www.tomroznowski.net www.spencerstavern.com

After a lifetime in Indiana and 450 episodes of the radio show Hometown, singer/songwriter Tom Roznowski figures he’s got a pretty good handle on the state.

“I think it’s a fascinating place to write about without becoming too provincial about it,” Roznowski says. “I’ve lived here all my life, so I think I come by it honestly. Indiana is a junction between the rural and the urban — the crossroads of America — and in the last century, the lines between rural and urban have blurred.”

Roznowski and his band, the Living Daylights, perform a hybrid form of music, incorporating a variety of styles ranging from rock to bluegrass and country — Americana, roots music. Just don’t call it nostalgia; Roznowski takes it more seriously than that. Indeed, his lyrics cover everything from down-home stories to the jailing of Eugene Debs.

“I don’t pander in nostalgia,” he says. “I think it’s a shallow interpretation of the past. Real life is both good and bad, beautiful and ugly.”

The venue for this show also fits into his hopes for finding spaces with a sense of tradition.

“Spencer Valentine’s doing a great job trying to create a new venue there — a great place to play Americana,” Roznowski says. “The place has been a neighborhood bar since 1933. I hope we can make it a semi-regular thing.”