By Ellan Kline
PORTLAND, ME— Joining a growing national trend, local barista Janet Monroe has joined a band in order to support her career in specialty coffee.
“I live, breathe, and dream coffee, but my dad was right when he told me that coffee would never pay the mortgage,” Monroe says. “One day, I was closing and talking with my coworker about how they’ve joined a band in order to pay the bills and work around their cafe schedule, and I was like, ‘I’ve always liked music, I guess. Maybe I should try this, too!’ I mean, my parents listened to music when I was a kid, and I have a First Act guitar, so why not, right? I don’t have a mortgage, but I do have rent, and working in a cafe just doesn’t pay enough, even though I love it.”
At the time of publishing, Monroe’s band, Hodgepodge, has played at local favorite, The Cellar, and is planning on another show in a month or two. “We’ll also be releasing a demo on Spotify soon. It’s kind of shoegaze-y in a grungy, bedroom pop kind of way. Give it a listen! Those plays pay for my food!”
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Ellan Ruth Kline teaches people how to make coffee more good. She enjoys long walks, scratches behind the ear, and belly rubs. You can find her poetry in Dirt Child and her music as Mills Goudy in Coffee People Zine, bandcamp, and Spotify.
