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In Episode 49, we sit down with Mickey Spain, an Irish folk singer/songwriter of Makem & Spain fame currently living and performing in Scranton, and his wife, Erin. He opens and closes the podcast with a few songs (and even throws a children’s song in the middle) before his upcoming shows at the Tomato Bar & Bistro in Pittston on March 3, Kilcoyne's Bar in Scranton on the first Saturday of every month, The Keys in Scranton on March 16, McCarthy's Red Stag Pub and Whiskey Bar in Bethlehem on March 17, and the first-ever Steamtown String Fling at the Scranton Cultural Center with The Dishonest Fiddlers, Brother Roy, MiZ, and Christopher Kearney on March 23.

Before and during the interview, we drink Beer Boys crowlers of Harvest Ale, Rubaeus Raspberry Ale, and Mosaic Promise Ale by Founders Brewing Company, a favorite of ours that always delivers solid brews.

We talk about Mickey growing up in Manchester, New Hampshire; how his father, being surrounded by folk music, and an injury got him to pick up a guitar; performing with his brother and forming Makem & Spain; how he met his wife and why he moved to Pennsylvania; recording with folk heroes like Tom Paxton, Roger McGuinn from The Byrds, Jonathan Edwards, Gordon Bok, David Mallett, and Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary; whether or not you should meet your heroes; his relationship with his younger brother Liam; his inspiration and songwriting process; creating songs for kids and an interactive program for elementary schools; memorable people and places from touring the world; his initial reaction to the madness of Parade Day in Scranton and if the focus on drinking plays into Irish stereotypes and takes away from the celebration of the culture and heritage of Ireland; Erin’s work with the Parade Day committee and their attempt to clean it up over the years; Kilcoyne’s bringing Irish music back to the area after the closure of The Banshee with monthly shows; house shows and the general accessibility of his music; joining the stellar Steamtown String Fling lineup; his first open mic experience at NEPA Scene Rising Talent and how much he enjoyed meeting comedians and fellow musicians; and more.

We also answer some questions and react to comments from live viewers, discussing Mickey’s musical influences, his beard, and forthcoming gigs.

The award-winning NEPA Scene Podcast covers arts, entertainment, and the issues that matter to Northeastern Pennsylvania. It airs as a live video stream every Wednesday at 7 p.m. on NEPA Scene’s Facebook page and is available afterward on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, YouTube, and nepascene.com. This episode and all previous episodes are available now on NEPA Scene, the award-winning independent arts and entertainment website that combines the accuracy and professionalism of a print magazine with the immediacy and convenience of a blog, offering a wide variety of content to readers in NEPA, Philadelphia, New York, and beyond. The show is made possible by local sponsors Beer Boys, The V-Spot, Coal Creative, and viewers who tune in every week.

During the live recording of Episode 49 of the NEPA Scene Podcast on Feb. 28, 2018 at Coal Creative’s production studio in downtown Wilkes-Barre, Irish folk singer/songwriter Mickey Spain opened and closed the show with a few acoustic songs.

The award-winning podcast covers arts, entertainment, and the issues that matter to Northeastern Pennsylvania. It airs as a live video stream every Wednesday at 7 p.m. on NEPA Scene's Facebook page and is available afterward on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, YouTube, and nepascene.com. This episode and all previous episodes are available now on NEPA Scene, the award-winning independent arts and entertainment website that combines the accuracy and professionalism of a print magazine with the immediacy and convenience of a blog, offering a wide variety of content to readers in NEPA, Philadelphia, New York, and beyond.

During the live recording of Episode 49 of the NEPA Scene Podcast on Feb. 28, 2018 at Coal Creative’s production studio in downtown Wilkes-Barre, Irish folk singer/songwriter Mickey Spain opened and closed the show with a few acoustic songs.

The award-winning podcast covers arts, entertainment, and the issues that matter to Northeastern Pennsylvania. It airs as a live video stream every Wednesday at 7 p.m. on NEPA Scene's Facebook page and is available afterward on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, YouTube, and nepascene.com. This episode and all previous episodes are available now on NEPA Scene, the award-winning independent arts and entertainment website that combines the accuracy and professionalism of a print magazine with the immediacy and convenience of a blog, offering a wide variety of content to readers in NEPA, Philadelphia, New York, and beyond.

During the live recording of Episode 49 of the NEPA Scene Podcast on Feb. 28, 2018 at Coal Creative’s production studio in downtown Wilkes-Barre, Irish folk singer/songwriter Mickey Spain opened and closed the show with a few acoustic songs.

The award-winning podcast covers arts, entertainment, and the issues that matter to Northeastern Pennsylvania. It airs as a live video stream every Wednesday at 7 p.m. on NEPA Scene's Facebook page and is available afterward on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, YouTube, and nepascene.com. This episode and all previous episodes are available now on NEPA Scene, the award-winning independent arts and entertainment website that combines the accuracy and professionalism of a print magazine with the immediacy and convenience of a blog, offering a wide variety of content to readers in NEPA, Philadelphia, New York, and beyond.

