W♥M

Cancellation Television

Sandman: Season 2 (2025) The Sandman The next big title to be given the Netflix treatment will be Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman… it’s currently in development. Everyone is excited about the … read more Constantine The Constantine finale is partly an adaptation of Hellblazer #4. It's not a great finale, especially because it doesn't wrap up all the setup from the pilot. … read more Tori Amos Tori Amos, May 31, KC Music Hall, The piano songstress has returned, out on her Ocean to Ocean Tour supporting her sixteenth studio album. Written … read more

The Sandman: Season 2
netflix.com

After three long years, The Sandman returns to its final season. I am assuming Netflix didn’t want this release or at a later date, due to the cancellation of Neil Gaiman. I know many fans (now ex-fans) will boycott all his books and projects.

While I am hesitant to support Gaiman’s future projects, I still love the original The Sandman from Vertigo Comics, so naturally I am committed to seeing the television series to its conclusion. In my review of the first season of The Sandman, it broke my heart that I didn’t love it. I couldn’t get past the unnecessary race and gender swap, but I did admit that the story is still very good (“I think the story still holds up.”)

Season 2 starts with the Sandman having to go back to hell to save his former lover, Nada, who was condemned to hell. Instead of finding confrontation, Lucifer gives Dream the key to hell and quits being the ruler of the realm. Now all the demons, Norse gods, Fairies, and Chaos, all came to the Dreaming to demand the key be given to them. After that resolved, we’re introduced to the rest of Dream’s family: Destiny (the oldest brother), Delirium (formerly Delight), Desire, Despair, and Death (who we already met in Season 1). We then start the real plot of Delirium wanting Dream’s help to finding their missing brother Destruction. In order to find him, Dream has to confront his son, Orpheum… where we then get the backstory.

Again, because I own all the comic books and various hardcover collection, I was already familiar with the source material. I did forget some of the details, but for the most part the show adapted the stories faithfully. I had to look at some of the comics, particularly “The Song of Orpheus”, because I couldn’t quite figure out how his newly wed wife died on the television show. She was bitten by a snake, which is clearly shown in the comic book, but in the show, you had to draw that conclusion. In the show, they briefly show a snake (nowhere near them!) and then she suddenly falls to down. I wish they could have made it a little clearer, by maybe showing a something snaking away from her feet.

Anyway, if you know the Greek story, you know he travels to hell to save his wife. Hades gave him two conditions, she must walk behind him, and he must never look back until they are clear of hell. As you know, he did look back and ultimately lost his wife a second time.

The Orpheus storyline was a real highlight for me, especially when we’re re-introduced to Lady Constantine. I will admit, now it made sense to cast Constantine as a woman… You see, as a favor to Constantine for saving Orpheus’ head, the Sandman gave her immortality. That is how I read it, otherwise it wouldn’t make sense for the same character to live through the centuries. In the comic books, John Constantine helped the Sandman, and his ancestor, Johana helped the Sandman in the French revolution. Perhaps the real reason to leave John Constantine out of The Sandman, is perhaps a legal reason. Constantine, after all, has a television show of his own, an animated movie and a second film in development with a brunette version with Keanu Reeves as the titular character.

I think when the show follows the source material, I will overlook some of the problems I have with the show. Again, it still bothers me that Death is does not have that goth iconic look. What they did get right, I do appreciate. Delirium was based on Tori Amos, a chaotic colorful flighty child-like fun character. Some people might find that character annoying, but not me, because that’s how I pictured her from the comic book. They also got Destruction right, although I would have prefer an older-looking actor. They got the talking dog right too. If they turned the dog into a cat or Destruction into a girl, I would complain.

So far, Season 2, which adapts Season of Mist and The Song of Orpheus I like it a lot. We don’t see much of Death, but that will all change with the finale (it won’t air until late July), which adapts Death: The High Cost of Living, the comic by Gaiman and Chris Bachalo.

The second half of Season 2 will air in a few weeks, and it adapts the Kindly Ones other stories. Based on the strong part one adaption of the comic book, I am looking forward to seeing the conclusion.

NOTE: It appears that the show is avoiding A Game of You, which is a good choice, in my opinion, because that story barely had Dream in it.

Rick & Morty: Season 8 (2025) Rick and Morty We recently mentioned that his song, “Flowers” was used on Adult Swim’s Rick and Morty, “The best part of the episode is actually Minneapolis-related. Apparently, … read more Mark Mallman The best part of the episode is actually Minneapolis-related. Apparently, during Morty’s “sex” scene, the song you hear, “Flowers” was by Ryan Elder and Mark Mallman! … read more

Rick & Morty: Season 8
adultswim.com

After Justin Roiland, co-creator and voice actor for Rick and Morty was fired/cancelled from his own show due to domestic violence and allegations of misconducts with underage girls…. Rick and Morty Season 7 and 8 seems just fine without him.

As of this writing, only six episodes of Season 8 have aired and they’re all pretty good. You can watch each episode by itself and it wouldn’t really matter, because each episode stands on its own. You can watch it out of order or skip a few episodes, it’ll be fine.

There are some episodes that would reference previous shows, such as the cloned Ricks and Morties… and, in fact, the clones might come back in a future show.

The first episode is about Morty and Summer trapped in a simulation designed to teach them a valuable lesson: never take a phone charger without permission. In the second episode, Space Beth asks for Rick’s help to investigate an assassination … Get gets fired from her job. The third episode is about those clones, the fourth episode is about Jerry turning into an Easter Bunny. Fifth episode is Rick and Morty tries to rob a sleeping ship. In the sixth and latest episode, Beth and Space Beth (not fired from her assignation job) are hanging out and they turn themselves into 12 year olds. It’s my least favorite episode, Beth, as a child is a monster.

Anyway, all the music has been pretty good. We previously covered some of Rick & Morty’s usage of music in their shows, but this season is a real banger. I love the Tori Amos mentioned in Episode 3… her song, “Little Earthquakes” was also played in that same episode.

My favorite song so far is “Pennies” by Ryan Elder. If Elder’s name sounds familiar, he previously teamed up with Minneapolis’ Mark Mallman for their song “Flowers” for an original song for Rick and Morty.

You can listen to both Elder songs on Rick and Morty’s official music channel.

P.S. Speaking of Mark Mallman, if you’re in the Kansas City or Minneapolis area, he will be headlining Minibar on August 1st and the Parkway Theater on August 8th, in support of his 11th studio album Magic Time (Hygh Tension Records). I’ll be posting more details about the Parkway Theater show soon, stay tuned.

Rick and Morty: Here's some more sh** for your a** soyboy!

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts at Taste of Minnesota (July 5, 2025)

Taste of Minnesota (July 5-July 6, 2025) Joan Jett & The Blackhearts Setlist Victim of Circumstance Cherry Bomb* Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah) (Gary Glitter cover) Change the World You Drive Me Wild* Light of Day (Bruce Springsteen cover) Fake Friends Androgynous (The Replacements cover) Lie to Me (Make the Music Go) Boom Different Love Is Pain Everyday People (Sly & the Family Stone cover) I Love Rock 'n' Roll (The Arrows cover) Crimson & Clover (Tommy James & the Shondells cover) I Hate Myself for Loving You Bad Reputation^ * The Runaways song ^ Joan Jett song Cheap Trick Setlist Hello There Dream Police Come On, Come On Elo Kiddies Ain't That a Shame (Fats Domino cover) If You Want My Love Voices California Man (The Move cover) I Know What I Want It All Comes Back to You The Flame I Want You to Want Me Surrender Goodnight Billy Idol / Joan Jett Tour Dates Billy Idol is returning to the road for It’s a Nice Day To… Tour Again! Fellow superstar Joan Jett & the Blackhearts will join Idol on all shows. AUG 16 TD Pavilion at the Mann Philadelphia, PA AUG 17 Broadview Stage at SPAC Saratoga Springs, NY AUG 20 Madison Square Garden New York, NY AUG 22 Merriweather Post Pavilion Columbia, MD AUG 23 Xfinity Center Mansfield, MA AUG 26 Maine Savings Amphitheater Bangor, ME AUG 28 Pine Knob Music Theatre Clarkston, MI AUG 30 Ruoff Music Center Noblesville, IN AUG 31 Summerfest Milwaukee, WI SEP 3 Red Rocks Amphitheatre Morrison, CO SEP 5 Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre West Valley City, UT SEP 12 Acrisure Arena Palm Desert, CA SEP 14 The Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley Berkeley, CA SEP 17 Toyota Amphitheatre Wheatland, CA SEP 19 Cascades Amphitheater Ridgefield, WA SEP 20 Climate Pledge Arena Seattle, WA SEP 23 North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre Chula Vista, CA Joan Jett & the Blackhearts Joan Jett, Vocals / Rhythm Guitar Michael McDermott, Drums Hal B. Selzer, Bass Doggie Needles, Guitar Joan Jett Highlight of the festival for us was Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. The band played Bikini Kill’s “Rebel Girl” full song, before walking on stage in a triumphant stance. … read more

Taste of Minnesota is a long tradition, starting back in the early 1980’s in Saint Paul, struggling through changing times, and now happening in downtown Minneapolis. A chance for local businesses, particularly restaurants, to show off their wares. One of the ways they draw people in is by having free live music, this year on three different stages, usually with some very impressive acts. On the first day, as the light rain had ended earlier in the afternoon and looked to hold off for the remainder of the evening, the headliner was Joan Jett & The Blackhearts.

Making my way to downtown Minneapolis and working through the entrance line, I got there in time for the set up for Cheap Trick. First formed in the early 1970’s, these guys are an institution, and outside of replacing their drummer over financial disputes, this is still the original band. Now in their 70’s, they have been continuously at play, with 20 albums, and over 5,000 live performances. And though they have recent albums, including 2021’s In Another World, their live shows focus on those early albums that most fans would recognize.

It started the only way it could, with Hello There, an absolute classic. That these guys are all in their mid-70’s definitely showed, but their experience and love from the audience carried this to a certain height right out of the gate. Dream Police got a switch of guitars (the first of many) and our first call out to Minneapolis and a handful of guitar picks thrown into the crowd.

Sporting a classy pale suit and broad brimmed hat, lead singer Robin Zander certainly didn’t act like he was just checking boxes. Great support on the change of instruments from the crew kept things moving like clockwork and an extended drum solo form Daxx Nielsen gave a small break for the band, before the long build up to Ain’t That a Shame, which included a stellar vocal close. We got the first sing along for If You Want My Love, and the majority of the crowd happily obliged. Playing the slower ballad Voices really showed off how much this band’s continued success is dependent on Zander’s ability to still belt it out, though the rest of the band was still nailing their parts as well. A square looking guitar for Rick Nielsen gave a darker sound for the start of California Man.

Everyone got their moments, with bassist Tom Petersson getting the long intro and lead lyrics on I Know What I Want. After a slower section, with Zander showing some real emotion on The Flame, the band quickly ramped up a crowd favorite of I Want You to Want Me. They rocked it out with Surrender getting the expected crowd love. Playing almost exactly an hour, Cheap Trick closed out an impressive set.

Side note, as we watched the set up for the headliner. Turning on a fog machine in an outdoor venue? On a pretty windy evening? Sigh.

Joan Jett at Minnesota Yacht Club (July 19, 2024)

Joan Jett & The Blackhearts was up to finish the evening. If Cheap Trick is an institution, Joan Jett is pantheon. Another relentless performer, Jett seems to always be on the road (W♥M last saw her at July 2024’s Minnesota Yacht Club). Jett first came up as part of the outstanding band The Runaways (which she co-founded), before forming this band (and her own record label) in 1980. Coming out clad in all black, Jett was a monster from the beginning, going from Victim of Circumstance into Cherry Bomb. You might argue that Jett was only playing the hits, but I would counter that that is all she has. A quick “Minnesota, how are you?” was about the extent of the early talk, as Jett and the band focused on rocking. The sing along of the “oh yeah” chorus on Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah) was an early highlight in the set.

Joan Jett with Cheap Trick T-Shirt (1977)

A thanks to Cheap Trick brought the story that The Runaways had played a lot of shows with them, “So, I’ve played with them since I was 17, and I’m an old b*tch now”. Onto You Drive Me Wild had the crowd bopping along and then they moved into a Bruce Springsteen written number for a movie Jett did with Michael J. Fox, Light of Day. (Side note: I know this song, and I know a lot of movies, and I… somehow don’t know this one? Huh.). This was how the first half of the evening went; a song started, it was instantly recognizable, and they proceeded to eat it up. Rinse and repeat.

The backing Blackhearts (guitar, bass, and drums) were all on point, backing Jett as needed on each song. A favorite cover for Jett, The Replacements’ Androgynous, was fun for the Minneapolis crowd, and Jett noted that she wouldn’t really do it justice, but loved the song. (Side note: Hey, the smoke machine’s effect was almostnoticeable near the drummer by the tenth song!)

Make the Music Go Boom was off the most recent album, 2023’s Mindsets, and was a pure banger. I was impressed at the near seamless transition between songs, and how they jumped across the entire discography. Long Time had excellent backing harmonies and stood out. An introduction of the band led to Everyday People. I had just stepped back from the very front of the stage and it was a lot of fun to see the audience singing I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll with wild abandon. As Joan Jett & The Blackhearts started to wind up, the hits kept coming and Jett continued to sound phenomenal. A true rock & roll Hall of Famer had come through with a fantastic set and performance on a pretty nice evening, making for a memorable end of the first day of Taste of Minnesota.

Main Stage

Audience

Cheap Trick Fans

Cheap Trick

Cheap Trick

Cheap Trick

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts Joan Jett & the Blackhearts

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts Joan Jett & the Blackhearts

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts at Taste of Minnesota, Minneapolis (July 5, 2025)

thaddeus ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Mpls: August 5 to August 7, 2025

Read more Minneapolis Music Guide.

Cameron Whitcomb at First Avenue (August 5, 2025) Cameron Whitcomb 21-year-old singer-songwriter Cameron Whitcomb is headlining the Turf Club, in St Paul, in support of his debut EP Quitter … read more

August 5, 2025 Tuesday
Cameron Whitcomb
at First Avenue
first-avenue.com

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Cameron Whitcomb to headline First Avenue on August 5, 2025, in support of I’ve Got Options.

NOTE: There is a strict 6 ticket limit. Any attempt to exceed the ticket limit of 6 per customer or household, or to game the system in any way, will result in cancellation of orders without notice. There is a transfer delay for all tickets up to 72 HOURS prior to the show.

$1 from every ticket sold goes to Backline. Backline is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that connects music industry professionals and their families with mental health and wellness resources. Learn more at backline.care.

Tour Dates:

