W♥M

06/17/2025

Jax: July 14 to July 19, 2025

06/16/2025

Sleigh Bells at Fine Line, Minneapolis (June 14, 2025)

Sleigh Bells at Fine Line (Jun 14, 2025)

Sleigh Bells Setlist

Intro/Badly
Infinity Guitars
Justine Go Genesis
Wanna Start a Band?
Riot Rhythm
Bunky Pop
Kids
Locust Laced
Comeback Kid
SWEET75
A/B Machines
I Can Only Stare
Bitter Rivals
This Summer
Rill Rill

-- Encore --
Pulse Drips Quiet
Crown on the Ground

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Sleigh Bells

Alexis Krauss and Derek Miller are Sleigh Bells, and they are finally back after taking a small break. Last night was only their fourth show in the past two years but it felt .…

I went early to the Fine Line for I knew it was going to be a rambunctious sold-out show with its high-energy headliner and epileptic-inducing light show.

Sophie Hunter opened up the evening to a surging crowd. Not to be confused with Benedict Cumberbatch’s wife, the Sophie Hunter that took the stage was from Brooklyn and may have the shortest and best bio I have read on the First Ave website: ctrl_alt+pop+rap.

The bio may be brief, but Hunter let loose a stream of rapid-fire lyrics, part poetry-slam, part rap, backed by a raucous guitar and torrential bass that I swear kept changing the settings on my camera.

Although new to the music scene and visiting the Twin Cities for the first time, Hunter had many fans in the crowd. In fact, the first lady in line to get into the venue was front and center in the first row to see Hunter rip through “Cha Cha”, a song Hunter says is about being hospitalized against her will.

The fans had no problem keeping up with Hunter’s songs, but I felt three blocks behind. Still, I did catch a great lick here and there like from “Bionicle”:

She's a ponytail
Baby I'm Seabiscuit
She's got all the sauce of a
Four-cheese Triscuit

And

Don't worry darling
Shakespeare was a woman and
That woman is Jack Harlow
Just kidding it's me and
This line is sponsored by Target

The hilarious, saucy rhymes kept flowing with a new song “Tenfold” and “2 Shots of Patron”, a song in which the lady who was front and center handed Hunter a mini-size bottle of tequila.

By the time Sleigh Bells took the stage, there was not an inch on the main floor that did not have a fan. And the duo of Alexis Krauss on vocals and Derek E. Miller on guitar, backed by keys and drums, did not disappoint as they kicked the music into a frenetic overdrive with songs like “Infinity Guitars”, “Justine Go Genesis” and their origin story “Wanna Start a Band?” from their latest album Bunky Becky Birthday Boy.

Sleigh Bells at Fine Line (Sep 3, 2016)

We last saw Sleigh Bells at the Fine Line Sept, 2016 writing:

Sleigh Bells is known for their unique sound and high-energy shows. They played to a full house on Saturday night at the Fine Line Music Café in Minneapolis and proved that nothing has changed. Their songs are upbeat and powerful. They mix elements of punk rock with indie-pop and almost electronic beats.

Sleigh Bells have not slowed down as Krauss and Miller were already saturated with pools of sweat by the time a fan in the audience made an unusual request by holding up his phone with two words illuminating “Riot Rhythm”.

And so Sleigh Bells played the song until the light show began to glitch and they momentarily stopped until Krauss forcefully chimed, “Do not worry about the lights if it f*cks with the other sh*t.”

And so the band continued while the technicians raced to keep up. After all, there was no stopping them as they played the hyper-kinetic “Bunky Pop”, a song that is dedicated to the point of view man’s best friend. As Miller told Flood Magazine:

“So, what’s a dog like? They can be destructive, but not in a sinister way. They come into the room and chew your shoes up. Maybe they sh*t on the floor, but you still love them. Dogs are hyper enthusiastic.”

Then a brief reprieve as Krauss tried to catch her breath after expending the energy required for two hours of a jazzercise class. “We’ve spent two days in Minneapolis,” she gasped between breaths. She said she found some great places to eat and even went to the library. As a new mother she is on the lookout for new books and dedicated the next song “Kids” to all the new parents.

But they were not done after kids as they ripped through the rest of their set like it was five minutes, only slowing (briefly) down for the effervescent “Rill Rill” in which Krause made her way to sing in the middle of the crowd.

Sophie Hunter

Sleigh Bells	Sleigh Bells
Sleigh Bells	Sleigh Bells

Sleigh Bells

Sleigh Bells at Fine Line, Minneapolis (June 14, 2025)

dave ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Posted at 10:45 PM in Dave, Minneapolis, Sleigh Bells | Permalink | Comments (0)

Stone Arch Bridge Festival, Minneapolis (June 14, 2025)

Stone Arch Bridge Festival (June 14-15, 2025)

Saturday, June 14

Star Tribune Stage

Sawtooth Witch

Smokin Joe

Unattractive Giant Monster

ELOUR

Chad Atkins

Pullstring

The Right Here

Leslie Rich and Rocket Soul Choir

Cities 97.1 Stage

Amanda Brown Perry

Eli Gardiner

Leslie Vincent

Third Date

Scott Allen and the List

Betty Won’t

Danger Pins

The Walker Brothers

Sunday, June 15

Star Tribune Stage

Sawyer’s Dream

Zoey Says Go

Couch Potato Massacre

Radiator Girl

Willows

Burning Blue Rain

Cities 97.1 Stage

DGS

Zachary Scott Johnson

Quantum Mechanics

Dan Israel

John Magnuson Trio

Shug E

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Stone Arch Bridge Festival

Later in June, on the weekend of the 14-15th, is the Stone Arch Bridge Festival in Minneapolis. They’ve yet to announce the music acts, but you can find out more at stonearchbridgefestival.com as they update soon. …

Since we were going to be in downtown Minneapolis to see Sleigh Bells at the Fine Line, we came a few hours early to stroll through the Stone Arch Bridge Festival, a festival that is in its 31st year, a festival ranked #16 in Sunshine Artist Best of 2024. (The Minnehaha Falls Art Fair ranked #5).

I can understand the high ranking for both art festivals, due to the location of the events. The Stone Arch Bridge Festival starts from one end at Gold Medal Park and meanders along West River Parkway past the Guthrie Theater, Mill City Museum, the Stone Arch Bridge (currently close and under construction), then past the imposing buildings of the United States Postal Service and Federal Reserve, and finally a quiet stretch along the Mississippi River crossing under the Nicollet Island Silver Railroad Bridge and ending at 4th Avenue.

Cactus Blossoms at Grand Old Day (June 1, 2025)

The festival wasn’t nearly as long and as grand as Grand Old Day in St. Paul, but by its location it offered more unique places along the river to drink a cold beer from Pyres Brewing Company or a hot coffee due to the cooler, damp weather that settled in for the weekend. (The saddest person I saw at the festival was the food vendor trying to sell sno-cones.)

Like Grand Old Day, there were music acts. But unlike Grand Old Day, the two music venues were almost on opposite ends of the Parkway, which made for long strolls through the pockets of vendor booths selling everything from oil paintings, woodworking and landscape photography to other curios like a booth solely dedicated to taxidermized insects.

I accumulated plenty of steps. So, it was nice to sit among the ruins at the entrance of the Stone Arch Bridge at the Star Tribune Stage or at a mini amphitheater along the Mississippi at the Cities 97 Stage. The bands I briefly caught along the way:

The Right Here, a young group of musicians, describing themselves as a “jang-a-lang-a-lang band from Minneapolis” Their rockabilly meets punk sound echoing through the crowd and surrounding ruins of the mills.

Danger Pins, also from Minneapolis. Looking like a rock band. Playing like a rock band. Their sound a perfect mix of laid-back psychedelic rock drifting along with the Mississippi which flowed behind them.

