W♥M (Archive)

Ivan & Alyosha at 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis (04/29/13)

Ivan & Alyosha Setlist Tour Dates 04/30/13 Winnipeg, MB Pyramid Cabaret 05/02/13 Saskatoon, SK Amigos Cantina 05/03/13 Edmonton, AB Pawn Shop 05/04/13 Calgary, AB Hifi Club 05/05/13 Spokane, WA Carr's Corner 05/06/13 Wenatchee, WA Caffe Mela 05/07/13 Bellingham, WA Wild Buffalo 05/09/13 Vancouver, BC Media Club 06/24/13 Lansing, MI Mac's Bar

The turnout to last night's Ivan & Alyosha concert at 7th Street Entry in downtown Minneapolis was really good for a Monday!

HOPE COUNTRY

Starting off the night was Minneapolis' Hope Country, which is lead by singer and songwriter Brent Johnson. I felt the band's music was more rock than "country" as their name would suggest. Highlight of their set was a cover of "Amazing Grace", but a hand-clapping rock version.

TWIN FORKS Twin Forks Setlist

Talking to a few people in line at the show, I can tell you that Twin Forks had huge buzz. Everyone I talked to wanted to see the new project from Dashboard Confessional's handsome and clean-cut singer Chris Carrabba. I should also point out that last night was the last of the Twin Forks/Ivan & Alyosha's teamup tour.

Highlight for me was either the Talking Heads cover, "And She Was", or when Ivan & Alyosha's singer Tim Wilson coming on for "Back to You".

Seattle's Ivan & Alyosha was in really good spirit, commenting on the "highly celebratory excitment" and "the Minnesotan Lutherans" in the audience …. especially because this was on a Monday night. The band is currently on tour in support of their February 2013 album, All The Times We Had, so it made sense that they played quite a few songs from the album, including "Be Your Man", "Fathers Be Kind", "Easy To Love", "God Or Man", "Don't Wanna Die Anymore", "Falling " "The Fold", "On My Way", "Who Are You" and the set closer "Running For Cover". Rounding out the rest of their set were "old songs" "Glorify" and "I Was Born To Love Her", both from 2011's Father Be Kind EP.

Highlight of Ivan & Alyosha's set was Twin Forks' Suzie Zeldin jumped on stage to help sing (I think) "Don't Wanna Die Anymore". You can tell that the two bands got along quite well during their time on tour together.

Ivan & Alyosha continues their tour into Canada, check them out if you are in the area. They return home to Washington in early May.

Ivan & Alyosha at 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis (04/29/13)

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ ivanandalyosha.com ♥ facebook.com/TwinForksMusic ♥ facebook.com/hopecountry

Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats at the Bluebird Theater, Denver (04/25/13)

Local Denver folk-rocker, Nathaniel Rateliff, debuted his new musical endeavor last Thursday at the Bluebird Theater accompanied by soul outfit, The Night Sweats.  Opening for The Fray frontman’s solo project, KING, this marked the band’s first live performance and single release celebration.

The Night Sweats, a seven-piece ensemble (drums, keys, bass, guitar, trumpet, and alto & bass sax), took the stage first decked out in full suits.  In classic soul style, they began to play and sway in an introductory number as Rateliff sauntered onto the stage.  Hearing Rateliff’s traditionally gentle and alluring vocals morph into that of a bellowing soul god with “Trying so Hard Not to Know” the night immediately shifted from exciting to epic.  Channeling the dance moves of James Brown, Rateliff spastically skittered across the stage bringing a soul revival to the Denver theater.

NATHANIEL RATELIFF

A wise man in the crowd was overheard to say, “There is great happiness in the unexpected.”  That well-summarizes the audience’s reaction to Rateliff, for both those familiar and unfamiliar with his previous projects. 

With each song played, you could feel the energy in the crowd build with desperate frenzy to sample more.  “What’s your name?” a woman frantically called out in the middle of their set.  Other debut songs included “I Need Never Get Old”, “Howling at Nothing” and “Look it Here”.

The band’s five-song set brought the house down with closer “Son of a Bitch”.  The number begins soft with The Night Sweats silent on their instruments and providing only a backdrop of handclaps and humming (think Thurston Harris “Little Bitty Pretty One”).  In line with Rateliff’s signature heartfelt lyrics, he preaches, “I’m going to cover myself in the ashes of you and nobody’s going to give a damn.”  Unlike Rateliff’s other projects though, this is where the band explodes and Rateliff wails, “Son of a bitch!  Get me a drink!”  The song continues on this churning rollercoaster between quiet handclaps and energy bomb refrains, causing a convulsive wave of glee throughout the audience.

If you’re in Colorado, definitely make it your business to catch Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats at one (or both) of their two upcoming shows.

05/17/13 @ The Boulder Theater in support of The James Hunter Six

05/24/13 @ Mishawaka Amphitheatre in support of Dawes

Nathaniel Rateliff at the Bluebird Theater, Denver (04/25/13)

kira ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ nathanielrateliff.com

Mat Kearney – University of Minnesota Spring Jam (4/27/13) live review

Setlist

Mat Kearney’s latest effort is called ‘Young Love’ and that was what the several hundreds of University of Minnesota students showed Kearney on his 70 min. outdoor appearance near Coffman Union Saturday night, winding up an activity-filled, week long Spring Jam celebration. 

Despite many pre-show reservations by students wanting a more party-oriented act to headline, Kearney ended up winning over the attending crowd, many over-caffeinated with pent-up hormonal energy, in an event that had students climbing up light poles and fences to see, and even a crowd-surfing student dressed in full garb as Gandalf the Wizard.  It also proved that who happened to be on-stage was secondary to the event itself, the general party vibe being the most primary in most people’s minds, to just unwind and have a good time (coincidence he opened with ‘Young, Dumb, and in Love’?). 

   The Nashville-based Kearney kept it generally laid back, playing guitar most for of the set, switching briefly to piano for a few songs. Playing mostly songs from his 4^th album (and 1^st for Universal Republic), Kearney showed he thoroughly enjoys playing here and knows his audience, mentioning Minneapolis/St. Paul numerous times and riffing in a mid-song rap about the Twins, Vikings, Maroon and Gold, and weather; for what he called his “best show in Minnesota”.  The crowd response was particularly high during his early hit ‘Nothing Left to Lose’ and when he worked the verse and refrain from Macklemore and Lewis’ ‘Thrift Shop’ into one of his own songs. 

crowd-surfing student dressed in full garb as Gandalf the Wizard

   Kearney also sang from inside the crowd and jumped on the drum riser, bringing additional energy to songs that sound more complacent as studio versions, and ended the main set with a full cover of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Dancing in the Dark’, a song written before most of the audience was born.  The encore brought the night’s biggest sustained response, with back-to-back current hits, ‘Ships in the Night’ and ‘Hey Mama’, which intensified the crowd surfing, hand raising, and chorus-chanting crowd, before Kearney exited to applause, 'Gandalf still crowd-surfing'. 

   In terms of sound, the mix skewed a little shrill and the PA would cut out for a second several times during the set, with the windy outdoors also further complicating a perfect listening experience.  In the end, most attending were more than satisfied, but were still in the mood to continue celebrating, as the piped-in exit music (MIA’s ‘Paper Planes’) got as large or larger a crowd response, than anything played on stage earlier.

Mat Kearney at Coffman Union UMN, Minneapolis (04/27/13)

john () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ matkearney.com

Poliça w/ Night Moves and Ronia - First Avenue, Minneapolis – 04/24/13

Setlist Tour Dates 05/10/13 Atlanta, GA Chastain Park Amph 06/07/13 New York, NY Randall's Island 06/29/13 Owensboro, KY Yellow Creek Park 07/27/13 Camden, NJ Wiggins Park 08/09/13 Somerset, WI Somerset Amp 08/16/13 Hasselt Kempische Steenweg Read More Poliça Next up was headliner Poliça. Sporting a bright new hair color, Poliça frontwoman, Channy Leaneagh, ascended the stage through a cloud of fog. Boulder born Leaneagh uses synthesizes.…

   “I’m so glad to be home”, Poliça’s Channy Leaneagh exclaimed in a rare outpouring of on-stage banter, the band fresh from its Coachella weekends and at the end of a long year-plus tour that took them around the country and Europe (including impressively selling out London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire). After playing some venues on the West Coast to less than 100 people, the sold-out First Avenue Mainroom seemed an appropriate homecoming for a band now fully developed for national attention, honing their own sound from their beginnings as a studio band and that first gig at the small, now-closed Nick and Eddie’s restaurant in late 2011.

