Welcome to Scummy Water Tower.
So, what’s with the odd name?
The name is a lyric The Replacements’ Paul Westerberg sings in the demo version of “Can’t Hardly Wait,” which was recorded during the sessions for the band’s 1985 album Tim. We’re big Replacements fans and thought it would be a great fit with our Midwestern roots and the abundance of water towers where we live. We also enjoy uncovering the stories behind people and places and celebrating diverse histories and culture.
Water towers are structures that most of us probably don’t think about often, but they’re structures that proudly wear the name of the town or city where they’re located. Each town or city’s tower Is unique. Some water towers have had plenty of wear and tear over the years, but they remain steadfast, standing. They’re a structure that can be identifying of a place.
About the Site
Scummy Water Tower is a music and entertainment-based website started in 2023 by longtime friends (and frequent concert goers) Joshua M. Miller and Alex M Theel. The site features artist essays, interviews, reviews, video performance sessions aka “Water Tower Sessions”, premieres, and more, featuring artists around the U.S. and world. We’re based in the Midwest so don’t be surprised to see a decent amount of Midwestern love. Right now, we primarily cover music but plan to expand to cover various corners of entertainment and culture as the site grows and evolves.
When it comes to music and entertainment, there are a plethora of options to choose from. So much so that it might be easy to get lost and miss something. Here at Scummy Water Tower, we strive to get on top of the proverbial scummy water tower to point you to sounds and sights that shouldn’t be missed. Our goal is to advocate for good music regardless of genre and region in the world, to help uncover some gems and diamonds in the rough that you might have missed and to find a new angle on a performer you might already be familiar with.
At Scummy Water Tower, we’ll always try to rise above the tide. We’re committed to sharing with you the best of music and entertainment. Thank you as always for your support.”
A Little Bit About Our Co-Founders
Joshua M. Miller (Twitter | Facebook) is a longtime freelance writer who has been writing since 2009. He has an avid curiosity to discover gems in music and entertainment, something that his late father turned him onto. He’s freelanced for a variety of newspapers, magazines, and websites, including: Rolling Stone, The Boston Globe, Chicago Sun-Times, Guitar World, MTV News, Grammy.com, Chicago Magazine, Milwaukee Magazine, MKE Lifestyle, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, A.V. Club, SPIN, Alternative Press, Under the Radar, Paste, PopMatters, American Songwriter, and Relix. You can find his writing at www.joshuamichaelmiller.com. Over the years, getting press releases and writing about artists in a variety of genres and family and friends have helped make his tastes more eclectic.
Alex M Theel is not a long time freelance writer, but rather has a background in business management with a good sense of design, ideas, execution and a way with words. He’s known Josh for decades, and seeing his writing develop has been exciting to witness. Alex is excited that he and Josh are finally making this idea come to fruition. He got Josh into the Replacements (and a few other bands) back when Alex’s record collection was getting a bit too expensive and extensive for his living space at the time (coincidently Josh’s collection is rather large). He had to create a wood cabinet to fit all the vinyl. You may see him write pieces on the site from time to time, and you’ll see his writing voice is different than Josh’s but complementary.
Special thanks to our families and friends for the constant inspiration and for our friend Casey Cebulski for designing our logo.