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Google I/O 2023

Read More Google a Google home, as everything is built around the Google Home Hub application. If you don’t mind giving Google your information, you can use many of their services - for free. That’s the attractive thing, it’s mostly free. …

Here’s all the products announced at Google’s I/O 2023.

Pixel Tablet
We’ve seen similar designs from Lenovo, but hopefully the upcoming Google Pixel Tablet will be a faster and better experience. Like that other design, the Tablet is a picture frame when you dock it to the magnetic charger and speaker. If you want to use it as a tablet, you just pick it off the stand… think of it as a tablet that is always charged.

I’m not entirely sure if I will use it on a daily basis, since I already love my iPad 12.9 for the big display and fast processor… the Pixel Tablet is kind of a step down.

Pixel 7A
At $500, the “A-Series” of Google’s phones are the affordable version of their Pixel phones. I’ve been unimpressed with their previous A phones. The phones are not fast or flashy, they’re basically a budget/cheap version of their regular phones… Having said all that, I think the 7A is the phone that I’m actually interested in. That’s because, for the first time, their A phones are going to include wireless charging. I have been all-in on wireless charging, it is hard for me to go back to the old way of charging my phone.

While I’m not in the market to replace my iPhone 14, I might pick up the 7A as my backup phone… mostly because for a limited time, Google is throwing in a free Pixel Buds A-Series if you buy the new 7A phone. I have a Pixel Bud Mint Color and I think it’s one of the best earbuds I own. I love that rubber nub that locks the buds in my ear.

I guess it all depends on if I can buy the Asus ROG Ally (the better and faster Steam Deck) or not. I have already devoted my budget of $800 to buy the new handheld gaming PC.

Pixel Fold
As soon as I saw the price for this upcoming Google’s folding phone, at $1,800, that’s a hard pass for me. As cool as it looks, there’s no way I’m spending that kind of cash on sometime that is unproven. I would love for the price to be sub $1,000... that is the magic number for me.

As a fan of technology, I’m always interested in seeing new products. My complaint about Google has a bad reputation about introducing something and then not supporting it. Plus, I hate to say it, but their products look boring.

Still, I love the fact that I can find any Google products in retail stores, such as my local Target or Walmart. Knowing me, I might just end up buying their Pixel Tablet on a whim, while standing in line at a Best Buy or something.

Read more Technology

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

Black Friday 2022

Read More Black Friday Sure, I didn’t need all those extra things in my life, but I couldn’t pass up these deals. The prices are Black Friday level (even better in many cases). …

With Black Friday coming up this Friday (November 25), we are already starting to see some really good deals on Bluray/UHD discs. Some of my favorite A24 films are on sale, including X, Everything Everywhere All At Once, and The Green Knight. I bought a ton of discs this week. Most UHD discs are $10 and Bluray are either $5 or $8. It’s really the only time that I make mass Bluray purchases.

Over at Target, the best deal I’ve seen is $200 for the Xbox Series S. That’s $50 off and a $50 Target Gift card (which is as good as cash). I’m very tempted to try and buy it, even though I already own the Xbox Series X (the superior version). But the price is so good that I’m really thinking about it. If you are going to buy an Xbox this year, you might as well get Elden Ring for $40. This is the lowest price I’ve seen for this amazing game. Honestly, Elden Ring is my Game of the Year.

Walmart has the best deals on 4K TV. They have a 50 inch ONN 4K LED for $150. Onn is Walmart’s brand, and for that low bottom prices, I’m not sure if it’ll have the quality. On the bright side, the TV has Roku built into the television. If you want to upgrade, Walmart also sells a TCL 65” 4k TV for $228 (also with Roku).

If you’re looking for a Macbook, Best Buy is selling the M1 MacBook Air 13.3” for $800 (a $200 savings). If you want this year’s MacBook Air, with the M2 chip, you can get it for $1,050… but from what I’ve read, it’s not worth the upgrade.

LG 48” 4k WebOS TV for $570

Also, the best OLED TV prices I’ve ever seen is for the LG 48” 4k WebOS TV for $570. This is a $730 savings, and I’m definitely looking at this very closely. I think the biggest problem is that I rarely watch TV. I spend all my time sitting at my computer and watch YouTube videos or movies I’ve ripped from my Bluray…

So maybe the better money might go to another 4k monitor? My current favorite monitor is on sale for $230. I bought the monitor for $320 in Apr 2022 and absolutely love the “Picture in Picture” feature: “There is another feature that they highlight, and I found it really useful. The monitor has the ability to do Picture in Picture (or as Samsung lists it PBP). What this means is that the monitor can display two simultaneous sources on the monitor at the same time. You have some options, side-by-side or a small popup screen (which you can position in four areas and with varying sizes). The P-i-P is the best thing about this monitor.”

If you’re looking for a new PC or laptop, I would recommend looking at MicroCenter’s Black Friday sale. They have my Lenovo Legion PC for the same amazing price of $850. I’ve said it before, the video card (3060) costs $400 by itself(!), so to have it come with your computer, it’s a steal.

MicroCenter also sells really cheap Wyze cameras. Their v3 camera with color night vision is $30. I currently own two Wyze cameras that I use for my security cameras.

This year, I’ve already started my Black Friday shopping last week. Most retailers already started their sale last week. I’ll be looking at bigger purchases sometime this week, since some retailers won’t unveil their biggest deals until closer to Friday.

Read more Black Friday, Movies and Television.

Vu’s Early Black Friday Bluray/UHD purchases

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

State of Play: G.I. Joe: Classified

Product Description G.I. Joe is a highly skilled, on-demand, special operations force of men and women from around the globe. These extraordinarily talented heroes are selected for their elite abilities and tasked with defending the world from Cobra, a ruthless criminal organization bent on total domination. With unwavering courage and steely determination, the brave members of G.I. Joe are prepared to seek out Cobra in any environment on the planet. From hostile jungles to ice-clad arctic peaks…wherever there’s trouble, G.I. Joe is there. This Heavy Artillery Roadblock figure comes ready for action, with multiple points of articulation for high poseability and character-inspired accessories, including a heavy artillery blaster. And with custom artwork by Mike Thompson, the G.I. Joe Classified Series Roadblock package will make a mark on shelves. Read More Hasbro This year, Hasbro wanted to update the toy line to 6”, giving these soldiers updated looks and additional details you can’t see on a smaller figure. The first wave is solid, with Snake Eyes, Duke, Scarlet, Roadblock and Destro (the only Cobra in the wave). ....

I previously mentioned how difficult it was to find and collect G.I. Joe: Classified toys. After their disastrous Target releases for their Exclusive line, Cobra Island, it made fans, such as myself, completely giving up on collecting the line. Last year, as part of Hasbro’s effort to win back the fans, they put back production on the the early Cobra Island figures as a “last chance to own these figures”. I knew I shouldn’t have, but I caved in and ordered the figures I was missing (however, to this day, I’m still missing a Major Bludd figure…)

Anyway, now that it’s two years in since I started collecting the Classified Series, I know for a fact that I have not seen any figures on store’s shelves, except for the Snake Eyes: Origins movie figures. The movie, and action figures, proved to be unpopular with the fans. Of course, I bought the figures, to add to my collection… but if it wasn’t part of the Classified line, I probably wouldn’t have cared either.

Recently, I got roped back into collecting the Classified Series when Amazon had some new figures in stock: Alley Viper, B.A.T., and Heavy Artillery Roadblock. I believe the reasons why I was able to get the Viper and BAT is because fans were cancelling their pre-orders. I truly believe this, as it would’ve been one year in pre-order (and Hasbro was already announcing figures for 2023). I do not believe I will see these figures (or any future figures) in stores, so I am forced to buy them online.

As for Roadblock, fans were fed up with seeing him re-released. This Amazon Exclusive figure was the fourth version of Roadblock: The first Classified figure, a Cobra Island version, and finally a re-colored of the first figure. If you ask me, the Heavy Artillery Roadblock is really the figure that everyone was asking for… it’s his classic look.

Anyway, remember how impossible it was to buy the Target Exclusive Cobra Island? I will bet you it’s going to be just as difficult to get the upcoming Target Exclusive Tiger Force. Pre-Orders have long sold out, but I’m hoping to just randomly find them in stores (I doubt it… but I can always hope).

Storm Shadow and Spirit

To me, the Classified Series is incredibly popular, I just don’t understand why Hasbro just doesn’t produce more figures to satiate the demand. We’ve seen Mattel get a lot of Masters of the Universe on the store shelves, which I love. I just wish Hasbro would do the same.

Update: Yes, I was able to get the new Storm Shadow and Spirit. Very happy about the details on the Spirit figure, it’s simply the best version of this character in toy form, no doubt about it. Again, I’m not sure why Hasbro is limiting these toy’s release, because as of this writing, they're “sold out” and you are forced to pay double the price from scalpers.

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

Target Super Clearance Day

Read More Target I just bought the Razer’s Kishi Controllers (for the iPhone) on clearance from Target for $15. This is a massive saving, considering when it was originally released, it was $50 or more. …

You know, just the other day, I was complaining about the lack of good deals on Amazon Prime Day. Forget Amazon Prime Day, it’s all about the Target Super Clearance Day for me. I’ve never seen so many 70% off yellow clearance tags. Of course, limited to stock on hand, but I did find some really amazing deals.

Sure, I didn’t need all those extra things in my life, but I couldn’t pass up these deals. The prices are Black Friday level (even better in many cases).

I don’t know how long the sale will last, but I am assuming it’s only for a few days, if that. I know that several Targets in my area are doing renovations, so I think they just want to clear out inventory.

Some things I bought for 70% off:

Target Exclusive 4k Discs for $11 (normally $36)

Some 12” vinyl for $9 (normally $30)

Mego Action Figures for $5 (normally $20)

Various Cable Guy Phone Holder for $8 (normally $30)

Various McFarlane Action Figures for $5 (normally $20)

Various Headphones for $15 (normally $50)

Razer Keyboards and Accessories for as low as $8 (normally $30)

Some gaming controllers for $5 (normally $20)

There were more 70% off products (like all the phone cases), but I had no interests in them. Tomorrow, I will visit another Target store to see if I can find more deals.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

Target Clearance

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

Weekend Gamer: Razer Kishi Controllers

Read More Razer I probably won’t be buying any of those accessories, simply because I’m not a fan of the color scheme and I already own great products from Razer or Corsair, and they serve their purpose. … Genshin Impact According to some people, Genshin Impact is the biggest game in the world. I don’t normally play “phone games”, but I recently upgraded my iPad and wanted to check out the game …

I just bought the Razer’s Kishi Controllers (for the iPhone) on clearance from Target for $15. This is a massive saving, considering when it was originally released, it was $50 or more.

While I do enjoy the physical buttons, the instant inputs, the ability to move around without your fingers covering the screen … I find it hard to really recommend the product to anyone.

First of all, only a very few games works with the controller… and the game must be in landscape. Second, the controller will only work with a naked iPhone (no case) and must be physically connected via the iPhone dock.

Again, I don’t really see myself doing too much gaming on the controllers. When would I have the time to break out the Kishi controllers and adapt it on your phone, if I only need to game for a few mins, while waiting in line.

I’m glad I didn’t pay full price for this thing, but having said that, I do somewhat have buyer’s remorse for a product that I probably won’t be using that much.

The good news is that the Kishi will work with two very popular games: Diablo Immortal and Genshin Impact. I might have to dig around to see if there are other games that will work with the Kishi.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

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

Strangest Things

Stranger Things: Season 4 It's been eight months since The Battle of Starcourt, which brought terror and destruction to Hawkins. Struggling with the aftermath, our group of friends are separated for the first time - and navigating the complexities of high school hasn't made things easier. In this most vulnerable time, a new and horrifying supernatural threat surfaces, presenting a gruesome mystery, that if solved, might finally put an end to the horrors of the Upside Down. Read More Stranger Things For me, synthwave started with Stranger Things. In late July I went on a date with a fellow dungeon master who mentioned this show which started with some kids playing D&D (Dungeons & Dragons). …

Read more Television.

STRANGER THINGS
netflix.com

I’ve been enjoying Stranger Things since it debut in 2016, and, personally speaking, I think Season 4 is one of their strongest season yet. The show’s really matured, and that’s not to mention how all the child actors have all really grown up in the four years we’ve known them. I mean in both story and, the fact that the real actors have really grown up. Just look at the actor Finn Wolfhard, he looks like a fully grown young man. It’s clear to me that the Duffer Brothers couldn’t possibly continue telling their stories forever.

The story of Season 4 goes back to the first time we meet 11. We’re reminded that 11 killed everyone in this secret base in a flashback. The story goes deeper, and you’re given more back stories. Somehow, at least how I perceived it, that it was that 11 created “The Upsidedown”, a twisted version of Hawkins, Indiana. It’s really cool, I bought it.

Season 4 also has some of the most horrific death scenes, featuring some gruesome body breaking/eyeballs destroying moments. I feel like sometime the show borders on Rated R and PG, especially with some of its goofy moments, like the Suzie’s mad house or the crazy greedy Russian pilot.

My biggest complaint about the new season is that they’ve introduced (or focused more on) a lot of new characters. I wish they just stick to the original group of fans. Instead, we’re seeing characters like Hellfire Club’s Eddie, Robin (who was introduced last season and plays a bigger part this season), and Argyle. With so many characters, it just seems like the writers tried to devote more time to everyone… making for very long episodes. In fact, the last two episodes (which just released by Netflix) are one and half hour, and two plus hours, respectively. They are movie length!

Stranger Things Soundtrack Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4 includes essential music tracks evoking various classic eras and styles as featured in "Stranger Things 4." The soundtrack album is conceptualized and produced by The Duffer Brothers and Nora Felder.

STRANGER THINGS: SOUNDTRACK
legacyrecordings.com

As you know, one of the best thing about Stranger Things is their amazing 80s soundtrack. With Season 4, the soundtrack helped Kate Bush back on the music charts, over 35 years after “Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)” was originally released!

I actually own a few Stranger Things Soundtrack, so I’m looking forward to Legacy Recordings’ release of Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4. The soundtrack is available now on digital and CD.

If you’re a vinyl collector, like I am, be on the look out for the double LP 12” on November 4th. The vinyl will come in standard black (with 12inch poster insert), or exclusive retailers’ editions.

Walmart will have a Creel House cover and puzzle, Target will have a California cover and diorama, Barnes & Noble will have a Russia cover and stickers, and Amazon will feature a Lab cover with a 12x12 Butcher Billy lithograph (details here).

Surfer Boy Pizza Surfer Boy Pizza Pepperoni Pizza, 23 oz. Each mouth-watering variety contains rich tomato sauce, delicious mozzarella cheese, and a gnarly range of toppings.

SURFER BOY PIZZA
palermovillainc.com

The first time I saw Surfer Boy Pizza, I was so confused. This is an imaginary pizza brand from Stranger Things… yet, here it is, in real life at my local Walmart. I decided to try one out.

To my surprise, it was really good. Especially for only $7. Don’t believe all the food snobs on the internet, I really like the pizza. I would cut it in thirds and air fry a piece for about 9 minutes, and it’s crisp and tastes great.

The frozen pizza is made by Palermo Villa Co. and comes with a fake pair of punch-out 3D glasses. There are four types of topping available: supreme, multi-meat, pepperoni, and pineapple & jalapeno. I’ve tried them all, they’re all pretty good, except for my least favorite, the pineapple & jalapeno. It’s just the topping, the crust is still good. The best value is the supreme, so I would recommend trying that first.

At the moment, I believe the pizza is only available from Walmart. Right now, they are phasing out the pizza, since the show is over… but you can still buy a 4-pack from their website for a high price of $50.

If you can find it for $7, it’s worth checking out.

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

Hasbro Pulse Con 2021

Read More Hasbro This year, Hasbro wanted to update the toy line to 6”, giving these soldiers updated looks and additional details you can’t see on a smaller figure. The first wave is solid, with Snake Eyes, Duke, Scarlet, Roadblock and Destro (the only Cobra in the wave). ....

If you collect toys, then you probably watched the live stream of Hasbro Pulse Con 2021, the free two-day virtual event that took placed last Friday and Saturday.

This is mostly a product announcement platform, for toys coming in 2022, including new action figures for G.I. Joe: Classified series… which was mostly the main reason why I tuned in. There are about six new Joes coming out, all of them looked incredible. There will be three dreaded Target exclusives, under the new Tiger Force sub-line. Last / this year, every fan hated how Target under ordered the Cobra Island sub-line, resulting in numerous scalping for the “rare” figures.

I was lucky enough to get a few Cobra Island figures, but I’m definitely missing a few. Like most fans, I’m quitting the line. I say that, but what I mean is that I’m no longer doing pre-orders or paying extra money to third parties. If I see the figures, I’ll buy it for retail price, but I won’t go out of my way. It’s just not worth it.

Speaking of which, they sold-out all the special edition Zartan… so basically another figure that I won’t be adding to my collection. Like I said, I’ve stopped trying to be a completist for the Joes, and I feel bad for all the collectors out there unable to secure one figure for their collection.

So, the cool thing is that they had a few musical guests, including Taboo, from The Black Eyed Peas, and Weezer.

Weezer closed out the event with “Island in the Sun” and “Say It Ain’t So”. Both songs were played on acoustic guitars, with the entire band in one room. It sounded great, and, I’ll confessed I started singing along.

Weezer’s new album Van Weezer is out now. The record follows the release of the band’s first-ever orchestral album, OK Human, earlier this year.

Watch Weezer on Hasbro Pulse Con on YouTube.

Weezer at Hasbro Pulse Con (2021-10-23)

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

Toy Collecting in 2020

He-Man (Walmart 2020 Exclusive) Read More Toys The November Minnesota Toy Posse show (named Swapsaturday) just took place at the Everett McClay VFW Post 1296 in Bloomington, Minnesota. These local shows are organized and hosted by organized ...

I know it’s 2020, but if you’ve gone to the toy aisle, it certainly looks like the 80s: Masters of the Universe, G.I. Joe, Ghost Busters, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Like Hollywood, the toy companies just recycle ideas.

Not that I’m complaining, I grew up in this time period, and I missed out on all these toys. My parents never bought them for us, so now, I’m reliving my childhood. I love these new modern toy re-releases.

However, toy collecting in the modern age (especially with the pandemic) has been a real challenge. Lately, it’s getting harder and harder to find certain figures to complete my collection - no thanks to store exclusives. There are high demands for some figures, and with that, a rise in scalpers, buying up all the rare figures and re-selling it at double or triple the price.

MN Toy Posse (30 Aug 2020)

Luckily, if you live in the area, you might find some figures you’re looking for at our local MN Toy Posse Toyswap show (the next one is coming up on August 30, 2020). You can usually find toys for reasonable markup. For example, those He-Man figures, normally $15 at Walmart, are only $20. But it depends on the seller, and how much they are want to mark them up. You can always haggle the price down, but I've bought retail exclusives for reasonable prices.

As of August 2020, here are the (mass marketed) 80s-inspired toys:



MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: ORIGINS
mattel.com

If you grew up in the 80s, you had a He-Man action figure (or at least wanted them). Our parents never bought us these figures, but I have own (and lost) some figures throughout the years. Sure, I would love to collect the vintage line, but some figures are priced way too much. Also, loose figures are also often way too expensive.

The new Masters of the Universe: Origins line, by Mattel, updated the original figures, but adding in updated sculpts and more articulation… so for the first time they can bend their knees and elbows. It’s pretty awesome. As for the new head sculpts, it’s mostly a miss for me, as I want the original heads, not these “new and improved” heads.

I also like the same 5.5” size, so if you own original vehicles, you can still use them together. That’s rad, unfortunately, I don’t own any original figures or vehicle to take advantage of this.

Now, for some terrible things for this line: you cannot find them in stores. The Origins like is exclusive to Walmart (until 2021), and literally, no one can find them in stores. Whenever they put them on shelves, somebody goes through and buy them all to resell at a higher price. This is because there are a lot of fans that do not live near a Walmart, particularly the international market. They are willing to pay twice as much, so scalpers are more than willing to provide.

The good news is that in 2021, we will see MOTU everywhere, not just Walmart.

Storm Shadow (Amazon Exclusive)

G.I. JOE: CLASSIFIED
hasbropulse.com

The most famous G.I. Joe toyline is the 3.75” line, which fans have known since the 80s. The last time we saw the line in store, was for G.I. Joe: Retaliation, which was based on the film, and I don’t think it was popular with collectors.

This year, Hasbro wanted to update the toyline to 6”, giving these soldiers updated looks and additional details you can’t see on a smaller figure. The first wave is solid, with Snake Eyes, Duke, Scarlet, Roadblock and Destro (the only Cobra in the wave). Naturally, Destro is the most-wanted figure. Hasbro also decided to short-change Destro, by offering only one Destro in a case of figures… artificially making Destro the rare figure of the wave. Fans are going nuts trying to find old chrome-dome, and, at times, it’s frustrating trying to find the figure for my collection.

Snake Eyes is also a fan-favorite, so his figures are disappearing off the shelf, but his figure isn’t as rare as Destro… so if you wanted a Snake Eyes, you can probably find him down the road.

Like the MOTU line being exclusive to Walmart, the “G.I. Joe Classified: Cobra Island” wave are exclusive to Target. Again, scalpers are “liberating” these figures for the international market or diehard collectors. The only figure you can find in this line is the Roadblock figure, other figures like Baroness, Cobra trooper, and Beachhead are never seen in the stores.

I understand why these toy companies are signing exclusive arrangement with these stores, but it’s causing so much grief from fans trying to complete their collection. Like I previously mentioned, if a fan can’t complete their collection, they just simply give up.

Also, there’s another exclusive, Amazon’s Arctic Mission Storm Shadow, available on their website. It sometimes goes out of stock, but the next ship date is September 12th, 2020.

Bebop & Rocksteady (Target Exclusive)

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES
thenecastore.com

Speaking of which… I don’t collect the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle line by NECA. I have gone on record saying that I find their product way too expensive (NECA’s average price is $25-$30). With this TMNT, they’re all two-packs, so the average prices are like $55 a box. Scalpers are selling them for over $100-$200 per box.

On top of the cost, it sounds like NECA manufactures only limited figures - making collecting these figures extremely difficult (especially in the age of bots and scalpers). Fans just wants to give NECA money, but apparently NECA doesn’t care.

Some figures are Target Exclusive, like many other toys, and nobody can find them in the stores. It’s so frustrating that many fans, like Victoria, are quitting collecting this line altogether.

I love TMNT, but I’m glad I don’t collect the line.

Peter Venkman (Walmart Timed Exclusive)

THE REAL GHOSTBUSTERS
hasbropulse.com

Not really sure why Hasbro decided to re-release the original Kenner’s The Real Ghostbusters toyline from the 80s… but the release of this was a mess. They were supposed to be out in March, but the pandemic happened, so they didn’t actually arrive in stores until last month. There are no changes from the original toyline, it’s the exact same mold… but yet they are charging 2020 prices. I honestly don’t know what the appeal is, we used to own Egon and Ray, and they weren’t that great.

There isn’t a big vocal outcry for this Walmart exclusive (a timed exclusive), because Hasbro has been pretty good about stocking these toys on the shelves. Maybe it’s because fewer fans are buying them or lack of interest compared to the constantly sold-out MOTU figures.

In addition to the Real Ghost Busters, Hasbro has also released a 6-inch line, based on the movies (that nobody asked for and nobody is buying).

At the end of the day, toy collecting should be fun. If you are finding it too frustrating or not having fun, then it’s time you put your money and effort in something else. I understand why manufacturers signs exclusive contracts with some retailers, but it’s no fun for fans who cannot find them or if the stores can’t keep them in stock.

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

Paul McCartney at Target Center, Minneapolis (05 May 2016)

Setlist A Hard Day’s Night Save Us Can’t Buy Me Love Letting Go Temporary Secretary Let Me Roll It/Foxy Lady I’ve Got a Feeling My Valentine Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five Here, There and Everywhere Maybe I’m Amazed We Can Work It Out In Spite of All the Danger You Won’t See Me Love Me Do And I Love Her Blackbird Here Today Queenie Eye New The Fool on the Hill Lady Madonna FourFiveSeconds Eleanor Rigby Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite! Something Ob La Di, Ob La Da Band on the Run Back in the U.S.S.R. Let It Be Live and Let Die Hey Jude -- Encore -- Yesterday Hi, Hi, Hi/Let’s Go Crazy (Prince cover) Birthday Golden Slumbers The End Tour Dates 05/15/16 Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes 05/17/16 Estadio Unico Ciudad De La Plata 05/19/16 Estadio Unico Ciudad De La Plata 05/28/16 Dusseldorf, Germany ESPRIT arena 05/30/16 Paris, France AccorHotels Arena 06/02/16 Madrid, Spain Estadio Vicente Calderon 06/10/16 Munich, Germany Olympic Stadium 06/12/16 Landgraaf, Netherlands "Pinkpop Festival" 06/14/16 Berlin, Germany Waldbühne Berlin 06/16/16 Prague, Czech Republic O2 Arena 06/24/16 Bergen, Norway Bergenhus Festning 06/27/16 Herning, Denmark Jyske Bank Boxen 06/30/16 Rock Werchter Festival 07/08/16 Milwaukee, WI "Summerfest" 07/10/16 Cincinnati, OH U.S. Bank Arena 07/12/16 Philadelphia, PA Citizens Bank Park 07/17/16 Boston, MA Fenway Park 07/19/16 Hershey, PA Hersheypark Arena 07/21/16 Hamilton, ON FirstOntario Centre 08/07/16 East Rutherford, NJ MetLife Stadium 08/09/16 Washington, DC Verizon Center 08/10/16 Washington, DC Verizon Center 08/13/16 St. Louis, MO Busch Stadium 08/15/16 Grand Rapids, MI Van Andel Arena 08/17/16 Cleveland, OH Quicken Loans Arena 08/18/16 Cleveland, OH Quicken Loans Arena 10/04/16 Sacramento, CA Golden 1 Center 10/08/16 Indio, CA "Desert Trip" 10/15/16 Indio, CA "Desert Trip" Read More Paul McCartney Members of Nirvana, Dave Grohl, Krist Noveselic and Pat Smear, reunited for the first time in 18 years after Kurt Cobain's death with Sir Paul McCartney …

For the 18,000 or so that were lucky enough to get in, the Fifth of May last week brought a new holiday to Minneapolis (at least for the day)- Cinco de Macca!

While many of the after work crowd gravitated to Mexican bars and restaurants to celebrate the Cinco de Mayo holiday;  downtown at the Target Center, it was the second consecutive night of Paul McCartney and his band in town, playing on their One on One Tour.

Only a legend like McCartney could consider an arena (vs. a stadium) a more intimate venue, and the faithful were more than rewarded with a career-spanning set of more than three-dozen songs played over two hours and forty-five minutes.  Pretty great for an almost 74-year old.

Though the tickets stated an 8pm start time, like the night before, the show began 45 minutes later, as big venue security measures never mean quick entry in, these days.

Wearing a blue Nehru-collar jacket and white shirt, McCartney bounced to the stage supported by the solid band he’s had for twenty years - Rusty Anderson (backing vocals, guitars); Brian Ray (backing vocals, bass, guitars) ; Paul Wix Wickens (backing vocals, keyboards, guitar, percussion, accordion); Abe Laboriel, Jr. (backing vocals, drums, percussion) and opened with ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ , a song last in regular set rotation in 1965.

The show seemed a tale of two halves, with the first half being more for himself, taken up by several songs from McCartney’s last release, 2013’s New (on Hear Music), and assorted deep cuts with some hits peppered in, and the second half being for the fans- a hit-filled cavalcade of one classic song after another.

Paul McCartney

“Good evening Minneapolis”, McCartney said after the second song, still shaking a cold but in better voice than the night before, “I get the feeling we’re going to have a party in this room tonight!”

‘Temporary Secretary’ from 1980’s McCartney II received an electronic update, complete with Kraftwerk-like visuals spinning on the large screen behind the band.  1973’s ‘Let Me Roll It’ rolled itself into the end of Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Foxy Lady’ and a rare glimpse into seeing how versatile McCartney himself is, on guitar.

The song this night was dedicated to Prince, and McCartney admitted to writing him a fan letter in his earlier days, as well as told of being in St. Barts this New Year’s Eve, for a private Prince concert staged there.

‘My Valentine’ was written for present wife, Nancy, and ‘Maybe I’m Amazed’ soon followed, written for then-wife Linda.  McCartney took time out between songs to look at a few of the signs held up too, “this guy’s been to our show 105 times…and you’re still not bored…!”

‘In Spite of All the Danger’, a 1958 Quarrymen song was the earliest song played, and started the endearing mini campfire set of stripped down songs, done in front of an evening barn scene backdrop. Several Beatles songs had new life breathed into them by this format and also featured a few stories from the early days, as well as a George Martin tribute.

The newest song in his catalog, 2015’s ‘FourFiveSeconds’ (a collaboration with Rihanna and Kanye West) was performed with lyrics on the screen; though it was an odd sight, seeing 18,000 mostly baby boomers sing about “wildin’”. From then on, it was nothing but songs we all know by heart.

The George Harrison tribute with McCartney on ‘Something’ is still touching, ‘Band on the Run’ remains an epic three-songs-in-one, and ‘Live and Let Die’ brought out all the lights and pyro, the burned scent of which, still lingered through the rest of the show. ‘Hey Jude’ predictably had the crowd singing and swaying along to end the main set.

The five-song encore began with a gentle solo ‘Yesterday’ then McCartney brought up a mother/8 yr. old daughter pair from the audience to sign the mother’s arm (presumably for a tattoo).

1972’s ‘Hi. Hi. Hi’ segued into the end of Prince’s ‘Let’s Go Crazy’ to rave applause, complete with purple lighting and his signature glyph emblazoned on the screen. “Prince, the man! We love you, Prince”, McCartney exclaimed.

After thanking the crew and band, ‘Golden Slumbers’ and ‘The End’ appropriately sent the crowd back into the streets;  smiles on their faces, happy to have reveled for almost three hours in a musical trip covering over fifty-five years… Viva Cinco de Macca!

Paul McCartney at Target Center, Minneapolis (05 May 2016)

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

Go Fest '15

poster: Coley Lind Matt & Kim Setlist Overexposed Hey Now w/ snippet of "Party Up" by DMX) I'm A Goner Let's Go Hoodie On Cameras Tonight Ignition (Remix) (R. Kelly cover) Now w/ intro "No Sleep 'Till Brooklyn" by Beastie Boys Get It w/ intro "Push It" by Salt-N-Pepa Daylight -- Encore -- Just a Friend (Biz Markie cover) w/ intro "Bring Em Out" by T.I. It's Alright Cold War Kids Setlist All This Could Be Yours Loner Phase Miracle Mile Audience One Song at a Time We Used To Vacation Louder Than Ever Hot Coals Hang Me Up to Dry I've Seen Enough Minimum Day Drive Desperate First Hospital Beds Something Is Not Right With Me Yelawolf Setlist Outer Space Good to Go Box Chevy V Growin' Up in the Gutter Push 'Em Friends in Low Places (Garth Brooks cover) Let's Roll Pop the Trunk I Wish / Whole Lotta Love / War Pigs Heartbreak American You MS MR Setlist Reckless Fantasy Think of You How Does It Feel Criminals Painted Hurricane Big Data Setlist Snowed In Clean Big Dater Private Eyes (Hall & Oates cover) The Business of Emotion Dangerous Meg Myers Setlist Adelaide Motel A Bolt From The Blue Go Desire Sorry Heart Heart Head (partial; cut off) Read More Go 96.3 We were really impressed with Go 96.3 FM's first Go Show #1 (featuring New Politics and Banks at Aria on Mar 2015). We were wondering how they can top that debut show … Matt & Kim This is one of the best band to see live is Matt and Kim. The duo is returning to Minneapolis at the Mill City Nights next, next Friday … Cold War Kids It's the big 10 year anniversary of local radio station The Current, and they've been selling out all their shows. I believe most, if not all, of their shows will be broadcasting live .... Yelawolf I was only given a link to the video for Yelawolf's new video "Let's Roll" (watch it in HD on vevo.com). The song is from his latest album, Radioactive, which came out November of last year. .... MS MR NYC duo MS MR came to Minneapolis “for the first time as a band and as people” ...and ‘rocked it like a ‘Hurricane’. ‘Hurricane’, of course, refers to their infectious single of the same name…

The inaugural Go Fest at the Target Field last Friday. We were already impressed with their first ever Go Show #1 earlier in March 2015, but was absolutely blown away at the size and scale and production of Go Fest '15.

The festival took place in the new baseball open field. Only portions of the stadium seats (no access to the green) were opened to view the concert stage. There was a small standing-only section in the front for VIP access... which Go Radio was more than generous in giving away upgrade passes to fans who showed up early.

Prices ranged from $9.63 to $96.30, which I think was a great price for these bands. Even if they lost a ton of money, it was money well spent for promotion of the new radio station, Go 96.3 FM.

There was a lot of planning and thought involved in orchestrating this music festival... but not everything was set in stone. For example local band Enemy Planes was added last minute (the day of) as first band on the bill with a brief twenty-minute set, and MS MR was switched with Big Data. Otherwise Allan Kingdom (who we previously saw with thestand4rd at Rock the Garden) went on as planned at 4:30.

In between bands RAC (André Allen Anjos) played his DJ sets.

Meg Myers

The first non-local band to play was Los Angeles, by the way of Tennessee, Meg Myers, who we previously saw with Royal Blood at Mill City Nights in 2014. Like her last appearance, she is accompanied by her four-piece band (including a cellist), and she sang dark and delicate songs about relationship and desires.