NIGHT MOVES

   After a somber electronic-based opening from Ronia (Dark Dark Dark’s Nona Marie with Mark McGee), local favorites Night Moves took the stage for a solid set promoting their debut, Colored Emotions (Domino Records), their sound clearly evoking of 70’s FM/AOR radio.   Their harmony/keyboard rock sound with a laid back groove is reminiscent of bands like 10CC, with dashes of both country and cosmic influence that all somehow come together and work.  

   John Pelant (Guitars/vocals), Micky Alfano (bass) and Mark Ritsema (multi-instruments) had the crowd embraced on well-received tracks like "Country Queen" and "Headlights", and proved a more than appropriate opener for the headliners.

   Poliça, still promoting 2011’s Give Up the Ghost (Totally Gross National Product / Mom + Pop) then took the stage to a warm reception- their unique mix of dual drummers, bass, synth loops, and Helicon/Auto-Tuned vocals was an instant favorite with local music fans. 

   Their sound has always been a delicate explosion of beauty meeting beat– wispy, manipulated exquisite vocals from lead Channy Leaneagh melded with a heavy, R&B-influenced bottom end comprised of bassist Chris Bierden and drummers Ben Ivascu and Drew Christopherson.  With red pixie haircut, Leaneagh danced about the stage dreamily, like a musical Peter Pan, guiding us through the wilderness of beats and rhythms, beginning with their opening song, ‘Leading to Death’.  

Channy Leaneagh

   ‘Dark Star’ performed early in the set, got a rise out of the crowd and the hometown was treated to four new songs, including the upbeat ‘Tiff’, which features Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon on background vocals for the studio version.  The newer songs lyrically seemed to continue exploring the delicate line of melancholy and epiphany, Leaneagh’s Auto-Tuned tender vocals tweaked  lightly less to fine effect. 

   The encore began with an unintentionally deep-throated Leaneagh thanking the crowd, before button-pushing in embarrassment, to undo the distortion and return to her ‘normal’ voice.  We were then treated to Poliça’s version of the Keith Sweat R&B hit, ‘Nobody’, an odd but very effective choice of cover song, which pushed up the heavy bass-line and sent an ebbing vibration everywhere, from the building’s walls to up through the shoes of everyone on the floor.  

   ‘Amongster’ closed out the satisfying 66 min. set, Poliça triumphant in a homecoming show, returning to the city where it all started and with new tracks that hold definite promise for their sophomore release, coming as early as this fall. 

Poliça at First Avenue, Minneapolis (04/24/13)

john () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ thisispolica.com ♥ nightmovesmpls.com

Cloud Cult at First Avenue, Minneapolis (04/28/13)

Setlist Tour Dates 05/06/13 Seattle, WA Neptune 05/07/13 Portland, OR Aladdin Theater 05/08/13 San Francisco, CA Independent 05/09/13 San Francisco, CA Independent 05/10/13 Santa Ana, CA Constellation Room 05/11/13 Los Angeles, CA El Rey Theatre 05/12/13 La Jolla, CA Porters Pub 07/06/13 Duluth, MN Bayfront Festival Park 07/13/13 Minneapolis, MN Basilica St. Mary 08/24/13 Austin, TX Seaholm Power Plant Read More Cloud Cult That didn't take long, shortly after announcing a Saturday show at First Avenue, the band sold out the historic venue. They added another date (Sunday), and, of course, as expected, also sold out the second date. …

Cloud Cult's second sold-out hometown gig took place at First Avenue last night, April 28th.

JBM

Opening up the show for the second time was Canada's JBM (Jesse Marchant). I already knew he sang sad, personal, and introspective songs. His music was a little too quiet for the typical Cloud Cult fan; some even perplexed when JBM announced that the next couple of songs were "slow songs" (aren't they all slow songs? they wondered). I love the contrast between quiet/sad music to Cloud Cult's loud/happier music (similar contrast with when JBM opened up for Alt-J). Anyway, JBM ended his set with a beautiful and gentle "Cleo's Song".

As for Cloud Cult, the band's live energy is fun to watch. Personally, I would've liked to have them start with "The Show Starts Now", instead they tossed the song in as an encore? The last song on their set was "Today We Give Ourselves to the Fire", which sounded really good - definitely a great set closer.