In Episode 48, we sit down with Casey Thomas and Kimmie Leff, members of the Scranton theatre group New Vintage Ensemble who wrote and star in “#vanlife,” a comedic play about the millennial van life trend that premiered at the Scranton Fringe Festival last year and comes to The Cooperage in Honesdale on Friday, March 2 and Saturday, March 3 at 8 p.m. before driving off to the Pittsburgh Fringe Festival in April.

Before and during the interview, we drink Beer Boys crowlers of Crush by North Slope Brewing Company in Dallas, Dry Hopped IPA by Berwick Brewing Company, and Shady Spot by Susquehanna Brewing Company in Pittston, all great beers we love from great local breweries.

We talk about open mics and developing artists, how they got started in acting, why actors should say no to murder mysteries and dinner theatre, how they met and ended by creating “#vanlife” together after a bad experience at another production, the writing process and making changes after each show based on feedback, why theatre is like an absurd Christopher Guest movie, how the Scranton Fringe Festival developed and benefited the show, the tiny living and van life movements, presenting a fake curated life on social media, millennial criticism and if it’s all justified, their juxtaposed characters in the show, The Cooperage space and the welcoming community of Honesdale, modern hippies and hipsters, attracting and repelling audiences with other shows, the current state of Broadway, supporting small and off-Broadway shows, and more.

In The Last Word segment, we talk about arts funding being slashed locally and nationally and focus on the controversy started by Lackawanna County Commissioner Laureen Cummings, who voted against legislation from the county’s Arts and Culture Department that awarded grant money to the Scranton Fringe Festival. While Cummings was outvoted and the Scranton Fringe still received the funds, we question why she specifically targeted the festival and its programming with misinformation and criticism.


The award-winning NEPA Scene Podcast covers arts, entertainment, and the issues that matter to Northeastern Pennsylvania. It airs as a live video stream every Wednesday at 7 p.m. on NEPA Scene’s Facebook page and is available afterward on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, YouTube, and nepascene.com. This episode and all previous episodes are available now on NEPA Scene, the award-winning independent arts and entertainment website that combines the accuracy and professionalism of a print magazine with the immediacy and convenience of a blog, offering a wide variety of content to readers in NEPA, Philadelphia, New York, and beyond. The show is made possible by local sponsors Beer Boys, The V-Spot, Coal Creative, and viewers who tune in every week.

In Episode 46, we sit down with Hazleton punk rock musician, animator, and comic creator Tedd Hazard of Hazard Studios, which produces the ongoing comic and animated series Krust Toons and music videos for bands like Condition Oakland, Azwel, The Twindows, Cardboard Homestead, Joe Billy, and Today, We Fight With Peace, among other projects. He also has a rock show coming up at the Hazleton Art League on Friday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. with TreadWater, Markus A.D., Ace & The Kings, It Never Fails, and Vanvancar.

Before and during the interview, we drink Beer Boys crowlers of Minefire Blackberry Jalapeno Ale, 5 Whistle Wheat Ale, and Belsnickler Ale by Breaker Brewing Company in Wilkes-Barre, whose beers we always love (unless they’re brewed with peppers).

We talk about how he started drawing comics; the funny story of how he was convinced to go to his first show that ended up getting him into local music; the real people and stories that inspire his comics and cartoons; keeping the Krust Toons storylines going while making them accessible to new viewers; teaching himself art and animation; voice acting and recruiting others for voices; creating funny characters and where their inspiration comes from; his animation process that’s similar to “South Park;” the influence of Adult Swim, Jhonen Vasquez, and Newgrounds on his work and finding his own voice and DIY style; dealing with trolls and turning them into Captain Dislike; adapting to feedback from fans; creating music videos for bands and the different collaborative process for each one; filming the new Condition Oakland video at the Schuylkill Mall before it was torn down and dealing with mall security; his folk punk music; quitting drinking; the current state of the Hazleton and Schuylkill County music scenes; the importance of the Hazleton Art League to the local scene and booking shows there; cops and house shows; his advice to those who want to get into animation; and more.

The award-winning NEPA Scene Podcast covers arts, entertainment, and the issues that matter to Northeastern Pennsylvania. It airs as a live video stream every Wednesday at 7 p.m. on NEPA Scene’s Facebook page and is available afterward on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, YouTube, and nepascene.com. This episode and all previous episodes are available now on NEPA Scene, the award-winning independent arts and entertainment website that combines the accuracy and professionalism of a print magazine with the immediacy and convenience of a blog, offering a wide variety of content to readers in NEPA, Philadelphia, New York, and beyond. The show is made possible by local sponsors Beer Boys, The V-Spot, The Keys, Loyalty Barber Shop and Shave Parlor, Coal Creative, and viewers who tune in every week.