The Walker Brothers minus one brother, so Joseph had to pick up another guitarist while Jay attended another gig. Still a nice, easy sound of R&B and soul swimming with the world beat of Joseph's South American upbringing.

Leslie Rich and the Rocket Soul Choir, a Belfast singer/songwriter residing in Minneapolis. Due to the distance between venues, I only caught the last two songs and wished I had been there for more as the summer sun began to fade behind the looming clouds and oncoming drizzle, a setting not unlike the one usually found in Rich’s hometown.

1 / 16

The Walker Brothers at Stone Arch Bridge Festival (June 14, 2025)

dave ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Posted at 05:26 PM in Art, Dave, Festivals, Minneapolis, Music, Music Festival, Sleigh Bells, Stone Arch Bridge Festival | Permalink | Comments (0)

Softcult at Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville (June 15, 2025)

Softcult at Jack Rabbits (15 June 2025)

Softcult Setlist

Drain
Pill to Swallow
One Of The Pack
Perfect Blue
Someone2Me
Love Song
Heaven
Uzumaki
Haunt You Still
Gloomy Girl
Take It Off
House of Mirrors
Spit It Out

she’s green Setlist

Graze
Willow
Purple
Paper
Figurines
smile again
bleed
Mandy

Dark Spring Setlist

The Scene (Jazz)
Pretty People
Drown
Kitty Kitty Bang Bang
Your Resolution
Suspension

Tour Dates

06/17 - Local 506 - Chapel Hill, NC

06/18 - Black Cat - Washington, D.C.

06/19 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY

06/21 - The Foundry - Philadelphia, PA

06/22 - The Middle East - Cambridge, MA

Read More

Softcult

Canadian grunge and shoegaze band Softcult (twin sisters Phoenix and Mercedes Arn-Horn) will be headlining Jack Rabbits, in Jacksonville, on June 15. .…

she's green

Local shoegazing band she’s green, featuring Zofia on vocals, Teddy on bass, Liam on guitars, Raines on guitars, and Kevin on drums, opened the show. Although .…

Canadian grunge and shoegaze band Softcult (twin sisters Phoenix and Mercedes Arn-Horn), played to a very young crowd at Jack Rabbits, in Jacksonville, Florida, on Father’s Day, June 15th.

There was already a lineup outside the venue when I got in line. The crowd was young, dark, goth, edgy… but surprisingly some older fans too. I made the mistake that they were all chaperoning, but they were just fans of Softcult. There were a pair of young women who were there strictly for she’s green, so overall, this was a great turnout for Sunday, especially on a ‘holiday’.

Opening up the show was local band Dark Spring (not to be confused with Cleveland’s Dark Spring), celebrating their one-year anniversary playing live. The group played mostly from their new EP Ivylena, which came out in May 2025. With one exception, “Your Resolution” is taken from their debut release The Cardboard Buildings (November 2024).

The band is very young, led by guitarist/singer Kennedy, with keyboardist Isaac, drummer Seamus, guitarist Kadedynn, and bassist Jason. There was a role change, as Jason took over drumming for Seamus to take the lead vocals on the song that he wrote, “Pretty People.”

I spoke with the band after, and they mentioned their gig at The Walrus (which, by the way, is hosting Quintron, minus Miss Pussycat, on June 19) was pretty awesome, especially with the fog machine and mood lighting. Looking at their photos on their phones, it does look more dramatic vs Jack Rabbits, which showed a black and white movie, projected on the background throughout all the bands that played.

Next up was Minneapolis’ she’s green, with singer Zofia Smith, guitarist Liam Armstrong, guitarist Raines Lucas, bassist Teddy Nordvold, and drummer Kevin Seebeck.

she's green at Turf Club (Sep 29, 2023)

Since W♥M is mostly based in Minneapolis, we’ve seen our local band a few times, in Jan 2025 (with Frank Black), March 2024 (with Glixen), and Sep 2023 (with Jesse Jo Stark). We didn’t see them in Jan 2022 on account that I go into Winter Hibernation.

All this is to say that we like the band and have been keeping an eye and ear on the band since they formed. Most recently, I was happy to see that she’s green signed a record deal with New York City’s Photo Finish Records. Legends has it, that Shane Friedman, the A&R of Photo Finish, was in Minneapolis to scout talents and happened to see she’s green play a house party (in a basement) in June 2024, and instantly wanted to sign the band after seeing them “hypnotize the entire crowd.”

Shortly after, she’s green went on their first tour with Glixen, and now on their second tour, with Softcult.

For this tour, the band played quite a few new songs, starting with their new single “Graze”, which kicked off their set. They kept their biggest hit, “smile again” on the set, playing it close to the end. The crowd seemed to really dig “bleed”, which could have been a great song to end their set.

she’s green said that this was their first time playing Jacksonville. They have left a good impression, as I noticed a few people rushing to buy their vinyl after they played their set. I talked to the guy next to me, Robert, before she’s green came on stage and he said he’s never heard of the band. I may have hyped them up a little, as Robert was one of the first people in line to buy the she’s green record. It was great to see local (Minneapolis) bands doing good.

Softcult closed out the show. The twin sisters Phoenix and Mercedes Arn-Horn originally formed pop/punk band Courage My Love in 2009 (we mentioned the band was part of Canadian Blast in 2013), but broke up the band after they felt their record label was stifling their creativity. Shortly after breaking up the band, the sisters formed Softcult in 2020, with a debut single “Another Bish” in January 2021.

The band’s recent EP Heaven came out May 2024, which is building up to their debut album, in 2025. We’ve already got a sneak preview with their single “Pill to Swallow” (the second song on their set), from the forthcoming new album.

Although people describe the band as ‘grunge’, I find that they lean closer to DIY Riot Grrrls with their stance on women’s rights and anger towards the establishments. I can see them fitting right in with Joan Jett, Bikini Kill, and Pussy Riot. It’s good to see that their message through their music is inspiring a new generation of fans.

Dark Spring

Dark Spring (Seamus)

she’s green

Softcult (Mercedes)

Softcult (Phoenix)

Softcult

Softcult at Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville (June 15, 2025)

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Posted at 08:41 AM in Canada, Canadian Blast, Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville, Quintron, She's Green, Shoegazing, Softcult | Permalink | Comments (0)

06/15/2025

Mpls: July 12 to July 14, 2025

Julia Wolf at Turf Club, St Paul (June 14, 2025)

Julia Wolf at Turf Club (June 14, 2025)

Julia Wolf Setlist

Loser
FYP
Kill You Off
Hydra
Last Summer
Pearl
Wishbone
Burning House
FOR THE GIRLS
Limewire
Hoops
Life Is a Storm
Sunshine State
Jennifer's Body
You've Lost A Lot of Blood
In My Room

Worry Club Setlist

Nothin
I Suck
DEDBODY
DEATHBLOW
BORED
In My Ear
little f**ker
Anything Else
Same Name

Schedule

Turf Club, St Paul

8:00pm
Ellis
----

8:45pm
Worry Club
----

9:30pm
Julia Wolf

Tour Dates

June 15 -- Cobra Lounge -- Chicago, IL

June 16 -- A&R Music Bar -- Columbus, OH

June 17 -- Velvet Underground -- Toronto, ON

June 19 -- Brighton Music Hall -- Boston, MA

June 20 -- AMH -- Long Island, NY

June 21 -- Atlantis -- Washington, DC

June 22 -- Motorco -- Raleigh, NC

June 24 -- Radio Room -- Greenville, SC

June 25 -- The Loft -- Atlanta, GA

June 26 -- Basement East -- Nashville, TN

Previously: Julia Wolf at Fine Line

New York’s Julia Wolf (aka WOLF), opened the show. We last mentioned that she released her debut EP Girls In Purgatory… so most of the songs played were taken from the debut, including “Falling In Love” and “In My Way”.

She also had some new songs that haven’t been released yet. One of those songs, which I’ll call “Get Off My D**k” (based on a partial setlist that she released on her Facebook page), was written after being stood up from a record label. Let me explain, you see, a major label expressed interest in her music, so they scheduled a meeting with her in person, in Los Angeles. When the day of the meeting came, Julia Wolf waited and waited, and realized the label wasn’t going to show up. She never explained what happened, but I just got the impression that the label just forgot about it or something. I guess something good came out of it, we got a song out of it.

[ Continue Reading Julia Wolf at Fine Line (April 2, 2022) ]

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Julia Wolf

Italian-American indie-pop artist from Queens, NY, Julia Wolf (aka WOLF) released “RBF: Part 1,” an exclusive Spotify Singles track as a part of the platform’s first-ever Fresh Finds program. ...

On an unseasonably cool evening in St. Paul, it was very warm in the Turf Club, for a night of indie rock & pop headlined by Julia Wolf.

The first opener was Canadian singer & songwriter Ellis. Having opened for bands such as Soccer Mommy, Ellis (full name: Linnea Siggelkow) has released two albums, including 2024’s No Place That Feels Like. The band came out as a trio (vocals/guitar, bass, and drums/programmed music). Ellis was kneeling on stage right before the start, but a technical glitch held them off their start for a few minutes, with a resulting grimace from Ellis. But soon enough, they were off and running with a quieter intro song. Then she grabbed a guitar and the next number was significantly louder and livelier. This was very much a dream pop sound, with the vocals modulated by reverb/echo effect. Backup vocals from the bassist and drummer were a nice layering, and there was a lot of musical overlay, and though it was hard to tell how much was the programmed music, it helped create an ethereal tone to their music.

A bit of welcoming banter followed (including a, “We’re from Hamilton, Ontario”) before they dug back into the music. There was a good amount of fan engagement from the start, with the crowd pressing up to the stage (not always the case at Turf Club). There were a couple of moments where those vocal mic effects nearly muted the lead singer. The next song was “going to be a little mossier” and got nearly all the lights turned off, largely silhouetting the band. It included a frenzied mid-song solo, with a particularly strong showing for the drummer. The bassist was busy with pedal work prior to another intense musical section. The band was certainly working hard in the bridge before inevitably dropping back to that dreamy pop sound to end things. That cycle was repeated through the next several songs, creating a certain roller coaster feel to the set, with that repeated build and release. Ending with the song Home, we had the drummer take guitar duties and the bassist take drums, with the lead singer headed out into the audience. It was an excellent finish to a fun opening set.

Chicago-based indie punk pop band Worry Club was up next. Chase Walsh, the creative center of the band, has mostly focused on releasing singles, and several EPs, including 2023’s All Frogs Go to Heaven. That punk label was obvious from the jump, with the opener Nothin being an absolute beast. The quartet (guitar/vocals, guitar, bass/backup vocals, and drums) came out hot and it looked like they were determined to keep the energy bar at maximum (evidenced by the lead singer losing his hat in the second song and never looking back).

Dedbody had a great guitar riff underneath and it felt like the vocals were driving things forward. The lead singer was all over the stage any time he wasn’t singing at the microphone, and was the ringleader to the high energy antics. A bit of banter for a certain President’s birthday was pretty hysterical. Those fantastic guitar licks kept things moving at an almost unbearable pace, but the band was able to maintain it (this was not a case of youth being wasted on the youth). In My Ear was more upbeat (not sure how that was possible), with a brighter tone and an audience-taught choral section to end the number. An as yet unreleased song followed and was perhaps their slowest of the evening. It helped Worry Club that they had the vocals turned all the way up and were clear as a bell. Another new song, Anything Else, started with a solo guitar before the rest of the band rejoined and included a change of guitar mid-song (not sure I’ve seen that before). Finishing with Same Name, Worry Club had made a big impact on the crowd and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them playing bigger venues or headlining their own tour in the near future.

Headliner Julia Wolf came to the stage to finish the evening. The Long Island, New Yorker has been in the music scene for quite a while, but released her debut album in 2023 and the follow up, PRESSURE, earlier in 2025. The trio (vocals, guitar, and drums) came out very loud (a water bottle on stage looked to be ready to tip over with the first drum beats). Wolf was clearly pleased with the audience’s initial reaction and leaned into that response. By the time we got to the third song, Kill You Off, it had the crowd roaring with the first guitar licks and maybe had louder vocals from them than Wolf. Hydra was similar and Wolf has some very committed fans.

Wolf had some minor vocal effects going on, but was the central sound for sure. Although drums were very loud at the stage, stepping back a little ways evened that out. Wolf used a quick round of banter to get the crowd even more riled up prior to Pearl, which had some more pop elements and evoked a sense of a Caroline Polachek song. Rolling back to one of her earliest numbers, this was one of those moments of an and band audience in tune with each other. There’s a certain smile that a musician gives that can’t be anything but pure joy of the moment, and Wolf got to have several of those in this set. A “stripped down” Burning House gave the band an opportunity to recharge. Wolf noted that the evening had sold out, thanking the crowd before launching back onto songs from the recent album.

Limewire started with a bit of programmed music that the band quickly layered on top of well, with a stellar guitar close. Life Is a Storm played on the edge of electronic pop and showed some musical genre range for the band. This slower section of the set list gave Wolf the chance to be a little more soulful in her singing. Jennifer’s Body had one of the more visceral reactions and cameras out across a large amount of the audience. When they were given the chance to sing the refrain, they did not disappoint. The introduction to the band let everyone know it was almost over. You’ve Lost a Lot of Blood and its acoustic sound felt like the start of an encore. Finishing with In My Room, Julia Wolf reigned supreme at Turf Club, leaving to thunderous applause.

Ellis

Worry Club

Julia Wolf

Julia Wolf at Turf Club (June 14, 2025)

thaddeus ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Posted at 11:44 AM in Julia Wolf, St Paul, Thaddeus, Turf Club | Permalink | Comments (0)

06/14/2025

Book Report: DC Finest

DC Finest: Batman Year One and Two (Nov 5, 2024)

Pro

Price

Large Volume

Availability

Rare Titles

Uniform Look

50 Titles Announced

Paper Stock

Con

Softcover

Incomplete

Erroneous Credits

Missing Title Cards

Miscoloring

Cropped Art

No Special Features

Read More

Comic Books

I’ve previously mentioned that the very first comic book that I purchased with my own money, a whole $1, was Crisis on Infinite Earths #1. I didn’t know it then, but this little comic book forever …

Here is a rare book report for you. Amazon has reduced many of the physical-only DC Finest books, as part of their Father’s Day sale. In addition, if you buy two books, you save an additional 50% off the second book, resulting in about less than $20 per book. Retail price is $40, so this is a very good savings, considering that these titles were launched fairly recently.

Just a little background on DC Finest, for those who don’t keep up with comic books. This is a line of full-color trade paperbacks that DC Comics is promising an affordable large-volume book collecting and compiling stories in chronicle reading order. These books are in response to Marvel’s popular Epic Collection, which launched in 2013… so DC is very late to the party.

With the benefit of waiting, DC has decided to make all the DC Finest in uniform, standard trades. For example, the cover has a square art with the collection title in giant standard fonts (note: no logos), the spine lists the year of the collection, and it seems the background colors are character related (Superman: dark blue, Batman: black, JLA: red, etc.) I don't really love the front cover design, but for example, I would have prefer to have the title on top vs on bottom.

They all have a standard look, so they look great when you put it on your book shelf. My only complaint is that the size of the DC bullet is not all the same size, as it depends on the pages in the collection. Some books, like Batman: Year One and Two are over 600 pages, compared to Event Zero Hour Part One, which is only 500 pages. Personally speaking, I wish they were consistent make all the books to be about the same pages. For collections that falls short of 600 pages, I’m sure you can throw in bonus related-stories or special features like full scripts or interviews or original pencil pages, etc.

