Fred Love

My New Year’s resolution for 2026 is simple and stubborn: I’m going to champion more independent music.

Last year we watched an AI-generated song hit No. 1 on the country charts. No humanity required. Honestly, a lot of what mainstream Nashville has been pumping out for the last couple of decades already feels like it could’ve been assembled by a machine. No real drama. No real soul. Just trends and clichés chopped up and glued together. Is one paint-by-numbers hit really better than the next? Does ‘Walk My Walk’ sound much different than ‘Fancy Like’? I’m not sure. I think they’re both hot garbage juice.

Meanwhile, 2025 quietly delivered some incredible independent country records for anyone willing to look a little off the highway. Artists like the Turnpike Troubadours and Cole Chaney are still making music that sounds lived-in and hard-won. Closer to home, Iowa’s own Katie and the Honky Tonks put out a fantastic classic country record that deserves your ears.

I also recently reviewed Bloodshot Records founder Rob Miller’s memoir, The Hours Are Long But the Pay Is Low. It’s a wild, funny, bruising account of a life spent in the trenches of independent music. Sticky clubs. Festival showcases. Broken-down vans. The central theme is one I believe in deeply: there’s a whole universe of strange, beautiful, life-affirming experiences out there, but you usually have to leave the beaten path to find them. You can read my full review of the book at Iowa Public Radio.

So here’s my pledge, and my invitation. Seek out local musicians who are putting their whole souls into being heard. Buy their albums. Grab a t-shirt. Share their work. Show up to the shows. These small acts are how scenes survive.

Let’s be honest. We’re probably not going to reverse the tide of sterile, AI-generated “content.” But we can build and protect spaces where real human connection still thrives. Places where artists are supported for taking risks and chasing original visions instead of algorithms.

Let’s keep the underground alive in 2026. It might be a doomed quest. But it’s one worth fighting for.

Will you join me?

We’re winding down 2025, and it was a watershed year for me in some important ways. I want to thank the community of friends who supported my musical life this year by coming to shows, buying merch, and following along online. I’m trying to make a go of it in the independent music world, and that simply doesn’t work without the support and connection of people like you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Here are a few musical accomplishments from 2025 that I’m especially proud of:

• I played 37 shows, both solo and with my band, traveling roughly 1,757 miles with the cowpunk crew to make dates from Buffalo Center to Maquoketa and many points in between. I played to the biggest audiences of my musical career this year, and I’m grateful for every single chance to tune up my guitar and sing my songs.

• I taught nearly 500 guitar lessons to more than 30 students. I’m still a little amazed by how successful teaching has become for me, and by how much joy it brings. Teaching was my most reliable source of income in 2025, and connecting with students and watching them find their voices as musicians has become one of the greatest gifts music has given me.

• I put serious effort into writing about the independent music world and had the privilege of interviewing some true legends of the rock underground. Writing for Iowa Public Radio, I spoke with Bob Mould, Ani DiFranco, HR of Bad Brains, Michael Azerrad, and Bloodshot Records founder Rob Miller, among others.

• I helped launch a new news section for xBk Live, the Des Moines music venue where I lead promo efforts. The section went live in late summer and now features artist profiles and stories about the incredible things happening in the xBk community. Getting to work with people who care this deeply about independent music is, quite honestly, a dream come true.

I hope to top all of this in 2026. With your continued support, I believe I can. Next year, let’s keep choosing connection over convenience. Let’s reject plastic, algorithm-fed trash and instead show up for the artists in our own communities who are putting their hearts on the line to make something honest and original.

We can do it together.

Happy New Year.
See you in 2026.

As I write this, it’s just a few days since my 40th birthday. A new decade has dawned, and I’m feeling the need to reflect a bit.

I celebrated the milestone the best way I know how — playing songs I love with people I love. I threw together a big jam with some of my best friends at the world-famous Maintenance Shop in Ames. We ate a guitar-shaped cake and played our instruments way too loud. Positively glorious.

One of the songs I knew I wanted to play that night was “Maggie’s Farm” by Bob Dylan (watch the video above to see how we did!). In the song, Dylan rails against the absurdity of the forces trying to crush his spirit. Maggie’s brother hands him nickels and dimes, only to fine him for slamming the door. Maggie’s pa “puts his cigar out in your face just for kicks.” And in the final verse, Dylan shouts, “I try so hard to be just like I am, but everybody wants you to be just like them.”

