Saltydog, Duluth’s funky, folk-inspired improvisational rock band, is heading out on their first tour to the western U.S. late this month and into August.
Salty’ will be headlining shows in Montana and Washington for the first time, as well as making a couple of stops on the way out in North Dakota. The band caps off the tour with somewhat of a homecoming at Park Rapids’ 2nd Street Stage series on Aug. 13 and a spot high up in the lineup at Big Top Chautauqua’s Lake Effect Music Fest on Aug. 15.
Saltydog, along with Danny Frank & The Smoky Gold, opened for Neal Francis at Big Top Chautauqua last September. They’ll be back this August for the Lake Effect Music Festival in Bayfield, Wis.
Saltydog has had a busy summer, playing at least three shows every week around the Midwest, with many around Minnesota and Wisconsin.
“It has been a good year,” said Owen Mahon, one of the two brothers at the heart of this band. “I feel like the band is in a really good spot. A lot of smiles, a lot of fun being had.”
Making and booking this first tour out west is devotion to a dream for him.
“This has been a dream of mine since I was a little tiny kid,” he said. “I dreamed us opening up for somebody else, but this will work out.”
Owen Mahon at the U.P. Beat Music and Arts Festival in Ironwood, Mich., back in May. PHOTO BY JAVIER SERNA/COURTESY OF TRAVEL IRONWOOD
The band is riding high off the success of their latest LP, Runnin Again, which dropped at a sold-out show with Chicago’s Hot Like Mars at Turf Club in Saint Paul, Jan. 9.
If you don’t know about these guys, check out any of their three LPs, including 2020’s Pecan, Pecon and 2024’s Pepper.
Saltydog performed at a private party held at the Party Palace near Cedar Lake in Minneapolis in December.
I might be a little biased, but I believe they are one of the best at writing and composing songs among up-and-coming jam bands. It helps that the brothers Mahon, along with Jacob, have been playing shows together since they were kids and have been crafting a catalog of songs (many still unpublished) that predates the band’s existence, first as New Salty Dog.
The band, loaded with musical talent in its lineup, also has great instincts when it comes time to jam. There is some natural tension there that can lead everybody, especially the fans, on an unpredictable sonic joyride.
Saltydog also has a number of big shows and festival appearances closer to home this summer, events Owen referred to as “ big love,” such as the Catfish River Music Festival in Stoughton, Wis., where they shared a stage with Charlie Parr on July 4.
Erik Berry of Trampled by Turtles sat in with them at Lutsen’s Mountain Meltdown back in April. It wasn’t the first time Berry has played with the band.
“That’s fuckin’ crazy,” he said, about following Parr with the last set of the day at the Stoughton Opera House.
What’s crazier than that?
Well, maybe being sandwiched between Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country and Armchair Boogie at BoogieDown Music Festival at Driftless Music Gardens in Yuba, Wis., Sept. 12.
“Lots of Big Love,” Owen Mahon said.
Here’s a few more he mentioned:
THIS WEEKEND: Rhythm on the River Music Festival in Jackson, Minn. Saltydog is one of the headliners for the festival and plays the main stage on Friday, July 10.
Their truest homecoming, at least for the Mahon brothers, is Muskie Days Music Festival in Nevis, Minn., where the brothers grew up. They play the last set on the Muskie Waters Music Stage on July 17.
Cheech’s Deecefest at Bluebird Campground in La Crosse, Wis. Saltydog plays on the main stage on Saturday, July 25.
Here is their tour (I’ll update this with ticket and event links as they become available: