Songscapes: Music and Nature – Details, episodes & analysis

Dimitri Mugianis fronted the New York based punk band, Leisure Class, known for their highly energetic shows and ‘Beat’ poetry inspired lyrics. After spending years wrestling with drug addiction Dimitri found his way to recovery and was inspired to create an organization that provided others with an opportunity to be a part of a support network. Cardea, draws upon Dimitri’s experiences in Gabon to visit a group that practices Bwiti. Drawing upon these traditions, Dimitri guides others through recovery and provides a place for self-love and personal growth.

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

You can find Dimitri on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/dimitrimugianis/ and more information on Cardea at https://www.instagram.com/dimitrimugianis/

Find Charles on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/coplincharles

Host: Charles Coplin

Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

Editor: Harrison Goodale

Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

Featured music: Joy, I Love You More, Ready to Receive

Adam Gardner knows how to bring a vision to life. As alt/rock band Guster’s guitarist and vocalist, and co-founder of the nonprofit Reverb, he has a passion for sharing the messages he believes in through music. Reverb’s mission is to use the cultural power of music to influence related industries, concert tours, and fans to make sustainable change happen. They do this by collaborating with artists – for example, Billie Eilish, Harry Styles, or the Dave Matthews Band – to create amazing ‘EcoVillages’ at their shows. Tune in to learn more about these EcoVillages and other cool projects of Adam’s, like Quarantine Kitchen with musicians and the different ways Guster stays close with their loyal fanbase, only on !Songscapes

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

You can find Adam on Guster’s Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/guster/ or on Reverb’s website at https://reverb.org/

Find Charles on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/coplincharles

Host: Charles Coplin

Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

Editor: Lindsay Johnson

Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

Featured music: Hard Times, Hello Mister Sun, and Overexcited

Tune in for a talk with River Whyless from Asheville, North Carolina. The band explains how their Southeast mountain homeland has seeped into their sound, from its forests and rivers to the immersive outdoor-enthusiast culture. Hear stories about their favorite public lands (including Halli’s midnight mountaintop excursions!) and the places they never get sick of. The band’s latest album, Kindness, a Rebel, seeks to address recent social and political tensions in a way that is genuine, aware, and reflective. Learn about the messages behind their music and more in this episode of Songscapes!

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

Follow Charles Coplin on Twitter at https://twitter.com/coplincharles

You can find River Whyless on their Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/riverwhyless/ or on their website at https://www.riverwhyless.com/

• Host: Charles Coplin, Twitter- @coplincharles

• Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

• Editor: Harrison Goodale

• Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

• Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

• Featured music: “Born In the Right Country”, “The Pool”, and “Hold Me To Ya”.

Folk-Americana artist Drew Holcomb knows all about the dedication it takes to be a family, whether it’s his own kin, or the bandmates he’s had for over 14 years. Drew speaks about what family means to him and how his parents and children alike have guided his career. He also shares stories behind the special songs that came from road trips with his wife and kids, and the magic he found in stopping to really experience natural areas in his home state that he thought he already knew. From making music, to creating festivals, to giving TED Talks, this is a man who works hard to produce his craft, but not just for himself -- he knows that all of the things we create personally go on to inspire, support, and guide others in bringing their own dreams to life.

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

You can find Drew on his Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/drewholcombmusic/ or on his website at https://www.drewholcomb.com/

• Host: Charles Coplin

• Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

• Editor: Harrison Goodale

• Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

• Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

• Featured music: “Family”, “Feels Like Home”, and “I Need To Go Somewhere”.

This week on Songscapes, we are joined by rising pop star Rozzi! Raised in San Francisco and based out of Los Angeles, she’s no stranger to climate change and its manifestations such as raging wildfires and smoke-filled air. True to the artist’s way, she expresses the intimacy of climate change events through her song, “Orange Skies”. Tune in to hear about the many turns her life has taken to make her the musician she is today, from fasting for three days in the desert in Joshua tree, to being picked out personally by Adam Levine to begin her career, to gaining the confidence to write an album based off of her own truth and intuition, rather than anyone else’s. She deeply values the connection brought forth by music, and how it allows us to know each other even if we’ve never met.

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

You can find Rozzi on her Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/thisisrozzi/ or on her website at https://www.thisisrozzi.com/

• Host: Charles Coplin

• Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

• Editor: Harrison Goodale

• Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

• Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

• Featured music: “Joshua Tree”, “Mad Man”, and “Orange Skies”.

