George Nostrand — 4 November 2020 on Rocket Shop Radio Hour

George Nostrand joined guest host Geneviéve Rossi on ‘Rocket Shop,’ Big Heavy World’s weekly local Vermont music radio hour on 105.9 FM The Radiator. Catch up with him at facebook.com/george.nostrand.1

On Wednesday November 4, 2020, George Nostrand joined Genevieve Rossi on the Rocket Shop radio for some truly American music. Moving between Bellows Falls, Rutland, and Burlington, Nostrand’s music reflects the very essence of the Green Mountain State. After years of traveling Vermont, the artist has spent two decades collaborating with local artists. Here at the Big Heavy World music office, Nostrand gave us a taste of the Vermont music scene. 

“I’d much rather be playing with a band behind me,” the artist said after performing his first song of the night. Previously being a part of the band George’s Back Pocket, the artist decided to step out of his comfort zone for the night. During the hour he revealed he wanted to put himself out there and play his own music, both solo and acoustic. Being no rookie to the local music scene, the radio hour got the raw and authentic George Nostrand experience. 

“I’ve played folk, rock, blues, bluegrass, jam music - a little bit of everything.” Nostrand describes his music as Americana, where storytelling and jamming meet in the most exciting way. His musical endeavors started back in grade school, where he began learning how to play the piano. The artist has since picked up guitar, vocals, songwriting, and keyboard. Whether it be in a band or through a solo performance, you can hear the collective influences from Nostrand’s journey around Vermont. 

“There're so many great musicians here in Vermont,” the artist explains, that he “can’t help but be influenced by all the folks around here.” On his first solo project, Radio Songs, back in 2005, Nostrand ended up having twenty guest musicians collaborate with him. And although he writes most of his songs solo, fellow musicians and other local artists have helped him along the way. For these reasons, Nostrand’s music is reflective of Vermont and the community orientation and overall collectivity of the folks who live here. 

“I write them as they come to me,” the musician said to Rossi when asked about his songwriting process. Inspiration is a necessary element for writing music for Nostrand. As a folk artist, the songs he has written are dynamic; they evolve and sometimes end up being entirely different at the end of his artistic process. Nostrand describes this as an “unfolding process” wherein he writes music with an intention and the songs morph into something new.

Much like you and I, Nostrand’s music takes on its own identity. This is what makes him such a great folk artist--having a wide range of Vermont folks and culture influencing his music, Nostrand continues to musically manifest the essence of what it means to be a Vermonter. 

“It's not really a formal, traditional recording studio,” Norstrand said in regards to his newest business venture. Similar to the mission of Big Heavy World, Nostrand has dedicated his most recent years to providing a space where local artists can reach their full potential. 

A Sound Space, located in Rutland Vermont, is a music space that offers resources such as a recording studio, equipment, music lessons, and rentals to local artists. The space offers a safe haven for musicians in Rutland, especially in the midst of COVID-19. During the pandemic, the engineers, composers, and other artists at A Sound Space started doing live performances on Patreon. Here, local musicians were able to bring live performances to virtual audiences while maintaining COVID-19 protocol. 

With A Sound Space on the rise, Nostrand found his focus turned toward other artist’s music rather than his own. That being said, he released a single in March of 2020 and has three albums released as of today. You can listen to him on soundcloud and check out his website to learn more.

Text by Izzy Mousseau

Top photo by James Lockridge