Jen Powers and Matthew J Rolin were the only act over the last two Milwaukee Psych Fests whom I was not able to record. The reason was a schedule conflict -- taping the Heavy Lidders at Acme Records, a session which was eventually released by that band as a Bandcamp download. I am finally able to rectify Jen and Matt's absence with this wonderful performance at Cactus Club a few nights back.
Matthew first began gaining my attention a few years before and just after the onset of COVID, with a handful of primitive guitar releases on the Feeding Tube label. There was usually an unexpected sonic element added to these releases which distinguished his work from other more straightforward fingerstyle guitarists, such as bells, percussion, and electronics. He has subsequently proceeded to be a member of indie super group Winged Wheel as well as an especially powerful duo with his partner, dulcimerist Jen Powers.
The pair were opening for Croz Boyce, a side project of two members of Animal Collective -- one of whom makes an appearance on the second of two pieces presented here. I was a little worried that the Cactus Club crowd, there to see an experimental electronics band, might not fully appreciate the finely-crafted acoustic nature of their set. However, to their credit the crowd stood at attention and followed every twist and turn of the music, finally erupting in warn applause after each piece.
video of a 2024 session at radio station WFMU:
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