MN Music Note - Ep 29 - Army Drummer to Lead Singer with Kacie Beatch

What if the person you see owning the stage today…
spent 21 years as a musician in the Army National Guard?

In this episode of Minnesota Music Note, we sit down with Kacie Beatch, a familiar face in the Twin Cities music scene, to talk about the journey most people don’t see.

From growing up in a small town in North Dakota…
 to serving over two decades in a military band, starting as a percussionist and later stepping into vocal roles…
 to finding her voice, literally, in the Minnesota music community…

Kacie’s story is one of evolution, resilience, and saying yes before you feel ready.

🎧 In this episode, we get into:
- Kacie’s 21-year journey in the Army National Guard as a musician, starting in percussion and expanding into vocals
- How she went from playing drums to stepping into the spotlight as a singer
- The reality of coming into the Twin Cities scene and figuring out where you fit
- How open jams became the turning point in her music career
- The power of community, collaboration, and just showing up
- What it’s like balancing multiple projects across genres, including tribute bands and cover bands
- The creative dynamic behind her content and performances
- And how she went from feeling “bandless” to being part of multiple active projects

👉 Tune in to hear how Kacie Beatch turned uncertainty into opportunity and why saying yes before you feel ready might be the move that changes everything.

If you're part of the Minnesota scene…
Whether you're playing shows, hitting jams, running sound, or just getting started, this is your reminder that you’re part of something bigger.
And we’re here to document it!

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:17

My official second favorite female singer in in the local market. So it's very blessed and excited to have you here.

SPEAKER_01 0:24

I am just as grateful to be here.

SPEAKER_03 0:26

Cool. So why don't you tell the audience who may not know who you are or who you are?

SPEAKER_01 0:31

I'm Casey Beach. But I am not from here. I grew up just in a little town just north of Fargo in North Dakota.

SPEAKER_04 0:46

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 0:47

And um ended up here. I think I've been here, gosh, maybe almost 20 years now.

SPEAKER_03 0:55

Were you in the movie Fargo?

SPEAKER_01 0:58

I, you know, I missed out on those editions.

SPEAKER_03 1:02

So I come on. I was wondering how famous you were. I guess you're not quite that famous. But I still work.

SPEAKER_01 1:10

People always say that I've got like just the perfect accent for that show. So I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 1:17

Um I was gonna say, yeah, I mean, you're you still got the slang, right? You're born on the same latitude, I guess. Definitely. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 1:22

And like I was born at the latitude where all the O's are very, oh, you know, oh I was born in Florida and I've traveled around the world actually, thanks to the U.S.

SPEAKER_03 1:34

military. So I've got like little accents from like I just sometimes I just form words that don't even make sense.

SPEAKER_01 1:40

So Or just it's all acronyms, right? We have military in common, will that's so cool. Yeah. Were you in the military? I was in the Army National Guard for 21 years. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:52

21 years.

SPEAKER_01 1:54

21 years. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:55

I didn't even know you're old enough to be in there for 21 years.

SPEAKER_01 1:57

I I enlisted when I was 17. Okay. Um, so this is kind of part of my music story, actually. Let's do it.

SPEAKER_03 2:03

Let's do it.

SPEAKER_01 2:03

I like it. Yep. So growing up in um North Dakota, I I had a musical family. I loved music my whole life, just like you know, all of my musical friends. Um North Dakota has a very different music scene, I think, than than here. Um it's, I would say much richer, much more variety, just so much more opportunity. No, no, no, in in the city.

SPEAKER_03 2:34

I was gonna say, wait a minute, that's that's backwards or whatever thought. But yeah. Yeah, nope, no, nope.

SPEAKER_01 2:38

You were on the right track. So it's not that it didn't exist, but I think that um there just there aren't as many venues that have live music. Um I was kind of getting the impression as I was going through school and I was taking band and choir and all the things, getting ready to figure out, you know, what am I gonna do with my life when I'm out of school? Um, and the opportunities that were presenting themselves, if I were to was to have stayed in North Dakota, it would have been be a music teacher or just do it for fun. So I kind of already had in my mind, like, I'm not gonna be a career musician. I better find something else to do. Um, but luckily for me, um, I was able to get my music fix from the Army National Guard. For real. Yes, because um North Dakota, uh Minnesota also has one, um, has an Army band.

SPEAKER_04 3:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 3:42

And so I was in the Army band in the uh North Dakota National Guard for 21 years. As a vocalist. As a drummer. For real drummer, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:52

I've seen videos of you playing drums of like air with air, and I was just like, Yeah, I thought you just picked it up. No, like this is like something you know how to do. That's amazing.

