SUMA SESSIONS WITH
MICHAEL SEIFERT
AND BRADY LORINCE 

Michael Seifert is the current owner of the 14-acre Suma Recording Studio, where legendary sessions have taken place since 1934, producing gold, platinum and historic records such as The Human Beinz’s #8 Nobody But Me, The Outsiders’ #5 Time Won’t Let Me, plus songs that hit #1: The Lemon Pipers’ Green Tambourine, and Wild Cherry’s Play That Funky Music, not to mention music by Grand Funk Railroad, The James Gang, The O’Jays, Frankie Yankovic, Brian Wilson, Pere Ubu, Lenny Kravitz, Michael Stanley, Robert Lockwood, Jr, Guided By Voices, The Black Keys, and more. Seifert took over in 2018 and has produced huge records for bands including Bone Thugs-N- Harmony and many others.

Thomas Mulready of CoolCleveland attended a Suma Session with Michael Seifert producing the 14-year old Cleveland phenom Brady Lorince, as she worked on three or four new songs. In this exclusive interview, Seifert explains how Suma Sessions allows an artist’s supporters to buy a seat right inside the studio as the recording is being made, demystifying the recording process while raising much needed funds for the session.

 LIVING CAR-FREE
IN NORTHEAST OHIO 

Travel author, writer, filmmaker, recipe creator, podcaster Joe Baur lived car-free in Cleveland for four years before traveling the world and now making Berlin his base — and it was a lot easier than you’d think.

Based first in Downtown and then Ohio City, he walked to Dave’s Market and the West Side Market, ran the Towpath Trail along the Cuyahoga River, and caught the Red Line whenever he needed to get out of the neighborhood, “which frankly wasn’t very often because I had everything I needed within a short walk from home,” says Baur.

 LESSONS ABOUT WATER FROM THE NETHERLANDS 

Centuries before Florida started its inexorable descent into the ocean, The Netherlands, much of which is below sea level, was dealing with the same problem. Unlike Florida, they addressed it.

CoolCleveland writer Claudia J. Taller recently had the chance to travel to “the lowlands,” and observed the ways in which they fought back against the sea successfully.  “As climate change increases sea levels and coastlines become threatened, the country that has always dealt with too much water can be a source of inspiration and a model of innovation for the rest of the world,” she suggests.

 XCSB OFFERS A PROGRESS REPORT 

You may recall that XCSB, the new incarnation of the former CSU college radio station WCSB, which was summarily thrown off the air by the university last October, promised that they would be opening their new studio in the Waterloo Arts District in early May. That didn’t quite happen but it’s in the works — and they have an update!

 ZOO’S ASIAN LANTERN FESTIVAL RETURNS IN JULY 

Because of course it is. The lighted displays scattered around the grounds of the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo are magical, especially after dark. This year they’ve added some features, including interactive pedal- and crank-operated displays, and a K-Pop Dance Party featuring dance lessons and games.