Max Becker of Northern Outpost

Minnesota is renowned for its blistering winter climate.  People who live here will say they hate the cold, but this isn’t entirely true.  Many folks love the change of seasons and appreciate the snow and ice, and the entrepreneurs among them begin businesses with names that reflect this adoration.  Caribou Coffee, Polaris Industries Inc., and Arctic Cat Inc. are a few of the larger ones, but smaller examples can be found in towns throughout the state.  One of the newest is a growing musical project in Minneapolis known as Northern Outpost (NO).  Began in January with an eye fixed on its home in the north, NO is the newest and most promising addition to a music scene bursting at the seams.



On a warm Sunday morning in May the members of NO meet at Owl Recording Studio, 2609 Aldrich Ave. S.  Some smoke cigarettes outside, waiting for their producer to arrive, and when he does all are greeted with bagels, cookies, and coffee from the shop down the way.  Everyone is cool and comfortable despite the long day ahead.  In the past they typically only filmed two bands a day, but the project has grown over a few months and efficiency has risen.  Today they are shooting three bands: Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles, Empires, and Speeds the Name.  Everything must be done under heavy time constraints (only two hours to get each band in and out), but the crew has learned to save themselves time by prepping the recording space a day ahead.  This has made all the difference.

Kevin Russell (left) and Alex Bowes (right)

NO is the brainchild of local artist and producer Max Becker.  Five others comprise the NO team, including three videographers and two sound engineers.  Joe Clark is a freelance film-maker and Becker’s compatriot in the local instrumental rock outfit Power of 2.  Alex Bowes and Kevin Russell are also freelance media specialists, working at the MN College of Art and Design and Inventive Graphics, respectively.  Peter Bergman and Paul Flynn own and operate Owl Recording, a reputable recording studio in Minneapolis and home to NO.  Each was hand chosen by Becker when the concept for NO was devised, and each have since made equal contributions to its burgeoning success.

Becker explains that when the idea for NO first hit him, he had been exploring ways to create a music video for his friend Andy Elwell.

“I got this idea to shoot Andy in a basement with some good audio,” Becker said, “but then I thought, why don’t we just do this for a bunch of bands?  Then all of the sudden a light bulb went off in my head and in one day I came home from work with a whole binder full of files and pdf printouts of the schedule, the shooting run-down, the equipment list for the crew, and everything… I brought it home to my roommates (Clark and Russell) and a couple other people and they said ‘yeah, let’s do it’”!

From there the only obstacle standing in Becker’s way was a space for producing the videos.  The basement of Becker’s rental unit was opening up for availability, and it seemed a natural home base for the project.  But after consulting Bergman, some perceived logistical problems arose.

Peter Bergman (left) and Paul Flynn (right)

“He (Bergman) said that he was worried about bringing all the gear (over to the basement) and not having enough,” Becker explained.  “Initially I thought we’d get a six channel mixer and some microphones and that’s it.  But he said we could probably do it at Owl Recording studio… about one week a month, at least during the winter.  And the studio looked great, and so it kind of went from there.”




During NO’s first season Becker brought in bands through personal contacts, friends and friends of friends.  Yet well before he exhausted his network of takers, another list of cold call petitions began emerging.  As the band list grew from 10 to 20, and then 20 to 40, it became apparent that choices would need to be made.  Because NO only releases episodes bi-weekly, and because recording schedules are more or less on a quarterly basis, it’s impossible for Becker to accommodate every band as he would like.  Even now he is forced to tell would-be NO performers that he might be able to fit them in – six months down the road.

But of all the problems a nascent project can have, having more interest than you can manage stands among the best.  Part of what makes NO so appealing to bands and new viewers alike, is its direct focus on home and strict commitment to all things music in the Midwest.  Cross-cutting genres, Becker envisions NO as a place to give the Minnesota music scene “that extra little thing” nationally and internationally.

“…In the beginning I put together a list of bands I would like to get on that I thought exemplified what the Twin Cities has to offer in all genres… I don’t want to get a bunch of punk bands in a row, (and) I don’t want to get a bunch of folk bands in a row.  I want to make sure there are waves of genres going through.  (Because) it’s not just for the Twin Cities scene to view and look at, I want to make it more of a national thing that people can see out there.  There are a lot of great bands in Minneapolis, and I know a lot of people know that.  But (I want) to reinforce it and give it that extra little thing because you can only go to so many myspace pages and just click around if you’re not from here.  But if there is this staple of the scene, and the genres, and the musicians – that will give the rest of the country and the world a better idea of what’s going on here.”

Becker speaks with Speeds the Name

This commitment to spreading the word about the Twin Cities scene is also a major reason why NO features interviews with the performing artists.  Each episode runs 7-10 minutes in length, with only half of that time consisting of live performance.  The other half is spent by Becker asking the artists question about their careers, the local music scene, and why they think the Twin Cities is (or isn’t?) one of the greatest cities to be an artist in.  (Note: to date, the overwhelming consensus has been that everyone loves being an artist in the Twin Cities.)

When asked about the future direction and marked goals of NO, Becker is clear that national recognition is crucial moving forward.

“I’d definitely like for Northern Outpost to reach a wider national audience because in the end that’s one of the main reasons we’re doing the show.  To really reinforce our (Minnesota’s) place in the national and international scene, and to show off what we have.  I’m hoping by word of mouth and slowly becoming a reliable source for performances and interviews it will slowly go a little more national and that people from around the country will check in once in awhile to see what kind of stuff we have going on.”

Six hours have passed, and Speeds the Name is packing up their things and preparing to go home.  Once they’ve left, the NO team quickly puts things away, makes personal piles of things to take with them, and starts shuffling out one-by-one.  The recording is over, but there is little time to spare.  The Lucy Michelle episode must be released in five days, and everyone has their own lives to return to, their own Monday through Friday grinds to tackle.  They’ve gotten better at what they do, yes, but each episode is a challenge to make this one even better than the last.  Long term success depends on it.

But if NO grows and takes shape much as a better known project from Illinois (Daytrotter) has, will it maintain its vicious loyalty to Minnesota artists?  Would it support artists from the greater Midwest and further abroad?  Becker seems open to all possibilities, but asserts that indeed, NO will never abandon Minnesota artists.

“The show is stationed here and its mostly about bands from here,” says Becker, “but if bands are coming through and they really want to do the show, and they’ve worked hard, then I think they deserve an extra little push (from NO).  We’re just out there to help people.”

Links

Northern Outpost – Website

Media Extras

The People of Northern Outpost

Max Becker - Producer and Founder of Northern Outpost

Peter Bergman - Sound Engineer (Owl Recording)

Paul Flynn - Sound Engineer (Owl Recording)

Kevin Russell - Videographer (Northern Outpost)

Alex Bowes - Videographer (Northern Outpost)

Joe Clark - Videographer (Northern Outpost)

Outside Owl Recording Studio

posted June 9th, 2009 at 8:15 am MN Rock, Music News, Reviews, Uncategorized Northern Outpost