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Flashback: Atmosphere at the Simon Estes Amphitheater, Des Moines (11 Aug 2009)

Read More Atmosphere The very, very popular Atmosphere is playing First Avenue on Monday, January 13th. Blink, and it’s sold out, of course. …

According to Elizabeth, who attended the show, she noted that this was Atmosphere’s first appearance in Des Moines… and to play a large amphitheater says a lot about how popular and influential the Minneapolis rapper was (and is). It’s crazy to imagine that people as far as England, are massive fan of Slug and his Rhymesayers collective.

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Atmosphere brought a showering of lyrics when they stormed into Des Moines.

Des Moines had the pleasure of listening to one of the freshest sounds tonight; Atmosphere made their first appearance in Des Moines and they left impressed, to say the least. Atmosphere’s front man, Slug, coined us “his family reunion” and that he’s very proud to call Des Moines his friend.

Whether the crowd was spitting along with Atmosphere’s beats or waving their hands side-to-side, Simon Estes Amphitheater was flooded with love and appreciation for this rapper’s talent. The group showcased many of their popular favorites like, “Sunshine,” “Always Coming Back Home to You,” & “Trying to Find a Balance.” It was truly amazing how Des Moines came together to celebrate with Atmosphere and their whole entourage. I was under the impression that Atmosphere was not that popular within the suburbs of Des Moines, but the more people filed towards the front of the amphitheater, it just went to prove that music is alive and well, no matter what kind it is.

Slug provided the audience with a free-style rap at the very end of the show. He included tidbits about down home cooking and the Embassy suites. It was a nice touch to wrap up the night and also provided me with a sense of how he really felt about Iowa. “Atmosphere flips lyrics like a spatula.” So he said himself while spitting to his own rhyme about his vocal talents. He seemed to really enjoy the crowd’s energy and played off it for most of the evening. Slug told jokes and even made friendly contact with the crowd every now and then. In regards to his friendliness to the crowd, while the opening bands made their transition, Slug appeared out of nowhere and started to meet with the crowd. He began shaking hands with everyone and thanking them for coming. I had the opportunity to shake his hand. It proved to me that Atmosphere isn’t like any other band, they truly care about their audience and about the ears that Slug’s lyrics fall upon.

The opening acts were Attracted to Gods and Eyedea & Abilities. The crowd seemed most familiar with the lyrical rhymes of Eyedea & Abilities. Attracted to Gods was a great duo that reminded me of George Thorogood. They had really great jam sessions that twanged with a bit of blues rock.

Flashback: Atmosphere at the Simon Estes Amphitheater, Des Moines (11 Aug 2009) photo by Elizabeth Soda

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ facebook.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

By The Thousands at Vaudeville Mews, Des Moines (12 Dec 2015)

Tour Dates 12/17 Houston, TX @ Walters 12/18 Austin, TX @ Dirty Dog Bar 12/19 Memphis, TN @ Rockhouse Live 12/20 St. Louis, MO @ Fubar 12/21 LaCrosse, WI @ Warehouse 12/22 Duluth, MN @ Beaners Central Read More By The Thousands I saw my boys in By The Thousands play the First Avenue mainroom. This is the same venue I saw Social Distortion play. The same stage that I saw Sage Francis play on. And there were my boys. ....

Going back to the Vaudeville Mews concert venue in Des Moines, Iowa, for the first time in 10+ years was a bit surreal. Nothing has changed. I’m pretty sure they still haven’t cleaned the bar or the floor, there was still no toilet paper or paper towels in the bathroom and some of my angsty poetry is still sharpie’d on the bathroom walls.

I didn’t tell the boys in By The Thousands that I would be making the trek from Minneapolis to Iowa for the show. Hell, I really didn’t tell anyone that I was going out of town. I thought the element of surprise would be worth it… it so was!

It was odd seeing this band and not knowing majority of the crowd. When I see them up in Minneapolis, half of the crowd are friends of mine. Last night it was me, my buddy and two kids I knew from high school. That was all I knew in the crowded venue that was a second home to me when growing up.

Being able to see By The Thousands turn heads and get people moving in a town they have never played in before was the best feeling on the planet. The crowd could have easily fooled you into thinking that they had seen By The Thousands before. The crowd was moving back and forth in the narrow venue and at one point there was even a circle pit going on. Now, mind you, the crowd up in the cities when you see these guys is much more brutal and energetic but, for being their first time in Des Moines, I would call this a success.

