Sam Kenny has a face you may recognize. When he's not pursuing his solo career, he can be found jamming onstage with Grand Rapids rock veterans Domestic Problems, hosting an open mic night at Putt Putt's bar on Fulton Street or maybe even playing to a group of drinkers and diners at Applebee's. But if you've seen Kenny's live performance — a visceral folk show that involves leaping, ducking, kicking and shouting, no matter the venue — he's not a face you'll forget.

Currently, Kenny is in production with Mike Kirkpatrick for his 14-track sophomore album, World War I.  While not "technically" a concept album, Kenny felt that the album definitely had ties to an early 1900s world.

"There were some songs that seemed to fit the turn-of-the-century era," Kenny said. "There were some that mentioned war, and some that — when put on an album titled World War I — just seemed to lean the right way."

The title itself came from a poem Kenny had written about gassings during the First World War, which he'd read about in the book World War I by S.L.A. Marshall.  He was in the middle of writing the title track, for which he had a chorus but no verses, when he realized the poem would fit.

This time around, his producer played a very large role, Kenny said. He went as far as to create a 20-track demo and let Kirkpatrick decide which songs would make the final cut.

"I wanted [Kirkpatrick] to like the songs he was working on. I've heard stuff that producers work on that they obviously don't like and it doesn't sound as good. But he picked 14."

In addition to his song selection, Kirkpatrick will be loaning Kenny his musicianship, alongside several other local musical celebrities, including Karisa Wilson, Russell Gorton, several members of A Thousand Plateaus and Eastern Blok drummer Mike Caskey.