Jimmie Linville

Jimmie Linville is a multi-instrumentalist acoustic singer/songwriter born and raised in secluded Baraboo, Wisconsin, who believes his music and drive are the product of his dedication to this “small, but fervent musical community.” His outlook on music stems from his first experiences with it in his hometown. “While it’s obvious that big cities breed diversion and progression in art, I think it’s often overlooked, what can happen in a tiny, backwater community when someone comes along and, well, breaks the dam,” he chuckles, “you’d be surprised.”
Surprised because at only twenty years old, Jimmie has already released his second original recording, “Similitude,” his first full-length solo album, in February of 2007. His first recording was a 5-song EP he produced in a local acoustic duo dubbed “Thick as Thieves." His goals were first made apparent in the band’s name. “‘Thick as Thieves’ represented the kind of music community I envisioned; one where everyone helped each other out, but at the same time constantly challenged the scene by pushing the musical and motivational envelope. I hoped a friendly sense of competition would form a kind of breeding ground for creativity.” Sure enough, soon after the band started organizing shows, musical hermits who were starving for a scene in which to thrive burst from basements to form countless bands - lending members, instruments and equipment - and Jimmie was at the heart of it all. His songs and stage presence inspired immediate friendship and adoration, as his ability to genuinely connect with an audience made friends out of fans. Soon after “Thick as Thieves,” Jimmie jumped into electronic powerpop with “Temporary Injustice.” He discovered the blues with "The Marc LaMere Trio," and even acoustic hip-hop, with “Team Red Delicious.” He elaborates, “Baraboo is one of those towns where you had nothing to do, so we’d be sitting around and someone would say ‘Let’s start a rap group.’ And there it was. We’d write songs, and organize shows, and all the Boo-kids would come out. It was good for me, as it had me writing in all sorts of directions.”
But he’d been writing in all sorts of directions for years, and for very different reasons. As "the fat kid" who grew up in a trailer park, Jimmie found himself an outcast from a very early age. With few real friends, he spent most of his time immersed in books and his own imagination. It wasn't until his last year in high school that he found a solid group of friends with a common interest: music. At 18 he picked up the guitar and became completely immersed in it, and, once in college, began experimenting with songwriting. As an English major at UW, he focused on British literature, specifically Shakespeare, Marlowe, and Johnson. Fascinated by their masterful use of metaphor and eloquence through double meaning, he dove into songwriting, finding his first influences weren't musical at all. Jimmie's natural pop sensibility and unique style of "metaphorical songbuilding" provide a fresh approach to songwriting that make his songs instantly recognizable.
Now with a growing fanbase, he is hard at work every day booking shows in Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin, promoting his new release, and expanding his already diverse musical repetoire. It is this drive, to make new music and bring it to a wider audience, that keeps him zealously focused and driven, and the palpable friendliness and honesty in his live performance that make him instantly likable.