W♥M (Archive)

Buzz Osborne at Grumpy's, Minneapolis (27 June 2014)

Tour Dates 06/30 Grand Rapids, MI Pyramid Scheme 07/01 Columbus, OH A&R Music Bar 07/02 Detroit, MI Small's 07/03 Cleveland, OH The Grog Shop 07/06 South Burlington, VT Higher Ground 07/07 Portland, ME Portland City Music Hall 07/10 Allston, MA Brighton Music Hall 07/12 Hamden, CT Ballroom at the Outerspace 07/13 New York, NY Santos Party House 07/14 Brooklyn, NY The Wick 07/15 Philadelphia, PA Underground Arts 07/17 Baltimore, MD Ottobar 07/18 Charlottesville, VA The Southern 07/20 Carrboro, NC Cat's Cradle 07/22 Atlanta, GA The Basement 07/23 Birmingham, AL The Bottle Tree 07/25 New Orleans, LA One Eyed Jack's 07/26 Houston, TX Warehouse Live 07/27 Austin, TX Red 7 07/28 Sam Antonio, TX Limelight 07/30 Tucson, AZ Club Congress 07/31 Pioneertown, CA Pappy and Harriet's Read More Buzz Osborne Buzz Osborne has got to be one of the most recognizable musicians of the last 30 years. With his perfect mushroom cloud of hair and formidable stature, he’s a tough dude to miss ...

A hushed reverence fell upon the crowd packed into Grumpys narrow music room as Melvins’ leader and all-around acerbic evocator Buzz Osborne made his way to the stage. Osborne strapped on his acoustic-electric guitar (a foreign replacement for the red, white and blue Buck Owens American acoustic that he wrote his new record with) and a weird tension filled the air; folks seemed unsure of how to react. Do we clap? Yell out our approval? When Osborne launched into the first song, the Melvins’ “Boris,” the potent combination of menacing chords and his outrageous howl visibly startled several fans standing at the front. Following “Suicide in Progress,” from the Melvins’ 2008 record Nude With Boots, and a cover of Alice Cooper’s “The Ballad of Dwight Fry,” Osborne yelled out “Thank you!” and instantly put the uncertain Minneapolis audience at ease.

It’s hard not to feel slightly intimidated by King Buzzo; he’s a big guy with a thunderous voice and a guitar sound that’ll put you six feet under. He’s also a huge part of rock history, instrumental in popularizing the drop D tuning that would become synonymous with grunge music and influencing a generation of bands with his 31+ years in the Melvins. But Osborne is also equipped with a sharp sense of humor and has an affable stage presence. When a fan jokingly cried “Freebird” in between songs (seriously, when will this phenomenon just die already?), Buzzo quipped, “You’re lucky I don’t know it!” Later in the night, he regaled the crowd with a colorful tale about the always entertaining ex-Faith No More vocalist, Mike Patton, who defended the honor of his Melvins pals by treating impolite “baby rocker” concertgoers to a 50 minute set of white noise from his band Mr. Bungle and a dirty act involving an eye dropper and his own rear end. Nice.

Osborne was generous with Melvins tracks on his setlist, but it was the slew of songs from This Machine Kills Artists, Osborne’s newest release on Ipecac, that I was especially curious to hear. Great chugging riffs abounded on “Dark Brown Teeth” and “Rough Democracy” and “Laid Back Walking” sounded like the guitar-playing equivalent of chopping off heads (and the way Osborne was stalking the stage, you’d think he was looking for a few victims). On the moody “Drunken Baby,” Buzzo sang with his full-lunged wail lyrics that seemed to nod to his epic musical past: “I wanna say thank you to all my friends/I won’t complain about beginnings or ends” while the excellent slower-paced “How I Became Offensive” featured a climbing and dropping melody with Osborne lessening his yell to a raspy hiss. He rounded out the set with the Melvins’ “War on Wisdom” and “We Are Doomed” both from the 2012 EP The Bulls & The Bees and “Revolve” from 1994’s Stoner Witch.

Buzz Osborne at Grumpy's Bar and Grill, Minneapolis (27 Jun 2014)

emily () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ themelvins.net

John Mark Nelson Sings the Moon at the Cedar (28 June 2014)

John Mark Nelson Sings the Moon Poster John Mark Nelson Setlist Sings the Moon (feat. Charlie Pears) A Place of My Own Beating in My Heart Far from Here Home Shorebird (feat. Ben Rosenbush) Boy Cigarettes & Postage Stamps The Moon and the Stars Rain Comes Down -- Encore -- Reminisce All You Are (feat. Jeremy Messersmith) Bad Bad Hats Setlist Can't Stand You 9AM Say Nothing Uneasy Heart Joseph Super America Secrets Are No Fun Girl Terrible Friend It Hurts Things We Never Say Read More John Mark Nelson Minneapolis singer/songwriter John Mark Nelson has an album Sings The Moon release party this Saturday, June 28th, at the Cedar Cultural Center. The album comes out June 24th via Tone Tree. …

A lot of thought and planning went into John Mark Nelson's CD release Sings the Moon show at the Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis, last night, June 28th.

Bad Bad Hats

Starting with Bad Bad Hats, who played a solid set consisting of their latest It Hurts EP (Afternoon Records) with some new songs. There were a lot of young crossover fans, who showed up early to show support for Bad Bad Hats.

Some of the new songs included "Joseph", which singer Kerry Alexander commented, "If your name is Joseph, then this song is for you."