Despite fan's requests for more old classics, as you can see from their setlist, they still managed to put in a majority of songs from Love, including "All The Things We Couldn't See", "Meet Me Where You're Going", "Sleepwalker", "It's Your Decision", "Complicated Creation", "Love The First Law Of Thermodynamics", "Good Friend", "You're The Only Thing In Your Way", and "The Calling". From what I've experience, the songs sounded great live, particularly when you can hear the violin and cello's sweeping sound. The other songs seem like they were written for a large crowd, you know, designed for singalongs/shoutalongs fun times.

Unlike most bands, Cloud Cult have two dedicated painters. You can watch their work progress as the show goes on. The two painters does occasionally do backup vocals or help out with drumming or tambourine, so they are as much a part of the show as any of the musicians on stage.

Cloud Cult's ninth album, Love, is out now. For those fans who pre-ordered their album via Kickstarter, they definitely owe it to themselves to catch the band on this current tour. Seeing as the band continuously and consistently selling out their Minneapolis shows, I suggest you buy a ticket early in before regretting not having a ticket later.

Cloud Cult at First Avenue, Minneapolis (04/28/13)

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ cloudcult.com ♥ jbm-music.com

W♥M178: Vague-à-bonde

W♥M178 (18 mins) 222

This week on W♥M Radio: Nicole, aka her stagename, Vague-à-bonde.

Some things we talked about:

Origin of the name Vague-a-bonde. The variant spelling of the word 'vagabond' is a word that Nicole love and also from the 1985 Agnès Varda film of the same name.

Whatever happened to Waxx Maxx? The band is no longer around, due to personal growth and everyone else doing their thing.

We saw Vague-à-bonde last year with Diamond Rings, apparently they are still friends.

The long and hard recording process of the debut 2012 album Involution/Evolution.

Song of the show is "Our Love" (taken from the recent EP, 222), available as a free download via soundcloud.com/vagueabonde. The song was recently remixed by Comanche.

For more information, head over to vagueabonde.com.

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W♥M Radio is available on iTunes, please subscribe!

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Archive of this show at archive.org. More information on podomatic.com

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ vagueabonde.com

On An On at 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis (04/26/13)

Tour Dates 05/02/13 Birmingham, UK The Rainbow 05/04/13 Mallorytown, ON Live At Leeds 05/05/13 Manchester, UK Deaf Institute 05/06/13 Bristol, UK Louisiana 05/07/13 Ghent, Belgium Charlatan 05/08/13 Utrecht Tivoli De Helling 05/09/13 Cologne, Germany Gebaude 9 05/10/13 Berlin, Germany Haus Ungarn 05/12/13 Vienna, Austria Chelsea Club 05/14/13 Zurich, Switzerland Papiersaal 05/15/13 Paris, France La Maroquinerie 05/16/13 Brighton, UK Various Venues 05/17/13 Milton Keynes, UK Crauford Arms 05/20/13 London, UK Cargo 05/29/13 Hollywood, CA Troubadour 05/30/13 Hollywood, CA Troubadour 05/31/13 Santa Cruz, CA Rio Theatre 06/01/13 San Francisco, CA El Rio 06/02/13 Portland, OR Doug Fir Lounge 06/04/13 San Francisco, CA Bimbo's 365 06/05/13 Seattle, WA Neumos 06/07/13 New York, NY Randall's Island 06/08/13 New York, NY Randall's Island 06/09/13 New York, NY Randall's Island 07/13/13 Minneapolis, MN Basilica St. Mary Read More On An On hicago/Minneapolis trio On an On just announced their spring tour with Savoir Adore (who we covered last year). On an On is one of those bands …

On the strength of Jess' love for On An On, I decided to check out this band live last night at 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis. This was the last show of their North American tour, before venturing into unknown European territories. They were so pleased with the turnout and warm reception last night that singer Nate Eiesland confessed if they all tragically died in a plane crash tomorrow, that he really wouldn't mind it.

AARON AND THE SEA

Kicking off the night was Minneapolis' Aaron and the Sea (otherwise shortened to AATS), an electropop/synth one-man show. I wasn't familiar with his work, I can only assume songs from his set were taken from his Creature LP. He did throw in a cover of Lykke Li's "Little Bit".

If you are curious at AATS' music, you can download the album for free via bandcamp.

