• “It’s Such a Beautiful Day” – Ancient Language

“Best” is entirely subjective, of course! This week, I’m spinning my own personal favorite songs released by local artists in the year 2024! And, even then, these are just SOME of my favorites, including Detroit-based producer/songwriter Vespre, aka Kaylan Waterman (pictured above), along with Ypsilanti’s Fred Thomas, Ann Arbor’s Lily Talmers, and a few from the west side of the state, including Spencer LaJoye and Cal In Red.

I’ve been covering the local music scene for WDET for more than eight years now, and each time December rolls around, I find myself saying the same thing: There’s just so much good music coming out of the state of Michigan, and it only seems to increase, expand, evolve, and astonish me more and more each year!

See the playlist below and listen to the episode on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

MI Local Playlist for Dec. 17, 2024

• “Oh Me Oh My” – HALA
• “Make It Last” – Double Winter
• “Is It True Love?” – Bluhm
• “Goldwine” – The Lasso & The Go Rounds
• “Boog’s Groove & Leaf Erikson” – Boog’s Groove
• “Things We Want to Know” – Vespre
• “My Love” – Cal In Red
• “Death Drive” – Spencer LaJoye
• “Wiser Man” – Rowan Niemisto
• “The Big Idea” – Lily Talmers
• “Momentary Need” – Bandeau
• “SideXSide” – 800cc
• “Embankment” – Fred Thomas

If you’d like a comprehensive sampling of the local music I’ve listened to in 2024, I have my own playlist on Spotify (Check it below!). Whereas my show — heard on Tuesday nights at 9 p.m. — is only one-hour long, this playlist will take you nearly an entire day to get through: enjoy!

There’s always so much good music coming out of the local music scene, both here in Detroit, and all across the state of Michigan. Because many of these artists are unsigned, and thus releasing songs independently, it means they aren’t on any structured timeline dictated by a record label — essentially, they can release a new song whenever they feel like it! Thus, even though we’re nearly at the end of the year, there are still new tracks to premiere.

This week on MI Local, we heard the latest from Deadbeat Beat (surf-punk), stoop lee (hip-hop) and Krystian Quint & the Quitters, who have a full-length album set to release in January. We also heard the debut single from a forthcoming solo album by local singer-songwriter Jesse Shepherd-Bates.

I also checked in on local scenes from all across the state, including Marquette, Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo, unearthing some buried treasures that were released earlier in 2024 but I just hadn’t gotten around to spinning.

Another sweet treat on tonight’s show was the premiere of a new Christmas song from Royal Oak and Flint-based alt-country duo Strange Witch! Since Xmas Eve falls on a Tuesday, you can bet that I’ll be playing plenty of holiday songs by local artists on the 24th!

See the playlist below and listen to the episode on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

MI Local Playlist for Dec. 10, 2024

• “Extra Texture” – Jesse Shepherd-Bates
• “Time Flowers” – Deadbeat Beat
• “Cherry Stems” – Krystian Quint & the Quitters
• “Oh No, I Forgot My Chill Pill” – Addicus
• “Dandelion” – Tess Clark
• “Celadon City” – stoop lee
• “Dazed in December” – Stimpak & LucyV
• “Death of Me” – Taylor DeRousse
• “Alive” – The Vig Arcadia
• “Sports Car” – Lefty
• “Greener Grass” – H8 Mile
• “Little Giants” – I Think I Need More Sun
• “Lucy” – Jeremy Porter
• “Made To Be Broken” – Steve Taylor Three
• “Last Christmas Again” – Strange Witch

It’s another exciting week on MI Local, packed with exclusive premieres of new tracks by local artists!

The Codgers are a Celtic-roots folk ensemble full of longtime players and poets, and we heard a new track, “A Love Song,” from the new full-length album “Sweny’s Remedies.” The Codgers will play an album release party on December 14th at the Gaelic League in Corktown with  Don Duprie, Alison Lewis, and Ryan Dillaha doing a songwriters-in-the round.

