Champaign Is Also A Band

One songwriter, one song. Podcast about stories & songs of Champaign-Urbana music. In each episode Sven sits down with a person from the C-U music scene to hear the story & the background of a favorite song they’ve written.

EP153 - Caspian June - "Spirit

Sven chats with Caspian June (She/They/It) in the lobby of the KCPA to talk about her song "Spirit," the Peoria and CU music scene, her podcast Ideal Angle, and her favorite non-musical things.  YouTube Page for Caspian June and Ideal Angle Podcast LULA in Peoria 

09-26
01:03:38

EP152 - Sebastian Kelle & Bob Owens of Starcruiser - "Germany"

Sven chats with Sebastian Kelle (He/Him) and Bob Owens (He/Him) of Starcruiser about their song "Germany" off of the album "Autopilot," the Champaign-Urbana music scene, and their favorite non-musical things.

09-12
56:47

EP151 - Jon Hoekstra aka Honest Lost Jon - "My Dog Says"

Sven chats with Jon Hoekstra (He/Him) about his song "My Dog Says" of of the album "Little Grassy," the CU music scene, and his favorite non-musical thing.  List of CU music opportunities mentioned in the episode: Slow Jam (Mondays, 7-9 PM, Lincoln Square) - https://sites.google.com/view/slowjam Songs in Progress - songwriter's feedback circle - email dochoekstra@gmail.com CU Bluegrass Jam (Tuesdays, 7-9 PM, Lincoln Square): cubluegrass@outlook.com CU Old Time Jam (Thursdays, 7-9 PM, Lincoln Square) CU Open Mics - https://www.facebook.com/CUopenmic CU Soiree Musicale - First Sundays, acoustic listening room at Channing-Murray Chapel CU Ukulele Jam - https://www.facebook.com/groups/ChampaignUrbanaUkuleleJam/ East Central Illinois Dulcimer Club. - https://facebook.com/groups/2017423211875128/ Little Grassy Winter Songwriter Retreat - Feb/Mar in Southern IL Mahomet Music Club - Thursdays - https://www.facebook.com/MahometMusicClub/ OLLI Folk Singing Interest Group - https://olli.illinois.edu/olliatillinois/course/course.aspx?catId=12   Activities at the Rose Bowl: https://www.rosebowltavern.com/#calendar-1 Hootenanny Monday Nights 8pm-12am, Jazz Jam  Wednesday Nights 10-12am Country Jam 3rd Sunday 6-9pm    Ensembles and lessons at Community Center for the Arts (C4A) - https://c-4a.org/    

07-25
01:03:37

EP150 - Micah Boyce of White Lucy - "Melee"

Sven chats with Micah Boyce (He/Him) of White Lucy about his song "Melee" of of the upcoming album "The Paradise," (dropping 8/15/2025) the CU music scene, and his favorite non-musical thing.  That FX tool that Brok uses on Micah's voice for the outro: Chroma Console  

07-11
01:16:08

EP149 - Patrick Lyke - "Army Surplus"

Sven chats with Patrick Lyke (He/Him) about his song "Army Surplus," the CU music scene past and present, and his favorite non-musical thing.

06-27
01:04:47

EP148 - roseli - "split ends"

Sven meets up with roseli (She/Her) at KCPA for a chat about her song "spit ends," the CU Music Scene, and her favorite non-musical thing  Photo: Kandy Delgadillo 

06-13
52:41

EP147 - Robert Hirschfeld of Common Loon - "Automatic Skin"

Sven chats with Robert Hirschfeld (He/Him) of Common Loon about his song "Automatic Skin," the CU music scene past and present, and his favorite non-musical thing.

05-30
01:04:28

EP146 - Sierra Sikora - "Jade"

Sven meets up with Sierra Sikora (She/Her) at KCPA to talk about her song "Jade" off of the EP "Confessions" the CU music scene, and her favorite non-musical things.

05-16
43:27

EP145 - Andrew Simek the Piano Man - "Pocket Song"

Sven chats with Andrew Simek (He/They) about his song "Pocket Song," the local CU Music Scene, being the Piano Man, and their favorite non-musical things! Info on the Piano Man : https://canopyclub.com/piano-man/

05-02
01:16:49

EP144 - Patrick & Noah of Castle Finn - Velvet Fangs

Sven chats with Patrick (He/HIm) and Noah (He/Him) of Castle Finn to talk about their song "Velvet Fangs" off of the "On The Vine (EP)."