FAREWELL CIRCUIT

Next up was The Farewell Circuit, a band that we've seen a few times. Their 10-song set included, I think a cover of the Beatles "I'm Only Sleeping" and two brand new songs, "Years of Youth" and "We Were Wolves". The songs will appear on an upcoming EP release, set for May 2013, on Princess Records.

As for On An On, the Chicago/Minneapolis based trio rose from the ashes of Scattered Trees. The band basically played their entire debut album, Give In, live, including "American Dream" and their set closer "Ghost".

Since they've exhausted almost all their songs, coming back for the encore proved a bit of a challenge, as keyboardist/backup singer Alissa Ricci said they were pretty much out of original songs. They set in on a cover, which I thought she said "The Innocent", but I did not recognize the cover. Speaking of covers, I am pretty sure they covered Hot Chip's "Boy from School" earlier in their set.

The second song of the encore was obviously "Every Song", which some fans correctly guessed because it was the only song on Give In that they hadn't play yet.

On An On's next show will be in Birmingham, in the UK. The band seemed really excited to play Europe, hitting all the major countries: Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Austria, before ending back in London in late May.

On An On at 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis (04/26/13)

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ itsonanon.com ♥ thefarewellcircuit.com ♥ aaronandthesea.com

Free Energy at Triple Rock Social Club 4/25/13

Setlist Tour Dates Fri 05/03/13 Washington, DC Rock And Roll Hotel 05/04/13 Philadelphia, PA North Star Bar 05/05/13 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom 05/07/13 Cambridge, MA The Sinclair Read More Free Energy Philly rock band Free Energy has that youthful classic rock sound that was made for rolled-down car windows and summertime mischief. The band won over critics and fans with their acclaimed 2010 debut Stuck on Nothing…

It should come as no surprise that the day following a Free Energy concert would be the warmest day in 5 months for Twin Cities folks. The band probably didn’t anticipate being harbingers of Minnesota’s elusive spring weather, but it was inevitable that the heat generated from last night’s lively show at the Triple Rock would eventually make it’s way out of the building and permeate the atmosphere. The way good rock and roll should, of course.

Clad in tight, ripped jeans and sporting band tee-shirts, the band bounced on stage and tore into “Electric Fever.” I kid you not: they bounced. This band has serious movement. This is the second time I’ve seen them live, but the first time close to the stage and being inches away the band performing is as intense as it is wildly fun. People at the front delighted in receiving a face-full of lead guitarist Scott Wells’ axe every time he swaggered to the edge of the stage. And when he wasn’t ping-ponging against rhythm guitarist Sheridan Fox and bassist Evan Wells, he was carefully summoning that sweet, wailing melody from his shiny red-orange guitar. Charismatic frontman Paul Sprangers elicited plenty of gleeful shrieks from the many vocal females in attendance as he hovered over the crowd, pointing at excited fans and encouraging sing-alongs. During one of the encore songs, Sprangers made his way into the audience and left his mike in one lucky girl’s hand.

The band’s knack for instantly catchy tunage is impressive: effervescent new tracks like “Hangin” and the cowbell-laden “Backscratcher” from Love Sign stirred the crowd up, but nothing holds a candle to fan favorites like “Bang Pop” (so catchy, it should be a crime). My favorite song “Dream City” from the band’s debut Stuck on Nothing saw the tempo slow only a hair before slowly building it back up with “Time Rolls On” and the band’s vibrant anthem “Free Energy” complete with noodle-y AC/DC-esque riffage and, yes, more cowbell. When a fan called out for “Girls Want Rock,” the band heartily obliged. After a brief jaunt offstage, the band returned for a fierce three song encore, including another suggestion from the audience, the spritely “Something in Common” of off Free Energy’s 2009 self-titled EP. They closed with “Hope Child,” leaving behind an audience still vibrating from the sound. I practically floated out the door; the performance was the musical equivalent of vitamin B12.

Minneapolis was Free Energy’s first stop on a short nine-date tour, but fear not all who missed out on this gig - the band will be back June 22nd for the 10 Thousand Sounds Festival, the City Page’s first music event. 

