Lookout! Records announced that they’re hangin’ it up after 25 years of releasing a ton of classic punk records. Much appreciation to how you impacted my life Lookout!- you will be missed!

As a 13 year-old growing up in rural MN, there weren’t a lot of avenues to find good music- just what was on the radio. When Green Day rose to fame with 1994′s “Dookie”, I had never felt an affinity with a band as I did with them. I had to get my hands on their back catalog- which led me to Lookout! Records. Little did I know what I was about to discover and how it would change my life….

Oh the memories….ordering dozens of CDs from the Lookout! Records mail order catalog (picking titles because a band had a cool name)….blowing a couple hundred bucks at Extreme Noise and walking out with a pile of new records….getting dropped off at First Avenue by my parents to see The Queers & Groovie Ghoulies….for better or for worse, Lookout! Records is largely responsible for me picking up a guitar and starting a band.

So here’s my Top 20 Lookout! Records (this list was a tough one):

20. The Hi-Fives “A Whole Lotta You”

19. Groovie Ghoulies “World Contact Day”

18. Communique “Poison Arrows”

17. Squirtgun “S/T”

16. The Bomb Bassets “Take A Trip With…”

15. Pinhead Gunpowder “Goodbye Ellston Ave.”

14. The Potatomen “All My Yesterdays”

13. Mr. T Experience “Revenge Is Sweet And So Are You”

12. Sludgeworth “Losers of the Year”

11. Green Day “1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours”

10. The Queers “Love Songs for the Retarded”

9. Pinhead Gunpowder “Carry the Banner”

8. Operation Ivy “Energy”

7. Riverdales “S/T”

6. Screeching Weasel “How To Make Enemies and Irritate People”

5. The Queers “Don’t Back Down”

4. Green Day “Kerplunk!”

3. Screeching Weasel “My Brain Hurts”

2. Mr. T Experience “Love Is Dead”

1. The Queers “Move Back Home”

Check out some live videos from DM’s “Whiskey Christmas”. Drummer Kyle posted them on his blog here.

Again, thanks to everyone who came out that night- we had a blast!

Show starts at 8pm – Tix only $5

I’d like to congratulate myself and my lovely wife Jenny for bringing in another cute little whippersnapper into this world. Violet Maria was born on October 20th. Watch out boys, she’s gonna break yr heart!

Hey all. I have an upcoming show at The Garage in Burnsville on September 23. Hope you can make it. Here’s the details:

Doors- 5:30
Cost- $5 presale, $7 door (email me if you want a presale ticket mikemidwestern@gmail.com)

Also Playing: Ash St. John, At Ease, The Blackbird Darlings, Ben Streeter, Moon Lee, and more.

The Garage
75 Civic Center Parkway
Burnsville, MN 55337
952-895-4664

Thank you to everyone who has come out to a show, bought the new record, or supported me in any other way this past fall/winter.  It truly means a lot. Releasing “Inhibitors” was such an awesome ride. Click on the videos link to see some live footage taken in recent months.

I’m hoping to announce a lot of shows in the coming months in the Twin Cities and around the region. Please check back for dates and come on out!

So it is finally confirmed and I couldn’t be more excited. I hope you can join in the celebration of my new album “Inhibitors” on Saturday, October 2 @ Sauce (Cause) Soundbar in Minneapolis. Also performing will be The Debut (awesome catchy twin cities indie rock band) and Party House (first show from my buddy Tom Rehbein’s new project). Come one come all….would love for your attendance!

I will be posting a new track from the album soon!

Next Wednesday, August 25, I will be performing at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis with a punk rock icon Kevin Seconds (7 Seconds). This is so exciting for me! Please come out to the show…it’s gonna be a dandy.

Nato Coles will also be playing. Check the shows section for more details.

I am very pleased to announce the release date of my new full length “Inhibitors” on September 28! It is my first official album and is more or less an allegory of the death and rebirth of a family establishing its new roots. It will be available at local Twin Cities record stores and online through CD Baby and iTunes.

Tracklisting:
1. Stranger
2. Quiet Town So Loud
3. Everything’s A War
4. Death of a Family
5. Forty Miles
6. Bleeding Heart
7. In The Shadows
8. Sail Away
9. Wildfires
10. Come Home

To add to the excitement, I have teamed up with a local Twin Cities non-profit called Treehouse who I will be donating 20% of the proceeds of the album to. Treehouse is a faith-based organization offering hope, guidance, and unconditional love to at-risk teens, largely without family stability, dealing with tough issues such as depression/suicidal tendencies, substance abuse, truancy, and self-injury.

It is through family that one is supposed to find comfort, support, and leadership. Tragically, a large segment of our youth are being robbed of strong family values at an impressionable age. I believe organizations like Treehouse are so vital to our community. Not only do they connect with troubled youth and provide a stable environment, they aspire to send them to college and encourage them to reach their true potential. That is leadership that I feel stongly in favor of supporting.

Learn more about Treehouse here.