Dan Reeder

Dan Reeder is a self-sufficient artist in every aspect of his work. He has built, from scratch, both the creative side (artwork and compositions) and the technical side (recording equipment/electronics and instruments). From guitar pickups to microphones, preamps and mixers. Guitars, drums, and even a saxophone (“I’ll never do that again”). Each note you hear was carefully crafted and individually manifested. Born in 1954 Lafayette, Louisiana, he moved to California at six, where he would go on to study art. It was at college where he'd met his wife (Nuremberg, Germany native) and when her visa expired, he dropped out and went with her. Since his move over 30 years ago, Dan married, raised three children, and works as a full-time visual artist. Sometime in the early 2000’s, Reeder sent a burned CD to John Prine. Prine listened -- and signed Reeder to his label, Oh Boy Records, as his first artist. The bluntness (and oftentimes, vulgar) of Reeder’s lyrics are softened by his crooning. Reeder understands the fragility of life and meets it with comedy and stoicism. According to Reeder, “If you take out the bullshit, most songs will be short.” Since signing, Reeder has earned a cult, indie-folk following. The New Yorker coined him as “one of the foremost outsider artists in modern folk”. He has been featured on Joe Pickett (“Stay Down, Man”) and the Emmy award-winning show Weeds (“Work Song”).