Their music sounded great, as always. It was clean and tight and perfect. I could hear the people around us talking about how great they sounded and I couldn’t help but let the smile creep across my face. Here were my By The Thousands boys impressing my hometown with their amazing music. The songs were the ones I had heard before but, because of the new surroundings, they almost sounded different. Familiar, but different… but perfect.

By the Thousands' latest Connect came out earlier in November 2015. They are currently on tour with Terraform.

By The Thousands at Vaudeville Mews, Des Moines (12 Dec 2015)

langen ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Gwar at Wooly's, Des Moines (27 Aug 2015)

Tour Dates 08/30/15 Lawrence, KS Granada Theatre 08/31/15 Tulsa, OK Cain's Ballroom 09/01/15 San Antonio, TX Alamo City Music Hall 09/02/15 Baton Rouge, LA Varsity Theatre 09/03/15 Mobile, AL Soul Kitchen 09/04/15 Birmingham, AL Iron City 09/05/15 Befuddled Festival 09/06/15 Winston-Salem, NC Ziggy's 09/08/15 Wilmington, NC Ziggy's By The Sea 09/09/15 Jacksonville, FL Freebird Live 09/10/15 Chattanooga, TN Track 29 09/11/15 Sauget, IL Pop's 09/12/15 Riot Fest (Chicago, IL) 09/14/15 Poughkeepsie, NY The Chance Theatre 09/15/15 South Burlington, VT Higher Ground 09/16/15 Reading, PA Reverb 09/17/15 Huntington, NY The Paramount 09/18/15 Rochester, NY Water Street Music Hall 09/19/15 Riot Fest (Toronto, ON) 10/07/15 Cincinnati, OH Bogart's 10/08/15 Milwaukee, WI The Rave 10/09/15 Minneapolis, MN The Cabooze 10/10/15 Winnipeg, MB Garrick Centre 10/12/15 Saskatoon, SK O'Brian's Event Centre 10/13/15 Calgary, AB MacEwan Hall Ballroom 10/14/15 Edmonton, AB Union Hall 10/16/15 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom 10/17/15 Spokane, WA Knitting Factory 10/18/15 Boise, ID Knitting Factory Concert House 10/19/15 Portland, OR Roseland Theater 10/20/15 Seattle, WA Showbox SoDo 10/23/15 Las Vegas, NV Fremont Country Club 10/24/15 Knotfest 10/25/15 San Francisco, CA Regency Ballroom 10/26/15 Reno, NV Knitting Factory 10/28/15 Tempe, AZ The Marquee 10/29/15 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine Theatre 11/02/15 Urbana, IL Canopy Club 11/04/15 Grand Rapids, MI Orbit Room 11/05/15 Indianapolis, IN The Vogue 11/06/15 Detroit, MI Harpos Concert Theatre 11/07/15 Buffalo, NY The Town Ballroom 11/08/15 Cleveland, OH Agora Theatre Read More Gwar GWAR fans know what to expect when they see a live GWAR show. Whether it be covered in bile and blood, or stage props that could be used in any top tier horror movie. Additionally, no two GWAR shows are the same. ....

I drove four hours back to Des Moines, Iowa just to get doused in fake blood. Oh yeah, I get to spend some time with my family when I'm down here too. But more importantly... I drove down here for GWAR!

It's hard to put a Gwar show into words. It's like no other show I've ever seen in my life. It's amazing enough to make me travel the four hours down to Des Moines and put up with this godforsaken town for a whole weekend just so I could experience Gwar's live show for the umpteenth time.

Gwar is one of the few bands that I go to see solely because of their show, not the music. I have to be honest with you, I hate their music. I understand that they are legendary and everything but I just don't get the music. I feel like my parents when I listen to Gwar on CD because after a song or two, they all sound the same and they are just loud.

It's the live show that I live for. Gwar has never let me down. I wish that I was able to see Gwar perform every Friday just to help me unwind from a stressful work week. What makes it so amazing? It's the costumes, it's the fake blood, it's the theatrics, it's everything (except the music).

Gwar is the only show where I actually plan out what I'm wearing in advance. I have to make sure that I have my worst jeans on. Make sure I have my "show shoes" with all the holes in them. I have to make sure I have a crisp white t-shirt to wear. It's the only metal show where majority of the crowd will have a white t-shirt on. The reason? Wear a white t-shirt, get in the "splash zone" and wah-lah, you have a free souvenir concert t-shirt without paying the $25. Call me a Jew if you want, but I'd rather have my personalized souvenir shirt for free than pay for a generic tour t-shirt.

These guys come out on the stage and instantly own it. They are dressed in giant costumes made out of everything from fur, to metal, to body paint, to inflatable antlers... everything. I think it would be so awesome to be their costume designer. Their characters fill up more than the stage, they fill up the whole venue. Yeah, it's just an act, but it's not hard to lose yourself in their act and start thinking that you are truly on another planet and part of a race war with some extraterrestrial life-form.

It doesn't matter if you like metal music or not. The second the cold spray of the fake blood hits you, you're having a great time. It starts as just a thin spray from some alien lifeform being decapitated. As the show progresses, the fake blood, and other bodily fluids, seems to flow like the beer flowing non-stop out of the taps of the bar.

The thing with Gwar is they are all about the theatrics behind a show. They don't care who they piss off. I've seen Gwar "kill" everyone from George W. Bush to Justin Bieber. Last night, the victims were Hillary Clinton and a Fox News anchor. How do they "kill" them? Basically, they have someone wearing a mask with fake body parts that can be cut off and used to squirt blood on the crowd. (Use your imagination, I'm not going there in this blog). Then outcome the big foam weapons that are used to kill the celebrities. Sounds dumb, I know. Sounds cheap, I know. But the way they do these "stunts" with such conviction and heart, that's what makes the cheesiness of it all okay.

Gwar is definitely the top live band I have ever seen, and that is truly saying something.

Gwar at Wooly's, Des Moines (27 Aug 2015)

langen ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ itunes.apple.com

Atmosphere at the Simon Estes Amphitheater, Des Moines (8/11/09)

Atmosphere brought a showering of lyrics when they stormed into Des Moines.

Atmosphere - Shoulda Know Atmosphere Tour Dates 08/14/09 Red Rocks Amph Morrison, CO 08/15/09 Paoli Soleri Outdoor Amph SantaF,NM 08/16/09 Club 101 El Paso, TX 08/18/09 House of Blues  Las Vegas, NV 08/19/09 Hollywood Palladium, CA 08/21/09 House Of Blues San Diego, CA 08/23/09 Fairplex Pomona, CA 08/30/09 Outside Music Fest SF, CA 09/08/09 First Avenue Minneapolis, MN 09/09/09 First Avenue Minneapolis, MN Discography [1997] Overcast! [2002] God Loves Ugly [2003] Seven's Travels [2005] You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having [2007] Strictly Leakage (free download) [2008] When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold

Des Moines had the pleasure of listening to one of the freshest sounds tonight; Atmosphere made their first appearance in Des Moines and they left impressed, to say the least. Atmosphere’s front man, Slug, coined us “his family reunion” and that he’s very proud to call Des Moines his friend.

Atmosphere at Simon Estes Amphitheater, Des Moines (8/11/09) ♥ photo by Elizabeth Soda

Whether the crowd was spitting along with Atmosphere’s beats or waving their hands side-to-side, Simon Estes Amphitheater was flooded with love and appreciation for this rapper’s talent. The group showcased many of their popular favorites like, “Sunshine,”  “Always Coming Back Home to You,” & “Trying to Find a Balance.”  It was truly amazing how Des Moines came together to celebrate with Atmosphere and their whole entourage. I was under the impression that Atmosphere was not that popular within the suburbs of Des Moines, but the more people filed towards the front of the amphitheater, it just went to prove that music is alive and well, no matter what kind it is.

Slug provided the audience with a free-style rap at the very end of the show. He included tidbits about down home cooking and the Embassy suites. It was a nice touch to wrap up the night and also provided me with a sense of how he really felt about Iowa. “Atmosphere flips lyrics like a spatula.” So he said himself while spitting to his own rhyme about his vocal talents.  He seemed to really enjoy the crowd’s energy and played off it for most of the evening. Slug told jokes and even made friendly contact with the crowd every now and then. In regards to his friendliness to the crowd, while the opening bands made their transition, Slug appeared out of nowhere and started to meet with the crowd. He began shaking hands with everyone and thanking them for coming. I had the opportunity to shake his hand. It proved to me that Atmosphere isn’t like any other band, they truly care about their audience and about the ears that Slug’s lyrics fall upon.

The opening acts were Attracted to Gods and Eyedea & Abilities. The crowd seemed most familiar with the lyrical rhymes of Eyedea & Abilities. Attracted to Gods was a great duo that reminded me of George Thorogood. They had really great jam sessions that twanged with a bit of blues rock.

 08/12/2009 19:11:52 ♥ ashley () ♥ rhymesayers.com/atmosphere ♥ myspace.com/atmosphere