SPEAKER_01 4:01

I'm I I okay. I now it's out there, but I kind of always kept it on the down low because you know, then people are always like, oh, let's say you drum. I'm so out of practice on drums that I I don't want to like start that rumor that I'm like a competent drummer anymore. That was in my past.

SPEAKER_03 4:19

Um and you know, Aaron is like, he's the drummer of the two of us who really does kind of set the bar high for all of us drummers in Minnesota.

SPEAKER_01 4:29

It's an impossible, it's so high I don't even reach for it. So, but that's okay. I got my lane and he's got his. And yeah. Sometimes, you know, if he's got a gig, I'll go and like play on his kit sometimes, but not in front of anybody, and there will be no footage of that.

SPEAKER_03 4:44

That's clear. So you could be his drum tech as well.

SPEAKER_01 4:48

If if you oh, and I am, yes. That was one of my um, I don't know, like cool flexes when we were first um dating and getting to know each other, and I kind of helped him tear down his stuff after gigs, and he was like, I've never had a girlfriend that does that.

SPEAKER_03 5:05

So you actually know where the symbols go in the symbol bag. Like, what is going on here?

SPEAKER_01 5:10

Yes, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 5:11

So yeah, it's kind of that's see that's but the what I love about this podcast is I would have never known that. Yeah, and I bet you 90% of the people watching this video have no clue that you were in the National Guard for 21 years. 21 years as a musician, as a percussionist. Yes, wow, yeah. So as a percussionist, did you play drum set, timpani? Like what what what uh did you just kind of do it all? Whatever, whatever was the the order of the day.

SPEAKER_01 5:37

Um that's such a good question. How do I give you a short answer?

SPEAKER_03 5:42

Doesn't need to be short, we got 45 minutes.

SPEAKER_01 5:44

Okay. Um, well, so um I would say um even the the unit that I was in, I was in the one 188th Army Band out of Fargo, North Dakota. And um the the life of the of that unit over the many decades that it has been in existence um has kind of had a like life cycle change over time, right? The time where I joined, and before that, um our missions were very um, I would say community focused. Okay. So we would play music in parades and we would do um like concerts in the park, or if a little town in like Podunk, Western North Dakota was having their centennial, like we would be a part of their celebration. We would do um send-offs for deployment and welcome homes when you know other units in our state would um be activated. And so it was that kind of work, and so the kind of music that we played was heavily marching band music, Philip, John Philip Sousa, and a lot of um classic concert band music. So when I um auditioned for the band, I auditioned on drums and very much like the same concert band material that I was playing in high school. Um it was really, really concert band heavy and marching band. So um I was like standing in a snare drum, standing in a bass drum, carrying a bass drum, carrying cymbals. It was all that kind of um classical stuff. Um what kind of I don't know, morphed over time was the type of shows or type of missions, I guess, that we were um assigned to. So um in the last probably 10 years of my career with the band, it got um more into like smaller groups. So whereas the entire, you know, all 50 of us would be playing all together in a marching band or in a concert band, we started to split up into, well, let's take these five people and make a country group, or let's take these 12 people and do like a like a horn band that like that does pop music. Um, and so the the the kind of music and the kind of shows that people wanted us to do changed. And so we kind of changed to give the people what they want, you know. So um so that's that was I think more fun for me because that's when I got to um do singing more because there was there were a lot of drummers in the band at the time, and no one that really not that we couldn't sing, but there was nobody just assigned the job singer. We were just kind of figuring out like, okay, everybody can play a a concert band instrument, but who can play a guitar? Who can play a bass guitar? Who can play a drum set? Who can sing, you know? So I did um start out in one of the small groups. Um, I got to play drum set. Um, and we did a lot of country classic rock stuff. Um, and then towards the end of my career in the guard, I was one of the singers for uh like a country classic rock. We were called Flashbang. So yeah.

SPEAKER_03 9:32

So um did you know you could sing before you got to this point? Like where did singing come up along your trajectory as young Casey to where you are now?

SPEAKER_01 9:40

Yeah, I I don't think I that little Casey would have ever thought that I would do what I'm doing now. Um both of my parents and their families, I there's been music in my life all the time. Um I remember um when I would go to church with my family. Um, usually for Christmas, we would go to my grandma's church and we would all sit in, you know, the same pew. It was a Lutheran church, and we would sing the same like, you know, Christmas songs that everybody hears. But if you were sitting in my pew, everybody in my family was singing a different part, you know, like just grandma would sing Elto and Dad would sing bass. And so I was just exposed to singing in a non-professional sense. So I think like a lot of it was just That's fascinating.

SPEAKER_03 10:41

Yeah. Wow.

