(*both laugh*) Episode 47: Quincy Massachusetts Americana-punk troubadour Jesse Ahern!

Boston-area Americana-punk troubadour Jesse Ahern has shared stages with everyone from Dropkick Murphys to Rancid to Frank Turner to Lenny Lashley and countless others both across the US and across Europe. At long last, he finally sits down with us for a chat about his new album, "Heartache and Love." The album grew out of sessions that popped up during the pandemic when what had been some pretty expansive 2020 tour plans ground to a halt. The album both refines and expands upon the sort of roots-rock-meets-folk-punk thing that Ahern has been doing so well for years now. It helped earn Ahern a Boston Music Award nomination for Americana Artist Of The Year, where he's up against some local heavy hitters like Mark Erelli and Lila Wiles and Lashley himself. At first glance, it might seem that Ahern would fit into a handful of other categories, from Singer-Songwriter of the Year to Punk/Hardcore or Rock or Folk or even Blues Artist of the Year...but maybe that's what makes Ahern so perfect for the Americana label, because his sound is an amalgam of all of the above, all of which make him an artist rooted in classic American working-class music.
As you might imagine based on the almost 90-minute length of our chat, we cover a lot of ground, from parenting three children during a pandemic, to touring Europe with Dropkick Murphys and Frank Turner, to his upcoming overseas run with Chuck Ragan and Chris Cresswell, to growing up in the Boston area music scene, to the struggles with addiction and the depths of the recovery community in the punk scene. We also talk quite a bit about Lenny Lashley, because he's a one-of-a-kind.

Check out Ahern's website here: https://www.jesseahern.com/
Order "Heartache & Love" here: https://www.jesseahern.com/store
Watch the video for "Just A Moment" here: https://youtu.be/CJFlBaypUME
Watch the video for "Lost In This World" here: https://youtu.be/4ebNhULQ3E4

(*both laughs*) theme song is an excerpt from [laughs] track "Hurts To Laugh."
© KALI MASI 2021 ℗ Take This To Heart Records 2021