Bandeau is a new project from singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist/producer Chad Thompson, blending electro-pop and new-wave; we heard “Momentary Need” from the forthcoming album “Spirit Fingers“ (out in January). Another new project is the indie-rock sextet, The Starlings, who have an EP on the way (January) — we heard a yet-to-be-released track titled “Try To (Have A Good Time).” Meanwhile, singer/songwriter Emily Rose also has a new album, available on cassette (but also digitally, on Dec. 6), titled “The Parlor Tapes,” and we heard its opening track, “Wyandotte.”

Also of note this week, we looked ahead to R&B singer/songwriter Isis Damil’s upcoming performance at Eva’s Speakeasy (Dec. 6-7), and also checked in on shows to catch before and after Thanksgiving, including artists like The Macpodz, Double Winter and more!

• Momentary Need – Bandeau
• Try To – The Starlings
• A Love Song – The Codgers
• Wyandotte – Emily Rose
• Jelly Donut – Double Winter
• Sista – Isis Damil
• Cities, Highways – The Macpodz
• Voices of the Night – Adam Bradley Schreiber
• Starfish Power – Evan W
• FMPM – Eddie Logix
• Let’s Talk – Shigeto, Kesswa & Ahya Simone
• Get Me In The Zone – Waajeed ft. Miles Bonny
• Bull In The Heather (Sonic Youth Cover) – Sponge
• Hard Feelings – The Matthew Teardrop Orchestra
• Share Your Love – Waunband

What if a radio show could almost feel as frenetically fresh as your Instagram feed? Welcome to MI Local: your one-stop shop for literally the latest in local music, particularly when a cavalcade of new releases comes tumbling into my inbox just in time for the show!

Pictured above, we have Mother Night, a new cinematic-sounding indie-rock quintet coming out of Ypsilanti; they have their debut full-length album, “Hungry Ghost,” out on Nov. 30, and we were able to premiere their lead single, “Looking Skyward,” before it even appeared on Bandcamp or iTunes (or elsewhere). Mother Night will perform an album release party next Saturday at the Dreamland Theatre in Ypsilanti.

One of my favorite new artists in town, Bluhm, recently released a full-length album, “Midnight Hill.” They were previously in-studio guests, earlier in the summer, where I interviewed vocalist and guitarist Claire Bluhm and multi-instrumentalist and producer Cameron John Marion. Bluhm will be releasing a new single, “Double Dream,” this Friday, but you can hear it — exclusively — on MI Local this week!

Singer-songwriter and music educator Audra Kubat will lead an impressive lineup of songwriters at this weekend’s “Friday Night Live,” at the DIA. Kubat is working on a follow-up to her 2019 album, “The Sliver and the Salve,” and (surprise) we were able to hear an unreleased track from this as-of-yet-untitled-follow-up, with a beautiful ballad titled “Hand and Leaf.”

But there’s more! Two local garage-pop trios, Zem and Prude Boys, are putting out a split EP, featuring three songs by each band. A digital release should be available on the internet any day now, but you can hear Zem’s “Finger,” and Prude Boys’ “Insane” on this week’s MI Local.

Plus, we heard the latest hip-hop track from happytree, the latest punk shredder from The Antibuddies, and a danceable electro-pop track from the project known as Haunted House!

• “Back N Forth” – happytree
• “EXT266” – Haunted House
• “Looking Skyward” – Mother Night
• “Imagine My Eyes” – Ronny Tibbs
• “Veterans Park Ice Arena” / “Arbor Oaks Park” – Timothy Monger
• “Double Dream” – Bluhm
• “New Forgetting” – Fred Thomas
• “First Place” – pia the band
• “Calloway” – Laurel Premo
• “Leaf and Hand” – Audra Kubat
• “Finger” – Zem
• “Insane” – Prude Boys
• “Verde” – Mooses
• “Mothman Live(s)” – The Antibuddies