With about 50 books already announced, this is a great way for new and old fans to read DC’s entire history, from 1938 to 2011. Why 2011? That’s the year DC rebooted to the “New 52” (as a result of Flashpoint), which is basically modern DC. In short, the DC Finest line will not be collecting modern stories, they are only concentrating on pre-Flashpoint books. That’s fine with me.

With the sale and previous purchases, I have in my collection five DC Finest books to read. Due to the large number of pages, they do take me much longer to go through, as not only do I want to read everything, but I also like to take a moment to admire the art. I’ve read through the Teen Titans: Judas Contract and Batman: Year One and Two.

DC Finest Teen Titans: The Judas Contract (Feb 4, 2025 )

I’ve little complaints about the Teen Titans book, mostly because the collection has a new version of The Judas Contract. All the previous reprints were using the printing plates of the 1988, which alters the original pages to remove credits and titles in favor of a marbled title. Seeing the The Judas Contract restored to its original presentation was much needed. DC also had the book recolored, so there are some things miscolored, but it’s all very minor stuff. You’ll only notice it if you had the original books to compare to the new colors.

What I also really like about the new DC Finest Teen Titans book is that it collected all the story leading up to the The Judas Contract, all the crossovers (like the Titans appearing with Superman in Action Comics), as well as the aftermath of the dissolvement of the H.I.V.E. organization. This is thanks to the DC Finest format, which allows for the entire year to be collected in the same book. Previous Judas Contract collection only reprinted the core four issues plus the annual.

With that said, I think the only glaring problem was that it was missing the fourth page of World Finest #300. DC made an effort to reprint the cover and the first three pages, but totally forgot there is a fourth page that is buried later in the story.

Otherwise, this DC Finest: Teen Titans - The Judas Contract is well worth picking up, if you wanted to learn about the famous storyline or an old fan (like myself), who wanted a refresher and easy way to read the story without going through your back issues and pulling out those issues. It’s all collected here, plus even more from various titles to give you the full story. Highly recommended.

The other book I read through was DC Finest: Batman Year One and Two. Year One is a much-celebrated story by Frank Miller (who also revolutionize Batman with The Dark Knight Returns) and art by David Mazzucchelli (the same team of Daredevil: Born Again). Year Two, not fondly remembered, all except that Todd McFarlane drew 3/4 of the story.

I’ve no complaints about the story and collection, but some of DC’s coloring choices puzzles me. For one, DC decided to revert back to the original Richmond Lewis newsprint colors. I think this would work if the book was printed on newsprint, so you’re limited to 64 colors. With modern printing and paper (the DC Finest uses a very bright reflective semi-glossy heavy stock paper), it opens up a wide spectrum of colors. When DC collected Year One, Lewis went back and recolored the series to match the visuals on the new paper. To me, the new colors work much better … but I can also understand DC’s decision to reprint the original colors. However, reprinting the original color on glossy paper is wrong, according to Mazzucchelli, “they printed the book on shiny paper, which was never a part of the original design, all the way back to the first hardcover in 1988.”

Although DC has decided to use the old colors for Year One, they did the opposite for Year Two - which has updated colors by Steve Oliff (who is not even credited in the DC Finest book). DC also decided to remove the title card art by Alan Davis, to replace it with a generic title and credits… which made no sense to me. Why remove the essential artwork?

I have three more DC Finest books to go through, and if there’s something interesting to note, I’ll review them… otherwise, my conclusion is these books are wonderful value for the money. Based on what I’ve seen, so far, these are massive collections for a very good price… but not a lot of care or attention was put into it. So, if you want a sloppily put together book, for very little money, DC Finest is at their finest!

DC Finest (left) vs Batman: Year One Deluxe (2005)

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Posted at 05:06 PM in Batman, Books, Comic Books, DC Comics, George Perez, Teen Titans | Permalink | Comments (0)

Minneapolis This Week (June 22, 2025)

What’s happening this week.

Read more Minneapolis Music Guide.

Sunflower Bean at 7th St Entry (17 Jun 2025)

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Sunflower Bean

In celebration of their debut album Human Ceremony (Fat Possum), Sunflower Bean (Jacob Faber, Julia Cumming, and Nick Kivlen) is currently on tour - headlining the 7th ..…

17 Jun 2025 Tuesday
Sunflower Bean
with GIFT
at 7th St Entry
first-avenue.com

Sunflower Bean (Julia Cumming, Nick Kivlen, and Olive Faber) is touring in support of their new album Mortal Primetime (Lucky Number).

Sunflower Bean at Fine Line (21 May 2022)

We saw Sunflower Bean April 2022 and wrote, “Let me tell you about Sunflower Bean’s first Minnesota show at Turf Club (14 Oct 2015). Seven years ago, the audience were simply blown away at Sunflower Bean’s sugar sweet shoegazing songs. We witness so many fans coming up to the band and buying their album and telling them how great they were. Some of those fans were at the Fine Line show. It seems like perhaps the band has grown, their upcoming album Headful of Sugar is leaning towards indie rock. Singer and bassist Julia Cumming seems more outgoing and confident on stage. To be fair, we said the same thing when we saw them in April 2016: “Now seasoned with a year of touring. And it shows. The trio (Jacob Faber, Julia Cumming, and Nick Kivlen) seemed completely at eased on stage, with Cumming looking and sounding more confident than their previous appearance. Even their music is a lot more upbeat (and possibly even aggressive), playing almost everything on their debut album... and especially when they announced they were playing some new (unrecorded) songs.” ”

GIFT to open.

Tour Dates:

6/04 - Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar #

6/05 - San Diego, CA @ The Casbah #

6/06 - Los Angeles, CA @ Lodge Room #

6/07 - San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel #

6/9 - Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios #

6/10 - Seattle, WA @ Madame Lou’s #

6/12 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court

6/13 - Fort Collins, CO @ The Coast #

6/14 - Denver, CO @ Hi-Dive

6/17 - Minneapolis, MN @ 7th St. Entry #

6/19 - Chicago, IL @ Sleeping Village #

6/20 - Detroit, MI @ Third Man Records

6/21 - Toronto, ON @ The Garrison

# with Gift

The Family Crest at Turf Club (Jun 18, 2025)

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The Family Crest

However, not all is lost, San Francisco's The Family Crest will be in town at the 7th Street Entry on July 6th in support of their album Beneath the Brine (Tender Loving Empire). …

Jun 18, 2025 Wednesday
The Family Crest
with Babes in Canyon
at Turf Club
first-avenue.com

The Family Crest returns to the Twin Cities, playing the Turf Club, in St Paul, on June 18, 2025.

Babes in Canyon to open.

Tour Dates:

6/11Washington, DC • DC9**

6/12 Philadelphia, PA • Nikki Lopez**

6/13 New York, NY • Mercury Lounge **

6/16 Cleveland, OH • Beachland Tavern **

6/18 St. Paul, MN • Turf Club**

6/20Milwaukee, WI • Falcon Bowl**

6/24 Chicago, IL • Schubas Tavern **

6/26 Denver, CO • Globe Hall **

6/28 Gallup, NM • Levitt Amp Series

6/29 Gallup, NM • Coming Soon

7/8 Seattle, WA • Tractor Tavern **

7/9 Portland, OR • Mississippi Studios **

7/11 San Francisco, CA • Great American Music Hall **

** with special guests BABES IN CANYON

Betty Who at Varsity Theater (19 Jun 2025)

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Betty Who

Just in time for Valentine, Betty Who's single "Heartbreak Dream" is coming out February 18th. Who cited Katy Perry and Robyn as massive influences on her music ....

