Blazing Reader,

Well, the washroom was pretty scary. Didn't smell great. Covered with graffiti. But so was everything else in this grungy club I found myself in last month in downtown Munich. What was I doing there? My son and I had met up with an old friend from Italy, and we had tickets to see my favourite Canadian folk singer, Martin Kerr.

I've been listening to Kerr's music back in Canada for over a decade, but his concerts were usually on the other side of the country, so I've never seen him perform live. Living in the Netherlands now, Munich was just a ten-hour train trip away.

But the small bunker-like setting with the smelly bathroom was making me question our trip. Likewise, the opening act, while certainly talented and entertaining enough, wasn't really my type of music.

But, I must say, when Martin Kerr came on stage, the vibe rose ten notches. His singing is so uplifting and thought-provoking. And his commentary in between each song was both funny and engaging.

The only qualm I had with his performance was that it felt too short, and he seemed too focused on bashing Trump — though, admittedly, most of his Trump jokes were pretty funny — while ignoring the hypocrisy of Trump's predecessors. (Biden, for instance, turned the country into a medical police state, and Obama broke almost every promise he made).

Nonetheless, it was without a doubt one of the best concerts I've ever attended. For a taste of Martin Kerr's folk music, check out these videos on his website.

John C.A. Manley

P.S. Before the concert, I read a passage from my forthcoming novel, COVID Disobedience on the streets of Munich. You can watch it on YouTube, Rumble, X or Bitchute.

John C. A. Manley is the author of Much Ado About Corona, All The Humans Are Sleeping and other works of philosophical fiction that are "so completely engaging that you find yourself alternately laughing, gasping, hanging on for dear life." Get free samples of his stories by becoming a Blazing Pine Cone email subscriber.