07/05 – Port Alberni, BC – The KCC

07/10 – Calgary, AB – Calgary Stampede †

07/17 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore Ballroom

07/18 – Seattle, WA – Showbox SoDo

07/19 – Redmond, OR – Fairwell Festival †

07/22 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore Ballroom

07/23 – Victoria, BC – Capital Ballroom

07/25 – Kelowna, BC – Revelry

07/26 – Kelowna, BC – Revelry

07/29 – Edmonton, AB – Midway Music Hall

07/30 – Edmonton, AB – Midway Music Hall

08/01 – Saskatoon, SK – Coors Event Centre

08/02 – Winnipeg, MB – Burton Cummings Theatre

08/05 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue

08/06 – Milwaukee, WI – The Pabst Theater +

08/08 – Oro-Medonte, ON – Boots & Hearts Festival †

08/16 – Montreal, QC – Lasso †

08/22 – Cologne, Germany – Sound of Nashville Open Air

08/23 – Munich, Germany – Backstage Werk

08/24 – Berlin, Germany – Kesselhaus

08/26 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Store VEGA

08/28 – Stockholm, Sweden – Nalen

09/01 – Oslo, Norway – Rocafeller

09/03 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso

09/04 – Paris, France – La Maroquinerie

09/05 – London, UK – Electric Brixton

09/07 – Manchester, England – Band on the Wall

09/08 – Glasgow, UK – Saint Luke’s

09/26 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom

09/27 – Eugene, OR – WOW Hall

09/30 – Sacramento, CA – Ace of Spades *

10/01 – San Francisco, CA – The Regency Ballroom *

10/03 – San Diego, CA – Music Box *

10/04 – West Hollywood, CA – Troubadour *

10/05 – West Hollywood, CA – Troubadour *

10/08 – Phoenix, AZ – The Van Buren *

10/10 – Denver, CO – Gothic Theatre

10/12 – Fort Collins, CO – Aggie Theatre

10/15 – Fayetteville, AR – George’s Majestic Lounge *

10/17 – Fort Worth, TX – Tannahill’s Tavern & Music Hall *

10/18 – Austin, TX – Scoot Inn *

10/21 – New Orleans, LA – Tipitina’s *

10/23 – Oxford, MS – The Lyric Oxford *

10/24 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl Nashville *

10/25 – Atlanta, GA – Terminal West *

10/29 – Oxford, OH – Brick Street Bar

10/30 – Lakewood, OH – The Roxy

10/31 – McKees Rocks, PA – Roxian Theatre +

11/03 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall ^

11/05 – Louisville, KY – Mercury Ballroom ^

11/07 – Knoxville, TN – The Mill & Mine ^

11/08 – Birmingham, AL – Saturn ^

11/12 – Columbia, SC – The Senate ^

11/13 – Georgia Theatre – Athens, GA ^

11/14 – Charleston, SC – Music Farm ^

*Support From Jonah Kagen
^ Support From Tayler Holder
† Festival Performance
+ Upgraded Venue

Jake Scott at Fine Line (August 6, 2025) Jake Scott Arkansas native Jake Scott would be up next, already an online sensation from recording a song a month and posting online for almost three years, and fresh … read more

August 6, 2025 Wednesday
Jake Scott
with MaRynn Taylor
at Fine Line
first-avenue.com

We actually wrote a preview for platinum pop singer-songwriter Jake Scott on his 2024 tour for Lavender (he was stopping by First Avenue in March 2024), but the entire 2024 tour was cancelled due to family. This 2025 tour is making up for last year’s cancellation. Scott will be headlining the Fine Line, in Minneapolis, on August 6, 2025.

Jake Scott at Starlight Theater (May 7, 2022)

We saw Jake Scott in May 2022 and said, “Arkansas native Jake Scott would be up next, already an online sensation from recording a song a month and posting online for almost three years, and fresh from a successful club headlining tour. His thirty-five minute set began unexpectedly with a short drum solo, with Scott then bursting on stage to sing songs in support of his 2021 eight-song EP, Goldenboy. Scott unabashedly admits that most of his songs are inspired by his girlfriend/now-wife, Rachel, who serves as his constant muse and who he cultivated his relationship with, despite her being from Texas. Apparently, there is a serious AR/TX rivalry we in the Midwest don’t know enough about, but all turned into a story book happy ending, and his recent single, “Texas Girl” chronicles part of that.”

MaRynn Taylor to open.

Tour Dates:

Jul 18 Tannahill's Tavern & Music Hall Fort Worth, TX

Jul 19 House of Blues Houston, TX

Jul 20 Empire Control Room Austin, TX

Jul 22 Crescent Ballroom Phoenix, AZ

Jul 23 Music Box San Diego, CA

Jul 25 El Rey Theatre Los Angeles, CA

Jul 26 Goldfield Trading Post Roseville Roseville, CA

Jul 28 McMenamins Mission Theater Portland, OR

Jul 29 The Showbox Seattle, WA

Jul 31 The Union Event Center Salt Lake City, UT

Aug 3 Summit Music Hall Denver, CO

Aug 5 Slowdown Omaha, NE

Aug 6 Fine Line Minneapolis, MN

Aug 8 House of Blues Chicago Chicago, IL

Aug 9 Delmar Hall Saint Louis, MO

Aug 10 The Intersection Grand Rapids, MI

Aug 12 The Bluestone Columbus, OH

Aug 14 Paradise Rock Club Boston, MA

Aug 15 9:30 Club Washington, DC

Aug 16 Gramercy Theatre New York, NY

Aug 19 Buckhead Theatre Atlanta, GA

Aug 20 The Underground Charlotte, NC

Aug 22 Brooklyn Bowl Nashville Nashville, TN

Aug 23 JJ's LIVE Fayetteville, AR

BRONCHO at 7th St Entry (August 7, 2025) Broncho Broncho is returning to Minneapolis’ 7th Street Entry in support of their new album Double Vanity (Dine Alone Records). We caught the punk-ish band ... … read more

August 7, 2025 Thursday
BRONCHO
at 7th St Entry
first-avenue.com

Oklahoma-based band BRONCHO is back on tour in support of Natural Pleasure, their first new album in six years. The tour will stop in at the 7th Street Entry, in Minneapolis, on August 7, 2025.

Broncho at First Ave ( Aug 31, 2016)

We caught Broncho in Aug 2016 and wrote, “With a generous (nearly) one hour opening set (clocking in at 50 mins), Broncho took the stage with singer/guitarist Ryan Lindsey chanting, “We’re Broncho, we’re Broncho, we’re Broncho.” As soon as they started playing ‘Fantasy Boys’, taken from their latest Double Vanity album on Dine Alone Records, you can tell that Broncho seemed more focused in their sound. It sounded almost polished, compared to their previous albums and live appearance - which we previously called them as “punk”. Having seen them now, I wouldn’t really call them simply punk... they sound more melodic, with epic shoegazing jams.”

Tour Dates:

July 17 - Fort Worth, TX @ Tannahill’s Music Hall

July 18 - Austin, TX @ The Mohawk

July 19 - Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall

July 20 - New Orleans, LA @ Tipitina’s

July 22 - Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West

July 23 - Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle

July 24 - Washington, DC @ Union Stage

July 25 - Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brendas

July 26 - Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw

Aug. 6 - Kansas City, MO @ Record Bar

Aug. 7 - Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry

Aug. 8 - Milwaukee, WI @ Cactus Club

Aug. 9 - Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall

Aug. 10 - Detroit, MI @ The Shelter

Aug. 12 - Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom

Aug. 13 - Indianapolis, IN @ The Vogue

Aug. 14 - Nashville, TN @ TBA

Aug. 15 - Lexington, KY @ The Burl

Aug. 16 - St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway

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

Minneapolis This Week (July 13, 2025)

Read more Minneapolis Music Guide.

John Garcia at Turf Club (July 09, 2025) John Garcia Finally time for John Garcia, who played a career-spanning ninety-minute set that was no frills and in-your-face, as the most devoted fans would want … read more Telekinetic Yeti Iowa-based two-piece Telekinetic Yeti is headlining the 7th Street Entry this August 29th, in support of their Tee Pee Records debut album, Primordial. … read more

July 09, 2025 Wednesday
John Garcia (ex-Kyuss)
with Telekinetic Yeti
at Turf Club
first-avenue.com

American desert rock pioneer and former Kyuss frontman John Garcia will be headlining the Turf Club, in St Paul, on July 9, 2025.

John Garcia at Liberty Hall (May 17, 2024)

We saw Garcia in May 2024 and said, “After the wind-up of the four previous bands, it was finally time for John Garcia, who played a career-spanning ninety-minute set that was no frills and in-your-face, as the most devoted fans would want it to be. The set began with “Gardenia” a 1995 single from Kyuss’ third album and chugged on with other mid-90’s cuts that the devoted were bobbing and dancing in place with.

Garcia would pause after a few songs, each time expressing his gratefulness to be able to bring these songs back to the fans, and he acknowledged a very young audience member up front getting musically acclimated to the songs that would inspire so many bands after. As to why Lawrence was a stop on this short tour, Garcia mentioned the many good memories he had of playing in town in the ‘90s- shows with Dwarves, fun times at the renowned punk venue on the outskirts of town, and more. ”

Telekinetic Yeti at 7th Street (Aug 29, 2022)

Telekinetic Yeti to open. We saw Telekinetic Yeti when they headlined the 7th Street Entry in Aug 2022 and said, “The Minneapolis show was the end of a long two-month North American tour, which started in South Carolina on July 2nd, and took them to the south (Texas), west coast (California), and finally winding to an end in Minneapolis. You can tell that after such a long travel that Telekinetic Yeti were both sadden that it would come to and end... but at the same time, they can finally take a break. The doom/stoner duo (Alex Baumann and Rockwel Heim) was very comfortable on stage, playing the same set night after night.As you can see from their setlist (with additional notes and settings), almost every song was from their new sophomore album Primordial. The two exceptions, “Abominable” and “Stoned and Feathered”, were taken from their debut album Abominable.”