SPEAKER_01 10:43

So I just enjoyed it. I don't think I ever took it seriously enough to think like, oh, I could like do this professionally. Like people would like people would come and watch me do this. Like, I I still can't even believe that that people do that. Oh, you're here to watch me. Okay, what you know, I don't know. I would do it in the shower, and I would just as much fun. I just love it. So that's so cool, man.

SPEAKER_03 11:08

Wow. Yeah that's quite a that's quite a story. So did um uh did you have to qualify the M16? Yes. How often did you have to do that?

SPEAKER_01 11:17

We did that once a year. Once a year. Um I now that I don't have to do it anymore, I kind of miss it. But that was my least, least favorite day of all of the training days in the in the drill year. Um, we would go to um, it was a place called Camp Grafton, which is up in like the northeast kind of quadrant of North Dakota, kind of in the middle of nowhere.

SPEAKER_03 11:44

Um another podunk.

SPEAKER_01 11:46

Definitely, yes, definitely one of the many podunks in North Dakota. They have a great lake up there that there's a lot of good fish in, though. So so I hear. Um, yeah, so once a year we would go up to Camp Grafton and we would um qualify on our rifle marksmanship. So I had an M16 um assigned to me for all 20 years, and I had to the the it was fun to shoot, but it was not fun to clean that rifle after because it had to be a level of clean that just like doesn't even make sense, you know. Like, I'm not nobody's gonna use this until I use it again. Does it need to be this clean? Come on. And I'm a clean freak, but I hate cleaning rifles. I hate it.

SPEAKER_03 12:34

Oh well, if if I have a rifle, I won't force you to clean it anymore. So won't bring any rifles to any of your shows.

SPEAKER_01 12:42

Thank you. Well, for other reasons, that's probably a bad idea.

SPEAKER_03 12:45

Probably, yeah. There's many, many good reasons not to do that.

SPEAKER_01 12:48

Yes.

SPEAKER_03 12:49

Awesome. Well, um, so I mean, there's the end of the military, and then there's the case I know today. So kind of fill in the gap there for me.

SPEAKER_01 13:02

Okay. Um, so I um I enlisted in the year 2000. My last year with the guard was actually not that long ago. So 2021.

unknown 13:12

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 13:13

Right. Oh Lord, we don't have enough time for that. But yes, coincidentally, that was when COVID was happening. Um so um, that was also kind of around the same time when I was um at a little bit of a crossroads, I think, with my music career or adventure, whatever you want to call it. Um I was not in a band necessarily, like formally. I was sort of bandless and feeling very insecure about that. I was very worried that I wouldn't. This is so funny to say no, but I was very worried that I wouldn't find um another project to to do, like another musical group to be a part of, or uh And now you're in like 14, right? I know, I know. I just it's hard to think back and go, well, and like you said, it was during COVID, so a lot of things were uncertain, not just the music scene, but the music scene was really, I mean, really impacted by that time. So there was a lot of things that were just nobody was really sure about, like how how is it gonna go? But but um that was about the time that I discovered the the um open jam, the open mic scene. So I know you have you've had disgruntled Mike, I like to call him. Everyone else knows it is. Disappointed Mike. To me, he always comes out as not mad, just disgruntled. Um, but his his jam and then also the the serums jam at the time were two that I um I think like were the the springboard to the the new projects that I have now. I mean, and you know yourself because you've been to them, just what a magical networking scene the jams are. I mean, I I am so grateful for all of the opportunities, all of the people that I've met, all of the like talent I've been exposed to. Just it's just it's amazing.

SPEAKER_03 15:32

I haven't played in in many markets, right? I've uh was a drummer in a couple bands growing up, Germany, uh Qatar or whatever, but never have I experienced in any spot that I've been this open jam thing, right? And now it's like there's open jam everywhere. I guess there's probably like seven or eight more open jams going right now than there used to be when I first started started to notice them, but they are just such a wonderful way to get out and uh I mean out of your comfort zone. When I first you probably remember when I first came to Shaw's, I was fucking nervous, man. I was so nervous. I actually know how to play, but I was so nervous, you know, because I didn't know any of the people in the room. And I just saw eight, eight or nine of them, but they're slain on the songs that they were doing. I'm like, here I am. Like, oh man.

SPEAKER_01 16:19

You slayed too, Will.

SPEAKER_03 16:21

What's that? You slayed too. Oh, thank you. I appreciate that. But yeah, it's it's just like uh it's once once you do it in the war. I mean, it's the drummers, especially at the Shaws Jam. I just love how all the drummers just kind of like we're all just we're all homies, you know what I mean? We have to take a picture of each other every time we're there.

SPEAKER_01 16:38

And I love the camaraderie, and I'm a little jelly about the the drummer like role ship you guys have. Um, it's so, so cool that y'all like support each other like that. And and that, I mean, specifically for the drummers, because it's like extra cute with you guys, but but everybody, I think that's the other thing about the jams that I've attended is that it's it's one thing to just kind of coordinate the get the get together of the people. But like, like you said, I was the same way, and I was so nervous. Like more more times than not, you're doing material that you've never really performed before. You're pretty sure it's not gonna be perfect, but you know, you only you can only get so far rehearsing stuff or learning stuff in your own space by yourself, right? In your little bubble. Yes, yep, and you can have it perfect, and this is still me, like in all of the years that I've been performing. I um it's just it's just a different experience when you're on stage. You can have it perfect in your car, in your shower, or whatever, like flawless, and then I get on stage and I'm like, oh shit, what was the first line? What was the first line? So, and the jams like that that I've experienced on the scene here. Yes, the opportunity itself is cool, but the community that is so supportive, there's no judgment, it's all just like warm um camaraderie, support, like what an environment.

SPEAKER_03 18:17

Yeah, it's it's I mean, you can fall off the back of the stage in the middle of the song and get up, and people will still high-five you and tell you that you did a great job. You know, it's really nice.

SPEAKER_01 18:26

It is unmatched. I love it. It just warms my heart. Yep.

SPEAKER_03 18:31

Nice. So um tell me a little bit about some of the projects that you're on now.

SPEAKER_01 18:36

Oh my gosh. Okay. Um, so I'm on a line.

SPEAKER_03 18:39

You went from being, hold on, you went from being nervous at the jams to like still nervous. Well, I'm gonna do some rush and like just do like seven, eight, and then you know, let's 13, 16, 13, 10.

SPEAKER_01 18:49

I said no math, Will, no math. Um, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 18:54

Right?

SPEAKER_01 18:54

Yes. So I would say, so um up until just recently, I guess uh was it maybe a year already? When's my anniversary with Maiden? It's math. Um so I started out, like like I said, so when I started my music career, it was in North Dakota, um, there was very much a, and and I don't want to speak for like what it is now or other people's experiences, but for me, I felt like there was if if you were gonna go out and see live music, the most successful groups were doing more country, more classic rock. So the first band that I was a part of that performed live was a country band, and I was the drummer. Um, and it was all cover music, right? And so, and then the bands after that, even you know, when I first moved to the cities and was doing um bands here, it was all cover bands. So I got very um I don't know. I just I don't know how I had this in my mind that like, well, cover bands, that's the only, you know, that's what you're gonna do, Casey. Like that this is this is the this is what you can do. So I had no idea that you know attributes were a thing that that I could do.

SPEAKER_03 20:21

Um that seems to be another huge trend in Minnesota right now. Tribute bands, tribute bands, tribute bands.

SPEAKER_01 20:28

Definitely, definitely not something that I feel like I would find in back in North Dakota, but that's okay. I mean, I'm not no disrespect. I love North Dakota, I love my home, but um but the opportunities here have been just outstanding. Um, so my first taste of the tribute scene um was actually uh it was during a shot one of the Shaw's jams. Um and Aaron Schmidt, um, who is one of the most fantastic guitar players I have ever worked with and a very outstanding person, um, he had approached me and Aaron saying, Hey, yeah, so uh I had this this Iron Maiden tribute band, and we are kind of on a hiatus right now because we're short, a drummer and a singer. Would you be interested in this? And I have to admit, my first reaction was like, Casey, do you know any Iron Maiden? What's an what's an Iron Maiden song? I don't, I I mean, I know like two. And I kind of looked at her and I'm like, are you sure that this is are like there's nobody else? Have you asked other people? Um, but gosh, I can't believe I I am so grateful that I uh decided to to to agree to that opportunity because oh my god, this band is so. Soul killer. I just and now I love Iron Maiden.

SPEAKER_04 22:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 22:06

I I never would have, I think, gotten as passionate about it as I have, um, had I not like had to learn a bunch of material.

SPEAKER_03 22:15

Yeah. And holy smokes.

SPEAKER_01 22:19

I mean, they've been around longer than I have, I think. And you know, Bruce Dickinson, the guy is is just theatrix in a skin suit. I mean, he's he's just so it's been so fun to try to emulate him. I've really had to come out of my shell to I don't know, present the essence of Bruce as best I can, but it's been super, super cool. So um Two Minutes to Maiden, that's that's one of my um projects of the moment. Um, the latest tribute that I um have had the pleasure of being involved in is Exit Stage Right, which is a tribute to Rush. This is another um um existing tribute band that had sort of gone dormant and then re-they were around before, huh?

