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- MR PUZL – “Tomorrow – Original Mix” (feat. Maarten Goji) - July 20, 2022
Hello again music lovers! I’ve been out and about around town, searching for the next up & coming singer/songwriters and bands to write about it. Thankfully, at one of the recent events I attended, I found one! This week, let me introduce Mike Stocksdale. I saw him play a few songs as part of the Monday Monday series at Room 5 on LaBrea. If you ever have Monday evenings open, I suggest checking out this FREE event. It’s a nice, relaxing way to spend the evening and hear a lineup of several blooming artists
Mike Stocksdale makes really good folk music. It’s a happy combination of blues, rock, and just enough country to make you kick back and put in a toothpick. If I had to compare him to some more well-known artists that I enjoy, I’d bring up Ray LaMontagne, Ben Harper, Jason Mraz, as well as other classics like Dylan, Tom Petty, and Paul Simon. I suppose he could also fit into the Americana or Roots genres, but you know I always get sick of picking one, so I just call good music…GOOD MUSIC. Those are also some of his major influences, so it goes without saying that he sounds like them, but he definitely does his own thing. All artists are inspired by and use other music to help them create their own, that’s not news to anyone, but it’s how they create it and how it is presented that makes you different. Mike is different in that his sound has a delicate texture to it. By that, I mean it sounds like something you’ve heard before, but that has a sort of rebirth to it.
Mike has been pretty busy for the past few years, steadily releasing full length albums since 2005. He released his fourth album just a couple years ago. He’s constantly writing and working on new material, as well as playing small gigs and touring around California and surrounding areas. Each of his albums has a unique feel to it and you can really hear the progression of his music and vocals as he releases music. His lyrics continue to gain more meaning and hit home more, and the sound quality improves, too.
The future looks extremely bright for Mike and I’m excited to hear his next album, which hopefully will be released this year. For now, you can enjoy all of his albums on Spotify by looking up Mike Stocksdale and clicking Play. Do it after you’re done reading this (if you haven’t already been listening, which you should’ve been). Check out his music video below for the track “Love Song” from his 2011 album Ashland. Thanks for checkin’ back and have a great weekend!
