Mike June
Austin, Texas, United States
Music
Press
"By the time the girl in his second song, “Newark,” was dead, you understood this guy belongs on tour with Jon Dee Graham. And that’s a lofty compliment. The soulful, cigarettes-and-bourbon growl of his voice, the fierce honesty of the lyrics. It’s all there. He can write a song like a motherfucker." - Uncle Sam's Backyard at Wordpress
“June's rich folk rock displays a distinctively Jersey-meets-Texas sound...”
Broward-Palm Beach New Times
“playing growly folk rock kinda stuff with a deadhead vibe running through it. Good foot tappers from these guys.”- Taproot Radio
“'Exile on Wilson Street' is a wonderful album that showcases Mike’s ability to tell a compelling story in a four minute song.”- Blowup Radio
“...blues-inflected Americana-rock is at the heart of his excellent new disc Exile on Wilson Street" – Omaha Reader
"This guy is a conceptual genius"- The Aquarian
"...some of the tracks are stories of such pained joy but so richly sweet that they make me smile. others, balls-out rip-roaring goodness. still others, made me say, "now how did a white boy from jersey get to sound like THAT?!? like some weather-beaten sun-worn shack along some back road in the south?" - Rhae Grace
- Various
“...lyrics so sharp it's a wonder June doesn't cut his tongue on them. I swoon over the songs-for-the-working-class sound of this Austin singer-songwriter. Think The Clash meets Johnny Cash. " -Jennifer Savage, North Coast Journal
"Woody Guthrie meets The Rolling Stones." -San Antonio Current
"... a conceptual genius" - The Aquarian
"If someone had described Mike June's music as 'heartland rock with a sharp political bent' I would have been sold before I even listened to the album. This album is an instant favorite...Not much to say about this album without sounding cheesy: poignant, humorous, intelligent, incisive. June's powerful sense of melody allows the bitter pills of his lyrics to go down easily. It does not get better than this. Talkin' Revolution Blues is just one of those albums that's part of The Basics." - Adobe and Teardrops
"...his work encompasses the intelligence, passion, heart and soul which is so compeletely devoid from the work of their emoting fey hipster peers...June is a singer-songwriter who is years ahead of the curve."- Michael A. Kearns, Flowers For The Void
“Mike June raises one or two eyebrows...” - Folk World
"By the time the girl in his second song, “Newark,” was dead, you understood this guy belongs on tour with Jon Dee Graham. And that’s a lofty compliment. The soulful, cigarettes-and-bourbon growl of his voice, the fierce honesty of the lyrics. It’s all there. He can write a song like a motherfucker." - Uncle Sam's Backyard
“June displays a distinctively Jersey-meets-Texas sound...”- Broward-Palm Beach New Times
“playing growly kinda stuff with a deadhead vibe running through it.” - Taproot Radio -
Discography
Crooked (LP) 2002
Lovesick (LP) 2007
Exile on Wilson Street (LP) 2012
Talkin' Revolution Blues (LP) 2012
Photos
Bio
Mike June is a singer and songwriter from Austin, TX. Born and raised in New Jersey,in the shadows of New York City, June writes songs about the complexities of modern life with a frank, earnest style befitting a man raised ten miles from the George Washington Bridge. June's grandfather, Vernon, was a country singer in the 40's and 50's, making a name for himself locally by performing the songs of Hank Williams at the weekly Bear Mountain square-dance. Naturally, Mike grew up in a house filled with the sounds of Elvis Presley, Willie Nelson and Bruce Springsteen while the local oldies station taught him about the British Invasion, Motown and '50's do-wop. June carried a Kiss lunchbox in grade school and spent his allowance on AC/DC and Rush cassettes. He got his first electric guitar at 13 and began to write songs.
After spending several years singing with bar band Wide Load Joad, June formed Mike June & The Dirty Doves in 2002 and released his first album, CROOKED at the age of 27. Altcountrytab.com gave the record five stars and called it 40 minutes of music without a wasted beat and said June played with pure heart. The Newark Star Ledger praised the band's uninhibited swagger and said the perfectly named Dirty Doves played with grace and grit, in it's shining 4-star review.
While the band's evolution was slowed by lineup changes, June and guitarist Jay Forsythe began writing and experimenting with new directions and in 2007 released LOVESICK. Although it was a darker, moodier effort, the record was received warmly by both critics and fans. Blowup Radio called it simply a great album, and the band drew comparisons to both Dylan and Springsteen. Later that year Mike June & The Dirty Doves garnered four Asbury Music Award nominations for Lovesick,including a nod for Fighting The War for Song of the Year. Lovesick ended up on many critics end of the year best of lists, including ones in Japan and Belgium and was praised as one of the best locally released records of the decade.
In 2008,June disbanded the Dirty Doves and relocated to Austin, TX. While spending three years in self-imposed exile, June continued to write prolifically and in 2011 entered the studio and recorded EXILE ON WILSON STREET. After the release of EXILE ON WILSON STREET, June entered the studio and recorded the politically-charged TALKIN REVOLUTION BLUES. Both records were named to several "Best of 2012" lists. Since the release of both records, June has toured tirelessly as a solo artist, logging in over 400 shows in the US, Canada and the UK and has earned the hard-fought reputation as one of America's best songwriters and performers. The Exmoor Times has hailed him as "the last true folk singer."
Band Members
Links