SPEAKER_03 23:17

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 23:18

Yep. So Peter Gard, who is our fantastic drummer in that band, um, he was involved with Exit Stage Right and wanted to um resurge. This was funny because I I um the rush thing, I don't think there was necessarily any intention of of doing a tribute until we we were kind of doing like little one-off rush tunes at the jams. And more and more people were kind of coming up us and going, When are you gonna start this tribute? Like, you guys are you slay, like do it. Um, so then that's you know, after the however many like comments of that, we're like, well, okay, okay, fine. Yeah. But I mean, talk about like number of projects. Like Aaron Schmidt's got a ton of projects. Um, Peter, I know as the couple now.

SPEAKER_03 24:10

Wayne, I mean, they're all like just busy, busy working musicians, very talented people.

SPEAKER_01 24:17

Yes.

SPEAKER_03 24:17

Yeah, Peter's definitely no slouch on the drums. Such a good player.

SPEAKER_01 24:21

And you know, Ted Byrne, who's like, he's the house, he's one of the house guys at the Mad Mike's or at Route 47. So um, you know, that we've all got St. Our our only project, which is kind of cool in that um there's a little bit of like a self-limiter on how often we play. Um, so there's a lot of time to just be thoughtful about the material and really, really polish it up. And um, so I've been grateful for that because I'm a little bit of a slow learner when it comes to new material. I have to do a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot of reps before it clicks with me. So um, so the tribute's been kind of a good fit for me, I think. So, but I think I'm good with two for now. Um, that's fine. Um, in addition to that, my other projects, which are cover bands, um, cover to cover. So um our shtick with that band. Um, genre is more like, oh, what I call it, like 90s, 2000s emo, ska punk. Um, we do well with like the millennial crowd um that likes to, I don't know, dance to my chemical romance and follow up boy and green day. We're very, very high energy.

SPEAKER_03 25:49

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 25:50

And we wear ridiculous costumes.

SPEAKER_03 25:52

Um that's all I've seen so far. I haven't seen the band, I've seen the costumes.

SPEAKER_01 25:56

Yes. And that's kind of the that I think that's kind of the shtick, is that we um are not polished, we don't take ourselves seriously, we look ridiculous. And I think people have kind of latched on to that and like, oh, that's the fun band that just does all the weird shit. So yeah, so that one's been fun. I've had that band for about five years. Um, love those guys. And then there's Whale Tail. So that's another um uh that one's my we're we're more in the early stages of that one where we haven't had quite as many shows, but um the bright spot in that one is the I would say vocal powerhouse. Every single person in that band can sing. And so I think we're we're still in the early stages of kind of honing in like what is our focus, I guess. What's our brand there? Because everybody kind of wants to do everything, and we're like kind of good enough to do anything, but we have to really can do everything.

SPEAKER_03 27:07

That's the thing. I mean, I know I I've seen you, I think I've seen you twice, and yeah, you guys had quite a range.

SPEAKER_01 27:12

Yeah, oh yeah, yeah. But it's a little like uh from Alicia Keys to you know the 70s funk to yep, to like maybe depending on what show you came to, there's probably like a little metal, a little, yeah. We kind of all over the place. So we're trying to hone it in, you know, figure out what we're like stick to one thing or two things. So, but yeah. Um yeah. Am I forgetting anything? Hmm.

SPEAKER_03 27:42

That's five.

SPEAKER_01 27:43

That's five. Oh, oh, one more. Okay, because I told you I started with country, I I had to plug back into country. So there's this new project that um we're doing a show, we're doing the showcase at Mad Mike's at Route 47 this Thursday. We're called Twang Cities. And we're doing yeah, we're doing country.

SPEAKER_03 28:05

Okay. And are you singing or drumming?

SPEAKER_01 28:07

Singing. Okay. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 28:09

No more, no more drumming in your in your in your career.

SPEAKER_01 28:11

I just there are so many good drummers. I mean, there's a drummer collective. Um, if I ever did it, it would be for fun in the basement. I I will let the people who are better at me as drummers like be the drummers. Plus, you know, it the loadout is so much easier as a singer. I tell you what.

SPEAKER_03 28:31

Yeah, yeah. I think you're right there.

SPEAKER_01 28:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 28:34

So I always have to get to the show about an hour earlier than everyone else.

SPEAKER_01 28:38

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 28:39

Typically the last word out the door as well.

SPEAKER_01 28:41

That's always the case. Yeah. You know, life of a drummer, man. You can have it.

SPEAKER_03 28:48

Yeah. You know, it's funny because you talk about like the the the beauty of moving moving to the Twin Cities and how great it is here. But uh, I had the guys on from Bogart's uh several episodes ago. And that's a lot what uh what Chris uh was talking about, one of one of the owners there and a marketing guy there is just that it's like um Minneapolis and St. Paul really is kind of like center mass, and except for Chicago, right? Chicago is a bigger one, but that's when you're trying to go really big. But if you just want to go come from any of like these five or six surrounding states and go to where something is actually happening, Minnesota's got it going on. It's really a great and vibrant uh community of musicians.

