The Undertow Collective helps people make music and tour in a very indie way. They manage artists like David Bazan (Pedro the Lion), Will Johnson (Centro-matic), and Bad Bad Hats, and they promote house concert tours for folks like Wussy, The Mynabirds, and Kevin Devine. Undertow’s Bob Andrews and Jayne Ballentine join us to talk about how Undertow got started (Uncle Tupelo is involved), how house shows happen, and why their model feels like “the future of rock and roll.” 

The Undertow website sums up their ethos:

Undertow shows are hosted by fans in houses and other private spaces (art galleries, bike shops, recording studios…). If you’ve ever been to one, you know how amazing it is to be up close and personal with such talented artists. You can check out their current tour shows here. And here’s the full list of artists they’ve helped tour.

Scroll to the bottom of the Undertow Music home page to sign up for their email list so you can be the first to know about new shows and tours.

I’ve been thrilled to host several Undertow shows at my house. Craig Finn was the first one, back in 2017.

Next up was Eric Bachmann (Archers of Loaf, Crooked Fingers) in 2018.

It’s pretty friggin’ cool to hear an acoustic version of Archers of Loaf’s “Web in Front” in your living room!

And the Wussy Duo (Chuck Cleaver and Lisa Walker) has graced us with their presence several times (once as a trio with Mark Messerly). Every show is pure magic!

If you’d like to host a show, you can check here for a list of tours and cities where hosts are needed. Undertow takes care of ticket sales, so all you have to do is provide the venue. Here’s more info about the process.