Roots, folk, rock, and soul is the mighty winning combo that St. Louis band, The Mighty Pines brings to life! They have been hard at work playing live shows and preparing for two album releases in 2025. We got to catch up with Gerard Erker in the middle of their Spring tour as they make their way to Illinois this week.
You can catch The Mighty Pines LIVE, this Friday, April 4th at Robert’s Westside in Forest Park. Tickets here!
But before you go to the show, check out one of our favorite tracks from the Mighty Pines and read our Q&A below!
BC: We’re so happy to see Mighty Pines on tour with several stops in Illinois, including Robert’s Westside on April 4th. Tell us a bit about your spring tour.
MP: Our Spring tour has us playing plenty of shows in Arkansas, Illinois and Missouri. First up we’ll be playing the Ozark Odyssey Fest in Jasper AR on 3/29. Then the next night we’ll be at George’s Majestic Lounge in Fayetteville. In April we’ll have our first time visits to The Rose Bowl in Champaign and of course Robert’s Westside. Another show we’re really excited about is supporting Chicago Farmer at the Castle Theatre in Bloomington. We’re really looking forward to performing our live show and new tunes with our regional fans in the coming weeks.
BC: What aspect of your most recent album – Late Last Night – makes you most proud?
MP: I think the song writing on the album is very strong. We had the privilege to work with renowned producer and musician Steve Berlin of Los Lobos for the first time and that really helped us learn more about the songwriting process. I also think it helped push our music and storytelling to a new level and made us more confident in the process. “Late Last Night” is a great mix of showcasing Rock, Folk, and a little bit of Bluegrass all in one place.
BC: I’m seeing you have TWO new releases planned for this year, a live and a studio album, how did this double feature come about for 2025?
MP: Since live shows are a cornerstone of the band, we felt it was time for our fans to enjoy the magic of a Pines set. After listening back to our set from the 2024 Pickin’ on Picknic Festival, we were really pleased with the sound, musicianship, and extended jamming of our songs. This will be our second live release and we expect to have it out this spring. As for the studio album, we haven’t had one released since 2020 so we know we’re well overdue for that. We’ve been writing a lot of new songs over the past few years and we’ve narrowed it down to the best 11 that we had in the bunch. This album is also under the production of Steve Berlin and we’re really excited to get this new music out to the world. It leans a little more into our soul inspired roots.
BC: Your music and history is deeply rooted in St. Louis, what is the experience like sharing that through touring and performing nationwide?
MP: Anytime you get to share the essence of where you’re from with other parts of the country, it’s always such a treat. We’re proud to be from a city that has a lush musical history and is responsible for influencing so many artists across numerous genres. I feel like you can really hear that influence in our songwriting and musical performances. Live performances allow us to connect with the audience in an intimate way and they get a chance to peek inside our world of musical influence.
BC: We know you love St. Louis, any love for Chicago too? or any Chicago connections you wish to share?
MP: What’s not to love about Chicago! We’ve played the city many times over the years and we’ve had some killer shows at Schubas and Lincoln Hall. It’s a special treat to make a stop at Kingston Mines after the gig to catch some late night blues. The music scene is so vibrant and we’ve been lucky enough to play with some really stellar acts and individuals from the area. Lastly, you can’t go wrong with a quality Italian beef sandwich from Mr. Beef or a Pequod’s Deep Dish Pie!