SPEAKER_01 29:27

Yeah, yep, yep. I've been very, very um, gosh, just fortunate to have met so many, so many people. And and what I love about it most is like they're awesome, awesome musicians, so talented. Most of them are like so modest and cool and kind and like just the coolest people. Yeah, that's they're you know, they're Minnesotans, they're they're awesome, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 29:56

Yeah, so a few outliers.

SPEAKER_01 29:59

Oh, you know, there always are, you know.

SPEAKER_03 30:01

But yeah, most everybody's just really awesome overwhelmingly, yeah. So I I have a very um important question for you, Casey. Something that's been burning on my mind. Where in the hell do you guys you and Aaron get these ideas for these videos?

SPEAKER_01 30:15

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_03 30:16

Like, what's your process?

SPEAKER_01 30:18

I don't know. So we're so I think we just we're both pretty weird people. Um, and and I think that we, you know, most of the time, like normal people, I think, suppress that behavior, but we just like bring it out of each other.

SPEAKER_03 30:35

Let's videotape it.

SPEAKER_01 30:38

I want to mostly blame Aaron because he, I mean, he probably told you this on his um episode, but like he's got this whole YouTube channel that's like years old, all kinds of stuff. And he's definitely more the the kind of person who is um comfortable like being on camera and just you know, putting content out. It's funny because our styles are very different. He's very um his stuff just comes to him and then he has to get it out. Like, let's do it right now. You know, you should see our bas. No, you should not see our basement. Um because it's just this it's like a secret layer, huh? It it yeah of creativity. Yes. And it's not um, it's uh there's there's just stuff everywhere. Um yeah, so so Aaron will come up with something and he'll be like, okay, let's do, let's film something. Like, let's, you know, he'll think of a melody or whatever, and it's like, let's let's record it right now. Or we'll, you know, there's an idea of a sketch, and he's very, very comfortable just doing stuff off the cuff. Just see what comes out, we'll film it, we're we'll do it later, we'll fix it later. I am the complete opposite. So I need to sit in. If I have an idea, I've it's got I've got to kind of you know simmer with it. I'm like a slow cooker that way, you know, like the flavors are gonna get better if I just cook for a while. Um, and so it's just constant balance of, you know, he's like, let's go. And I'm like, wait, wait, wait, you know, can I? Um, but I think having those two styles, if we can work together, if when, when we work together, um, it's uh I don't know. I'm proud of some of the as weird as it is, um, I'm proud of some of the stuff that we put together. I I very, very much appreciate uh having a partner like Aaron because um he's creative. We both have a passion for music, we both have a passion for creating. He has really pulled me out of my shell when it comes to just um just like get it out there because that's what he does, and I it's it's forced me to do that more often and just become more comfortable with it. And um yeah, I just I just appreciate what we've I didn't answer your question.

SPEAKER_03 33:19

It's a great, it's a great story.

SPEAKER_01 33:21

Yeah, so it's okay.

SPEAKER_03 33:23

I mean, I asked what's a creative process, and you kind of told me what the creative process is. For Aaron, there is no creative process, it is literally pop out of bed with a crazy idea and it has to be done right now, but you're more like, okay, let's slow down and see exactly, let's map it out. And it's funny, you know. I'm I'm married to a musician as well, and so I understand the yin and the yin and uh the opposites attract. So you know, me being a giant, my wife being very tiny, and her being like an energizer bunny most of the time. And I'm usually pretty slow and serious until I get drunk and then I'm a little bit over the top.

SPEAKER_01 33:55

Yep, yep, same, same.

SPEAKER_03 33:58

Yeah, that's a good mix.

SPEAKER_01 34:00

Cool, yes, agree.

SPEAKER_03 34:01

And you guys met through the jams, right?

SPEAKER_01 34:04

Yes, yep. Um, when I started attending the Serums Jam back in I think 2022, 21, 22. Um, that was in my like, oh, woe is me. I'm not in a band. I have to like find my next thing. Um, and he was the drummer, um, the house drummer in the the jam. Um that was on Thursdays at Serums. So he was seeing someone at the time. So um it took a little while before I found out that he was on the market. So yeah, so yeah.

SPEAKER_03 34:42

So you went after him, huh?

