John Swardson at Utepils Brewing

A Minneapolis-based musician, John Swardson grew up in St. Paul listening to Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, U2, Springsteen, Husker Du, and Van Halen. Influenced by parents who were writers and readers, John taught himself to play the guitar, singing his own songs. With four full-length records under his belt— Ablaze, Silver Dust (John Swardson and Get Gone), Dogs in the Woods (Get Gone), and Blood Moon (John Swardson and Bad Blood)—John is steadily gaining momentum as a prominent artist and songwriter within and beyond the Twin Cities music scene.