GTG Records, based out of Lansing, Michigan, released two new records recently, and each is a prime example of why Lansing is not only the capital of the state, but the unheralded heart of the Michigan indie music scene. 

THE WILD HONEY COLLECTIVE - VOLUME 3

The Wild Honey Collective formed during the pandemic, when the only jams to be had were on front porches and in backyards, separated by a predetermined allotment of length, and only among your most trusted friends. GTG Records main-dude Tommy McCord and wife Danielle Gyger center the outfit along with mainstays Timmy Rodriguez, Dan O’brien, Adam Aymor, and Joel “Kernel” Kuiper, passing instruments around like the last piece of grandma’s peach cobbler in her farmhouse kitchen on a steamy Sunday summer night after the rest of the family has returned to the city or gone to bed. It’s the front porch and back yard of that very house you envision when you wonder where these songs were crafted and honed.

Volume 3 is, you guessed it, their third full-length offering of cosmic Americana, Appalachian folk, and occasionally downright rockin’ tunes from their own pens or lifted with respect and care from their record collections. The band has been nothing if not prolific, but Volume 3 has them at their most comfortable yet, in material, performance, and musical-instrument-chairs, locked in and united in the mission of churning out one gem after the next. 

“Tried So Hard,” the Gene Clark/post-Gram Burritos’ tune, finds the band in its comfort zone, uptempo and melodic, with husband-wife harmonies in perfect sync, and the band as tight as ever, behind them. “These Old Shoes,” an unexpected (and personal fav) Deer Tick cover, is fantastically rowdy and gritty, led by an O’Brien lead vocal. 

But I’ve said it before, it’s Danielle who’s the secret weapon here. Her “Lily” and “Dreadful Wind and Rain” follow her previous contributions; a string of dark and haunting story-songs with minor chords and hypnotizing vocals that set the bar and provide the texture and diversity that take TWHC to the next level. I dread the day she follows in the shoes of Joan Jett, Sting, and Bret Michaels - leaving the band behind for the payday and spotlight of a lucrative solo-career. Should that forlorn day come, I might know of an aging, hotshot, punk-rock guitar player from Detroit who’s available for the gig and a phone call away!  

All kidding aside, The Wild Honey Collective is here to stay, and has established itself deeply in the Lansing music scene while racking up some serious miles to the North Atlantic East Coast and the shores of Lake Superior, winning accolades from the Lansing press, and leaving their audience with sore dancin’ feet, wet, cryin’ eyes, and achin’, bobbin’ heads to the beat of one of Michigan’s finest. Volume 3 is the latest and greatest chapter in that amazing journey, and it seems like we’re just getting started.

ORDER VOLUME 3 on VINYL, CD or DIGITAL HERE

A RUEFUL NOISE - THE ASHEN GLOW

Also hailing from capital city are A Rueful Noise. Like the Wild Honey Collective, ARN is centered by a husband-wife team; Nicholas Merz (The Hat Madder) and Jennifer Toms (Scary Women). I produced their debut 7” in 2021 and it was a damn pleasure dissecting and reassembling some fantastically crafted songs, guitar parts and vocals. The Ashen Glow is the next logical step for the band - a notch up in songwriting and performance, and a more comfortable, gelling groove together as a band, a trait that only comes with time, practice, and gigs. 

Nicholas’ has a unique guitar style that seamlessly blends the heaviest, gnarlyiest Sabbathesque riffs with tender, clean picking over verses, opposite the weight, and delay-effected transitions and bridges connecting them to each other. His genuinely golden voice takes me back to the early days of Sebadoh at times, smooth with great pitch, but distinctly indie, and perfect for the material. 

On stage left, Jennifer holds down the Ampeg-driven low end, harmonizing with Nicholas and lead-vocaling on her own, with a vulnerable, tender voice at times, and rage-induced howl at others, adding that texture that only comes with male-female front-people and husband-wife synergy. It’s the ultimate strength of the band, along with the material of course. Jen’s vocals on The Ashen Glow are more confident, expressive, and in general, badass than we’ve heard from her before. 

Locked in with Jennifer’s bass at every step is drummer Todd Karinen, hammering away with the groove of Bill Ward and, when needed, the velocity of Bonham. He’s no stranger to the floor tom, his dynamics are solid, and he’s the perfect foil for Bonnie and Clyde up front.

My favorite Rueful moments are those with space and ambiance, and a retro-groove. “Windowless Room” takes up right where 2021’s “It’s Not That Kind of Party” left off, Merz painting a picture not only with words, but delay and reverb-soaked picking mixed with short and sharp chords, and a heavy/riffed chorus glued together with Toms’ answer to his calls. The major-scale post-chorus(?) is pure gold on this one, and it all works so well because of the heavy riffs the melodic parts dissolve into.

I’m also a sucker for a hook, though, and I can’t help but to get locked into “Words Were Alive,” a song I first heard a while back in the live setting. The Cheap Trick “Come On Come On” opening and the closest Jen will likely ever get to Belinda Carlisle’s pre-pop-diva vocals are a match made in my record collection’s heaven. This is ARN at their poppiest, and maybe more of an exception than an indicative moment, but you can’t help but applaud the diversity while rocking the F out to the crescendo. 

A Rueful Noise has been one of my favorite bands for a couple years now, and I’m not just talkin’ Michigan talent here, but fav bands period. They don’t yet have the miles or catalog behind them that The Wild Honey Collective does, but like TWHC, there’s a sense here that we’re just getting started, and the future is going to be exciting. I can’t wait! 

ORDER THE ASHEN GLOW on VINYL, CD, or DIGITAL HERE

GTG Records is distributed by RECESS OPs. Tell your local record store you want GTG Releases by The Wild Honey Collective, A Rueful Noise, Jeremy Porter and The Tucos, The Plurals, Cavalcade, and more!

Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos. Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit.
www.thetucos.com
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Twitter: @jeremyportermi | Instagram: @onetogive & @jeremyportermusic