SPEAKER_01 34:44

Um, well, hold on, hold on. Let me see. How did this all play out? How does this play out? Um I okay, funny, cute story. Um so I would go to the jams every Thursday and he was the drummer. We actually didn't really get to know each other quickly through the jams because honestly, there weren't a lot of drummers at that jam at the time. So he played the whole night. Um, it wasn't like Shaw's where there was like, oh, how many drummers are there this time? 14. Okay. Like it was it's very funny to come home from the Shaw's jams, and Aaron would be kind of pouty, like, I only got to play four songs. I was like, babe, but this is for the jam. He loves drums. I know that he probably loves them more than me. Sometimes I just have come to accept that. Um, yeah, but um, so we we met at the serums jam, but really kind of got to know each other more through um, I guess making, well, we tried to start a start a band together, and that sort of fell through. But I remember asking him um at the end of a of a serums jam, I said, Well, what hey, what are you playing anywhere this weekend? And he said, Yeah, um, my my uh original band is playing at our my company's Christmas party. And I said, Oh, that's that's nice. Um, and I I immediately thought, like, okay, well, that's not a public event. And he said, Well, you can come. And he said, Oh, okay. Um, yeah, and I was in my head, I was like, no, you're not doing that. Um, but then he messaged me like the the night of that of his show, and he said, Hey, um, there's a there's a name tag for you here. So, you know, whenever you, you know, stop by the front for your name tag, and I'm like, oh my God. I better go now because of course I wasn't doing anything on this Saturday night randomly. And I show up to this company Christmas party for a company that I did not work at. Um, and I sat at the only empty table and I watched Aaron play for his company Christmas party. And um, he was wearing this Christmas sweater that said single and ready to jingle.

SPEAKER_03 37:20

And I was like, oh man, that's hilarious.

SPEAKER_01 37:25

So I was putting all these pieces together, and fun fact, I still have the name tag from that Christmas party because I thought, okay, I'm all right, Aaron Cole. I know your I know your angle here. So that's I guess kind of where it all started. Pretty smooth. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 37:42

Pretty smooth.

SPEAKER_01 37:42

And then here we fast forward to this year, Whailtail actually played his company Christmas Party. Is that right? Yeah. So full circle.

SPEAKER_03 37:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 37:51

Got a new name tag though.

SPEAKER_03 37:53

What's what's his original band's name?

SPEAKER_01 37:55

Um, Who Shot First?

SPEAKER_03 37:57

Right, right, right. Yeah. He he's uh he kind of taken a hi-80s on that now, right? I think he told me.

SPEAKER_01 38:01

I think, yeah. Um, they I know that they are putting together another album.

SPEAKER_03 38:08

Oh, cool. So they're like in the writing stuff now.

SPEAKER_01 38:10

That's that's that's well, recording, even I think. I mean, it's all written. Um, there have been many an evening where people I don't even ask anymore. Like people will just sort of show up at the house, go downstairs, and there'll be music, and I'll be like, okay, I'll, you know, watch my shows or whatever, do the laundry. So it's just, yep, just there's always something being created at Aaron Cole's house.

SPEAKER_03 38:35

So well, and that and that's kind of neat too, right? The two of you both being musicians, um, obviously, and both of you take it pretty seriously. So you both, I would assume, give each other quite a bit of space to kind of like spend the seven hours or whatever doing whatever you're yeah.

SPEAKER_01 38:52

I um that's another interesting I I think that uh if we were to compare passions, I I would call Aaron more passionate than me. Um, in that I think Aaron needs drumming the way he needs air in his lungs. You know, um, I can tell for him that it's just a necessity in his life. Even if there's not a show to play, like just sitting down at the set and having no agenda, just flowing out of his body. That's it's like therapy therapy to him. Um I don't know if I necessarily relate to that in that I I am perfectly happy having a weekend off and like never having to put on a real pair of pants, you know. Um, but I can sing in the shower, you know, it's harder for him to drum in the shower. Um so it's a different kind of um passion, I think. It's just I don't know, manifests itself in a different way. Um I I think I don't know. Lost my train of thought.

SPEAKER_03 40:13

No, but it is it is funny and and and fascinating how how it it hits each of us, each of us a little bit differently. Um, you know, I I uh my wife has gone through, you know, we all are defined by many different facets of our life, right? And as we continue to grow and get older, we start to get kind of get into new things, find new hobbies or new interests, and you kind of really want to dig into that, and you might put something that you used to love off to the side. And my wife has done that many times where she didn't really think she wants to sing anymore. And I and I and I feel exactly the reaction you just had is how I feel every time she's she's kind of like backing away from the stage, and I'm like, babe, I mean, don't do it for yourself, do it for me. I mean, so that's you know, that's the way I fell in love with you up there, you know, and I just know who you are and how you perform. Uh, and she's you know, and and I think also like you were talking about how like you got into Iron Maiden, didn't know really Iron Maid when you got into it. Now we've got her in our freaking metal band, you know what I mean? And it's such a natural, oh my god, but she you she nobody would have ever thought she would belong there, but she is so good there. Oh, yeah, so amazing.