19 Jun 2025 Thursday
Betty Who
at Varsity Theater
livenation.com

Trailblazing singer-songwriter and actress Betty Who is about to embark on her ‘Out Of The Darkness’ summer headline tour.

Who, talking to Variety, said, “I’m beyond excited to announce my 'Out of the Darkness' headline tour—and honestly, it feels SO good to be back on the road. This tour is all about unapologetic joy, real connections, and celebrating the highs after the lows. I’ve been working on new music and can’t wait to bring these new songs, alongside the go-to favorites, to life with you all.”

Betty Who at First Avenue (22 Mar 2023)

We’ve seen Who before in Mar 2023 and can tell you that her show is very entertaining: “As for pop star Betty Who… her set was really fun and colorful: Who in a red suit, with a dancer in yellow and a dancer in blue. These types of dance shows are really fun visually. Each song had well-choreographed dance routines, and every had smiles across their face… they were just having a good time. In the middle of the set, Who did an acoustic set with “Grown Ups Grow Apart” and “Wanna Be”, giving the two dancers a much-need break.”

Tour Dates:

6/13 - Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre

6/14 - Columbus, OH - All Out Pride Festival

6/16 - St. Louis, MO - Delmar Hall

6/17 - Lawrence, KS - Granada Theater

6/19 - Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater

6/20 - Milwaukee, WI - Milwaukee Summerfest

6/21 - Indianapolis, IN - Hi-Fi Annex

6/23 - Detroit, MI - St. Andrew's Hall

6/24 - Cleveland, OH - House of Blues

6/25 - Pittsburgh, PA - Roxian Theatre

6/27 - Augusta, GA - Augusta Pride Festival

6/29 - Austin, TX - Mohawk

7/1 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom

7/2 - San Diego, CA - Music Box

Dean Wareham at Turf Club (June 19, 2025)

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Dean Wareham

Having been following Dean Wareham's whereabouts for a while, the reunion last year wasn't at all a surprise to me. After all, we've seen hints of it when Sean Eden joined a Dean & Britta ...

June 19, 2025 Thursday
Dean Wareham
at Turf Club
first-avenue.com

Dean Wareham, the guy who is responsible for Luna, Galaxie 500, and Dean & Britta, has released a new solo album That’s The Price Of Loving Me (Carpark). The LP reunites Wareham with Kramer (Galaxie 500, Will Oldham, Low) as producer, marking their first collaboration in 34 years.

There’ll be a tour to support the new album, and it will stop by the Turf Club, in St Paul, on June 19, 2025.

Dean and Britta at First Ave (05 July 2013)

We are longtime fans and have seen Wareham in his various bands, like Luna in Nov 2017 and Dean & Britta in July 2013: “As for Dean & Britta, they were both in Luna, but for this tour, they are playing pre-Luna Dean Wareham's band Galaxie 500. With three albums (spanning between 1998-1990) to draw from, Dean & Britta had a lot of material to work with, including "Temperature's Rising", "When Will You Come Home", "Don't Let Our Youth Go to Waste", "Fourth of July" (how fitting!), "Tugboat" and the encore "Ceremony". While the majority of their songs were sung by Wareham, there is one exception: Britta took over "Listen, The Snow Is Falling", which, apparently was originally written by Yoko Ono.”

Tour Dates:

June 10 – World Cafe -- Philadelphia, PA

June 11 – Songbyrd -- Washington, DC

June 12 – Andy Warhol Museum -- Pittsburgh, PA

June 14 – Beachland Ballroom -- Cleveland, OH

June 15 – The Magic Bag -- Ferndale, MI

June 16 – Lincoln Hall -- Chicago, IL

June 18 – High Noon Saloon -- Madison, WI

June 19 – Turf Club -- St. Paul, MN

Lew Apollo at Midway Saloon (June 19, 2025)

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Los Lonely Boys

Los Lonely Boys will be touring with Los Lobos until August 10th, but it's a really good lineup, especially because the two band have a similar Latin-Rock-Soul sound to them ...

June 19, 2025 Thursday
Lew Apollo
at Midway Saloon
first-avenue.com

Yesterday, Friday the 13th, Minnesota-born, Austin-based Lew Apollo released a new single, “Diamonds and Gold”. Apollo will will be headlining the Midway Saloon on June 19, 2025, in support of his forthcoming album Fool’s Gold (available August 8). You can also catch him with Los Lonely Boys on some select dates.

Opening for Lew Apollo at the Midway Saloon will be Dylan Wylde, and J-Mo On The Beat and The J-Lighters. 21+ only.

Tour Dates:

June 18 - Duluth, MN @ Duluth Cider

June 19 - Saint Paul, MN @ The Midway Saloon

June 20 - Bayfield, WI @ Big Top Chautauqua

June 21 - Chicago @ ReBuilding Exchange

June 22 - Fort Wayne, IN @ Performance Pavilion Sweetwater

une 23 - Nashville @ Eastside Bowl

July 6 - Corpus Christi, TX @ Corpus Christi

August 2 - Midland, TX @ The Tailgate

August 7 - Austin, TX @ Antone's

August 16 - Galveston, TX @ Hotel Lucine

Lowertown Sounds at Mears Park (Jun 19, 2025)

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The New Standards

Local legends jazz trio The New Standards (Chan Poling, John Munson, and Steve Roehm) will be closing out the year at a residency at the Dakota Jazz Club this December 29th to December 30th. …

Jun 19, 2025 Thursday
The New Standards
with Tina Schlieske
at Mears Park
lowertownsounds.com

Lowertown Sounds at Mears Park, continues on Thursday, June 19, with The New Standards (billed with "and Friends").

Tina Schlieske (of Tina and the B-Sides) to open.

Lowertown Sounds 2025 Schedule:

06/12 Flamin' Oh's
with Faith Boblett and Lonesome Dan Kase

06/19 The New Standards & Friends
with Tina Schlieske

06/26 Dr Mambo's Combo
with Purple Funk Metropolis

07/10 Dan Rodriguez
with Becky Kapell

07/17 Annie and the Bang Bang
with Maria and the Coins

07/24 Turn Turn Turn
with Molly Brandt

07/31 Salsa Del Soul
with Alma Andina

08/07 Kiss the Tiger
with Keep for Cheap

08/14 Yam Haus
with Thirsty River and Haley E Rydell

Twin Cities Jazz (June 19-22, 2025)

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Twin Cities Jazz Fest

Venerable voodoo jazz master Dr. John and the Nite Trippers brought the spirit of New Orleans up to St. Paul, as the premier performer at this year’s Twin Cities Jazz Festival …

Jun 19, 2025 Thursday
Jun 20, 2025 Friday
Jun 21, 2025 Saturday
Jun 22, 2025 Sunday
Twin Cities Jazz Festival
at various
twincitiesjazzfestival.com

Officially June 20-21st, but with unofficial events on the 19th and 22nd, the Twin Cities Jazz Fest is another annual event. This takes place at multiple locations including Mears Park, Berlin, Crooners Supper Club and others. Note that some events in the Thursday and Sunday may have cover charges.