Huge cheers were heard when "Super America" was announced, so you can tell that was the big hit for this young band.

Although they closed their set with an Alexander-solo song, "Things We Never Say", the rest of the band never left the stage.

John Mark Nelson with Charlie Pears

When the lights dimmed and the piano intro music started to play and then singer Charlie Pears (I'm awful at telling age, but he looks like he's 12) started the set with "Sings the Moon", you knew this John Mark Nelson show was special and was meticulously planned from the beginning.

John Mark Nelson

Right away, Nelson thanked the audience (which was a terrific turnout) and wanted to stressed that he never would take his fans for granted. As much as the show was about him, this was also made possible by his fans, family, the Cedar, and extended musician family. He made sure that we all knew his band (Carla on keys, Nate on the drums, Gabe "I'm Nervous" on secondary drums, Aaron on pedal steel, Ben on upright bass, Nic on bells, Matt on guitars) and consistently thanked us for coming to the show. He was so sincere that it was hard to not smile and feel good with him when he's playing and singing songs about the moon and stars.

John Mark Nelson with Ben Rosenbush

Also, the guests didn't stop with Charlie Pears, other local musicians, Ben Rosenbush played cello on "Shorebird" (which got a rather long story about how Nelson grew up in Excelsior and the analogy between his friends and a flock of seagulls taking flight) and Jeremy Messersmith on the encore song "All You Are" (who we recently saw at Rock the Garden, which we described as more confident with a large ten-piece band.)

With Messersmith, his appearance wasn't apparently enough, as we also got a bonus surprise of explosive confetti and a Conga line of trumpets, marching through the audience... making for a very satisfying ending to this special CD release for John Mark Nelson's Sings the Moon.

Sings the Moon is out now via Tone Tree.

John Mark Nelson (with Jeremy Messersmith) at the Cedar Cultural Center, Minneapolis (28 Jun 2014)

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

Battleme

Future Runs Magnetic El Camino Media, LLC Read More Battleme Portland foursome Battleme started things off with a dirty psych-rock stomp. Lead singer and guitarist Matt Drenik, who looks like the lovechild of Joseph Arthur and Frank Zappa ... Veruca Salt Veruca Salt – original members Nina Gordon (guitar/vocals), Louise Post (guitar/vocals), Steve Lack (bass), and Jim Shapiro (drums) – will release their first new material in ...

Portland-based rockers Battleme will be returning to the Twin Cities in a few weeks to support Veruca Salt at the Varsity Theater. I caught the band just two short months ago opening for the Toadies at First Avenue and I’m glad I did. The set featured songs that were pretty and spacey, but unafraid to unleash some heavy, loud guitar noise. Matt Drenik, the man at the center of this melodic storm, is a performer whose energy and enthusiasm is as contagious as it is enjoyable to watch.

Having kicked around Austin with his band Lions for several years, Drenik adopted the Battleme moniker in 2009 when he began writing songs for popular FX television series Sons of Anarchy (check out his excellent cover of Neil Young’s “Hey Hey My My”) In 2010, he moved to Portland and set up a recording studio in the basement of his house. Battleme’s self-titled debut dropped in 2012 and the rest is history.

Future Runs Magnetic, the band’s newest record released in March on El Camino Records, is an album that demands to be played at full volume. It abandons some of the band’s earlier electro-pop elements for harder, thrashing percussion and massive guitar hooks that reference both the alt-rock blast of the Smashing Pumpkins and power pop of the Cars. All the while Drenik’s airy Perry-Farrell-esque vocals flow at the surface of each song. It’s a satisfying sound that must be experienced live!

Catch Battleme with the newly resurrected Veruca Salt July 9th at the Varsity Theater. And check out Magnet Magazine online where Drenik served as guest editor last week; he covers a few of his favorite things... like British blues-rocker Nic Armstrong and Cinncinati’s famous and delicious “Skyline Chili.”

Battleme w/Veruca Salt
July 9th @ Varsity Theatre in Minneapolis, MN
July 10th @ Turner Hall in Milwaukee, WI
July 12th @ Lincoln Hall in Chicago, IL
July 13th @ Firebird in St. Louis, MO
July 14th @ Lincoln Hall in Chicago, IL
July 21st @ Black Cat in Washington, DC
July 22nd @ Theatre of Living Arts in Philadelphia, PA
July 24th @ Bowery Ballroom in New York, NY
July 25th @ Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, NY
July 26th @ Brighton Music Hall in Boston, MA

emily () ♥ weheartmusic.com

A Stevens Square Companion

Set List and Key If I Had a Dollar (C) My Home (D) I’ll Fly Away (A) Better Days (A) Gone, Gonna Rise Again(G) Remind Me I’m a Woman (E) Union Maid (A) When I Go Away (Am) Old Joe Clark (A) Oh Gory Be! (C) Oh Susanna (C) Hit Me Baby One More Time (Dm) Trouble Done Got Me Down (D) Minnesota (A) Read More Cinema and Civics Last Wednesday night one of Minneapolis’ newest punk bands, Loud Nerves, debuted a 10-song set in Stevens Square’s Cinema and Civics night. The 1990 classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles …

To close out the last installment of Cinema and Civics, Stevens Square Community hit a Prairie-Home-Run with the band Skunk Hollow and a compilation of local short films. The turnout was a little sparse compared to the three preceding events but that didn’t stop Skunk Hollow from turning out some great classics like “I’ll Fly Away,” originals like “Better Days,” and “Hit Me Baby One More Time” for a more modern twist.