Tour Dates:

07/03: Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre

07/05: Calgary, AB @ Dickens

07/06: Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Room

07/08: Winnipeg, MB @ Park Theatre

07/09: St Paul, MN @ Turf Club

07/10: Milwaukee, WI @ Club Garibaldi

07/11: Omaha, NE @ Slowdown

07/12: Denver, CO @ Marquis

07/13: Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge

07/19: Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy & Harriet's#

#No Telekinetic Yeti

Ezra Furman at Amsterdam Bar & Hall (July 09, 2025) Ezra Furman Last night's show opened with Ezra Furman. The crowd was sparse to begin with but trickled in throughout the night. Ezra's performance had a raw, garage band … read more The Ophelias Indie band Why? is returning to the Cedar Cultural Center on Sunday, November 4th, and they are bringing Lala Lala and The Ophelias. … read more

July 09, 2025 Wednesday
Ezra Furman
with The Ophelias
at Amsterdam Bar & Hall
first-avenue.com

Renowned multi-disciplinary artist Ezra Furman will be headlining the Amsterdam Bar & Hall, in St Paul, on July 9, in support of her 10th studio album Goodbye Small Head (available May 16 via Bella Union).

Ezra Furman at Fine Line (31 May 2022)

We saw Furman in May 2022 and said, “Like the last time we saw Ezra, she still had that “raw, garage” sound, even nine years later. I know that her recent work with the Netflix series Sex Education, help build up a new audience for her… who may not realized that she’s been writing music since 2006 as Ezra Furman and the Harpoons. Ezra Furman mentioned that she’ll have a new album called All of Us Flames, which is set for an August 2022 release under the Anti– label. ”

Updated: It was recently announced that The Ophelias will be support for Furman’s North American tour. The Ophelias’ latest Spring Grove is out now on Get Better Records.

NOTE: A limited number of reduced-priced tickets are available for purchase by unemployed/low income fans, who might not otherwise be able to afford to attend. No questions asked.

Tour Dates:

7/8: Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall

7/9: St. Paul, MN @ Amsterdam

7/10: Des Moines, IA @ Lefty’s Live Music

7/13: Indianapolis, IN @ Turntable

7/14: Columbus, OH @ Ace of Cups

7/15: Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre

7/16: Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom

7/17: Ferndale, MI @ The Loving Touch

8/3: San Diego, CA @ Music Box

8/5: Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom

8/6: Santa Cruz, CA @ Moe’s Alley

8/7: San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall

8/10: Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom

8/12: Vancouver, BC @ Hollywood Theatre

8/13: Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile

10/20: Montreal, QC @ Fairmount Theatre

10/21: Toronto, ON @ The Axis Club

10/22: Troy, NY @ No Fun

10/23: Portland, ME @ State Theatre

10/26: Hamden, CT @ Space Ballroom

10/27: Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer

10/28: Washington, DC @ Union Stage

10/29: New York, NY @ Webster Hall

Pure Prairie League at Parkway Theater (July 10, 2025) Pure Prairie League Country-rock royalty Pure Prairie League will be playing the Parkway Theater, in Minneapolis, on July 10, 2025, in support of their new album … read more

July 10, 2025 Thursday
Pure Prairie League
at Parkway Theater
theparkwaytheater.com

Country-rock royalty Pure Prairie League will be playing the Parkway Theater, in Minneapolis, on July 10, 2025, in support of their new album, Back on Track.

Tour Dates:

JUL 2 The Clayton Opera House Clayton, NY

JUL 5 Summer Concert Series Mason, NH

JUL 6 The Opera House Boothbay Harbor, ME

JUL 10 The Parkway Theater Minneapolis, MN

JUL 12 Turner Hall Ballroom Milwaukee, WI

JUL 13 Peg Egan Performing Arts Center Egg Harbor, WI

JUL 17 Ruth Eckerd Hall Clearwater, FL

JUL 18 Peabody Auditorium Daytona Beach, FL

AUG 8 Bloomington Center Bloomington, IL

AUG 10 The Ark Ann Arbor, MI

AUG 22 Dallas, TX

AUG 23 Paramount Theatre Austin, TX

AUG 24 Tobin Center San Antonio, TX

AUG 25 Main Street Crossing Tomball, TX

AUG 30 SamJam Bluegrass Festival 2025 Piketon, OH

SEP 5 Uptown Theater Kansas City, MO

SEP 6 Ozarks Amphitheater Camdenton, MO

SEP 11 Beaver Creek Village Avon, CO

DEC 4 Musikfest Café Bethlehem, PA

DEC 5 Rams Head On Stage Annapolis, MD

JAN 9, 2026 Rialto Theatre Tucson, AZ

The Crane Wives at Palace Theatre (July 12, 2025) The Crane Wives Grand Rapids’ The Crane Wives (named after The Decemberists, ala Japanese folk tale 鶴女房) is headlining the Palace Theatre on July 12, 2025, in support of Beyond Beyond Beyond. … read more Arny Margret Arny Margret was the opener for the evening. The Icelandic born Margret (actual name: Árný Margrét Sævarsdóttir) is relatively early in her career, with an EP … read more

July 12, 2025 Saturday
The Crane Wives
with Arny Margret
at Palace Theatre
first-avenue.com

Grand Rapids’ The Crane Wives (named after The Decemberists, ala Japanese folk tale 鶴女房) is headlining the Palace Theatre on July 12, 2025, in support of Beyond Beyond Beyond.

Arny Margret at Dakota Jazz Club (Mar 29, 2025)

Arny Margret to open. We saw Margret in March 2025 and said, “Arny Margret was the opener for the evening. The Icelandic born Margret (actual name: Árný Margrét Sævarsdóttir) is relatively early in her career, with an EP and her debut full length album coming out in 2022. She came out to the front of the stage, playing solo on guitar and singing. Her opener, I Miss You, I Do, was a lovely introduction to her folk style. A quick introduction included a mostly sure statement of “I think this is the first time I’ve been to Minneapolis”. As she went into the next number, in tall buildings, there was a fascinating display of what many artists, particularly young ones, do. During the songs, Margret was confident and full of power as she flawlessly performed her songs. But in between, there was a shyness that was apparent in the almost mumbled “thank you very much”. At one point “I don’t have a lot to say…” before actually letting the audience know that she was mostly playing new music, because she has just released an album in the last month. Those moments seemed to endear her to the audience, who were very attentive to her performance. Asked to repeat her name, Arny said it, stated that it roughly translates to “new year” and that “it is very Icelandic”.”

Tour dates:

Jul 10, 2025 The Pabst Theater Milwaukee, WI

Jul 11, 2025 The Sylvee Madison, WI

Jul 12, 2025 Palace Theatre Saint Paul, MN

Jul 14, 2025 The Truman Kansas City, MO

Jul 15, 2025 The Pageant St Louis, MO

Jul 17, 2025 Brooklyn Bowl Nashville Nashville, TN

Jul 18, 2025 Mercury Ballroom Louisville, KY

Jul 19, 2025 Hi-Fi Annex Indianapolis, IN

Jul 20, 2025 Hi-Fi Annex Indianapolis, IN

Jul 22, 2025 Bogart's Cincinnati, OH

Jul 23, 2025 The Athenaeum Theatre Columbus, OH

Jul 25, 2025 Saint Andrew's Hall Detroit, MI

Jul 26, 2025 The Vic Theatre Chicago, IL

Aug 28, 2025 Frederik Meijer Gardens Grand Rapids, MI

Sep 24, 2025 Islington Assembly Hall London

Sep 25, 2025 Birmingham Town Hall Birmingham

Sep 26, 2025 O2 Ritz Manchester Manchester

Sep 27, 2025 O2 Academy Glasgow Glasgow

Sep 29, 2025 SWX Bristol

Sep 30, 2025 Islington Assembly Hall London

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

Flashback: Oasis at Melarkey's, Sacramento (Sep 27, 1994)