Free Energy at Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis (04/25/13)

emily () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ freeenergymusic.com

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, San Diego, California

Tour Dates 04/27/13 Dallas, TX House Of Blues 04/28/13 Houston, TX Warehouse Live - Ballroom 04/30/13 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade 05/01/13 Nashville, TN Cannery Ballroom 05/03/13 Boston, MA House Of Blues Boston 05/04/13 New York, NY Terminal 5 05/05/13 Phila, PA Theatre Of The Living Arts 05/06/13 Washington, DC 9:30 Club 05/08/13 Montreal, QC Virgin Mobile Corona 05/09/13 Toronto, ON Kool Haus 05/10/13 Detroit, MI St. Andrews Hall 05/11/13 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall 05/13/13 Indianapolis, IN The Vogue 05/14/13 Milwaukee, WI Turner Hall Ballroom 05/15/13 Madison, WI Barrymore Theatre 05/17/13 Chicago, IL Vic Theatre 05/18/13 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue 05/20/13 Englewood, CO Gothic Theatre 05/21/13 Aspen, CO Belly Up Aspen 05/24/13 Vancouver, BC Commodore 05/25/13 Quincy, WA Gorge Amph 05/26/13 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom 05/27/13 Reno, NV Knitting Factory 05/29/13 Tempe, AZ Marquee 05/30/13 Tucson, AZ Rialto Theatre 05/31/13 Las Vegas, NV Vinyl 06/01/13 Los Angeles, CA Wiltern 06/02/13 Santa Ana, CA Observatory 07/05/13 Montreux Montreux Jazz Lab 07/06/13 Belfort Eurockeennes Festival 07/19/13 Sesimbra Praia Do Meco Read More BRMC BRMCʼs new album Specter at the Feast was released last Tuesday, and needless to say itʼs been earning a generous amount of play from yours truly. Bands nowadays just donʼt seem to bring the good olʼ rock and roll .…

BRMC is in the middle of their US tour promoting their new album Specter At The Feast. As I will be missing them when they are in LA next month, it was imperative I catch them at the House of Blues in San Diego on Tuesday.

Opening was Mississippi's Bass Drum of Death, a garage band sounding much like a watered down version of Nirvana. Even a few of their beats were total rip offs, but the high energy was enough to get the laid-back San Diego crowd hyped for Black Rebel.

The threesome came on at 9:30 and the crowd went absolutely bananas. Opening up with Let The Day Begin, a cover from bassist Robert Been's late father's band The Call, I marveled how profoundly hip this band truly is. Think of seeing The Beatles at the Cavern in 1962, greasers just on the road for kicks, and that's your visual for BRMC onstage. Robert Been wails effortlessly on the bass while belting out his heartbreaking lyrics, and their newest band member drummer Leah Shapiro (formerly with The Raveonettes) hits the drums hard with impressive beats that carry each song while even doing some harmonies with Robert. In her simple black t-shirt with her hair wild and in her face, Leah may just be the hottest thing to ever sit behind a set of drums. Then guitarist and vocalist Peter Hayes brings it all together with his bluesy solo tunes for an impressive sight indeed.

When the first notes of Whatever Happened To My Rock ʻNʼ Roll filled the room, I lifted out of my body and was carried away to the Gods of Rock. “I gave my soul to a new religion”. No one, I repeat no one is currently making music like this. This band is the epitome of modern rock music. They then adorned us with a couple solo acoustics that made me quite teary eyed, including You Run by Robert and Some Kind Of Ghost by Peter.

One thing about Black Rebel's live shows, they are so incredibly gracious and passionate with their set. When they are on they are ON, as they played for over two hours...with each song more powerful than the next. They ended with Sell It and my favorite on the new album Lose Yourself. You want one hell of a collar-popping-in-your-face musical phenomenon? Go see Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. Now.

BRMC is currently playing Austin Psych Fest alongside acts Diiv, Deerhunter and Warpaint (just to name a few) and then continuing on their US tour.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club at House of Blues, San Diego (04/23/13)

jess () ♥ blackrebelmotorcycleclub.com

The Airborne Toxic Event w/ Kodaline - First Avenue, Minneapolis (04/23/13) live review