Schedule:

Thursday - June 19
Pre-Twin Cities Jazz Festival

Nyttu Chongo & Calvin Caron/Patrick Adkins at Berlin
Jon Weber at Crooners Supper Club
Tina Schlieske at Lowertown Sounds
The New Standards and Friends at in Fingal’s Cave (Lowertown)
Peter Kogan Jazz Presents at MetroNOME Brewery
Summer Nights in Rice at MetroNOME Brewery
Pete Whitman and Mississippi at MetroNOME Brewery
Jazz Unplugged - A Twin Cities Jazz Festival Pre-event at Urban Growler Brewing Company

Friday - June 20
Jazz88 Main Stage (Mears Park)

Adi Yeshaya Jazz Orchestra, feat Jennifer Grimm
Doreen’s Jazz New Orleans
Emmet Cohen Trio with special guests The Four Freshmen

Jazz on 5th Street (Mears Park)

Selby Avenue Brass Band with Thomasina Petrus
Las Guaracheras

Other Venues

Charlie Bruber & Jack Barrett at Berlin
Dorothy Doring & Jon Weber at Big River Pizza
Nicholas David at Big River Pizza
Debbie Briggs Vintage Jazz at Big River Pizza
Teri Roiger Celebrates the Music of Abbey Lincoln at Crooners Supper Club
Jon Weber and Colleen Raye (Maggie's Piano Lounge) at Crooners Supper Club
The Art of Jazz Exhibit at Dow Art Gallery
Jon Weber at Episcopal Homes
Niny Salem at Episcopal Homes
Global Jazz Collegium at Erta Ale Ethiopian Restaurant
The Other Ol' Blue Eyes at Gambit Brewing Co.
Maryann and the Money Makers at Mall of America
MetroNOME Big Band at MetroNOME Brewery
Doreen Ketchens Master Class at MetroNOME Brewery
Dakota Combo at MetroNOME Brewery
South High School at MetroNOME Brewery
Hannah Harder Sextet at MetroNOME Brewery
Atlantis Quartet at MetroNOME Brewery
Jazz Festival Jam Session hosted by Graydon Peterson Trio at Pimento Jamaican Kitchen
Erin Livingston at Saint Paul Hotel Lobby Bar
Jenny Klukken Quartet at Twin Cities PBS Stage
Travis Anderson Trio at Twin Cities PBS Stage
Abinnet Berhanu’s Ahndenet (Unity)
CoMUSICation at Saint City
Experience Jazz at Saint City
Walker West Youth Jazz Ensembles at Saint City
Kamoinge Strings of Walker West Music Academy at Saint City
The Black Note at Saint City
Hip Hop History & The Arts Youth Showcase at Saint City
Katia Cardenas at Walker West
Robert Lehmann & Toby Ramaswamy at Walker West
Trench Size Trio at White Squirrel Bar
Room3 at Zamboni’s

Saturday - June 21
Jazz88 Main Stage (Mears Park)

Catherine Russell
L.A. Buckner & Big Homie
Patty Peterson presents Jazz Women All Star
Society Of Chemists
Walker West & MacPhail Student Musicians

Jazz on 5th Street Stage

The Avant Garde
Drums of Navarone
Swinging Motown

Other Venues

Abinnet Berhanu at Berlin
Lasse Corson at Berlin
Ryan Freitas at Berlin
DJ set by D Untethered at Berlin
Jon Weber and Connie Evingson at Big River Pizza
Minneapolis Jazz Guitar Duo at Big River Pizza
Brilliant Colors Trio at Big River Pizza
an experiment part II with Leslie Parker & Collaborators at The Cedar Cultural Center
Explosion Big Band! at Crooners Supper Club
Tom Hunter at Crooners Supper Club
Daphna Levy with Adi Yeshaya at Crooners Supper Club
Joe Pulice Salutes Buddy Rich at Crooners Supper Club
The Art of Jazz Exhibit at Dow Art Gallery
Jon Weber at Episcopal Homes
Maud Hixson w/ Rick Carlson at Episcopal Homes
Andrew Schwandt Trio at Erta Ale Ethiopian Restaurant
Siama's Musical Instrument Petting Zoo at Family Zone
ArtStart- art activity and stilters at Family Zone
The Saint Peter Street Stompers at Gambit Brewing Co.
Lee Engele & Reynold Philipsek with special guest Gary Schulte at Heimie’s Haberdashery
The Gentlebrass at MetroNOME Brewery
Minneapolis College at MetroNOME Brewery
Catherine Russell Master Class at MetroNOME Brewery
Hanson Hirsch Clowser at MetroNOME Brewery
Abebi Stafford Trio at MetroNOME Brewery
Cody Steinmann Trio w/ Solomon Parham at MetroNOME Brewery
Larry McDonough Quartet - Round Midnight - The Music of Dexter Gordon at MetroNOME Brewery
Joel Shapira Quartet at MetroNOME Brewery
Jazz Festival Jam Session hosted by the Graydon Peterson Trio at Pimento Jamaican Kitchen
Quarteto Carioca at River Stage
Swing Dance Lesson by Uptown Swing at River Stage
Naomi and her Handsome Devils at River Stage
Victoria Temiz with James Allen at Saint Paul Farmers’ Market
Erin Livingston at Saint Paul Hotel Lobby Bar
Dave Graf and Bone Chance at Twin Cities PBS Stage
Steven Hobert n Sirclesound at Twin Cities PBS Stage
Brian Grivna Quartet at Twin Cities PBS Stage
Lila Ammons Jazz Group at Twin Cities PBS Stage
Steve Kenny Quintet at Twin Cities PBS Stage
Dream Loading (Franklin Middle School) at Walker West Music
Minneapolis College Jazz Ensemble at Walker West Music
MN Hard Bop Collective Sit-in Series at Walker West Music
Minnesota Youth Jazz Bands at Walker West Music
Roof Access at Walker West Music
Walker West Jazzwomen Collective at Walker West
Sarah Navratil Quartet at Zamboni’s

Sunday - June 22
Cedar Cultural Center

an experiment pt. II with Leslie Parker & Collaborators

Crooners Supper Club

Peel Me a Grape – Songs by Dave Frishberg with Connie Evingson & Jon Weber

World Refugee Day at Pilllar Forum Cafe (Jun 20, 2025)

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The Taxpayers

Genre-bending punk band The Taxpayers recently released their new single, “At War With The Dogcatchers.” Check out the cartoon-ish video now. …

Jun 20, 2025 Friday
World Refugee Day
feat. Ywa Hay Moo, The Taxpayers, Reback Moo, Eh Ler Tha & Eh Wah & Family, and Ti Ter Haw Min
at Pilllar Forum Cafe
pilllar.com

This special World Refugee Day concert is to benefit Karen Organization of Minnesota, an organization to help settle folks from Burma, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Southeast Asia, East Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, and more.

Bands on the bill are from around the world, including Myanmar, Ukraine, Afghanistan, etc.

Lineup:

Ywa Hay Moo

The Taxpayers

Reback Moo

Eh Ler Tha & Eh Wah & Family

Ti Ter Haw Min

Sentir Venezolano

Red Thread

Taxpayers at Underground (Mar 27, 2025)

We saw The Taxpayers earlier this year in March 2025 and said, “Finally, Portland’s The Taxpayers closed out the show. Originally when the band formed in 2007, they were a standard rock trio (guitar/bass/drum), but as they evolved, they started adding accordion, horns, piano, harmonica, and a variety of other instruments. Currently, the band is led by Rob on guitars and vocals, two horns, Noah on percussion, Nasrene on bass, and occasional pianist. After a long hiatus, the band is back and they were really excited to play songs from their latest Circle Breaker, which just came out on Ernest Jenning Record Co. Songs were mostly from Circle Breaker, including their single "At War with the Dogcatchers" as the fourth song played on their set.”

Artemas at First Avenue (20 Jun 2025)

20 Jun 2025 Friday
Artemas
at First Avenue
first-avenue.com

BRIT Award-nominated UK-based singer/songwriter/producer and alt-grunge artist Artemas is touring America. The tour will stop by First Avenue, in Minneapolis, on June 20th, 2025.

Artemas’s RIAA-platinum certified breakout single, “i like the way you kiss me” have been streamed over 1.7B times, landing at #1 on the Billboard Global 200. His new single “i guess u never really cared about me” is out now.

