Episode 21: ——- Dig what I’m doing? Consider donating $5 or more at the bottom of this post

Growing up in Charlottesville I was exposed to a great deal of music with a vast variety of styles, from rock groups like Wolves of Azure to bluegrass groups like Magraw Gap, and of course, at the time there was a “new” era of bands blending styles which led to the success of Dave Matthews Band. Even though DMB was gaining mainstream popularity, another band on the rise was the world beat group, Baaba Seth. They were my first exposure to the world beat genre, but they were also the gateway to many others from around the world.

I, along with a bunch of high-school friends would see them as much as we could around the area including shows at Trax, The Outback Lodge  The Nelson County Music Festival at Oak Ridge Estate, and of course the Downtown Pavilion during Fridays After 5. When I left for Charlottesville to go to music school, Baaba Seth disbanded as a regular touring band. Luckily enough for “Cvillans” yes, villains ;), they did reunion shows almost every year. When Morwenna and I started our group, I always knew I wanted to share the stage with one of the bands that made me into the musician I am today. Even better than playing shows with them, I’ve become great friends with many of the members including frontman, Dirk Lind.

Dirk grew up in Charlottesville and is first and foremost a songwriter. He first wanted to create a band during his high-school years after being inspired by a few of his favorite Punk bands. Later in life he formed Baaba Seth after listening to a lot of Reggae and African music. After the band split in the late 90’s, Dirk relocated to WA state and now focuses on his songwriting under the moniker Particlehead. He now runs a songwriter series in Spokane, WA where he has formed a community of singer/songwriters who all come to share songs they’ve written, listen to each other’s work, and also collaborate together. While Dirk was in Charlottesville, he paid a visit to my music theory class downtown and he talked about his process as a songwriter and his life as a musician.

Here is his tune “Safer in Misery.”

Dirk Lind – Safer In Misery from Pun Picks on Vimeo.

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