Welcome back to Songscapes! This week, meet Betsy and Harrison, the husband-and-wife team who co-founded Sustain. Their backgrounds are from opposite ends of the nonprofit’s driving forces -- music and nature -- which allows them to support each other’s strengths to build up Sustain. Listen in to hear about Betsy’s work in Tanzania with chimpanzees, Harrison’s time in the band Parsonsfield, and how that led them to where they are today. They also reveal their favorite public lands moments, and how they’re trying to reframe the common gloomy approach of the environmental movement. Make sure to tune in and meet the duo that is making music a force for nature!

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

You can find Betsy and Harrison on their Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/sustainmusicandnature/ or on their website at https://www.sustainmusicandnature.org/

Host: Charles Coplin

Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

Editor: Harrison Goodale

Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

Featured music: “Hold Me To Ya" by River Whyless, "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge" by Conner Youngblood, "Step into the Music" by The Burroughs

Summer is our busy season at Sustain. As a special treat, we wanted to share some extra content from some of our summer programs. This week we are featuring music highlights from our hike and concert series, Trail Sessions, that happen at public lands in Colorado. This year we are expanding the program to New York State, so check out our website to get all the details.

This episode features music from Courtney Hartman and Covenhoven at Lory State Park in Fort Collins Colorado. The second half has Kid Astronaut and Brent Cowles at Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife refuge just outside of Denver.

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

• Host: Charles Coplin

• Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

• Editor: Harrison Goodale

• Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

• Field Recording: Little House of Sound

• Performances: Courtney Hartman, Covenhoven, Kid Astronaut, Brent Cowles

This week on Songscapes, join host Charles Coplin as he interviews Daniel Rodriguez live from Telluride, CO, after his performance for Sustain’s Trail Session. The former Elephant Revival band member is continuing to learn and grow his musical style and range as an individual as he explores all genres from indie/folk to hip hop. He discusses the change in energy he feels in the return to live shows after a year-plus long pandemic, and how this time has given him more freedom in his creative flow. Rodriguez has an inherent appreciation of the simple act of creating and sharing art, and looks to nature as an inspiration and teacher as he continues to make music. To hear his thoughts on how the natural world affects the human condition, as well as the latest news on his upcoming projects, make sure to tune into this week’s Songscape!

You can find Daniel at @drodriguezmusic on Instagram and his website, drodriguezmusic.com

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

Host: Charles Coplin

Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

Editor: Harrison Goodale

Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

Daniel Rodriguez’s Featured Music: “Static Splash”, “Colorado”, and “ Steal the Night Away”

Jonathan Meiburg’s life is uniquely situated between both the natural world and the music industry. As leader of the band Shearwater, and author of “A Most Remarkable Creature: The Hidden Life and Epic Journey of the World’s Smartest Birds of Prey”, he provides plenty of insight on how to be a “generalist rather than a specialist” in terms of interests. His extensive travels from both touring and researching Striated Caracaras has given him a reverence for otherworldly natural areas and the beings that reside there. Meiburg also speaks on how he collaborated with Brian Eno for his song “Homing”, which Bowie album he can play in full, and his favorite song associated with nature, which turns out to be quite an eerie ballad.

You can find Jonathan at @shearwaterband on Instagram and his website, shearwatermusic.com

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

Host: Charles Coplin

Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

Editor: Harrison Goodale

Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

Shearwater's Featured Music: "Xenarthran", "African Night Flight" from David Bowie's Lodger, and "May".

Founder of Bonfire Entertainment and the Winter Wondergrass music festival, Scotty Stoughton has tons of insight on the magic that exists in the music community. He moved to Colorado from the east coast while selling grilled cheeses as he followed the Grateful Dead’s “Summer Tour of ‘94”, and recognized a unique quality of the Colorado music scene. Listen in to hear him talk about that quality, as well as the type of live shows that bring together everyone from “bikers to ranchers to yuppies”. Stoughton also discusses what the word ‘failure’ means to him, and how he takes a different approach to his mission as a promoter, both in attitude and in action. If you want to learn about how he connects his love of nature with his passion for music in his career, check out this week’s Songscape!

You can find Scotty on his website at https://bonfirentertainment.com/scotty-stoughton/ or on his Instagram @scottybonfire

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to review, share and subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about nonprofit Sustain Music and Nature’s work to make music a force for nature at: www.sustainmusicandnature.org

Host: Charles Coplin

Producer: Sustain Music & Nature

Editor: Harrison Goodale

Media Researcher: Lindsay Johnson

Theme Music: Harrison Goodale

Scotty Stoughton (via his band Bonfire Dub) Featured Music: “Honey”, “Rest”, and “Mountains Beyond Mountains”