10 Items or Fewer
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10orfewer.bsky.social
10 Items or Fewer
@10orfewer.bsky.social
10 Items or Fewer: Music by Mike Hallenbeck & co, dipping post-skiffle X-treme indie folk in the depths of flyover country and psychedelia w/ lyrics about dinosaurs, mammoths, Evel Kneivel, Star Wars, and a crashed Russian space station. 10itemsorfewer.com
A new album is taking shape track by track over at my studio @coolcataudio.bsky.social. We’ll be releasing new music and playing more shows in 2026, so stay tuned!

Photo: Aaron Fiskradatz

November 12, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Above: a photo of our recent show at the 331 Club in Minneapolis. Personnel: Jon Duncan, keys and accordion; Rhiannon Fitzkradatz, harmony vocals; Dan Gaarder, electric guitar; Mike Cougar Hallenbeck, acoustic guitar and vocals; Keely Lane, drums; and Matt Regan, bass guitar. <more>
November 12, 2025 at 2:56 PM
It's a tiny virtual Gilligan's Island, right here inside my phone. Or perhaps my phone was having a dream on my behalf, I'm not sure.
October 31, 2025 at 2:37 PM
It was a pleasure once again to witness Eric’s songcraft, and the accompanying stories woven in and around them. John Timothy Saunders joined Eric on some sweet sax for a few numbers.

Make sure to check out Eric’s latest rekkid “Second Husband”!

Photos by Pope Kate Blanchard and yours truly.
October 21, 2025 at 2:37 PM
The songs have gelled in this more minimal arrangement, and– crucially in these close quarters– my deodorant held up great. Come and check out Minneapolis’ least olfactorily objectionable vocal/ guitar trio early on a.Sunday night!
October 18, 2025 at 10:57 PM
Eric Ziegenhagen with 10 Items or Fewer, Sunday Rocktober 19th, Bryant Lake Bowl Theater, 7 pm. Tickets: www.bryantlakebowl.com/theater/eric...
Bryant Lake Bowl Theater
Eric Ziegenhagen returns to the Bryant Lake Bowl and the old country for the first time in forever, bringing evocative songs played on a four-string guitar that land somewhere familiar and dream-like ...
www.bryantlakebowl.com
October 16, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Tickets to Eric Ziegenhagen and 10 Items or Fewer at Bryant Lake Bowl on 10/19 at 7 pm: www.bryantlakebowl.com/theater/eric...
Bryant Lake Bowl Theater
Eric Ziegenhagen returns to the Bryant Lake Bowl and the old country for the first time in forever, bringing evocative songs played on a four-string guitar that land somewhere familiar and dream-like ...
www.bryantlakebowl.com
October 10, 2025 at 2:19 PM
But I don’t think Thoreau knew how much fun it is to also play with a rhythm section + keys, which might be why when people talk about “Walden”, u don’t hear them list the awesome drum solos as a standout feature. I do list photos by @pablojones.bsky.social as a standout feature here, though.
October 10, 2025 at 2:19 PM
When Thoreau said “Simplify, simplify simplify”, I think he was referring to the practice of experimenting with quasi-acoustic renditions of songs that usually feature a rhythm section and keys. <more>
October 10, 2025 at 2:19 PM
“The Fossil Record” by 10 Items or Fewer: 10itemsorfewer.bandcamp.com/album/the-fo...
The Fossil Record, by 10 Items or Fewer
13 track album
10itemsorfewer.bandcamp.com
October 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM
“Second Husband” by Eric Ziegenhagen: ericziegenhagen.bandcamp.com/album/second...
Second Husband, by Eric Ziegenhagen
10 track album
ericziegenhagen.bandcamp.com
October 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM
branching out into assorted arrangement strategies that envelop country, rock, bluegrass, and synth pop– plus the occasional descent into maelstroms of warbling synths, field recordings, and variously sculpted noise. Links to both Bandcamp releases in the comments! <more>
October 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM
trying unsuccessfully to banish someone from your thoughts, and a post-apocalyptic world where cockroaches dream up mythic creatures with only two arms and legs apiece. The music proceeds from a template of acoustic guitar and vocals... <more>
October 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM
On 10 Items or Fewer’s “The Fossil Record”, the lyrics meander through topics like having lunch with your ex, the crash of the Russian Space Station Mir, dinosaurs, wooly mammoths, the frustration of staying the same when a friend has changed, ants in amber, Star Wars... <more>
October 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM
...in which the characters dodge monsters and love each other in the same kind of dreamy haze.” <more>
October 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM
...wanting to make something that matched that specific week, that place, that time of year, that moment in life. The Chicago Reader has described Ziegenhagen’s lyrics as “a sort of atmospheric poetry of extremity... <more>
October 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM