Bio - dantennant-com.preview-domain.com

about me

I take my love of fast, heartfelt, and melodic music such as bluegrass, folk, and punk, funnel it through my life experiences or daydreams and create songs that are meaningful to me.

Music has always been something that’s helped me both when life gets crazy or extremely boring. It’s a good outlet, a good entertainer and a good way to communicate. That’s why I can never seem to stop writing and playing songs.

bio

I grew up on 50’s, 60’s and 70’s pop and rock music (The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Platters, Led Zepplin, etc.). Whatever was on the “Oldies” channel back then when my family would take trips “Up North” in Michigan.

When I was around 15, I remember finding my Dad’s old acoustic guitar. Out of interest and simply having nothing better to do at the time, I started playing around with it. As I started learning chords and eventually songs on it, my interest in playing music really took off.

In my late teens and early 20’s I went to local music and thrift stores buying all kinds of music from different bands, different artists and different eras. I began playing music with friends in Rock and Punk/Ska bands while going to local shows in the Detroit and Flint areas.

I was also introduced to more music from the Folk, Bluegrass, Cajun, and Dixieland Jazz genres. I started going to traditional music festivals and other venues that featured these kinds of music. Some of those styles of music sparked my interest in banjo so much that I got one and learned how to play it.

I started writing my own songs and envisioned forming what I called a “Dixieland, Punk, Polka band” which combined these and other styles into fast, energetic, melodic music with amplified banjo. Over a period of a few years, I went to a local recording studio (Woodshed Studios) with friends and various band members. We recorded a number of songs (some featured on The Dapper Days EP). Eventually, we agreed on the band name, The Doornails.

After recording at the studio a couple of times the owner, Tim let me know he was thinking about starting a string band with some other guys he knew. He asked me if I would want to join and of course I said “Yes!”. Tim recruited other Detroit natives and formed The Salt Miners, a suit-wearing, Detroit string band with a punk and rock edge.

For several years I performed with The Salt Miners and Doornails playing many of the venues and festivals I had gone to in recent years. It was fun and exciting to play with so many talented musicians during that period. It was also incredible to see songs I wrote come to life in a full band setting with people dancing and clapping along.

During this general time frame, I also played some solo shows. For some of these, I used a drum machine that was fashioned out of an old ceiling fan I picked out of the garbage, some rubber hands and a small conga drum I had. It was controlled by a standard light dimmer switch and was mounted on a wood frame I made.

This drum machine came about from my desire to be creative and add some kind of percussive but bizarre element to my solo shows. It was absolutely ridiculous and a whole lot of fun.

In my late 20’s after years of playing music I loved, it seemed like it was time to pursue other things. So I refocused my life on starting a family and going back to school for graphic design.

For a few years. I helped when I could at the church I was attending, playing banjo, guitar and bass, singing and helping with various graphic design projects. One of my favorite things I was involved with during that time was a couple of fundraising concerts to help bring awareness to human trafficking.

During the COVID pandemic, I began to miss writing and playing the type of songs I had during The Salt Miners and Doornails days. I picked up my banjo again and began writing new songs with the same fun, energy and heart that I previously did.

One of my old friends/bandmates from The Salt Miners had told me about a songwriters group called Songwriters Anonymous that met monthly. I started going to a few of the meetings and started to meet many great and talented songwriters in the Southeast Michigan area.

In September of 2023, I was honored to be picked to be part of the 20th Annual Songwriters Anonymous Songwriting Showcase which featured 10 artists from this group. The showcase was an incredible night and kicked off a series of shows I have played since.

I look forward to continuing my musical journey as I continue writing songs, playing shows and meeting and learning about other artists that inspire me.

Both music and the friends I have made along the way are truly a gift that I’m thankful to have in my life.