WAIM #101: Chuck Marshall from 'Life In Michigan'

Chuck Marshall got a Yashica 35m film camera as a gift from his parents and began to tinker with it through his teenage years. Slowly, he developed an eye and a budding talent for photography, until he was 17 and the guitar came calling. Ditching the camera, Chuck dove headlong into learning the guitar inside and out. He longed to play with technical proficiency, speed, and style. He drove his siblings nuts as he painstakingly learned the intricate riffs layered within his favorite records by bands like Rush. For the next 15 years, Chuck and his band Battalion, workshopped songs, honed their chops, and played the Midwestern metal circuit. Sadly, many of Chuck’s bandmates were not as committed to the project as he was. As he threw himself into taking the band to the next level, his bandmates prioritized more time for jobs and families. Eventually, tendonitis caught up with Chuck’s maniacal practice schedule and he was forced to put the guitar down for the next several years. It was at this moment that Chuck picked up his old camera and immersed himself back into the visual arts. He began travelling around the state and eventually the country, taking his camera to capture the action along the way. A few years after shelving his guitar, Chuck met his wife Brenda Marshall who helped Chuck incorporate his travel work and photography into her existing blog. The resulting project, Life In Michigan features the couple sharing their adventures in Michigan and beyond. Chuck and I discuss the prospect of working creatively with your partner. He and Brenda seem to work together seamlessly, which comes from their shared passion for travel and a deep respect in each other’s work. The couple even recently completed a massive 23 day tour of Ireland together and chronicled all of their adventures on their Substack. We talk about bringing the buzz of travel back home, the unheralded architecture of the Motor City, and Chuck even divulges the best places to get a pint in the great state of Michigan. Let’s take a trip across the world and back with Chuck Marshall. Cheers,Matty C Get full access to What Am I Making at whatamimaking.substack.com/subscribe