Tour Dates:

5/24 – BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend – Liverpool, UK

6/7 – Governors Ball – Queens, NY, USA

6/9 – Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA, USA

6/10 – Roxian Theatre – Pittsburgh, PA, USA

6/12 – The Bluestone – Columbus, OH, USA

6/14 – Bogart's – Cincinnati, OH, USA

6/17 – The Pageant – St. Louis, MO, USA

6/18 – The Truman – Kansas City, MO, USA

6/20 – First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN, USA

7/31 – 8/3 – Lollapalooza – Chicago, IL, USA

Jack’s Mannequin at Palace Theatre (21 Jun 2025)

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Jack's Mannequin

Jack's Mannequin is making a stop at First Avenue on Sunday, January 24th for their 10 year anniversary of Everything in Transit. This band started as a side project for Andrew McMahon ....

Andrew McMahon

Rising from the ashes of previous bands, Something Corporate and Jack's Mannequin, singer-songwriter Andrew McMahon has blazed a successful trail all over again, this time under his own name. ...

21 Jun 2025 Saturday
Jack’s Mannequin
at Palace Theatre
first-avenue.com

Jack’s Mannequin, the acclaimed alternative pop rock group, led by veteran indie-pop singer-songwriter-pianist Andrew McMahon is back to celebrate a 20th Anniversary tour. The tour will stop by the Palace Theatre, in St Paul, on June 21, 2025.

Andrew McMahon at First Avenue (26 October 2015)

We saw Andrew McMahon in October 2015 and said, “The amount of talent Andrew McMahon has is unreal. He was the singer of Something Corporate, Jack's Mannequin, and most recently, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness. Each one of those bands is amazing but Something Corporate is, by far, my favorite group of his. I went into the show thinking I could sneak out early after a couple of songs. I mean, I love Andrew McMahon but his new music really doesn't do it for me. Then the set started and I caught myself singing along by the second song. This was weird, I really hadn't paid much attention to his new stuff other than the single on the radio. How did I know this song?!”

NOTE: There is a strict 4 ticket limit. Any attempt to exceed the ticket limit of 4 per customer or household, or to game the system in any way, will result in cancellation of orders without notice. Tickets are non-transferable.

$1 per ticket goes towards The Dear Jack Foundation, which provides impactful programming that directly benefits adolescents and young adults diagnosed with cancer in order to improve their quality of life and create positive health outcomes from treatment to survivorship for patients and their families. For more info, please visit dearjackfoundation.org

Tour Dates:

June 13 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE

June 15 – Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival ^

June 16 – St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant

June 17 – Kansas City, MO @ The Truman

June 20 – Chicago, IL @ The Salt Shed

June 21 – St. Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre

July 23 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre

September 8 – Osaka, Japan @ Umeda Club Quattro

September 9 – Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya Club Quattro

October 11 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern

October 18 – Las Vegas, NV @ When We Were Young ^

October 31 – St. Petersburg, FL @ Jannus Live

November 1 – Orlando, FL @ House of Blues

November 2 – Atlanta, GA @ The Eastern

November 5 – Columbus, OH @ KEMBA! Live

November 7 – Toronto, ON @ HISTORY

November 8 – Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre

November 11 – Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore

November 18 – Vancouver, BC @ Vogue Theatre

November 19 – Seattle, WA @ Venue TBD

November 21 – San Francisco, CA @ The Warfield

November 22 – Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues

November 23 – Del Mar, CA @ The Sound

^ indicates festival date

If your band is coming to the Minneapolis/St Paul area, please email details to [email protected] with a good lead time. Thank you.

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Posted at 12:05 AM in Andrew McMahon, Artemas, Betty Who, Dean Wareham, Galaxie 500, Jack's Mannequin, Jazz, Lew Apollo, Los Lonely Boys, Lowertown Sounds, Luna, Minneapolis, Minneapolis Music Guide, Sunflower Bean, Taxpayers, The Family Crest, The New Standards, Tina Schlieske, Twin Cities Jazz Festival | Permalink | Comments (0)

06/13/2025

Dead Larry at Turf Club, St Paul (June 12, 2025)

Dead Larry at Turf Club (June 12, 2025)

Dead Larry Setlist

Werewolves
Canine
Fall
Sun beats
Get down
Darkness
Limbo
Sirens

Time
ATATS
Cruel
DMC
Funky
NCSweet
Dance
Rage

Sam Licari and The Sweet Tease Setlist

I'm a Tree
Keep the Pace
Worry
Changin' Lanes
Let Me Do Me
Sweet Love
Ready for Love

Lost Island Society Setlist

Summer
1312
Villain
Anxiety
Get Lost
FINE
La Vida Loca

Schedule

Turf Club, St Paul

Lost Island Society - 8:00PM

Sam Licari and The Sweet Tease - 8:45PM

Socktopus - 9:30PM

Dead Larry - 10:30PM

Read More

Socktopus

Something for the Weekend: Art-A-Whirl NEMAA (Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association)’s Art-A-Whirl is celebrating their 30th Anniversary with a bang Vintage and makers market Speed Riders (outdoors) Mary Jam (outdoors) Socktopus …

On a very rainy night that postponed or canceled a lot of outdoor music events, I retreated to Turf Club to see a group of local bands, with the news that headliner Dead Larry was turning 21 as a band.

Lost Island Society opened things for the evening. A ska-influenced rock band, this was a quintet comprised of guitar/vocals, bass, sax, trombone and drums. As expected with the ska tag, this was high energy stuff. That trombone was on display for the intro of the third number, Anxiety. There’s something about ska that just engenders a fun vibe, and the band leaned into that. The drummer as back up vocal was a nice change of pace, and both of the brass instrument players got their chance to sing as well. The band circled back to play Villian, as the lead singer noted, “I f’d up!”. That song included great trombone and saxophone solos and the joy on the faces of the band spoke a lot to the energy and excitement of Lost Island Society. A very tight 30 minute set ending with a cover of La Vida Loca was a perfect appetizer to the bands in front of them.

Up next was Sam Licari and the Sweet Tease. A quartet comprised of vocals/guitar, vocals/keyboards, bass and drums, this was a fun blend of rock, blues, reggae, and funk. A little bit of soul sound on the second number, Keep the Pace, was pretty excellent and lee Licari have great range on the vocals. There was a definite upbeat feel to their songs, and there’s a lot to be said for that. Licari has a Greg Norton look going on, with the well-manicured mustache. Our keyboard player suddenly had a saxophone solo and it was then I realized it was the same player from Lost Island Society (the change of primary instrument threw me off). Let Me Be Me was about not letting others tell you what to be, which seems to be a pretty important message these days. A very reggae song, Let Me Be, followed and was excellent for the form. Licari threw down a great harmonica solo, leaning into that blues feel, and showing off some range for the band’s sound.

Next it was Socktopus. Dual rapper vocalists, guitar/vocals, bass/vocals and drums hit hard. All in track suits, it was quite the look. There’s a lot of reasons you could be down on white rappers, but Socktopus was so infectiously fun, you couldn’t help but enjoy what they were doing. As the two rappers knelt for various instrumental solos, they were very willing to shine the spotlight on various band members. This was a silly amount of fun, with the band recognizing that as they asked, “are you ready to get greasy tonight?”. A funkier number allowed the band to play to their strengths, as the lyrics did the classic east side, west side thing. It was fun to have the guitarist singing a chorus and then have the rappers take over on the verses. After a deadpanned, “let’s dance like it’s the 90’s”, Socktopus brought it home with a slightly more serious but still fun rap finale.