Oasis USA Tour (1994) Oasis at Melarkey's Setlist (Sep 27, 1994) Rock 'n' Roll Star Columbia Fade Away Digsy's Dinner Shakermaker Live Forever Bring It On Down Up in the Sky Slide Away Cigarettes & Alcohol Married With Children Supersonic I Am the Walrus (The Beatles cover) setlist courtesy of setlist.fm Oasis 1994 USA Tour Dates The Definitely Maybe Tour was a concert tour by English band Oasis in support of their hugely successful debut album Definitely Maybe. The tour, which spanned the UK, Europe, Japan, the US and Canada, included 143 shows over a period of several months in 1994 and 1995 amidst 10 different tour legs. 09/23/1994 Seattle - Moe's Mo' Rockin' Cafe 09/24/1994 Portland - Satyricon 09/26/1994 San Francisco - Bottom of the Hill 09/27/1994 Sacramento - Melarky's 09/29/1994 Hollywood - Whisky A Go Go 10/14/1994 Minneapolis - Uptown Bar 10/15/1994 Chicago - Metro 10/16/1994 Detroit - Saint Andrew's Hall 10/18/1994 Cleveland Heights - Grog Shop 10/19/1994 Toronto - Lee's Palace 10/21/1994 Boston - Local 186 10/22/1994 Pawtucket - The Met 10/23/1994 Philadelphia - JC Dobbs 10/26/1994 Washington - 9:30 Club 10/28/1994 Hoboken - Maxwell's 10/29/1994 New York - Wetlands Preserve Oasis Oasis is also the subject in a recent Supersonic documentary, set for release on October 2nd in limited UK theaters. Director Matt Whitecross was granted an unparalleled … read more

Today, July 4, 2025, marks Oasis playing their first gig since they broke up in 2009. Setlist, per their press release, includes all their well-known hits, including “Wonderwall”, “Rock ‘n Roll Star”, “Slide Away”, and my personal favorite, “Supersonic.”

Surprisingly, many Americans were among the 62,000 fans at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium to see the historic event, because they didn’t think the two brothers, Noel and Liam Gallagher, would be corrigible with each other by the time they land in America.

Oasis at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium (April 13, 1996)

John suggested I should re-run Oasis at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco (April 13, 1996), which was a fine tour - but at the point in time, the band was massive thanks to their mega-hit song “Wonderwall” had taken over the radio airwaves. Oasis, in 1996, were on top of the world.

I’ll do one better, as I previously mentioned, I have seen the band two years prior, in 1994, at Melarkey's, in Sacramento.

Let me set up this story for you. In the early 90s, I was already well on board into British Rock (which would later be known as Britpop). I was into Blur, Pulp, The Auteurs, and, of course, Sleeper (as far back as 1993). Naturally, this new band called Oasis came onto the scene with their explosive 1994 debut single, “Supersonic”. I was already familiar with the band before their single came out, as they were regularly being featured in the NME and Melody Maker weekly music papers.

Oasis’ songs were unapologetic rock and roll. Lyrically, Oasis didn’t hold a candle to The Smiths (which Noel had expressed was some of their inspiration), but Noel’s lyrics just sounded good against the aggressive guitar sound. The songs just sound so good, and there was no singer that sounded like Liam’s exaggerated pronunciations.

By the time the band released their debut album, Definitely Maybe, I knew Oasis was going to take over the world. Definitely Maybe is one of the few albums that I can listen from start to finish. That’s a rare thing, as every album had one or two bad songs, not Definitely Maybe. That entire debut album had nothing but hits.

Vu’s FCC Radio License (Jan 26, 1995)

That summer in 1994, I was working at KFSR 90.7 FM with my friend Melinda (RIP), and we had arranged to interview my new favorite band Oasis when they were doing a small promotional tour that September (I didn’t officially get my FCC Radio license until 1995). We had a few options to see them (Los Angeles, San Francisco or Sacramento), we had chosen the city that would have the least amount of people: Melarkey’s in Sacramento, California.

It proved to be a good choice, as when we got there for soundcheck, the band was casually just hanging around the city. Liam and Bonehead was sitting outside; fans were just walking up to them. No securities, they weren’t famous in America… at least not yet.

I long-lost the cassette tape with my interview with Liam. I’ve lost that photo of Liam and I. What I will forever have is my fond memory of the whole event: I could not literally understand Liam’s thick Manchester accent.

One of my questions that I asked Liam, and I assumed he wrote Oasis’ songs (remember this was kind of pre-internet) and asked him about the songwriting process. I think Liam got offended by it. I only remember that answer, “I’m the fooking singer.” I should have put two-and-two together, because we saw the soundcheck - and guess who was doing all the work? Noel. He sang and played the guitar. I don’t recall any of the other band members checking their instruments either!

Oasis: Definitely Maybe (autographed)

After the interview, I got the entire band to sign my CD. Noel refused to sign it. Noel was a true artist. He doesn’t do autographs. His PR person basically forced him to sign my album. That did leave a sour taste in my mouth about Noel, but it didn’t stop me from enjoying the band’s music.

We spent the rest of the day walking around the city and then came back to the venue when the concert started. We didn’t see the opening band (Melinda didn’t care for them), and we didn’t stay for the full show, because it was a two-hour drive back to Fresno, and we both had to work in the morning. I think we left when they played “Live Forever”, which I thought could be a good single (and it was eventually a hit single).

Nicole Garrison (May 22, 1994)

The best part is on the walk back to Melinda’s Toyota, I spotted a personalized license plate that read: “MOZ FAN”. We both recognized that this car belonged to a big Morrissey fan, so Mel decided to write a little hello note to leave on their windshield. While we were writing, the owner of the car showed up. As it turned out, the car belonged to Nicole Garrison, the owner of the Morri'zine (a long running fanzine dedicated to Morrissey and the Smiths). It was cool, we had met another hardcore Morrissey fan and we exchanged contact information. She would later show up to one of our Morrissey Birthday Party, in Fresno. I’ve long lost contact, but, man, those were the days.

Yeah, we did see Oasis again in 1996 (as regular fans) and have followed their musical career until their end in 2009, and I still love the band. It would be nice to see them in 2025, on their 30th anniversary of Definitely Maybe… but seeing as their entire tour is sold out (and at astronomical prices) and at very limited three USA venues (nowhere near Jacksonville!), it is just not possible to see them now.

Still love Oasis, I am very happy to see them back together again.

Oasis (Liam Gallagher) at Melarkey's, Sacramento (September 27, 1994) photo by Michael Spencer Jones

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Prime Time: Housewarming

Amazon Prime Day (July 8-11, 2025) Amazon Then, since Amazon Prime Day/week, I’ve had two packages that were delivered to the wrong location. I believe both were delivered by the USPS… so now I … read more

With Amazon Prime Day coming up on July 8 to 11, I want to remind people to not get anything on those dates. It’s from firsthand experience, but due to the influx of orders, Amazon will often screw something up on your orders or deliveries. I’ve had wrong items or mis-delivered items… and they only happen around Prime Day.

The deals are never that good. The only deep discounts you’re going to find are Amazon’s own products, such as their Kindle eBook readers… so if you’re thinking of buying the poorly reviewed Kindle Colorsoft, now might be the best time. Although, I would personally hold back on buying it until they announced that they fixed the yellow bar on the device.

If you must buy anything, I suggest order items before the event (like right now until July 8) or two weeks after the event. With that said, I have compiled a few items that I have ordered for the new house, ahead of Prime Day. These are things that I personally ordered, based on my own needs or were on sale.

Note: The Sugar Bowl (a much-needed item) was not on sale.

Magnetic Duck Key Holder

Magnetic Duck Key Holder

As you know, I recently moved to a new house, and we don’t really have a designated area where I can leave my house and car keys. So, this Silly Duck key holder is the perfect solution for me. There is a magnet under the duck’s beak to hold my keys. In addition, there is also a bowl underneath, that I can also drop my keys or wallet. It’s normally $20, but currently it’s on sale for $10.99.

It stands at nearly 7 inches and comes in white/marble, white/black, yellow/marble, or wood.

