Tone Madison Presents: MAMA New Artist Listening Room

On Saturday, November 29, Tone Madison and the Madison Area Music Association (MAMA) will co-present a showcase of new and emerging local artists. The event—titled Tone Madison Presents: MAMA New Artist Listening Room—will be held at Harmony Bar & Grill, located at 2201 Atwood Avenue. Doors will open at 7 p.m., the show itself will kick off an hour later. Admission is $10.

For the last four years, Tone Madison has been the recipient of the MAMA Award for “Best Local Music Publication/Blog,” and we believe that distinction is a reflection of the value we place on local music. We are constantly seeking to celebrate new and emerging artists, whether via artist profiles, track reviews, new release rundowns, or other forms of commentary. Madison artists are already going up against a slanted playing field, whether it’s due to lack of name recognition, lower social media traction, contending with an overarching monopoly, or navigating the uncertainty of how to make headway in the public sphere.

Despite those routine difficulties and the accompanying stress and/or pressure, new and emerging local acts are always popping up. The desire to create and perform is an extraordinarily powerful engine, and it often outweighs the innumerable obstacles that need to be overcome in order for the music to reach listeners’ ears. Even with that engine running, arriving at a favorable destination is a difficult task. We’re aiming to minimize that difficulty by highlighting up-and-coming artists with the emphasis those artists deserve.

That commitment is a core basis of Tone Madison Presents: MAMA New Artist Listening Room. While we can’t reveal the full lineup quite yet, we will say that one of the artists performing will be Marigold Motel, who are a newer band with a few familiar faces (including a few members of the prog-leaning rock quartet Bron Sage). To date, the band’s sole release is a lively three-song 2024 demo, but Marigold Motel’s Instagram page promises a debut album is “coming soon.” I can personally count myself among the people who are eager to get a sneak peek at what the band—presently a sextet—has in store for future listeners. 

Tone Madison and MAMA are united in understanding the importance of working towards achieving greater balance in the local music community. MAMA continues to prove that with MAMA Cares, an initiative that provides support to struggling musicians, especially those facing medical or familial crises. While the annual MAMA awards may dominate headlines, the organization’s impact goes well beyond their most highly-publicized event. MAMA Cares is a truly worthy cause, and something that deserves more notice from the local music community.

Of course, the guidelines of the organization’s awards show point towards another brand of seeking equitability. Any band who either has half of their membership or more based in the greater Madison area—or who plays half or more of their shows here—is eligible for awards consideration. This can be self-submitted, or it can be a nomination from someone else who has a valid account with the organization. (MAMA’s awards also extend out to the broader music community, including photographers, publications, promoters, engineers, venues, and more.) At its core, the goal of MAMA’s awards segment is entwined with a core tenet of Tone Madison‘s music section: to shine a positive light on—and direct attention towards—the local music community.

Ultimately, awards are what we make of them, and your mileage may vary on their importance or meaning. They’ve got potential pitfalls, as is the case with basically everything else. Familiarity is a critical component of one of those potential shortcomings; it’s hard to know what’s happening—or when, or why, or how—if there’s no awareness of existence. (Read: you will miss every show that you don’t know is happening, and people are far less likely to seek out artists they don’t know than ones they do.) Tone Madison isn’t exempt from this law of logic either; we do our best to keep up and stay informed, but there will always be artists, releases, and shows that we completely miss. (Always feel free to send new local music our way to help us stay up-to-date!)

Members of MAMA’s network are keenly aware of Madison’s evolving talent pool, as are people who contribute to Tone Madison. And even if no one can truly keep up with the never-ending influx of local musical talent, at the very least, organizations like ours can work together to give some emerging acts a dedicated spotlight. We’ll be doing just that at Harmony, where Marigold Motel will be one of several to demonstrate the breadth of Madison’s on-the-rise musical talent.

We believe the way to push our music community forward rests in cultivating a more collaborative community. And we will continue to seek out means to celebrate and support the artists who may not be well-known commodities, because we know art is invaluable enough to deserve not just recognition, but a visible platform.

On that note: we have a spot left to fill for this showcase! If you’re an artist interested in hopping and the bill, and only began playing and/or releasing music in the last three years, drop me a line at steven@tonemadison.com. This especially applies to artists whose music we’ve covered in that timeframe. I’m always interested in hearing from newer bands/artists, and I’ll be eyeing other potential means of collaboration down the line. If an appearance at this showcase doesn’t ultimately work out, something else might. So fire off those messages, and let’s get to talking.

Hope to see you all at Harmony!