While we liked her songs, unfortunately most people will likely remember that she was literally played off the stage when she started playing her closing song "Heart Heart Head". Everyone was operating under a very tight schedule, so we were not surprised that they cut off her mic.

Big Data

New York's Big Data was up next. The band was previously in town at the Fine Line Music Café earlier in March 2015. This music project is lead by Alan Wilkis, who teamed up with a variety of artists for their 2.0 album (including guests White Sea, Joywave, Jamie Lidell, Kimbra, Rivers Cuomo, Jenn Wasner, Dragonette, Bear Hands, and Twin Shadow). When they play live, Wilkis had plenty of vocal help from singer Lizy Ryan.

Their set had bookend pre-recorded robotic announcements, and they played it safe by covering Hall & Oates' "Private Eyes" and ending it with their most popular song, "Dangerous"... which is a really catchy song.

MS MR

We've been covering MS MR since 2012, and was happy to be there for them on their first ever Minneapolis appearance in 2013.

The duo Lizzy Plapinger (MS) and Max Hershenow (MR) was happy to announce that they have released a second album How Does It Feel (Columbia Records), which incidentally landed at #1 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart. Their new single, "Painted" sounded great live and you can easily see why the song is showing strong support on Top 30 Alternative radio.

They ended their set with their first single "Hurricane", which they kindly note that if you wanted to hear more from them, that they'll be back in Minneapolis at the Varsity Theater on October 15th. Immediately the couple next to me said they'll buy tickets to see them again.

Yelawolf

Based on the biker leather jackets, the tattoos, and hip-hop/rap sound of Yelawolf... they surely stuck out like a sore thumb. Despite being the odd band out, they definitely had their dedicated fans.

Apparently they did not play by the rules. They were slightly rude, spitting, spraying beer in the audience, lighting their setlist on fire and destroying a microphone, and giving the fingers to all the ladies in the audience. After hearing them talk about how they love the south, Hank Williams, and the confederate flag (which is a hot button at the moment), you get the feeling they do and say whatever the f*** they want and they don't care what you think.

After playing "Heartbreak" per request from a fan and ending their set with "American Youth", the band pulled out an autographed baseball and threw it into the audience.

Cold War Kids

We've been covering Cold War Kids since 2008, they are always a good solid live band. In 2013, we saw the band three times (First Avenue (09/26/13), First Avenue (4/5/13), and Target Center (05/31/13)) and didn't feel heartbroken when we didn't see them in late January 2015. Still, we were excited to see them again at Go Fest; it was like seeing an old friend.

By the time CWK took the stage on their first ever baseball field show, it had gotten dark, but the stage direction kept the band in bare minimal lighting (dark blues and dimmed reds).

Songs on their set featured some new songs from their latest Hold My Home ("All This Could Be Yours", "Hot Coals", "Drive Desperate", and "First"), but throwing in fan favorite "Hang Me Up to Dry".

The first time I read about Matt & Kim, they had opened up for Weezer in New York in 2009 and again in 2010. They were described as "dance party", and it wasn't until I saw them in person in Minneapolis in 2012 that I absolutely believed it. Of all the shows I saw in 2012, that one stood out as easily one of my highlight. We've seen them again at Rock the Garden in 2014, and a couple of things you should know about this party band: 1. Kim does this walking on people bit, 2. They go from zero to one hundred percent, 3. They have potty mouths (esp Kim), 4. Plenty of confetti, and 5. Just have a good time. Don't over analyze their songs or question their singing abilities, you're missing the point if you do.

Matt & Kim

I had a lot of fun, and I think the audience did too. Some new gimmick they did tried for this show was getting everyone to blow up balloons and then tossing them up in the air. They also brought out a parachute and had people holding it up (wasn't quite sure this one worked as well as they intended).

The various snippets of DMX's "Party Up", Beastie Boys' "No Sleep 'Till Brooklyn", Salt-N-Pepa's "Push It", went over really well with the crowd, who seemed to know the material. The introduction to "Ignition (Remix)" was pretty funny, Matt explained, "R Kelly was supposed to play Arizona, but he didn't because he wasn't going to get paid... So if R. Kelly won't play R. Kelly songs, Matt and Kim will play R. Kelly songs!"

Seeing as there was only a few minutes until closing time of 11:30, I was surprised to see that the band came back for a quick encore at the eleventh hour. At first with a prerecorded T.I.'s "Bring Em Out" and then they covered Biz Markie's "Just a Friend", which got the crowd singing along. Their finale "It's Alright" ended their set with a couple of audience body surfing with plenty of beach balls that was released by the stage hand.

Go Fest '15 was an experience. They're already talking about doing another one (before the end of the year???), and honestly I can't wait to see how they are going to top this show. Given that the event was nearly 8 hours long, I think perhaps next time, they can have the Go Fest to fall on a Saturday (when most normal people don't have work or school).

Matt & Kim at Go Fest, Target Field (07 Aug 2015)

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