04-18
54:02

EP143 - James Mauck of Forebeat - Currents

Sven chats with James Mauck (He/Him) of Forebeat about his piece "Currents" off of the album "Stages of Growth," old and new CU venues, house shows, and his favorite non-musical thing.

04-04
53:51

Bonus Episode 35: Juli Sherry of Pretzle Records

Sven chats with Juli Sherry (She/Her) of Pretzle Records about working with Doug Hodge (BEP23) to create the record label, supporting the local music scene, and plans for the future. Pretzle Records Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pretzlerecords/ Pretzle Records Website: https://www.pretzlerecords.com/

03-21
44:58

EP142 - Tim Reynolds of Horrible Things - A Million Times

Sven zooms with Tim Reynolds (He/Him) of Horrible Things about his song "A Million Times," off of the album "Everybody Else" the CU music scene 10+ years ago, and his favorite non-musical thing.  

02-21
37:18

EP141 - Ricko.6ix3O - THOUGHT I WAS DONE (feat. JLøve)

Sven chats with Ricko.6ix3O (He/HIm) about his song "THOUGHT I WAS DONE (feat. JLøve)" off of the "Thought I Was Done - Single", the CU music scene, and his favorite non-musical things.

02-07
44:52

Bonus Episode 34: "Duality" - Michael Thies of Metaphysics

Sven chats with Michael Thies (He/Him) (EP122) of Metaphysics to talk about his newest album "Duality"  Duality on Bandcamp: https://the-metaphysics.bandcamp.com/album/duality Stream on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/4lb7YoaBjLtlowQaloqY7X?si=x9hcTjaXRzK0zw_x0wjJHw

01-24
36:30

EP140 - JLøve - Gløw 'n Grøw

Sven chats with JLøve (She/Her) about her song "Gløw 'n Grøw" off of her recently released EP: "Dønt Førget," her favorite CU Venue, getting back into performing live, and her favorite non-musical things.

01-10
35:42

EP139 - Bryan Bachman of Louavull - " '57 "

Sven chats with Bryan Bachman (He/Him) of Louavull to talk about his song " '57" off of the album "It's Over, Now What?" memories of the CU Music scene, and great things about his favorite non-musical thing.  Links to Bryan's current project: Shop Class    

12-27
50:04

EP138 - John Mcnally of TwoLeggedZoo - "Rest 1"

Sven chats with John Mcnally (He/Him) of TwoLeggedZoo at The Labary about his song "Rest 1" written for the Rest Lab installation.  We'll also talk about finding a community of musicians here in CU, his favorite non-musical thing, and why you should kill your lawn and plant native plants. https://twoleggedzoo.carrd.co/

12-13
52:06

PodSwap 2024: Z & Keith Watched A Movie: The Black Hole

Introducing a podswap... Sven was a guest on "Z and Keith Watched A Movie" and here it is!  We talked about a formative movie from my childhood: "The Black Hole" You may remember Keith from EP130 talk about "Mobius Rip" which so happens to be the musical theme from "Z and Keith Watched A Movie."  *imagine sven inserted clever line about things going full circle here* Follow these links for funsies: https://x.com/zandkpod instagram.com/zandkpod https://www.youtube.com/@zandkpod Be sure to become a patron and support them: patreon.com/zandkpod Episode 5.38 https://open.spotify.com/episode/4JNsneNLfAXFN7i7xvsLTQ?si=9b03213bb58e47fa

11-29
01:29:24

EP137 - Joe Carr of Decapitation In The Food Court - SCANDINAVIAN WAHHABISM

Sven chats with Joe Carr (He/Him) of Decapitation In The Food Court to talk about his song "SCANDINAVIAN WAHHABISM" off of the recently released album "WHAT IF WE HAD NO MONEY AND JUST SHARED EVERYTHING?", excessive capitalization, DIY spaces, and his favorite non-musical thing(s).  

11-15
46:44

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