Hard-hitting tales of the wandering player
This modern American roots artist following in the footsteps of Townes Van Zandt, John Prine, Bob Dylan and Guy Clark started young.
Still a teenager when his song Love and Misery was a radio hit, he saw his music introduced to listeners throughout USA. Subsequently he spent a decade on the road, packing an acoustic guitar and a fishing rod.
His fourth album in five years, Making A Livin’ (Not a Killin’) (2025) tells of the life of a travelling musician. That life took him a long way, far from his chosen home in Nashville. Both the album's solo songs and the recordings with a full band tell hard-hitting tales of the wandering player who is all too familiar with the victories and heartbreaks met along the way. You could say Leon Majcen's peregrinations began in infancy, when his Bosniac parents sought refuge in Florida, determined to set up a better life for their children. And Making A Livin’ (Not a Killin’) is his most honest album so far.
That album is also an artisitic milestone. For years, Leon Majcen felt most at ease just him and his acoustic guitar. But Making A Livin’ (Not a Killin’), with multi-instrumentalist Pat Lyon as producer, has a bigger, more layered sound. Pat Lyon is known for his work with americana stars like Colter Wall, but for Leon Majcen, he is more than that. During Leon Majcen's first years in Nashville, when he was struggling to finance his songwriting with ordinary jobs, Pat Lyon became his mentor. He it was who encouraged Leon Majcen to take on the troubadour life and devote himself to the clubs, the highway and songwriting. Now that is how Leon Majcen makes his living - and it's going quite well, thank you.
At Tønder Festival Leon Majcen will perform with his band, and this is his only appearance in Denmark in 2026.