Easter Island Head Eyeglass Holder

Easter Island Head Eyeglass Holder

I actually sometime forget where I leave my glasses. It got so bad that I keep a pair of glasses in my car’s glove compartment, just in case of such emergencies. Now that I am in the new house, I would like one place where I can always leave my glasses… why not have a special ornament to hold it? How about this funky Easter Island Head made of resin and stands at 4 inches high? Now, I will always know where my glasses are.

I got the item in hand and I do wish the resin head was a little heavier. Your glasses won’t knock it over, but I feel like an accidental wave of your hand can easily knock this thing over.

I only saved $2, but a deal’s a deal, right? The eyeglass holder is on sale for $8.

Fruit Sugar Bowl

Fruit Sugar Bowl

I drink coffee and I take sugar. Right now, the house doesn’t have any sugar bowl. Sure, you can get any old container at the dollar store… but if you want a cool-looking ceramic storage sugar bowl, consider this fruit-shaped bowl for $10. They’re meant to contain spices and such, but I’m using it as a sugar bowl. To be perfectly honest, I think I may have overpaid for it.

There are many options, you can get Green Pomelo, Orange, Pomegranate, Watermelon, or Yellow Pomelo. They all come with its own spoon.

I have the item in hand, and although the ceramic bowl is nice and sturdy, the spoon is made of plastic… which is quite disappointing. I would have preferred the spoon to also be ceramic, or at the very least a long-lasting stainless-steel spoon. I do have a tea-spoon that I may swap out should the plastic spoon break.

Hope that gives you an idea, if you’re also in the market of decorating or updating your home.

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

awakebutstillinbed and For Your Health at Pilllar Forum, Minneapolis (July 3, 2025)

awakebutstillinbed / For Your Health at Pilllar Forum (July 3, 2025) For Your Health Setlist Davenport (A Rotten Pear) Flowers for the Worst of Them With Empty Promises & Loaded Guns birthday candles in the effigy charlie brown's gotta be damn near public domain by now push the f***ing rock, sisy Gaia Wept The Rotting Pair Longinus Clementine Lamb Without Fold Your New Curse save your breath, you're gonna need it to blow my head off Tour Dates Awakebutstillinbed and For Your Health are co-headlining Summer MMXXV Tour. July 3 Minneapolis, MN Pilllar Forum July 4 Des Moines, IA The Church July 5 Kansas City, MO Farewell July 6 St. Louis, MO Sinkhole July 7 Indianapolis, IN Healer July 8 Cincinnati, OH Northside Tavern awakebutstillinbed Band Members Shannon Taylor - vocals, guitar Johnny DeBorde - (touring) bass Brendan Gibson - guitar, keys Erik Lobo - drums, percussion For Your Health Band Members Hayden Rodriguez - Vocals Johnny DeBorde - Bass Rosa O. Delgado - Guitar, Vocals Nicholas Marzluf - Guitar, Vocals Simona Morales - Vocals, Synthesizers, Keys Melanerpes Band Members Sofia Green - vocals, guitars Juno Collie - bass Gretchen - guitars Max - drums Hey, ily! Band Members Caleb Haynes - Rhythm Guitar, Vocals Skyy Haman - Keyboards Trevin Baker - Lead Guitar Stephen Redmond - Bass Conner Haman - Drums awakebutstillinbed Damian Chacon: guitars; Johnny Deborde: bass; and Sandro Zambrano-Villa: drums. Awakebutstillinbed, As We Were Before, and Heccra all open. … read more For Your Health Awakebutstillinbed and For Your Health are co-headlining Pilllar Forum on July 3, 2025. For Your Health just released their new album, This Bitter Garden, via Periphery's 3DOT Recordings. … read more Hey, ily! Caleb Haynes, aka Hey, ily! (Hey, I Love You!), will be headlining the 7th Street Entry on August 14, 2023. This project came from Haynes’ love of Super Smash Bros. … read more

Though I don’t follow different bands relationships with each other closely, I am intrigued by all the ways they can interact. Bands can be rivals, friends, guest on another band’s songs, produce each other albums, even form supergroups (hello, Traveling Wilburys). On a scorching evening in Minneapolis, the bands awakebutstillinbed and For Your Health performed at Pilllar Forum (yes, that is three l’s). While I’m a little unclear on the full relationship of the two bands, they released a four track EP in 2022, hymns for the scorned, where each band contributed two songs, seemingly without crossover between the bands. And here in the summer of 2025, they are co-headlining a tour together with a full night of post-hardcore punk rock.

The evening started with (now) local Minneapolis band Hey Ily (AKA: Hey, I Love You). Caleb, part of the band, told me after their set that they relocated here from Billings, MT about eight months ago. With a great album title (a theme of the bands for the evening) in 2022’s Psychokinetic Love Songs, the quartet (dual guitars & vocalists, bass, and drums) came out firing, as was appropriate for the genre. One vocalist being more a screamer and the other more a singer contrasted well in the early going, with those hefty guitars underneath. Calling for a circle to be made for the more active dancers, I was glad I had found one of the few chairs on the far wall of the venue’s space. (Old man side note: I’m too old to be jumping with the kids. But good for them.) One of the singers called for everyone to move back up to the front, and I have to say I’m not sure I’ve seen such a compliant audience. That guitar heavy sound was definitely not just loud, and there was a good blend of that power noise with good harmonies in the music. Constantly checking on their time, the band used their twenty minutes extremely effectively. The last song was their slowest number for the front half before exploding into the close, with the bassist’s only vocals a primal set of screams. Hey Ily closed on a wall of distortion and quickly headed off stage.

Up next was another local band, Melanerpes. Their pithily titled 2023 album is called Making a Meal of It. Another quartet (again, dual guitars, bass, and drums, with multiple vocalists), they started with an almost dreamy intro of guitars before the distortion picked up with the vocals. In the middle, the singer stepped away for the drummer to first speak, then scream lyrics. The genre’s wide variance of sung to screamed was in full display in the first few songs from Melanerpes. A brief bit of banter and thanks for audience and they jumped back into the music, with the bassist taking lead vocals. This one ripped, both tempo-wise and with the quicker vocals. Being told they had five minutes left, the band laughed and simply said, “I guess we have one more song for you”. The other guitarist got the lead vocals, and it was interesting to see those different styles and how they sculpted the overall sound differently, even with a lot of the same instrumentation. Ending with a repeated scream of “You’re going to reap just what you sow” was a powerful message in these times, and Melanerpes’ cathartic and epic instrumentals after that was a highlight to their brief set.

Side note of the weird. The venue almost completely emptied between each act. I’ve never seen anything like it. Not that I wasn’t thankful, as it got very warm with the full audience packed in. And they all came pouring back in when the next band was about to get going. Also, we had different films and even video game footage behind the bands throughout, and I was quietly amused when scenes from Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal showed up.

Moving into “the touring bands”, the first of the co-headliners up was For Your Health, a Columbus, Ohio band headed by singer & songwriter Hayden Rodriguez. They have three full length albums, including the very recent 2025 release of The Bitter Garden. Breaking the mold of the earlier bands, this was a quintet (vocals, keys/backing vocals, guitar, bass, and drums). This was the first band of the evening leaning straight into the screamo, post-hardcore sound. Rodriguez’ punishing scream style was perfectly matched to their music and the crowd was more aggressively into it on the floor (again, thank you table and chair along the wall, you have saved me. Because even with the chair, I had to watch my left side for flying people). This was intense in every way; absolute bonkers energy and tempo from the stage and near chaos in the crowd. Rodriguez and the rest of the band seemed to amp up on that frenetic crowd, but also kept things moving.

Announcing they had their new album for sale at the back, “we’re going to play a lot of songs from it”. The first number from it (I couldn’t catch names) was perhaps the most screamed, which was really saying something. I may not be the best narrator, as I was distracted with trying not to get hurt (several people next to me took major shoves straight into the table on my left; dear reader remember, first, protect thyself). Some throbbing keyboard effects added to the sonic assault (that somehow seems an understatement). After a brief recorded interlude, the crashing drums introduced another number, this one including the slowed down tempo and driving bass riff to finish it off. I loved a brief moment where Rodriguez stated that he’s been a big fan of Hey Ily for a number of years and this was the first time they had gotten to see the band live. But it was right back to the music, with a song that might have been the most musical vocals of the evening, and a bit reminiscent of Coheed and Cambria. Back to the screaming approach, the guitar work was all heavy metal stylings. Closing out strong, including a crowd surfed Rodriguez, For Your Health had checked all the boxes that much of the crowd had come to have ticked.