Last up was headliner Dead Larry. They came out loud, with keyboard and guitar work taking place of vocals on the first song. A little bit of 80’s synth heavy solo carried a “ooh, aah” set of vocals. The quartet (keys/vocals, bass/vocals, guitar and drums) leaned into an extremely loud and rhythmic song that sounded nearly Eastern European at first. With the lead singer in a loud suit coat, it was hard to know whether to take them seriously, versus tongue in cheek satire. Either way, the music underneath was well played, which allowed them some leeway on other fronts. As they progressed, Dead Larry showed off some excellent musical layering, as keyboards blended with guitars. Here’s a band that was having fun and not worrying too much about how they came off, which I appreciated a lot. Another fun part of Dead Larry was that both the keyboardist and bassist took lead on vocals. For different songs or even within a number. This provided a nice change in sound throughout the set. They seemed to be choosing songs by feel (no set list was obvious), and maybe a bit on audience reaction. As they headed into the latter part of their set, the crowd was very into the vibe, and it felt very much like the birthday party it was. As we prepared to head back into the rain, there was a lot of love back at the merch tables, with the different bands and fans interacting. That really summed up the evening of simply enjoying the music on this very wet St. Paul night.

Lost Island Society

Sam Licari and The Sweet Tease

Socktopus

Dead Larry

Dead Larry at Turf Club (June 12, 2025)

thaddeus ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Posted at 10:29 PM in Dead Larry, Socktopus, St Paul, Thaddeus, Turf Club | Permalink | Comments (1)

We♥KC! June 21-26, 2025 Upcoming concerts / shows (Kansas City, MO)

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Modest Mouse

Seattle's The Head and the Heart just stopped by First Avenue, in Minneapolis, as part of their national tour in support of Let's Be Still. The album was released last week, October 15th ...

Read more Kansas City Music Guide.

Congrats to the recent Tony Award winners--

We always keep an eye on them especially, the musical winners as they may take the production on the road, meaning it would likely play in KC.

This year’s Best Musical winner was “Almost Happy Ending” (about two robots in future Seoul, that find friendship and potential love, of all things).

Best Play was given to the dramatic “Purpose” about a prominent political Black family, and which already had won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama to Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. He’s also written the book for the upcoming “Prince- Purple Rain” musical, which world-premieres in Minneapolis this fall, so that’s all a very good sign for that production.

On the concert front, fall announcements continue (it looks busy through October, as usual) and Live Nation continues their $30 sale, but as their current bookings are limited in KC, it’s primarily for Starlight shows.

Let’s take look at the Kansas City / Lawrence KS metro musical happenings for the upcoming week of June 21st-June 26th.

(ticket hyperlinks are embedded in each show’s headline)

SATURDAY JUNE 21

SUNDAY JUNE 22

George Thorogood and the Destroyers, June 22, Uptown, $54-$197

Since 1976, George Thorogood & The Destroyers have sold over 15 million albums, built a catalogue of numerous hits, and played more than 8,000 live shows (and yet, he still “drinks alone”).

Thorogood and his longtime band which includes Jeff Simon (drums, percussion), Bill Blough (bass guitar), Jim Suhler (rhythm guitar) and Buddy Leach (saxophone) should be playing hits like “Get A Haircut”, “I Drink Alone”, “One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer”, “Move It On Over”, “Who Do You Love” and the anthem “Bad To The Bone” – it’s the baddest show on earth!

MONDAY JUNE 23

Tripping Daisy, June 23, Warehouse on Broadway, $36.15-$42.15

The 90s Dallas psych-grunge band led by Tim DeLaughter (who’d go on to form The Polyphonic Spree) best known for alt-rock hit “I Got a Girl,” broke up in 1999 but have occasionally played reunion shows in Texas in recent years. Now, the band is back together and Tripping Daisy will head out on their first North American tour in 26 years. (I think we saw them at The Bottleneck in the ‘90s...maybe).

The tour will be a 30th anniversary celebration of their 1995 album I Am an Elastic Firecracker (the record containing “I Got A Girl”) and they’ll be playing it in its entirety alongside “timeless favorites from every album.”

TUESDAY JUNE 24

Modest Mouse, June 24, Grinders KC,$59.65-$245.36

Back on the road and back at the venue we saw them at in 2022! The tour follows last April’s expanded re-release of their early 2000s alt-rock gem Good News for People Who Love Bad News. Formed in 1993 in Issaquah, WA, and now based in Portland, Isaac Brock and Modest Mouse have long been a staple of the Pacific NW indie scene.

Their sound ranges from post-punk–influenced tracks inspired by Pixies to the psych-pop stylings of bands like Flaming Lips (both who have been recent tour mates). The band reached mainstream success in 2004 with the hit single “Float On,” they even now have their own themed cruise happening next year!)

Bear Hands w/OK Cowgirl, June 24, recordBar, $41.70

Bear Hands are back out on the 18-date second leg of their ‘The Key to What’ tour., performing songs from their latest album alongside fan favorites from their nineteen-year catalog, including top 20 alternative hits “Giants” and “Back Seat Driver.”

Bear Hands is Dylan Rau (vocals and guitar), Val Loper (bass), and TJ Orscher (drums). Formed in 2006 in Brooklyn, New York, the band gained early attention with their 2010 single “What a Drag,” which led to their signing with Cantora Records. They released their debut album Burning Bush Supper Club, that same year, followed by the critically acclaimed Distraction. Two additional albums followed – 2016’s You’ll Pay For This and 2019’s Fake Tunes.

Arrive early for Brooklyn-based indie rockers OK Cowgirl supporting the release of the deluxe edition of their debut album, Couldn’t Save Us From My Gut, out now via Easy Does It Records. The expanded release includes six bonus tracks, four unreleased demos and two alternate versions.

WEDNESDAY JUNE 25

THURSDAY JUNE 26

Weird Al Yankovic w Puddles Pity Party, June 26, Starlight, sold out

The parody king returns! Weird Al brings his legendary full-production multimedia comedy rock show back to the concert stage with the BIGGER & WEIRDER 2025 Tour, playing his iconic hits as well as some never-performed-live-before fan favorites. Al’s long-time band is joined by four additional players to create a super-sized concert experience.

“Weird Al” Yankovic is the biggest-selling comedy recording artist in history. A 5-time Grammy Award winner, he is best known for his parodies of the biggest musical artists over the last four decades. His many hits include “Amish Paradise,” “Eat It,” “Like a Surgeon,” “Smells Like Nirvana,” “Word Crimes,” and the platinum-selling “White & Nerdy.” His last album Mandatory Fun is the only comedy album in history to debut at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 and in 2022, Yankovic produced and co-wrote the Emmy-winning biopic WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story, starring Daniel Radcliffe.

Country Stampede (Day One) Luke Bryan, June 26-28 Azura Amph, $99-$219

Under new and bigger-thinking management (“Kustom Entertainment”), a highly anticipated A-List lineup for the 2025 Country Stampede Festival makes this year’s installment perhaps the most exciting one to date. We ‘ve covered it the last few years and caught Jon Pardi bringing down the house last year.

The three-day fest kicks off on Thursday with Luke Bryan, Ashley McBryde, Drew Baldridge & the winner of their Battle of the Bands contest. In addition to these main stage performances, the festival will showcase local and regional talent on the Platinum Club Stage throughout the weekend, ensuring a diverse and dynamic entertainment experience for attendees.

The fest launched five regional Battle of the Bands competitions with qualifiers in Wichita, KS, Springfield, MO, Omaha, NE, and Columbia, MO, with each market producing a winner to advance to the finals in KC and the overall winner gaining the opportunity to perform in front of thousands at the festival.

Greensky Bluegrass, June 26, Uptown, (rescheduled from March), $38-$82

The bluegrass jam band had to shift their schedule back in March (“postponed due to unforeseen circumstances”), but are returning on this make-up date, with all previous tickets being honored. The Kalamazoo MI band’s last studio album was 2022’s Stress Dreams.

The band has evolved over the years, growing from 3 to 5 members, adding electric effects, and touring with a full light show. GSBG describes their sound as "their own version of bluegrass music, mixing the acoustic stomp of a string band with the rule-breaking spirit of rock & roll."

National Touring act coming to Kansas City, Lawrence, KS, Topeka, KS, or vicinity? Let us know so we can spotlight the appearance-email [email protected]