Setlist Tour Dates 04/27/13 Frisco, TX FC Dallas Stadium 04/28/13 Austin, TX Emo's 04/29/13 Houston, TX House Of Blues 05/01/13 Saint Petersburg, FL State Theatre 05/02/13 Orlando, FL The Beacham 05/04/13 West Palm Beach, FL Downtown 05/05/13 Atlanta, GA Buckhead Theatre 05/06/13 Carrboro, NC Cat's Cradle 05/08/13 Washington, DC 9:30 Club 05/09/13 Washington, DC 9:30 Club 05/10/13 Boston, MA House Of Blues Boston 05/11/13 South Burlington, VT Higher Ground 05/12/13 Camden, NJ Susquehanna Bank 05/14/13 Toronto, ON Danforth Music Hall 05/15/13 Detroit, MI Majestic Theatre 05/16/13 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall 05/19/13 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amph 06/01/13 Visalia, CA Visalia Fox Theatre 06/09/13 Saint Petersburg, FL State Theatre 06/12/13 Cleveland, OH House Of Blues 06/13/13 Louisville, KY Headliners Music Hall 06/14/13 Indianapolis, IN The Vogue 06/20/13 Clifton Park, NY Upstate Concert Hall Read More The Airborne Toxic Event Coming on the heels of their digital EP, The Secret, LA-based The Airborne Toxic Event is out on the road soon, in support of their upcoming 3rd full-length, Such Hot Blood, due April 16 on Island Records...…

The Airborne Toxic Event are a bit of an enigma. Blasting out of the gate to national attention in late 2007/early 2008 with the breakout single ‘Sometime Around Midnight’, the Los Angeles-based group never fully held our extended attention, but have recently and ably bounced back into the spotlight with their latest effort, Such Hot Blood (Island Records) and the singles ‘Timeless’ and ‘The Storm’. Their stadium-ready sound has always toed the line between inspired / influenced and indie / mainstream, perhaps making it difficult to embrace one type of audience or the other. But, playing to their largest to-date crowd in the Twin Cities Tuesday night, any comeback effort is being more than well received.

KODALINE

Dublin foursome Kodaline opened the show, promoting their self-titled ep (B-Unique/RCA), completely won the crowd over with their melancholy anthems and soaring choruses (think folk U2/early Coldplay). It didn’t hurt that many thought the Irish lads were also handsome and that they wrote a song specifically for Minneapolis for them to gain fans in a room that prior to their performance, very few had any familiarity with. ‘High Hopes’ and ‘All I Want’ were highlights from a band already playing a bigger sound than the venues they’re currently playing – with the right airplay and a little more stage charisma and maybe bombast, they could become the next The Script as far as popularity in the U.S.—a band to watch.

The Airborne Toxic Event then came out to a set decorated with two gnarled trees framing each side of the back on the stage, similar to the look of their first album cover. Lighting the fire, the band broke into ‘Gasoline’, an energy-filled opener from its debut album that got the crowd moving immediately. Following with ‘Happiness is Overrated’, lead singer Mikel Jollett was up in the balcony singing soon after, while Anna Bulbrook (viola, keyboards) rode on bassist Noah Harmon’s shoulders, tambourine in hand. While musically tight, the overall performance also echo’d a bit of familiarity and calculation about it – from Bulbrook performing on top of a piano to Harmon and guitarist Steven Chen dueling guitar sounds back and forth, the performance seemed more pre-planned than spontaneous, which may have to be the case when staging a 90 min. performance on a large club room tour.

Jollett freely admits being obsessed with death (the band’s name takes from a section of Don DeLillo’s White Noise), but mentioned his view changed recently after several close to him passed away in his pre-song intro to ‘Timeless’, which he dedicated to those lost. Following that with their biggest single, ‘Sometime Around Midnight’ which predictably got the night’s biggest response, Jollett also mentioned his memories of their first trip into the venue, opening for The Fratellis, then desperately selling t-shirts and CDs after.

AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT

The band ended the main set appropriately with ‘All I Ever Wanted’, which was the title track of their live album, as well as on their 2nd studio album, All At Once. Returning for the encore with the somewhat inexplicable song choices of a cover of The Magnetic Fields’ ‘Book of Love’; the somber lyrics of ‘The Graveyard Near The House’; and ‘Missy’, segued with an All-American medley of 'Ring of Fire / American Girl / Born In The USA'. While energetic, it left some scratching their heads as to whether the band was just trying to interpret some of their favorite songs, celebrate American music, or make the statement that they belonged in that company.

Despite their sometimes inconsistent studio output and without any clearer definition of their identity (maybe for the best at this point), The Airborne Toxic Event does continue to impress live, with their tight hooks and arena-sized sound stretching the boundaries of the smaller places they are playing.

The Airborne Toxic Event at First Avenue, Minneapolis (04/23/13)

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