SPEAKER_01 41:25

Just a natural she just I mean to watch Kay perform is like there's just this radiance, like you can it. I can't even describe it. I mean, people can sing and then Kay just like exudes. She just you you just you receive her her aura. I mean, I don't know how to describe it. It's you know what I'm talking about.

SPEAKER_03 41:53

She does, you know, she's the marketing person for our company now as well. And she goes around to these different marketing meetings, and somebody described her as a cursing Labrador. And I said that it's so perfect, right? Yeah, she's so friendly and bubbly and whatever. Maybe, yeah. Maybe like a chihuahua. But she's just so full of fun energy, but she also doesn't mind throwing a cuss word or two in every sentence.

SPEAKER_01 42:20

So like you and I, well, we know swears, acronyms and swears. That's the first thing you learn in the military. In the military, right?

SPEAKER_03 42:27

Yes, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 42:30

Yes, yeah, no doubt.

SPEAKER_03 42:33

Cool. I love to wrap these up with the same question for everybody, Casey. I want you to tell me who you think should be on this show.

SPEAKER_00 42:40

And I can only pick one.

SPEAKER_03 42:42

No, you can pick more than one.

SPEAKER_00 42:43

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 42:43

Um I've had I had uh, you know, Eric Mange? Mangy. Of him. He he sent me an Excel spreadsheet afterwards. He mentioned a couple people that was here and then kind of sent me a, yeah. So I don't know if I'm gonna be able to invite all of them, but I'll give it a shot.

SPEAKER_01 43:00

I mean, I'm gonna advocate for my own people. Um, so I'll give you a short list of like uh uh Sean Fosterhood, um, Aaron Schmidt, if you haven't had him yet.

SPEAKER_03 43:13

Not yet.

SPEAKER_01 43:14

Mark Gangie, that's a character. I haven't had Mark yet either. Stories for you. Yeah um and Wainzer. Have you had him?

SPEAKER_03 43:24

Wayne and I have invited. I think he's on the calendar, obviously.

SPEAKER_01 43:27

Every time I chat with Wayne, I'm I smile because he's just he's he's like corny and kind, super talented, really smart. I mean, he's I I would watch a podcast of this guy. Is that right? For sure.

SPEAKER_03 43:43

He's one of those guys. Yeah. I think, yeah, you're the second person that recommended him. I can't remember who it was that recommended him before.

SPEAKER_01 43:49

And he's got quite an uh a laundry list of bands too. So Yeah. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_03 43:54

I think w we went out to um uh one of these drummers' breakfasts, which you may have heard are happy around town. I went to one of them and Wayne was there and he he told me actually that he has thousands of stories for me. I said, okay, come on, man, let's do this. And then shortly after I had somebody on and they recommended him anyway.

SPEAKER_01 44:09

So yeah, yeah. I I consider it like my vote is there too.

SPEAKER_03 44:14

Awesome. Well, this has been a lot of fun. Thanks, Casey.

SPEAKER_01 44:17

Absolutely. Thank you so much. Will this before you're talking about it?

SPEAKER_03 44:18

Hopefully it wasn't as scary as you thought it was gonna be.

SPEAKER_01 44:21

Yes, but it was.

SPEAKER_03 44:24

There was no push-ups and no no rifle qualification involved in this.

SPEAKER_01 44:30

Oh my god, yes. I just I I am very much a homebody. I work from home. Um so anytime I have to leave the house, it's kind of like a okay, do I put my pants on? Did I wash my hair? Did I, you know, it's like a checklist that like a person shouldn't have to do, like if they're normal, but I have to.

SPEAKER_03 44:49

But we've established earlier with these videos you guys are putting out, you were not normal.

SPEAKER_01 44:54

That's which is freaking awesome. So thank you for setting that baseline for everybody. Just yeah, that's helpful.

SPEAKER_03 45:02

Awesome. Cool. Well, thank you very much. I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_01 45:06

It's been a pleasure.

SPEAKER_03 45:07

It has. It's been pretty cool.

SPEAKER_02 45:08

Hey there, Minnesota Music Family. If I haven't personally reached out to you yet, consider this your 100% official invitation to join me on the Minnesota Music Note. I'm Will McLeod, co-founder of the podcast crew here in beautiful Robbinsdale, host of the show, and the guy behind the kit for the band Hits and the Misses. I started this podcast because I want to get to know the people who make our scene tick. Whether you're fronting a band, spinning hip-hop, running sound, booking shows, running shows, or teaching the next generation of talent, your story belongs here. We've had everyone from videographers to festival organizers on the mic, and we're just getting started. It doesn't matter if you're playing arenas or just making magic in your basement. If you're part of the Minnesota music community, I want to chat. Slide into my DMs or hit the email below and let's hang out and talk shop.