Indomitable Heart: Why Micah Schnabel’s Music Is More Important Than Ever

Stolen equipment. A disappearing album. Years on the road. Through his journey, Micah Schnabel’s powerful blend of wisdom and fury has made him one of music’s most urgent voices.

Marc Oakley
The Riff

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Singer and songwriter Micah Schnabel

Listening to Micah Schnabel’s music is like getting punched and hugged at the same time. And like a cracking levee holding back a lifetime marked by both bitter rejection and heartfelt connection, Micah Schnabel’s live performances are visceral avalanches of unbridled emotion.

While some artists favor a calculated slow-boil approach to their live sets, Schnabel’s runaway-train style comes naturally. “It’s like a therapy session for me. I’ve found that that’s where I’m the most comfortable writing, that’s where my voice is, that’s when I feel the best about myself,” Schnabel says.

Raw, vulnerable and honest, Schnabel’s body of work deftly calls out the roots of American divisiveness: greed, sexism, capitalism, racism. On his newest album, The Teenage Years of the 21st Century, his signature spitfire delivery of society’s ills is unmistakable, razor-sharp and impossible to ignore.

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Marc Oakley
The Riff

Shepherd of words. Wrangler of turds. Toddler survivor. Writer for #The Ascent and #The Riff. Ambassador of Hope at THE WALLOBOOKS PROJECT. marcoakley.com