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Julia Wolf
at Turf Club (June 14, 2025)
Schedule
Ellis ---- Worry Club ---- Julia Wolf Tour Dates
Previously: Julia Wolf at Fine Line
She also had some new songs that haven’t been released yet. One of those songs, which I’ll call “Get Off My D**k” (based on a partial setlist that she released on her Facebook page), was written after being stood up from a record label. Let me explain, you see, a major label expressed interest in her music, so they scheduled a meeting with her in person, in Los Angeles. When the day of the meeting came, Julia Wolf waited and waited, and realized the label wasn’t going to show up. She never explained what happened, but I just got the impression that the label just forgot about it or something. I guess something good came out of it, we got a song out of it. [ Continue Reading Julia Wolf at Fine Line (April 2, 2022) ] Read More
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On an unseasonably cool evening in St. Paul, it was very warm in the Turf Club, for a night of indie rock & pop headlined by Julia Wolf.
The first opener was Canadian singer & songwriter Ellis. Having opened for bands such as Soccer Mommy, Ellis (full name: Linnea Siggelkow) has released two albums, including 2024’s No Place That Feels Like. The band came out as a trio (vocals/guitar, bass, and drums/programmed music). Ellis was kneeling on stage right before the start, but a technical glitch held them off their start for a few minutes, with a resulting grimace from Ellis. But soon enough, they were off and running with a quieter intro song. Then she grabbed a guitar and the next number was significantly louder and livelier. This was very much a dream pop sound, with the vocals modulated by reverb/echo effect. Backup vocals from the bassist and drummer were a nice layering, and there was a lot of musical overlay, and though it was hard to tell how much was the programmed music, it helped create an ethereal tone to their music.
A bit of welcoming banter followed (including a, “We’re from Hamilton, Ontario”) before they dug back into the music. There was a good amount of fan engagement from the start, with the crowd pressing up to the stage (not always the case at Turf Club). There were a couple of moments where those vocal mic effects nearly muted the lead singer. The next song was “going to be a little mossier” and got nearly all the lights turned off, largely silhouetting the band. It included a frenzied mid-song solo, with a particularly strong showing for the drummer. The bassist was busy with pedal work prior to another intense musical section. The band was certainly working hard in the bridge before inevitably dropping back to that dreamy pop sound to end things. That cycle was repeated through the next several songs, creating a certain roller coaster feel to the set, with that repeated build and release. Ending with the song Home, we had the drummer take guitar duties and the bassist take drums, with the lead singer headed out into the audience. It was an excellent finish to a fun opening set.
Chicago-based indie punk pop band Worry Club was up next. Chase Walsh, the creative center of the band, has mostly focused on releasing singles, and several EPs, including 2023’s All Frogs Go to Heaven. That punk label was obvious from the jump, with the opener Nothin being an absolute beast. The quartet (guitar/vocals, guitar, bass/backup vocals, and drums) came out hot and it looked like they were determined to keep the energy bar at maximum (evidenced by the lead singer losing his hat in the second song and never looking back).
Dedbody had a great guitar riff underneath and it felt like the vocals were driving things forward. The lead singer was all over the stage any time he wasn’t singing at the microphone, and was the ringleader to the high energy antics. A bit of banter for a certain President’s birthday was pretty hysterical. Those fantastic guitar licks kept things moving at an almost unbearable pace, but the band was able to maintain it (this was not a case of youth being wasted on the youth). In My Ear was more upbeat (not sure how that was possible), with a brighter tone and an audience-taught choral section to end the number. An as yet unreleased song followed and was perhaps their slowest of the evening. It helped Worry Club that they had the vocals turned all the way up and were clear as a bell. Another new song, Anything Else, started with a solo guitar before the rest of the band rejoined and included a change of guitar mid-song (not sure I’ve seen that before). Finishing with Same Name, Worry Club had made a big impact on the crowd and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them playing bigger venues or headlining their own tour in the near future.
Headliner Julia Wolf came to the stage to finish the evening. The Long Island, New Yorker has been in the music scene for quite a while, but released her debut album in 2023 and the follow up, PRESSURE, earlier in 2025. The trio (vocals, guitar, and drums) came out very loud (a water bottle on stage looked to be ready to tip over with the first drum beats). Wolf was clearly pleased with the audience’s initial reaction and leaned into that response. By the time we got to the third song, Kill You Off, it had the crowd roaring with the first guitar licks and maybe had louder vocals from them than Wolf. Hydra was similar and Wolf has some very committed fans.
Wolf had some minor vocal effects going on, but was the central sound for sure. Although drums were very loud at the stage, stepping back a little ways evened that out. Wolf used a quick round of banter to get the crowd even more riled up prior to Pearl, which had some more pop elements and evoked a sense of a Caroline Polachek song. Rolling back to one of her earliest numbers, this was one of those moments of an and band audience in tune with each other. There’s a certain smile that a musician gives that can’t be anything but pure joy of the moment, and Wolf got to have several of those in this set. A “stripped down” Burning House gave the band an opportunity to recharge. Wolf noted that the evening had sold out, thanking the crowd before launching back onto songs from the recent album.
Limewire started with a bit of programmed music that the band quickly layered on top of well, with a stellar guitar close. Life Is a Storm played on the edge of electronic pop and showed some musical genre range for the band. This slower section of the set list gave Wolf the chance to be a little more soulful in her singing. Jennifer’s Body had one of the more visceral reactions and cameras out across a large amount of the audience. When they were given the chance to sing the refrain, they did not disappoint. The introduction to the band let everyone know it was almost over. You’ve Lost a Lot of Blood and its acoustic sound felt like the start of an encore. Finishing with In My Room, Julia Wolf reigned supreme at Turf Club, leaving to thunderous applause.
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