Hometown Tales with Crosby Morgan

How many Dark Folk Artists are you into?

It's kind of a new thing for me. So, let's get to know Crosby Morgan a little bit. 

She's preparing to release her latest EP, Rain Games For The Natural Born Pariah. Check it out on BANDCAMP, if ya haven't already.

Morgan currently lives in Los Angeles, but that's not precisely where she lives on our strange, blue marble.

Let's find out everything we can.

1. St. Louis City is my hometown. I've lived here for most of my life in and around the city. Where are you from? 

I am from Los Angeles—but more specifically, I’m from a small country town called Acton, which is about 60 miles northeast of Downtown. 

Lots of horses and dirt bikes and dirt. 

2.We have three things that don't really exist anywhere else: the slinger, the gooey butter cake, and toasted ravioli. Tell me about your hometown delicacy. 

We have three Mexican restaurants with seemingly identical menus—even down to the combo dishes—I believe the number 11 is two enchiladas rancheras with rice and beans for all of the menus… 

but I enjoy Mexican food more than the average person, so it’s an extreme delight to be in such close vicinity to Maria Bonita, Don Chato, and La Cabaña.  

3. In St. Louis, though there have been others. Our biggest hometown team is the St. Louis Cardinals (formerly the St. Louis Perfectos, nee: the St. Louis Browns, not the AL team that moved to Baltimore.) There is nowhere you can go to escape it. I'm a hockey fan, not a baseball fan, so it's a bit weird to me. Tell me about your hometown's big team. 

As a matter of fact, I believe my hometown’s big team is the Republican Party. It’s a bit weird to me, but we all get along on the trails and enjoy our desert sunsets. 

4. St. Louis isn't really known for any one type of music scene. The biggest acts I can think of to get out of here alive were Gravity Kills, Nelly and the St. Lunatics, and Sheryl Crow. There's always been a vibrant concert scene though. What about where you are? 

We have a variety of music here in Acton— there was a Christian rock band that surfaced at our local park while I was jogging once, and there is a reggae band which has been pretty successful I think. 

All very nice people. There’s also myself, and I am working on the folk/ experimental/electronic style. My brother, who I grew up with, is a fantastic experimental black metal artist (Wreche is his project). 

He plays piano with a background in jazz and classical.  

5. 20 years ago, St. Louis had about 300 murders each year, floods, and all sorts of other fun things. You might have heard about us being named the Murder Capital of the USA. Nowadays, a lot here is 150. But there are lots of parts of the city that are returning to former glory. On the whole, St. Louis is a better place to live today than before. Is there any thing like that where you're from? 

Acton has been subjected to the possibility of commercial modernization several times over the years, and this modernization has been vehemently rejected by the community. 

No Vons, just two Acton Markets. No Starbucks, just the good ole Perkin’ Up Coffee House. I don’t know how McDonalds and Jack in the Box got here… but anyway, I really love my hometown because it has been sort of stuck in time in many ways. 

It’s still got a truly old western town vibe and it’s really special in that way. I value its existence now more than I have in my past, so yeah, it’s a better place to live today than before too.

6. Are you still there? 

Heck yeah. (But I’m still trying to get out.) .