Insider Sessions

 

Heatbox performing at People's Court in downtown Des Moines. Check him out at: www.heatboxmusic.com. Photograph by Melissa Parra

 

The Insider Sessions are inspired by the emotion, power, and soul that go into one, simple song.  The aim is to get closer and more personal to the music and the art.  The acoustic sound, I believe, is perfect for this. It allows you to hear only instruments, only voice, no background fuzz, and nothing channeling the noise but our own ears.  The artists will choose their own place to play, sometimes in a van, sometimes on a bus, sometimes simply in an alley way; either way each session is authentic and personal.  So take a look at these artists, some are from Iowa, some just passing through, and as you'll sometimes find, just getting started. Listen and enjoy the sounds that erupt throughout our beautiful state.

~ Erika Iverson

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With two albums out titled "Entertainment" and "System," after his beloved Nintendo system, this man is not only a jokester but extremely talented. Talented at noise making that is. Heatbox started beat boxing in his high school days when the infamous Roots album dropped with the song "If Your Mother Only Knew."  Today, Heatbox is an entertainment system all on his own. He sits up on stage with his loop machine and makes as much noise as a full band!  He has a huge following already and it grows each time a first timer comes to see a live show. In this session we met up after his performance at People's Court in Des Moines and he performed a little free style of my name and then performed his rendition of "If Your Mother Only Knew" where he sings the chorus and gives the beat at the SAME time!  Look out for next time he is in town! His show will not let you down!

~ Erika

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Erika Iverson attends Iowa State University for Journalism and Philosophy.  She is a music fanatic that moonlights as a writer for Insider Iowa. Some of her old favorites include Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Elton John, Bill Withers, The Who, The Doors, Buddy Guy, throw a little Cher in there (Half-breed!!!), Stevie Nicks, and a list that could be a story all it's own...  When her heart plays music it plays bluegrass, when her soul plays music it plays the violin.