Dennis J. Leise whistles a high note and a crowd of turkeys, roosters, chickens, and ducks explodes in shrieks, quacks, and clucks. A 250-pound boar named Hamilton grunts as Leise massages his snout. Rabbits snooze on the side porch. Goats box for position to lap up the dry corn he pours from his hand.

  • The video for “Nobody’s Comin’,” directed by Rob Fitzgerald and Dennis J. Leise

Leise scheduled a release show for State of Fairs last spring at FitzGerald’s, but the pandemic shut it down. On Wednesday, July 14, he has a gig at the Montrose Saloon where he’ll play State of Fairs plus material from The World That You Grew Up in Is No More, an album he’s releasing in installments throughout 2021. The first three songs came out in May, and three more will follow on July 1; he’ll follow that up with two more batches before the end of the year.

Dennis J. Leise Solo set. Wed 7/14, 6 PM, Montrose Saloon, 2933 W. Montrose, free, 21+

Dennis J. Leise Solo set. Fri 7/16, 7 PM, Blue Island Beer Company, 13357 Olde Western, Blue Island, free, 21+

Dennis J. Leise & Tiny Horse Trio Sat 7/24, 1 PM, Martyrs’, 3855 N. Lincoln, free, all ages

Dennis J. Leise & Tiny Horse featuring Gerald Dowd Sun 7/25, 4 PM, FitzGerald’s, 6615 Roosevelt, Berwyn, reservations suggested, free, all ages

Dennis J. Leise Solo set. Sat 7/31, 2 PM, Val’s Halla Records, 239 Harrison, Oak Park, free, all ages

  • Leise released the first three songs from The World That You Grew Up in Is No More in May 2021.

“His humor is always present in the songs, but sometimes that’s not necessarily the point,” says McDonough. “His lyrics are always dead serious, even when they’re trying to get a laugh.”

Today, Leise tends to about 100 animals, a sprawling garden, and an apple orchard. He ends his nights by locking the free-range birds into their pens to protect them from predators, and he starts his mornings by feeding the goats. He makes a living working remotely in quality assurance for a technology company, but he has a brisk side hustle selling eggs in Chicago. (His backing musicians get them free at gigs and sessions.) Word’s gotten around about those savory eggs, and Chef Xiong from Taste of Szechuan in Chinatown has made a trip to check out Leise’s farm.

On a recent Saturday morning, Leise eases back into a lawn chair while dozens of strutting fowl add to the conversation. A few feet away, a baby goat gazes at him like a child at a father. Last September, Leise’s own father died, and because his mother had passed five years before, the family homestead is now being prepared for sale. “I have no interest in going back,” he says.