Artist Information
Biography
Doug Brouder, with his engaging style, wide range of subjects, intelligent lyrics and powerful rich baritone voice, has been compared to David Wilcox, John Gorka and Gordon Lightfoot. Doug started out years ago in New England coffee houses and since moving to the Mid-Atlantic region has performed at venues including the Tacoma Park Folk Festival, Northern VA Folk Festival, Folk Alliance and many others. At NERFA and Folk Alliance (gatherings of folk music performers and presenters), discerning panels of top folk DJs and songwriters have given his songs “unanimous thumbs-up.”
Doug was recently selected as a finalist in the Susquehanna Music and Arts Festival's Songwriting Contest, and also at AvalonFest's Performing Songwriter Contest.
Doug enjoys and excels at the intimate setting of house concerts and has appeared at Moore Music (in the house), Folk N' Great Concert Series, and Musical Lairs Concert Series, among others.
Doug says:
"I started playing years ago, have played rock and roll, blues, country, bluegrass, Scottish folk songs and all points between. A few years ago I had a creative surge, going from writing two songs a year, if that, to a period in which I wrote a song a day for about two months, every one a keeper. Those songs formed the heart of my CD, Grounded.
Since then I have continued to write and have begun to perform much more frequently.
I come out of the New England folk scene and tradition of coffeehouses and house concerts, and have played everything from roadhouses to picnics to auditorium concerts and small festivals to kitchen parties and all-night raveups. And it's all in the music.
Who do I sound like?
Lately I've been thinking I usually land somewhere between Steve Earle and David Wilcox.
I've been told a lot of things. Some of the great performers from the early 60s folk revival. Ian Tyson or Tom Rush. Or newer ones - John Gorka, for his little portraits of situations, for instance. Someone who just heard the CD said Dylan, Mark Knopfler and Tom Petty. I'll take any one of them. An intriguing brew of folk, rock, country-ish alt Americana like Gram Parsons meets the Beatles, maybe. Three minute songs are what I grew up with, so that's what I write; tight, punchy catchy gems that may stay in your head for days or lie dormant for a while, only to come back when you need them to."
Instrumentation
Mostly just me and my guitar, and occasional harmonica, though depending on the venue and the occasion additional players will join - guitar, bass, percussion and harmony vocals.
Discography
A new limited release CD, "Raw Songs," consists of stripped-down acoustic versions of new and old songs that were not on the first CD. Released just in time for NERFA 2011 for limited distribution there, "Raw Songs" contains eight acoustic gems including crowd-pleasers "Ellie" and "App-O-Tite" as well as new songs like "Bring Them to Me" and "Before You." Some of these songs stretch out a little beyond the short, tight songs of the first CD, in both duration and subject matter.
First CD: Grounded
Has had airplay (thanks a million!) from, among others, Gene Shay at WXPN, Wanda Fischer of WAMC, Angela Page of WJFF, Sue Kessell at WNUR, and last but certainly not least, Mary Cliff at WAMU.
In addition, selected cuts (Liquid Prison, Miss the Us) received unanimous thumbs-up at NERFA's infamous "On the Griddle" DJ critique session the last three years in a row, and "Weak Link" received unanimous rave reviews at Folk Alliance's Live Songwriter Critique session with WXPN's Gene Shay (2011).
Extensive New England airplay years ago of a song recorded for WTIC-AM, Hartford. "The Red Sox Blew It" - was played every time the Sawx lost, for years. (You do the math!)
Upcoming release will include several new crowd pleasers including "App-O-Tite," "Weak Link" and "How Does Love Work."
Official Website
Video
Photo Gallery
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standing mountville
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cck event
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hi res standing mountville
Download print quality (high-res) version (Right Click -> Save As) -
seated cd shot
Press
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Michelle Shocked says Doug Brouder is "The Real Deal"
[+ Show ]
Well, I'm going to put this under the category of a review, though it was in an unpublished email t...
Setlist
Typically all originals, though occasionally and depending on the occasion, the venue and the crowd will toss in something like "Rapid Roy" by Jim Croce, or "Early Morning Rain" by Gordon Lightfoot. In 'folkier' venues I have a pocketful of Tom Paxton, Ian and Sylvia, and an occasional traditional folk tune.
Will tailor to the occasion. With plenty of original music, set length is not a problem. [And, oh, that New Jersey guy who's famous for playing for three hours or so? Big deal. I do marathons; I can RUN that long.] That said, I am respectful of concert organizers, fellow musicians, and audience, and work according to the requested set length with minimal set-up time.
My appearances enlighten and entertain; I'm a natural crowd pleaser.
And as an opener, I can easily fit to the occasion as well, and am happy to support other artists by getting on, and off - the stage, on time as required.
