Upper Peninsula musician Tyler Dettloff released his newest EP "No Hitter" in January of 2024.
A musician and poet in the Lost Dog Records group, Tyler records and performs folk and blues-tinged music in his characteristic DIY style. His latest release contains seven tracks (averaging between 24 seconds and just over three minutes per track) of homemade tunes. Created in the winter of 2022-2023, Tyler wrote, recorded, and mixed his music with guitar, drums, bass, and keyboards on his own, with additional production through the assistance of Lost Dog Records. The EP's lyrics were written before the music, intentionally capturing rough takes to set the mood.
The EP's themes revolve around the baseball term "no-hitter" where a game does not record a hit (a play-on-words regarding how the music could be received; see the opposite idea of Future Islands' album "Singles"). A commitment to non-violence is also apparent on the tracks, along with the ideals of social justice. Heavy subjects like PTSD and seasonal affective disorder are tackled with a rough-and-tumble experimental folksy blues vibe.
The EP's most "baseball" track is "penk," named after the onomatopoeic sound of a Louisville slugger hitting a ball. It also happens to be the closest length to a "radio-friendly" single at 3:15, but that is not the main concern of Tyler Dettloff on his latest release. The EP is a checkpoint for him, giving us insight into where he's at right now in time (plus, he's working on a full-length album with Dead River Sound and Lost Dog Records, with more of a polished, studio sound in mind).
Kurt Hauswirth discussed the music-making process with Tyler Dettloff:
Find Tyler Dettloff's music and poetry online at his website and his bandcamp page.
Listen to Tyler's music:
An edited version of the interview with Tyler Dettloff was broadcast as a part of The Shuffle on Saturday, February 3rd, 2024.
