Folk ‘n’ Blues to perform Friday

Adam Hammer and Dave Cofell of Folk 'n' Blues will perform at Sixth Avenue Wine and Ale in Alexandria on June 22 at 7 p.m. for their Minnesota summer tour.

At the end of March, Hammer and Cofell each released new solo CDs - "Broken Like You" and "No Substitute (For You)" respectively - with a split-bill concert at the Pioneer Place on Fifth Theatre in St. Cloud.

Weeks before the show, the duo was voted "Best Original Band/Musicians" in the St. Cloud Times' annual Best of Central Minnesota poll for the second year in a row.

They appear regularly on independent and college radio stations throughout Minnesota. In May, "Broken Like You" spent three weeks in the top 12 of the College Music Journal Charts for KVSC 88.1 FM.

Cities included in this summer's Minnesota tour include Alexandria, Battle Lake, Little Falls, Spicer, St. Joseph, St. Cloud and Fargo, North Dakota.

"We both come from small towns, and I think that's the kind of people we relate to," Cofell said. "The big cities can often be oversaturated, and we find that small town folks are more appreciative. There's a reason why the area outside of the Twin Cities is called 'Greater Minnesota.'"

Their shows follow a song-for-song format where they back each other up on a mix of original progressive folk, blues and their own blend of "black and blues." Hammer and Cofell also throw in a few choice cover songs and remade renditions of familiar tunes.

Hammer and Cofell met at Open Mic Night at The Local Blend in St. Joseph, a weekly event they now co-host. Each year, they tour the region with close to 100 shows. In August 2011, they created the "Weekend of Songs: Songwriters Festival" that brought the big three-day outdoor music festival feel inside the intimate setting of The Local Blend.

For more information, visit www.folknblues.com.

Tags: variety, events, music, entertainment, concert, folk, blues