Some say the song was Dylan’s rebellion against the rigid 1960s folk scene. Maybe so. But to me, it’s a broader protest against all the forces that try to stamp out independent thought and personal expression — political polarization, corporate greed, consumerism, prejudice, you name it. That’s what it feels like to toil away on Maggie’s farm.

A few months ago, I took a job as the marketing manager at xBk Live, an independently owned music venue in Des Moines. Along with performing and teaching guitar lessons, it’s part of a patchwork of music-related work that’s allowed me to support my family doing what I love. I had to leave behind a nearly 20-year career in communications and journalism to get here — one of the most terrifying choices I’ve ever made. It felt like walking off Maggie’s farm without a map.

But something in me had to know if it was possible to live the dream as an independent musician. And I’m overjoyed to say it’s working. My family’s support — especially my wife’s — has been essential. I can’t thank her enough for believing in me and giving me her blessing to take this leap.

So now I’m 40. Not exactly young, but still learning every day.
It’s been just over two years since my last drink.
I’m playing more guitar than ever.
And I’m surrounded by a community of friends, family, and fellow musicians who act as my spiritual board of directors — guiding, encouraging, and keeping me accountable.

And I ain’t working on Maggie’s farm no more.

If you’d like to join me on this wild musical odyssey, come out to a show, follow me on social media, or give my music a spin on Spotify. Your support means more than ever as I try to grow my audience and keep making music that’s honest and real.

Thank you for everything. Gimme rock and roll forever!

I’m thrilled with how my guitar workshops have been going! At the most recent workshop on July 19, we had seven guitarists from ages 12 to around 70 in attendance. We went over the basics of how to play a 12-bar blues in the key of A, broke into small groups to work on fundamentals, did a little open mic for whoever wanted to share and then we opened it up for free jamming.

One guitarist played a Zach Bryan song before another finger-picked an original composition. The youngest participant showed us a Metallica riff.

I love being able to share my passion for the guitar with others in a positive, supportive space where musicians can grow and find their voices. We’re building something special here.

If you’d like to take part, whether you’re a seasoned musician or a total beginner, we’d love for you to join us. The next guitar workshop is Saturday, Aug. 23, at 2 p.m. at Morning Bell Coffee Roasters on Main Street in Ames. Or reach out if you’d like to schedule a private guitar lesson!

The Maintenance Shop will explode with the sounds of cowpunk chaos and stoner rock grooves on Friday, Oct. 18, when Ames musical titans Fred Love and the Bakersfield Brawl and Strong Like Bear celebrate a double release party.

As Fred Love and the Bakersfield Brawl drop their new EP, "... And Out Come the Cows," and Strong Like Bear unveils their mind-bending album, "In the Sticky Goo," you can expect a raucous celebration of DIY spirit and unapologetic indie vibes. This night is all about ditching the mainstream and embracing the glorious mess of the 80s and 90s independent music scene.

The Maintenance Shop, the iconic venue in the ISU Memorial Union, is celebrating its 50th anniversary throughout 2024. In the ‘80s and 90’s the venue hosted indie rock titans such as the Replacements, Bob Mould and the Smashing Pumpkins. The double-release show will aim to recapture some of that magic with a special limited-edition zine available to the first fans to arrive, as well as limited edition physical copies of the new releases. 

Event Details:

• Date: October 18, 2024
• Time: 8 p.m.
• Venue: Maintenance Shop, Ames, Iowa
• Musical Lineup: Fred Love & the Bakersfield Brawl and Strong Like Bear

Fred Love and the Bakersfield Brawl are coming in hot with their latest four-song EP, proving that cowpunk is alive and kicking—just like your grandpa’s old pickup truck. The new EP follows the release of a cowpunk demo cassette released last year. And don’t forget Strong Like Bear, whose new nine-track stoner rock offering is set to weave lush vocal harmonies that might just make you question reality. This will be Strong Like Bear’s second stoner rock offering, following the release of “In the Future Only The Rich Will Live Forever” in 2021. 

Get ready for a night filled with gritty guitar riffs, infectious energy and independent spirit. Tickets are available now, so snag yours at https://tickets.midwestix.com/event/BakersfieldBrawlBear-isu2024 before they’re gone! 

Celebrate music that dares to be different!