I spoke with Rodriguez briefly after the set. Asked how the tour was going, he mentioned how much fun it was to be on the headlining side rather than only in support; “If people are here, they are more likely to be here for us”. Travel and schedule have been fine, which always impresses me to hear from a band when they are well in the tour. We also talked of stops that have historically been good or not so much, and how the band has to go into the latter believing that they can have a great show. If energy can translate to great shows, Rodriguez and the rest of For Your Health should have nothing but bangers.

The last band for the evening was awakebutstillinbed, led by singer, composer, and guitarist Shannon Taylor out of California. There’s two brilliantly named albums, including 2023’s chaos takes the wheel and i am a passenger. The sound is variously described as post-hardcore and math rock, which I interpreted as a more musical alternative punk than the straight up screamo, post-hardcore that we had just witnessed. Back to the quartet set up of guitar/vocals, guitar, bass (same person as For Your Health), and drums, there was definitely more of the mix of screamed and sung vocals. Taylor’s singing was actually a solid counter to the distorted guitar work. Several of the early songs slipped between the harder edged post-hardcore and a little more alt punk rock. The keyboardist from For Your Health made an early appearance to sing backup vocals and provided nice harmonies. The bass player got a great driving riff to close it out. A bit of banter from Taylor slowed things down momentarily, with a much quieter start to the next song, with just Taylor singing and on guitar. The rest of awakebutstillinbed started to join back in, and that piece meal addition was very effective prior to the full, loud sound, including a more gravelly sound from Taylor.

The next number was livelier and had the audience jumping in fervor again. The layered guitars on life were great and Taylor perfectly played the slightly quieter verses against the louder chorus. Keeping a close eye on time, the band headed towards a final number and it was for full mosh mode, but still counter balanced with brief respites of the verses. Rodriguez was suddenly on stage to provide backing vocals, and things were clearly winding down. With a hard stop due to a local noise ordinance for the venue, awakebutstillinbed was finished and a long and loud evening had successfully come to a close.

Hey, ily!

Hey, ily!

Hey, ily!

Hey, ily!

Melanerpes

Melanerpes

Melanerpes

Melanerpes

For Your Health (body surfing)

For Your Health

For Your Health

For Your Health

For Your Health

awakebutstillinbed

awakebutstillinbed (with guest Hayden Rodriguez) awakebutstillinbed

awakebutstillinbed awakebutstillinbed

awakebutstillinbed at Pilllar Forum, Minneapolis (July 3, 2025)

thaddeus ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

We♥KC! July 7-13, 2025 Upcoming concerts / shows (Kansas City, MO)

Read More 311 The alt-rock vets also announced a 30th anniversary reissue of their self-titled “Blue Album,” set to arrive July 11th on 2-LP vinyl. The reissue collects 21 tracks in total, including every song that was recorded...

Read more Kansas City Music Guide.

Not quite consider the “dog days” of summer yet, but it’s been toasty-

We saw several people pass out from the heat at the recent Modest Mouse show, and folks had to brave the heat, humidity and rain at the recent Weird Al gig at Starlight but happily did so.

The FIFA World Cup is less than a year away, so preparations are in full swing – we saw a recent aerial view of Arrowhead and the field is very torn up in order to accommodate the international requirements (also why no stadium concerts are there this summer).

Let’s take look at the Kansas City / Lawrence KS metro musical happenings for the upcoming week of July 7th-July 13th.

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

MONDAY JULY 7

Chained Saint, July 7, recordBar, $15

Metal’s Next Gen?! The rising South Florida teen metal band comprised of four high school students Ethan Kahn (18, guitar), Sebastian De Avila (18, bass), Cameron Cottrell (19, drums) and Sean Sterling (18, vocals) broke out with their debut single "Animosity", followed by the eight song album, Blindside, (produced by William DuVall of Alice In Chains) and have a new single "1000 Tons."

"We are stoked to put out this new single to follow up our debut album," the band says. "We have been trying different things, and we're curious and excited to see what our fans think. This has been our most collaborative song so far as a band. Each member put their own individual stamp on all aspects from the music to lyrics and we're going to love playing '1000 Tons' live."

TUESDAY JULY 8

The Wiz (Broadway Touring) July 8-13, Music Hall, $59-$205

Ease on down the road to the Music Hall! The Tony® Award-winning Best Musical that took the world by storm is back. THE WIZ returns “home” to stages across America in an all-new tour, direct from Broadway. For the first time in decades,”The Wiz” returns to the stage with a brand-new adaptation.

This groundbreaking twist on The Wizard of Oz changed the face of Broadway—from its iconic score packed with soul, gospel, rock, and 70s funk to its stirring tale of Dorothy’s journey to find her place in a contemporary world. Everybody rejoice!- this dynamite infusion of ballet, jazz, and modern pop brings a whole new groove to easing on down the road!

Incubus w Manchester Orch, July 8, Starlight, $78.75-$228.75

Incubus is embarking on a 2025 North American "Morning View + The Hits" tour, performing their iconic album "Morning View" in its entirety along with their greatest hits. The tour, featuring special guest Manchester Orchestra, kicked off on June 25th in Nashville and concludes on October 4th in Los Angeles.

The tour is an extension of last year’s trek and they also recently released a re-recorded version of Morning View — dubbed Morning View XXIII — which was featured on our roundup of artists who have re-recorded their albums.

Looking ahead, the band has completed their ninth studio album, Something in the Water, slated for release in October which will be their first full-length release since 2017’s 8 and the first to feature bassist Nicole Row.

WEDNESDAY JULY 9

MoonShroom, July 9, Boulevard Brewing Live, CANCELED?

THURSDAY JULY 10

FRIDAY JULY 11

311, Badflower, July 11, GrindersKC, $71.75-$245.36

311 ongoing “Unity Tour” continues into the summer with support from Badflower and Sitting on Saturn. The headlining dates kicked off June 20th in Atlantic City and run through August 29th in Tupelo, MS— followed by an appearance by the band at Rocklahoma on August 31st.

The alt-rock vets also announced a 30th anniversary reissue of their self-titled “Blue Album,” set to arrive July 11th on 2-LP vinyl. The reissue collects 21 tracks in total, including every song that was recorded during the sessions. Not a cheap show but the Omaha formed band has had loyal KC fans for decades, so expect a crowd.

Bones Owen, July 11, Knuckleheads, $26.11

Having toured the world, supporting musicians like Yelawolf, Jelly Roll and Mikky Ekko, the Nashville-based troubadour has announced he will release his third full-length, Best Western, due September 19 via Thirty Tigers. The latest release serves as a follow up to Love Out Of Lemons, the sophomore album which dove into topics about love, self-preservation, and new beginnings.

Owens shares “‘Best Western’ is a hybrid of my confessional, introspective side usually reserved for EPs, mixed with the energy and bravado of my full-length rock records. It’s a roller coaster ride of highs and lows, a soundtrack to an open road.”

Owens weaves a wide range of influences throughout Best Western, blending classic and Southern rock with flashes of '60s psychedelia, garage-punk, alternative, and even hints of hip-hop.

SATURDAY JULY 12

Primus w Ty Segall, July 12, Grinders KC, $71.75

Following their run on the Sessanta tour alongside A Perfect Circle and Puscifer, Primus returns with their own Onward & Upward Tour – a coast-to-coast trek that marks a new chapter for the band. The tour introduces fans to drummer John Hoffman, whose recent addition to the lineup brings a renewed sense of energy, experimentation, and groove to the legendary outfit. The tour features support From Ty Segall.

Whiskey Myers, July 12, Starlight, $52-$121

(Postponed from June- all previous tickets honored) Genre-defying band Whiskey Myers is back on the road on their What We Were Born To Do Tour as guitarist John Jeffers welcomed his second baby boy, with Ozzy Jak Jeffers joining the band family on June 18. The buzzing band has played nearly 3,000 live shows to ever-increasing crowd sizes since their emergence in 2007.

