The Suitcase Junket with support by Ali McGuirk

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— the touring project of the artist Matt Lorenz — developed in the tension between the grand and the solitary. Grand in imagery, sound, and staging. Solitary in thrift and self-reliance. NPR calls Lorenz a “master of musical imagination.” What instruments he requires, Lorenz builds from scratch and salvage. What parts five players would perform, he performs alone. The spectacle of the one-man show bears comparison to legends of showmanship, brilliance, madness, and invention. While audiences are captivated by that solitary form and the show itself, Lorenz, who homesteads in Western Massachusetts, is most serious about the songs. The world he writes into existence is crowded with characters, narratives, voices, imagery, sounds as wide and varied as mountain throat singers and roadhouse juke boxes, plus newsreels of the planet’s destruction and salvage. Lorenz’ most recent album The End is New was released at Renew Records / BMG. He is in the studio this winter, recording toward a new release. 

 has never been a church mouse. In fact, these days, she’s standing at the pulpit. “I feel like I'm writing lyrics that are preaching,” McGuirk said with a laugh, realizing in real time how much her voice as an artist has evolved while writing and arranging her latest album, Watertop. “I’m actually delivering a message, not necessarily processing my feelings, but delivering my thoughts on the matter. That felt like a different role to embody as a songwriter.” 

Par for the course, McGuirk has made an exceptional album. Her 2022 release, Til It’s Gone, was widely acclaimed and praised as earthy, tender, and introspective. The atmospheric songs earned her adoration and accolades, including being selected as one of The Boston Globe’s Top 50 Albums of the Year. 

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