Justin Howl plays July 11 at Barley Brown’s taphouse in Baker City. (Gene Fojtik/Contributed Photo)

The show is Friday, July 11

BAKER CITY — Justin Howl is always on the road, and this month he’s bringing his music to Baker City.

His show is Friday, July 11, starting at 6 p.m. at Barley Brown’s taphouse, 2200 Main St. The show is for ages 21 and older.

He’s based out of Chicago, but he’s rarely in that city.

“I work full time on the road these days,” he said.

He spends winter in the southeastern United States, then heads northeast for spring, the north and northwest for summer, down the West Coast in late summer, then across the southwest in the fall.

“Then I do it all over again,” Howl said. “I travel with the seasons.”

His foray into music started in college, specifically when he was a grad student studying literature at the University of Chicago.

“I was looking for something to do as a break from my studies, so I bought a guitar,” he said.

Then he bought a harmonica, started singing, and signed up for an open mic.

“I started going back every week — and eventually started running that open mic,” he said.

Howl discovered fellow students who played instruments, and soon they started recording and playing shows.

“One by one, the bandmates finished their degrees and moved out of town,” he said.

He finished in 2016 and decided he wanted to play music outside of Chicago, so he hit the road for New Orleans.

“After the first night, I thought, “I could make a living at this.’”

He toured for two to three months at a time, then changed to touring full-time about three years ago.

“After the pandemic, I’d had enough of staying in one place,” he said.

His music style is blues and Americana, “with a heavy emphasis on the blues,” with influences from Muddy Waters, RL Burnside and Mississippi Fred McDowell.

“Chicago blues with a heavy dose of Mississippi hill country blues,” he said.