The band is poised to begin their next chapter with their highly-anticipated seventh studio album Whomp Whack Thunder arriving Sept. 26 via the band’s own Wiggy Thump Records, with lead single “Time Bomb” available everywhere now. Their previous project, Tornillo, featured the No. 17 most-played Americana song of 2022, “John Wayne.”

SUNDAY JULY 13

Slightly Stoopid, Iration, July 13, Azura Amph, $59-$112

Slightly Stoopid have announced their Step Into The Sun Summer Tour which began on June 12 in Pittsburgh and with Iration also on the bill.

“We’re stoked for the ‘Step Into The Sun’ tour this summer. Stoopid has some new music coming soon and are looking forward to jamming those tunes on tour and hitting venues we’ve never been to before. We can’t wait to see all of our friends for the party of the summer! LFG,” shared member Miles Doughty.

Daisychain, July 13, Replay Lounge- Lawrence, $3-$5

Daisychain is a female-fronted blues/psych rock band based out of Chicago (Nickole Regala (bass, vocals), Frankie Sripada (lead guitar) and Sophia Williams (rhythm guitar, vocals).

Drawing from influences like Patti Smith, Melvins, The Velvet Underground, and Jack White, audiences can expect expressive guitar solos, a dynamic rhythm section, and smoky vocal harmonies all paying homage to a familiar sound.

Formed in 2017, the femme-led group quickly rose to the forefront of the Midwest scene and have a debut LP called All In A Name, produced by the legendary Sylvia Massy (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tool, Prince).

   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]

john c ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ X / twitter.com

The Beatnik Brothers at Veteran’s Memorial Amphitheater, Minneapolis (July 2, 2025)

The Beatnik Brothers at Wolfe Park (July 2, 2025) Band Members Michael Goldberg Mike Fishel Scott Weber Rick Marquart Summer Concert Series The City of St. Louis Park is partnering with the St. Louis Park Rotary Club to bring you the Summer Concert Series. All performances are free and filled with amazing talent! Concerts are held at Veteran's Memorial Amphitheater, 3700 Monterey Drive unless noted in schedule. July 2 The Beatnik Brothers July 9 Bossa Soul July 11 Classical Actors Ensemble July 16 Salsa Del Soul July 19 Jeff Dayton July 23 Power of 10 July 30 St. Louis Park Community Band Aug. 6 Lehto & Wright Aug. 13 Community Talent Show Aug. 20 Southside Big Band Aug. 23 Dan Israel Folk Fest Music in the Parks Today, Labor Day, is the last day and the “End of Summer Celebration” from Music in the Parks series. Today’s schedule will feature Laughing … read more

It’s funny how a musical term can keep evolving. Take the “Golden Oldies.” Back when I was rolling around in the back of an Oldsmobile Cutlass, the oldies station played musical artists like Little Richard, Buddy Holly or any musical artist on the Stand By Me soundtrack. Then the decades rolled on to where songs from the 80’s may now be considered fair game. After all, can any Gen Z get this 80’s musical reference from a classic comedy show.

The music of the 80’s was not on tap when The Beatnik Brothers took the stage at Veterans’ Memorial Amphitheater, but for two hours the outdoor venue was filled with hit songs starting with “Little Sister” from Elvis Pressley. Pretty quickly the front of the stage filled with dancers, young and old, but mostly older due to the songs as well as a retirement community abutting the park.

After a couple more songs from the King and Roy Orbison’s “You Got It” lead singer, Michael Goldberg, took the opportunity to entertain the crowd with really bad dad jokes. Most do not bear repeating, but this one was pretty funny:

Did you hear about the couple that late to the cannibal dinner?
They were given the cold shoulder.

After Orbison’s crowd-pleaser “Pretty Woman”, the band was onto the 60’s, which included a lot of Beatles’ songs ranging from “Hard Day’s Night” to “Get Back.”

“You can never play too many Beatles’ songs,” said Goldberg. He then mentioned that he once formed a Beatles’ cover band, but only played the songs after they broke up, which led to the 70’s and Wings.

With technical difficulties behind them and a decade that most of the band grew up in, it felt like The Beatnik Brothers hit their stride with “Silly Love Song” and “Band on the Run.” Then it was “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” and “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard” by Paul Simon with a dip into the 80’s with “You Can Call Me Al” which had a nice bass solo from Jason Bush.

Being an outdoor venue with bedtime for the young and medication for those a little older, people started to filter out of the venue, but yet the dancing continued as Rick Marquart on drums took the lead to sing “Peaceful Easy Feeling” by the Eagles. Then a sing-a-long to Jim Croce’s “Bad Bad Leroy Brown" followed by America’s “Horse With No Name” with a soulful guitar solo from Richard Larson as a few ladies moved along with an interpretive dance.

The sun may have been setting, but The Beatnik Brothers kept getting requests, which led to classics like Gerry Raferty’s “Right Down the Line” and Little River Band’s “Lady” before ending with Merle Haggard’s “Mama Tried.”

“Still one more,” Goldberg asked the dancers. So they played Tom Petty’s “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” (Oh hell yes), which is actually from the 90’s, which I guess isn’t too far from becoming a Golden Oldie.

1 / 9

2 / 9

3 / 9

4 / 9

5 / 9

6 / 9

7 / 9

8 / 9

9 / 9

The Beatnik Brothers at Veteran’s Memorial Amphitheater, Minneapolis (July 2, 2025)

dave ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

News: Palmer's Bar will Shut Down in September

Palmer’s Bar 2025 (photo by Thaddeus) Palmer’s Bar Local legend Cornbread Harris, like every Sunday from 5-7 pm, performs with no cover at Palmer’s Bar, so I finally made the time to go and see him. … read more

Palmer’s Bar, in Minneapolis, announced that they close permanently on September 14, 2025, via Facebook announcement.

Palmer’s Bar writes:

It is with heavy hearts that we must finally announce that Palmer’s Bar last day of business will be this September 14th, 2025. This has been an incredibly difficult but necessary decision and we are devastated to do so.

Thank you so very much to everyone that has been keeping this bar alive since 1906, especially our very faithful regulars, and the incredibly talented musicians that have played our stages over the years. Above all else, our staff - who make the place so special and who really are the best in the business. We wouldn’t have made it this far without you all.

We will be open regular hours until bar close on September 14th with a jam- packed calendar and plenty of time to party and say farewell. Please join us in saying goodbye to a West Bank institution, raise a glass to all the good times and great people, and make it a last summer to remember here at Palmer’s Bar.

If you’re not from the Minneapolis area, Palmer’s Bar, whose motto is “Sorry We’re Open”, sits between the Cedar Cultural Center and the former Triple Rock Social Club (permanently closed since 2017) in the Cedar-Riverside area. From what I can remember, the Palmer’s Bar reputation was not good according to former W♥M writer, Lara. She called it “the world’s most dangerous bar” on account of some stabbings that happened at the establishment.

Although I’ve never experienced anything like that personally, I know that area can be somewhat shady. For example, I did witness a car hitting a light pole and the driver was running on foot from two police officers… but that had nothing to do with Palmer’s Bar and their reputation for strong drinks.

Cornbread Harris at Palmer’s Bar (April 6, 2025)

Thaddeus recently attended Cornbread Harris at Palmer’s Bar (April 6, 2025) and noted, “I realized I was facing the fallacy of convenience with local legend Cornbread Harris, who, like every Sunday from 5-7 pm, performs with no cover at Palmer’s Bar, so I finally made the time to go and see him. Harris, who has been part of rock bands, but mostly specializes in blues and jazz, has been part of the Twin Cities’ music scene for more than 70 years. He was part of The Augie Garcia Quintet, which had Minnesota’s first rock & roll record Hi Yo Silver, in 1955. He’s been the subject of a recent book, Deeper Blues: The Life Songs and Salvation of Cornbread Harris.”

Before I left Minneapolis for Jacksonville, I did stop in at the Palmer’s Bar to say goodbye to Peter. I’m glad to I made the effort, as it’s likely the last time I would be at the famed “world’s most dangerous bar.”

Here’s to you, Mr. Henry Palmer.

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com