Mikey Sweet

Growing up in a less than ideal family life pushed Massachusetts native, Mikey Sweet away from the comforts of home and to living in the streets and a box car rolling slow. The personal journey led him across America in search of answers, into the arms of the law and singing for supper. Eventually, Sweet realized the only road to salvation, and to The North King, was through learning to accept the things he could not change in loving fast, falling hard.

A collection of nine stories centered on those real-life experiences comprise Sweet's first studio mikeysweetphotothenorthkingrecording. Track to track, The North King is a straightforward accounting of the highs and lows of homelessness and the freedom attached. Story lines and emotions tug at heartstrings before happier times are celebrated by brighter notes and full-on, rock 'n roll hooks.

Sweet's dry, dusty breathiness is Dylanesque, yet his own. (A quality he comes by naturally, for his father was a musician who played Dylan's music at local clubs.) Darker tones pair perfectly the vivid imagery spelled out on these "road dog gospel" narratives. Most compelling, though, is the songwriter's skill for translating matters of the heart in such a way the lesson learned is universal, a trait that parallels some of our generations greatest storytellers in Springsteen, Hiatt and Browne.

With every line sung and note played, Sweet works his craft on "Dry Bones", as performed at Spirit House Recording Studio in Northampton, MA.

Mikey Sweet's brand of Americana-folk-rock is destined to turn heads and top the charts. The North King is available for purchase and unlimited streaming via Band camp. (See embed below). Our editor picked up a hard copy of this record at TURN IT UP in Northampton, which has locations in Brattleboro, Keene and Montague.

In upcoming months, The Mikey Sweet Band will perform in Philadelphia, NYC, at the Iron Horse Music Hall (Northampton, MA), and other select venues throughout the Northeast. Click tour for more information.

Yours in music,

Deb (FromMaine) Hebert

Editor's Note: If you live in the Pioneer Valley, you'll notice Sweet pays subtle homage to the georgraphical inspirations in the titles, The North King and Mill River. Given his wide expanse of travels, we hope to interview him on this upcoming tour, as with each track, there are stories to share. - Deb Hebert: Blue Bird Reviews

Mikey Sweet

The North King

(Independent)

Mikey Sweet may have grown up in the Valley, but his debut album, The North King, tells us he’s been places. Songs like “Driftwood” illicit images of a boy and his guitar and the road, and song titles like “Oklahoma Wind” show he has stories to tell from all over the country. Still, he pays homage to Hampshire County throughout, most prominently the album’s upbeat 6th track, “Mill River.”

The album may start off on a weak note with “Let It Go” — his vocals have wayward moments and the song’s lyrics fall flat — but he quickly reaches his stride. Sweet’s gruff, Dylanesque style works for him. The best song on the album could easily be “Crawling In.” The piece starts out softly with acoustic guitar and light percussion — Sweet’s voice nearly a whisper — then works its way up. Three cymbal crashes signal the song’s chorus, rich with a powerful harmony and growling lyrics that pull you in, prompting memories of young love. “You were head over heals, landed two feet on the ground. I almost lost you by the wayside — on the outside looking in. I almost lost you by the wayside — broken window, crawling in.”

By focusing on emotional lyrics, Sweet manages to tell his own stories with songs that are universally relatable.

Sweet ends the album on a high note with the heavy rock ’n’ roll tune, “Guitar Mike Robinson.” Organ chords balance out electric guitar solos at a pace that’ll have you tapping along helplessly. “I’ll be coming ‘round again,” Sweet sings, and it sounds like he will.•

—Amanda Drane - Amanda Drane Vally Advocate

When you're homeless, sometimes the best place you can go is back to your hometown.

Such was the case for singer-songwriter Mikey Sweet, who seems to have turned both his life and career around in the last few years. He brings his music to the Iron Horse Music Hall in his hometown of Northampton on Friday.

"Three years ago. I found myself homeless again. Bad choices and I was back on the streets in Asheville, North Carolina," Sweet said in a recent interview. "I met a guy when I was busking -- singing on the streets for dollars and pennies. He said, 'Man, that song's got wings. Let me record you.'"

Sweet agreed and they laid down some rough demos. He soon landed his first real show with his friends in the band Woodford Way.

"My wife took me back, I played the show and that pretty much started it," he said.
Working with Danny was amazing. He just seemed to have such an air about him and knew how to handle me..."

Sweet writes mostly biogriaphal narratives of his experiences in life.

"As in life, they're rough, but also as in life, I try to leave the song ending with hope and redemption," he said.

Via some unusual circumstances, Sweet met singer-songwriter Martin Sexton who told him he should work with Danny Bernini of Spirit House Music Studios.

"We connected and it seemed perfect," Sweet said. "I sent him the roughs of our album and he said he'd record us. Working with Danny was amazing. He just seemed to have such an air about him and knew how to handle me, personally and grasped my vision."

Sweet's childhood friend Jeff Lynch helped with the arrangements and structure and the album took shape.

The name of the record, "North King," comes from the North King Motel in Northampton, where Sweet would stay during the recording process after late-night sessions.

"It was a very amazing little hole-in-the-wall motel, which seemed very close to home, having lived and stayed at many of hole-in-the-walls like it all around the country as a traveling kid in my younger days," he said.

Sweet is starting a Kickstarter campaign for his next record, and doing so in a unique manner: He will be promoting it by hitchhiking around the Northeast with a cardboard sign that says, "Broke musician needs money to finish album with big shot producer and hot band!"

"I got a fancy iPhone now that I can clip little vids together to document the journey and share it with friends and fans," he said - George Lenker of the Springfield Republican