Howdy cowpunk fans,

The sun has risen on Revolution Summer, and it’s our time to shine! We're all set for cowpunk  to take over the streets, the stages and the hearts of music lovers everywhere with a spirit of rebellion and the raw energy of punk rock.

Fred Love and the Bakersfield Brawl are leading the charge with a slate of upcoming summer gigs. We've got a few more summer dates that we're not quite ready to announce, but mark your calendars for these confirmed shows:

• June 15: Cornbred, Ames, IA
• July 6: Alluvial, Ames IA
• July 11: Shiny Top Brewing, Fort Dodge, IA (Fred solo)
• Aug. 9: Wheatsfield, Ames, IA

We can’t wait to see you in the crowd, sharing the passion and the rugged independence that defines cowpunk. Let’s make this Revolution Summer unforgettable together!

Stay rebellious,

Fred Love and the Bakersfield Brawl

Let's talk about the legendary album ‘Meat Puppets II,’ released on SST in 1984. 

This Meat Puppets gem ranks highly on my list of great cowpunk albums and has influenced my musical sensibilities pretty heavily in recent years. The album blends country twang with punk energy and psychedelic experimentation, all set on the desolate landscape of the Arizona desert. The Meat Puppets also played what was probably the best show I ever saw at DG's Tap House (RIP). 

Check out “Lost” and “Climbing” for key tracks with heavy country influence. 

And you can’t really talk about this album without mentioning that Kurt Cobain loved it and included some of its songs on Nirvana’s legendary ‘MTV Unplugged in New York’ record (and even invited Meat Puppets members Curt and Cris Kirkwood to play during the performance).

I’m gonna give ‘Meat Puppets II’ a spin tonight, and I highly recommend you do the same. You won't regret diving into this impressionistic masterpiece of weird cowpunk goodness!

Do you have thoughts on ‘Meat Puppets II?’ What other records deserve to be in the cowpunk hall of fame?

HEY I’VE GOT NEW MUSIC FOR YOU – and I want to get it to you in the most cowpunk way possible.

My bandmates in the Bakersfield Brawl and I recorded three songs at the Spacement, a recording studio in Ames run by my good friend Bryon Dudley. We laid down our take on two country classics and then recorded a brand-new original titled “Off Again.” The result is roughly nine minutes of electrified hardcore hillbilly music that we’re calling the Cowpunk Demo. 

You can listen to the entire demo on my Bandcamp page, and “Off Again” will drop on Spotify and other major streaming services next month. I’d be grateful if you took a little time to stream the new songs and let me know what you think. 

But, for the crusty cowpunks out there who want to get their hands on some physical media, I wanted to do something special for the first official release from Fred Love and the Bakersfield Brawl, something I’ve never done before that pays homage to the punk traditions that inspired this project. 

Years ago, it was customary for punk bands to record demos and make copies of the songs on cassette and distribute them by hand. These tapes often featured hand-drawn DIY art and other personal touches. In a world of mass-produced and priced-to-own consumerism, demo tapes stand out as something special. They were keepsakes and calling cards for those with a personal connection to the band as well as a means of distributing recorded music. Naked commerce took a backseat to personal connection and viral, low-fi dissemination. DIY artists elevated flimsy pieces of disposable plastic into authentic works of art. What could be more punk? 

With that in mind, friends, let me introduce you to Fred Love and the Bakersfield Brawl’s Cowpunk Demo on cassette! I dubbed and numbered each of these tapes myself on an old boom box in my basement. I’m going to send out a few to friends, and then I’m going to make the rest of the tapes available to anyone who wants one free of charge, so long as my very limited supply holds out. 

So how can you get one? Just ask me, really. I’m going to try to make as many as possible available for free. Comment on this thread or send me a Facebook Messenger note. Talk to me at a show or ask me if you see me in person. If you live in the Ames area, I can deliver a tape to you in the Cowpunk van. If you live further afield, I’ll cover the postage cost if it’s not too exorbitant. I have no idea what kind of demand exists for something like this. It’ll be first come first served, and if people actually seem to want these things, I might decide to charge something for them at a later date. I dunno. It’ll be an experiment. 

My guess is most folks don’t have access to cassette players these days. If that’s you, please do stream the songs on Bandcamp or your streaming service of choice. Honestly, you’ll get better sound quality via streaming than I can manage on these cassettes anyhow. 

But if you’re looking for something a little more authentically cowpunk, get your hands on one of these tapes. Supplies are limited!