Left to right: Zac Bates, Summer Hagen, CJ Houston, Tom McNellis, and Chris Mathews

Tom McNellis (banjo and vocals) started performing with Summer Hagen (ukulele and vocals) in New York 3 years ago. About a year and a half ago the duo added Tom’s old St John’s college mates Zac Bates (lead guitar vocals), CJ Houston (drummer), and Chris Mathews (upright bass and vocals).

Skunk Hollow is very approachable, down to earth, and family orientated. Summer’s mother and sister were in attendance taking photos and handing out home-made skunk tails to people in the audience.^[1] Summer also elicited some audience participation in “Trouble Done Got Me Down.” As a finale, Skunk Hollow showed their love of their home state with “Minnesota.”

The only criticism I would offer is that they could have done more songs in minor keys. Aside from “Hit Me Baby One More Time,” Levon Helms’ “When I Go Away” was their only other minor-key song. That combination of Folk, Blue Grass, and Southern Gospel is really where Summer and Tom best harmonize. Tom’s voice provides what they lack in a fiddle and it would have been nice to see them exploit that sound more.

That being said, Skunk Hollow does not make a living off of playing music. Summer Hagen is a legit actress in both film and theatre making regular appearances at the Guthrie Theater. The rest of the band members hold down regular jobs and I had the pleasure in randomly running into Tom in the elevator where I work a day after the performance. I identify with this band because they are striving for something while holding down a 9 – 5.

I highly recommend catching Skunk Hollow if you want to be inspired by a sweet, home-town sound. To find out about their future gigs, you can follow Skunk Hollow on either their Facebook page or their Twitter account @skunkhollowband. Let’s hope we hear more from these talented, hard-working, artists.

[1] No skunks were harmed in the making of the tails.

Skunk Hollow at Cinema and Civics, Stevens Square Park, Minneapolis (25 June 2014)

behzad ♥ weheartmusic.com

Guitar Gods feat. Yngwie Malmsteen at Skyway Theatre, Minneapolis (23 June 2014) concert review

YNGWIE MALMSTEEN Setlist Intro Rising Force Spellbound Razor Eater Evil Eye Overture/Thousand/Arpeggios Seventh Sign Badinere/Adagio/Far Beyond The Sun Star Spangled Banner Acoustic Paraphrase Dreaming/ Into Valhalla Baroque N' Roll Crack in Whip Trilogy/GTR Solo/Blues Drum Solo/ Heaven Tonight -- Encore -- Black Star Crash n Burn I'll See the Light Tonight GARY HOEY Setlist Going Down Lunatic Deja Blues Peace Pipe Born Under a Bad Sign Utopia Fade to Blue Hocus Pocus BUMBLEFOOT Setlist Abnormal Real Turn Around Guitars Suck Objectify Guitars Still Suck Raygun The Color of Justice The Pink Panther Theme Tour Dates 06/27/14 Portland, OR Roseland Theater 06/28/14 Richmond, BC River Rock Casino Resort 07/02/14 Santa Ana, CA The Observatory 07/03/14 Beverly Hills, CA Saban Theatre 07/04/14 San Jose, CA Milano 07/05/14 Ramona, CA Ramona Rodeo Grounds 07/07/14 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues 07/08/14 Tucson, AZ Rialto Theatre 07/10/14 Dallas, TX House Of Blues 07/11/14 Pharr, TX Pharr Events Center 07/12/14 Houston, TX House Of Blues Read More Guitar Gods Guitar Gods are coming, praise the loud. Hard rock guitar legends Yngwie Malmsteen, Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal and Gary Hoey have united for the “Guitar Gods” tour, which makes an upcoming …

The Latin saying “Veni Vidi Vici” that is attributed to a letter Julius Caesar sent to the Roman Senate, could also apply to The Guitar Gods tour that came to town this week at the Skyway Theatre in Minneapolis – they came, they saw, they conquered.

Guitar virtuoso Yngwie Malmsteen headlined an evening of shredding licks, dramatic solos, and jaw-dropping fretwork, which included fellow “Gods” Gary Hoey and Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal. Unfortunately, scheduled fourth “God”, German ex-Scorpions guitarist Uli Jon Roth, had to pull out of the tour due to last-minute visa issues, but the Minneapolis show was filled in ably with Illinois guitarist TD Clark (with appropriate song, ‘Shreddtime Stories’) and the NYC-based Gary Douglas Band, who played a short set of blues-based rock.

Bumblefoot Setlist

Bumblefoot, who has done albums since the mid 90’s and now doubles as a Guns ‘n Roses guitarist, started the early evening off with solo songs like ‘Guitars Suck’, 'Guitars Still Suck’, and the audience participatory ‘Objectify’, before ending with his own twisted version of ‘The Pink Panther Theme’ (which he released as a digital single in 2011).

Gary Hoey

Blues surf rock guitarist Gary Hoey followed, leaning on tracks from his most recent release, last year’s Deja Blues (Wazoo Music Group), including set opener, ‘Going Down’, the title track, and his version of blues classic, ‘Born Under a Bad Sign’; before ending with his biggest hit, a 1993 remake of Focus song, ‘Hocus Pocus’.

Lights dimmed, fog filled the stage and back wall of Marshall stacks, and the intro music was cue’d up as Yngwie Malmsteen and band (Ralph Ciavolino- bass, Mark Ellis- drums, Nick Marino- keyboards) took the stage to open with a blistering version of ‘Rising Force’, from his 1988 Odyssey album. From the beginning, it was clear that the now 50-year Malmsteen, has lost little of his blurring finger speed on the fret board, moving his hand up and down the guitar neck with relative ease.

‘Spellbound’, the title track from his 2012 album would follow, most of the predominantly male crowd clearly spellbound themselves, by the guitar theatrics they were baring witness to.  More classically influenced than his contemporaries, the Swedish-born Malmsteen has always shown a perfection and discipline to his soloing, and is able to move from delicate string work to full-on shredding, without noticeable effort.

Spellbound (self-released) is notable in that Malmsteen chose to sing all the songs himself on that album, as opposed to having others do the vocals, as had previously been the norm.

Yngwie Malmsteen

“The louder you get, the louder The Maestro gets!” keyboardist and evening MC, Marino goaded the crowd, with Malmsteen’s turned up guitar then drowning him out, to the crowd’s delight.  The 90 min. set proved to be a thorough retrospective of Malmsteen’s back catalogue, including the title track from 1994’s Seventh Sign and early classic, ‘Far Beyond the Sun’, which was part of a riffing medley.

A unique version of our National Anthem, as only Malmsteen could play it, was revelatory and impactful in its rendering, a mix of neo-classical and the Hendrix version. Malmsteen’s acoustic turns were no less impressive with his speed and he would dip into blues and more classical sounding selections as well, as the night continued.

80’s rock single, ‘Heaven Tonight’ was saved for the end of the set, a reminder of the days when those kinds of polished hard rock melodies ruled the radio airwaves.  A three-song encore ended the evening, Malmsteen’s 1985 hit, ‘I’ll See The Light Tonight’ (which had original vocals by Jeff Scott Soto) culminating the night with a tour-de-force show of booming drums, thundering bass, and anchored by Malmsteen’s magic fingers.

The Gods had conquered.

Yngwie Malmsteen at Skyway Theatre, Minneapolis (23 June 2014)

john () ♥ weheartmusic.com

Rock the Garden - Day Two at Walker Art Center, Minneapolis (22 June 2014) concert review

Spoon Setlist Knock Knock Knock Rent I Pay Don’t You Evah Small Stakes Who Makes Your Money Don’t Make Me a Target The Ghost of You Lingers Beast and Dragon Adored I Turn My Camera On Rainy Taxi Rhythm & Soul I Summon You Trouble Comes Running The Underdog Got Nuffin -- Encore -- Black Like Me You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb Jonathan Fisk Guided by Voices Setlist Authoritarian Zoo Planet Score Schocker in Gloomtown Tractor Rape Chain Psychotic Crush Wish I Was a Giant Vote for Me Dummy Fair Touching Hat of Flames Cut-Out Witch Pan Swimmer The Challenge is Much More Buzzards and Dreadful Crows Teenage FBI Alex and the Omegas Good Flying Bird Cool Planet Goldheart Mountaintop Queen Directory Spider Fighter Game of Pricks No Transmission I Am a Scientist Echos Myron Smothered in Hugs Motor Away Dessa Setlist The Man I Knew Alibi The Crow Dear Marie Medley Call Off Your Ghost Dixon’s Girl Mineshaft II Warsaw The Lamb Little Mercy (feat. Cecil Otter) Seamstress Fighting Fish Kurt Vile Setlist Wakin’ on a Pretty Day Jesus Fever On Tour Monkey Hunchback Freak Train KV Crimes Dead Alive Valerie June Setlist Tennessee Time Happy or Lonesome Somebody to Love Rain Dance The Hour Rollin’ and Tumblin’ Workin’ Woman Blues This World Read More Rock the Garden The annual Summer music festival Rock the Garden, organized by the Walker Art Center and 89.3 The Current, just started last night and continues …

Coverage continues on our second day at the Walker Art Center for the Two-Day Rock the Garden Festival.

Valerie June-

Valerie June

Skies grayed, thunder rumbled, and a light rain fell as Memphis-based singer-songwriter Valerie June took the stage to open Day Two, in support of her acclaimed Pushin’ Against a Stone (Concord Music). Now a trio, as opposed to her previous solo visit to town, the laid back Southern drawl of ‘Tennessee Time’ and ‘Somebody to Love’ was an ideal musical hangover cure to get everyone back in the mood for another day of varied sounds.

With Medusa-like hair and banjo-plucking skills, she declared, “We’re going to send the rain away” and did so, appropriately during ‘Rain Dance.’  Blues classic ‘Rollin and Tumblin’ was segued into her own ‘Workin’ Woman Blues’ and the gospel-flavored ‘This World’ ended the set, perfectly setting the table for the day ahead.

Kurt Vile and the Violators-

Kurt Vile and the Violators

Though he looks like he could be guitarist for Megadeth, there is a subtle power to former War on Drugs member Kurt Vile.  He and his Violators (multi-instrumentalists Jesse Trbovich and Rob Laakso, with drummer Kyle Spence) plodded through a careful and building set of songs, in support of recent solo efforts, Wakin’ on a Pretty Daze and the EP, It's a Big World Out There (And I Am Scared) (on Matador Records).

Vile himself plays with an almost introverted style, often staring down at his own guitar, long hair shielding any glimpse of his face.  After quoting Willy Wonka, a fan shouted for a Willy Wonka cover, to which Vile replied, “…charming”. The psychedelics and feedback continued to increase as the set progressed, but Vile chose to downshift at the end, with a quiet and soft ‘Dead Alive’ to a hushed crowd.

Dessa-

Dessa

In an hour-long riveting hometown performance, poet / rapper / TV host / author / Doomtree member, etc. Dessa showed the love back to the local crowd that was already in the palm of her hand, even before her first verse.  Darting and moving like a boxer, she played with the ability to see her own giant-sized face on the screens; would dive into the audience; throw a tub of gelato into the crowd in a cathartic gesture that recalled her food sampling days handing out the dessert at Whole Foods; and late in the set,, serenaded the crowd, jumping from the stage to walk from the pit to the soundboard and back.

Dessa with Aby Wolf

Having Aby Wolf sing harmonies and trade verses was one of the smartest band decisions she’s made, and fellow Doomtree member Cecil Otter, spit fire, guesting on ‘Little Mercy’.This was a very tight and athletic-like performance, backed by her crack local band, which enhanced the often intense lyrics of songs like ‘Call Off Your Ghost’ and hit, ‘Dixon’s Girl’. ‘Dixon’s’ , played late in the set, especially pleased a young girl in the crowd middle, atop her father’s shoulder, holding a sign with the song’s title on it.

“Lizzo isn’t my competition…”, Dessa would remark, dispelling any rumors of such, “…time is. Laundry is my competition.” More than a local performance, Dessa was triumphant in front of the audience that has supported her and her Doomtree collective for so long, as she would mention with gratitude.

Guided by Voices-

GBV with Mark Wheat

Current DJ Mark Wheat went on-stage to intro the legendary Guided by Voices, but first gave the crowd a score update to the US game of the World Cup.  This led into chants of “USA, USA”, which in turn, morphed into even louder chants of “GBV, GBV”.  Bob Pollard and crew then took to the stage, armed with literally thousands of possible songs they could do, “We’re going to do 24 songs for you”, Pollard said …they did 25.

“More bang for your buck”, and after a crew member had taped down Pollard’s mic further, so it wouldn’t dislodge from his swinging, the band put pedal to the metal and was off down their musical, devil-may-care road.

Guided by Voices

The 56-year old white haired singer was amazingly spry during their hour-long set, kicking his leg to touch his hand, jumping about, and prowling from end-to-end on stage.  By contrast, guitarists Tobin Sprout and Mitch Mitchell were rock steady, with Mitchell looking ever deadpan with a lingering cigarette butt, dangling from his lip.  Bassist Greg Demos moved about in the background, striking poses with bass held high, everyone keeping up with Pollard and his resistance to even pause too long to take a breath.

New album, Bee Thousand (Scat Records) songs were mixed into the set, alongside older favorites like the Rick Ocasek-produced “Teenage FBI’, “we worked with the big boys”, Pollard would comment about The Cars singer.  Pollard even slighted local legend Paul Westerberg, saying they’ve played here some twenty times, and had yet to get a glimpse of the somewhat reclusive Replacements leader.

Spoon-

Britt Daniel

“I’m not gonna say where we were last night (ed. note: it was Toronto)… but it wasn’t this good”, Spoon’s singer Britt Daniel confessed to an enthusiastic crowd early in their 75 min. set.  Starting with new songs from their upcoming They Want My Soul (out August 5 on Loma Vista/Republic), the audience was among the first to hear many of the new and yet-to-be-released songs live, which made the clear Sunday evening, seem even more special.

2007 breakthrough album album, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga (Merge Records) was well-represented as well in this abbreviated set, though at the expense of 2010 album, Transference, as I especially missed the inclusion of ‘Written in Reverse’. Daniel, Jim Eno (drums), and band didn’t say a lot to the crowd, carrying on with a confident mix of songs old and new to an already-convinced audience.

An extra boost of energy was provided by Brooklyn band White Rabbits’ guitarist/percussionist Steve Patterson, who was ably filling in for Rob Pope, whose wife was due with child.  Daniel had first met White Rabbits in Minneapolis and went on to produce on of their albums, so the chemistry between Patterson and band seemed natural and unforced.  Daniel’s voice and guitar work moved from elegance to fierceness almost on a coin-flip, and the songs on Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga received the most enthusiastic response.

A three-song encore closed the night and festival, highlighted by ‘You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb’, which was great to hear within earshot of the famous Oldenburg Spoonbridge and Cherry sculpture in the adjoining garden. For the faithful, Spoon returns to town with a downtown theater show in mid-September.

Spoon at Rock the Garden, Minneapolis (22 June 2014)

behzad + john () ♥ weheartmusic.com

Rock the Garden - Day One at Walker Art Center, Minneapolis (21 June 2014) concert review

De La Soul Setlist Verbal Clap Eye Know Much More/Stakes is High/Bizness Pass the Peas Jennifa I Am I Be Oodles/All Good/Breakadawn Saturdaze/Me, Myself & I Feel Good Inc. Ring Ring Ring Matt & Kim Setlist 45 King Overexposed Cameras Silver Tiles Good Ol’ Fashion Nightmare Now Good for Great Let’s Go Don’t Slow Down Ignition (R. Kelly) Block After Block I’m a Goner Final Countdown (Europe) 10 Dollars I Found Push It (Salt-n-Pepa) Lessons Learned Just a Friend Daylight Next Episode (Dr. Dre/Snoop) It’s Alright Best Coast Setlist This Lonely Morning Last Year The Only Place Crazy Goodbye Summer Mood I Wanna Know Sun Don’t Shine Who Have I Become? Fade Away Fear of My Identity Our Deal I Want To Do You Love Me When I’m With You Each and Everyday Jeremy Messersmith Setlist Tourniquet It’s Only Dancing Heidi Lazy Bones Dillinger’s Eyes Organ Donor I Want to Be Your One-Night Stand A Girl, A Boy, and a Graveyard Wrecking Ball (Miley Cyrus cover) You’ll Only Break His Heart Bubblin’ Hitman Ghost Violet Lizzo Setlist Lizzie Borden W.E.R.K. Pt. II Pants/Luv It/Southside (medley) Wat U Mean T-Baby Wegula (with GRRRL PRTY) Paris Batches & Cookies Faded Read More Rock the Garden The annual Summer music festival Rock the Garden, organized by the Walker Art Center and 89.3 The Current, just started last night and continues …

The rain gods had decided to be benevolent… and we were all the better for it.

The crowd

Just mid-way through June, Minnesota was already experiencing a record month of rainfall and just lived through a single-day high mark for the most rain for any day in June history, so this year’s Rock the Garden festival held at the Walker Art Center, seemed slightly in doubt.

Instead, the weekend festival, which expanded to two days for the first time this year, was not affected by any weather; grounds were dry, skies were sunny, and the event was a buoyant celebration of the soundscape of alternative, hip-hop, rock and pop music, as heard on sponsoring MPR radio station, The Current.   Here’s a full rundown of the acts:

Lizzo-

Lizzo

The Grrrl Prty hip-hopper considered Rock the Garden a “some day” gig and was honored to open the event.  We last saw her showing her impressive soul chops, in an encore duet with St. Paul and the Broken Bones, and she impressively followed her Rock the Garden set with a jet-setting trip across the pond, to play the fabled Glastonbury Festival.

Supporting last fall’s Lizzobangers (Totally Gross National Product), she mentioned her Houston roots before ‘Lizzie Borden’ then gave appropriate props before ‘WERK Pt. II’ to the local music scene for giving her music, its first real start.  Lizzo brought out the rest of Grrrl Prty for ‘Wegula’ and radio single, ‘Batches & Cookies’ really worked up the already warm crowd.  Her wide vocal range was on display for ‘Faded’ and proved a fine opening to the hours of music that lay ahead.

Jeremy Messersmith-

Jeremy Messersmith

Remember Messersmith shyly playing solo on acoustic guitar, not that long ago?  That guy has completely changed—now, more confident and heartily backed by a large ten-piece band (which included the Laurel String Quartet we just saw with Dan Wilson), Messersmith charmed the crowd with selections from his much-bigger sounding, Heart Murmurs (Glassnote Records). Lead single, ‘Tourniquet’ got the crowd in his corner right away, followed by more recent single, ‘It’s Only Dancing’.

Older songs like ‘A Girl, A Boy, and a Graveyard’ went down well, but the heated festival crowd was clearly in the mood for more up-tempo numbers.  So, calling it a “No Apologies” track (in a nod to Current DJ Mary Lucia) Messersmith and band covered Miley Cyrus’ ‘Wrecking Ball’ in a slower but assured way with the musical impact that can only be gained by being backed by such a large ensemble.  Moving with three more back-to-back songs from his latest, ‘Bubblin’, ‘Hitman’ and ‘Ghost’, he ended with fan favorite from 2010, ‘Violet’.

Best Coast-

Best Coast

“You know how to do the first day of summer!” Best Coast vocalist Bethany Cosentino remarked, and their upbeat California sun-drenched songs, were the perfect soundtrack for a bright June afternoon.  Their latest, a 7-track EP called Fade Away (Jewel City Records) was well represented, with the duo (rounded out by guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno) and band playing all but the record’s last two tracks, and Cosentino did make mention of a new album coming this fall.

Though the LA-based Cosentino remarked about the heat several times (comparing it to Red Lobster), songs like ‘The Only Place’ and ‘Summer Mood’ seemed incredibly appropriate for the Arts Center’s sloped grass hill filled with sunglasses, hats, and nodding heads. Bruno kept mostly busy to himself, to Cosentino’s left and older songs like early single, ‘When I’m with You’, seemed to get the strongest response.  “Hope we Rocked your Garden”, Cosentino said, ending with ‘Each and Everyday’, from 2010 breakout album, Crazy for You.

Matt and Kim-

Kim and beer

“Let’s get weird!”-Brooklyn indie dance-pop duo Matt and Kim dared the crowd, early into their late afternoon set. The on and off-stage couple, Matt Johnson (vocals/keyboards) and Kim Schifino (drums), more than lived up to that, in their over-caffeinated, high energy set, that was more than perfect for the burgeoning festival crowd.

Hundreds of balloons were released, confetti was thrown, both climbed all over their instruments, Schifino dared people to crowd surf from the pit to the soundboard, and she eventually walked on crowd members’ hands, all of which played true to their “Let’s Get Weird” mantra.  In the process, they became the most energetic and audience-interacting act of the weekend, that left everyone smiling after.

Matt and Kim

Leaning on their latest, 2012’s Lightning (on Fader Label) the pair also mixed in a fair amount of covers including Europe’s ‘The Final Countdown’, Salt-n-Pepa’s ‘Push It’, and one “by a great American poet, Robert Kelly… you may know him as R. Kelly”, Johnson mused, before the band broke into ‘Ignition’.  They also seem to have a current obsession with DJ Snake and Lil’ Jon’s ‘Turn Down for What’, whose samples were peppered in throughout their set.

First big single, ‘Cameras’ was played surprisingly early, but the momentum kept building into a frenzied pace, that the audience didn’t seem to mind. Their energy was infectious, from the very first song to the set-ending cover of Dr. Dre/Snoop’s ‘Next Episode’ and Lightning’s ‘It’s Alright’.

De La Soul-

De La Soul

Long Island hip-hop trio at least knew that a lot of younger people in the Walker audience had maybe never even heard of them.  But, playing with a harder edge than on record, the group (MCs Posdnuos and Dave, and MC/DJ Maseo) made sure the audience remembered them after their night-closing performance.   Even mentioning they’d released their entire catalog online for free (a pirated-sourced version, no less), the three were backed by the ever-seasoned Los Angeles nine-piece, The Rhythm Roots All-Stars, who has backed up almost every late 80’s/early ‘90s rap act, at some point.

A mild surprise was their version of James Brown horn section group The J.B.’s, ‘Pass the Peas’ and they had the audience guessing their favorite day of the week, which on this night could only have been ‘Saturdaze’.

A slightly different version of best-known hit, ‘Me, Myself & I’ followed, somewhat lazily, but tempo ramped back up with Gorillaz hit, ‘Feel Good, inc.’, which was a crowd favorite, though could have benefitted from a recorded Damon Albarn vocal, to fill out the song better.  A verse of Madonna’s ‘Like a Virgin’ would follow, leading into ‘Ring Ring Ring’ and the trio asking the swaying crowd, “Hey, how ya doin’?”

De La Soul at Rock the Garden, Minneapolis (21 June 2014)

behzad + john () ♥ weheartmusic.com

Minneapolis Music Guide: June 28 - July 5, 2014

Here is a guide of some Minneapolis (and St Paul) live concerts and events taking place next week: June 28 - July 5.

Read More Greg Holden The evening opened with a solid 40 minutes from Scottish folk singer-songwriter Greg Holden, who now lives in New York, with his sometimes somber, yet very self-effacing songs …

SUNDAY, JUNE 29
MILL CITY NIGHTS
A Great Big World w/ Greg Holden

A Great Big World is currently in the middle of their international tour, appropriately titled "A Great Big World Tour". The tour is to coincide with the launch of the group's latest single "Already Home," taken from their new album Is There Anybody Out There? (Black Magnetic/Epic Records).

With the new single, the band mentioned that after countless tour dates that, "'Home' doesn't need to be a tangible and physical thing.... It can be that quiet place that is always there inside of you, or the love that exists between two people, no matter how far apart. So in that sense, we are always 'home'."

Scottish folk singer-songwriter Greg Holden (currently based in New York) to open the show with an acoustic set.

Tour dates:

06/26 Detroit, MI Royal Oak Music Theatre*
06/28 Milwaukee, WI Summerfest
06/29 Minneapolis, MN Mill City Nights*
07/05 Birmingham, UK Wireless Festival
07/06 London, UK Wireless Festival
08/01 Sydney, Australia Hi-Fi*
08/02 Brisbane, Australia The Tivoli*
08/03 Melbourne, Australia Russell*
08/05 Auckland, NZ Powerstation*
08/14 Seoul, Korea Super Sonic Festival
08/16 Tokyo, Japan Summersonic Festival
08/17 Osaka, Japan Summersonic Festival

*Headline Dates

 

Read More Live Letters This isn't a band, but a company that books "private loft" concerts in the Whittier neighborhood in Minneapolis. In other words, it's a private resident. I reckon the shows has to be acoustic …

SUNDAY, JUNE 29
SOAP FACTORY
David Poe w/ V & the Dirty Pretty

David Poe will be stopping by Minneapolis to support his new record God and the Girl. This Sunday's show (June 29th), is co-presented by Live Letters and The Soap Factor. Here's all the details:

LIVE LETTERS and The Soap Factory presents: David Poe + V & the Dirty Pretty!

We were lucky enough to celebrate our two year anniversary just a couple weeks ago and with that little milestone brings a whole new year to dream up new ways to enjoy live music in unique and exciting ways. We’re beyond excited to finally announce that our next jump is to collaborate with the incredible Soap Factory on a brand new concert series. The Soap Factory already has a rich arts + music history and we’re so excited to bring the intimate LIVE LETTERS shows that you’re used to into the Soap Factory’s already-amazing space.

To kick this series off we’re bringing David Poe, who hasn’t been back to Minneapolis in far, far too long. This night will serve as the midwest release show for his much-anticipated new album God & The Girl, out June 10th.

Opening up the night will be V & the Dirty Pretty, also celebrating the release of their new album, Inside This Longing, which will be released June 24th.

DATE // June 29th, 2014
TIME // 7:30 pm
CASH // $10 (Soap Factory members get $5 off!)
SPOT // The Soap Factory / 514 Second St SE Minneapolis MN 55414 (google map)

 

Read More Lauryn Hill Nas & Ms Lauryn Hill just announced their "Life Is Good/Black Rage" tour. The name of their tour is taken from Nas's album Life Is Good and Hill's forthcoming single, "Black Rage." …

MONDAY, JUNE 30
FIRST AVENUE
Lauryn Hill

Lauryn Hill, or rather Ms. Lauryn Hill, blew up with her debut album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. She's currently doing a "Homecoming Concert Series", which I suspect was designed for her biggest fan to see her at a small, intimate setting... but at a higher-than-usual ticket price (the Minneapolis show lists $65, excluding extra ticketing fees.)

Jun 26 Electric Forest Festival
Jun 30 First Avenue Minneapolis, MN
Jul 02 Belly Up Aspen, CO
Jul 04 High Sierra Music Festival Quincy, CA
Jul 06 McMenamins Crystal Ballroom
Jul 08 The Paramount Theatre Seattle, WA
Jul 10 Pioneer Park Salt Lake City, UT
Jul 12 Boulder Theater Boulder, CO
Jul 13 Ogden Theater Denver, CO
Jul 16 House of Blues Chicago, IL
Jul 18 Minglewood Hall Memphis, TN
Jul 20 Red Hat Amphitheatre Raleigh, NC
Jul 22 Iroquois Theatre Louisville, KY
Jul 24 FloydFest Floyd, VA
Jul 28 Brooklyn Bowl Brooklyn, NY
Jul 31 House Of Blues Boston, MA
Aug 02 Merriweather Post Pavilion
Aug 09 Count Basie Theatre Red Bank, NJ
Aug 22 Couvre-Feu festival Corsept, France
Aug 23 Rototom Sunsplash Festival
Aug 31 Lookout Music Festival
Sep 03 Outlook Festival
Sep 07 Mitsubishi Electric Halle
Sep 09 Stadtpark Hamburg, Germany
Sep 11 Goranson Arena Sandviken, Sweden
Sep 13 Zenith Paris, France
Sep 17 Tap1 Copenhagen, Denmark
Sep 20 O2 Academy Brixton London, UK
Sep 21 O2 Academy Brixton London, UK
Sep 23 O2 Academy Birmingham Birmingham, UK
Sep 25 Manchester O2 Apollo Longsight, UK

Read More The Antlers Despite what their setlist said (a total of 8 songs), The Antlers played more than an hour's worth of music. Maybe their songs are just "extra long" because of the "experimental" things … Yellow Ostrich Yellow Ostrich already blew away Justina when she covered them a few months ago in New York. Justina described the band's music and why she jumped at the chance …

TUESDAY, JULY 1
TRIPLE ROCK SOCIAL CLUB
The Antlers w/ Yellow Ostrich

Wow, I haven't seen The Antlers since 2010... a lot has changed since then. The Antlers are back with their fifth album, Familiars (Anti- Records), which NPR is saying is full of "rich sound, its mix of subtlety and grandiosity, its funereal beauty."

Opening up for them will be Yellow Ostrich, who was last in Minnesota last March. I didn't cover their MN appearance due to my winter hibernation, but we did manage to cover them when they were in New York at a press-only event.

The Antlers tour dates:

June 26 Philadelphia, PA Union Transfer
June 27 Toronto, ON The Mod Club
June 28 Columbus, OH A&R Music Bar
June 29 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall
July 1 Minneapolis, MN Triple Rock Social Club
July 2 Kansas City, MO The Riot Room
July 3 Denver, CO Bluebird Theater
July 5 Salt Lake City, UT Urban Lounge
July 8 Vancouver, BC VENUE
July 9 Seattle, WA Neumos
July 11 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
July 12 Los Angeles, CA Troubadour
July 13 Los Angeles, CA Troubadour
July 16 Solana Beach, CA Belly Up Tavern
July 17 Phoenix, AZ The Crescent Ballroom
July 19 Dallas, TX Trees
July 20 Austin, TX The Parish
July 21 Houston, TX Fitzgerald’s
July 23 Atlanta, GA Masquerade
July 24 Raleigh, NC Kings
July 25 Washington, D.C. 9:30 Club
July 26 New York, NY Webster Hall

Photo: Cut Copy at First Avenue, Minneapolis (25 June 2014)

Tour Dates 06/26: Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall 06/27: Indianapolis, IN @ Vogue 06/28-06/29: Electric Forest Festival 08/01-08/03: Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza 08/01-08/03: Montreal, QC @ Osheaga 08/05: Denver, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre 08/08: Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl 08/08-08/10: Outside Lands Festival Read More Cut Copy Free Your Mind…and the rest will follow. So says that ‘90s R&B song, and Australian synth-pop/indietronica four-piece Cut Copy, mean to prove that point as they head out in support …

Dan Whitford

This is just a quick post to get a photo and touring information online for Australian synth-pop / dance / indietronica four-piece Cut Copy online. Stay tuned for a full review of their First Avenue appearance in Minneapolis.

Free Your Mind is Cut Copy's fourth studio album, out now on Modular Recordings.

Setlist

We Are Explorers Take Me Over Free Your Mind Where I'm Going Memory Capsule So Haunted Hearts on Fire Saturdays Feel the Love Out There on the Ice Let Me Show You Love Meet Me In a House of Love Lights and Music -- Encore -- Nobody Lost, Nobody Found Need You Now

Cut Copy at First Avenue, Minneapolis (25 June 2014)

john () ♥ weheartmusic.com

Courtney Barnett at the Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (24 Jun 2014)

Poster Setlist David Lance Jr Canned Tomatoes (Whole) Scotty Says Don't Apply Compression Gently Are You Looking After Yourself? Out Of The Woodwork Blah Avant Gardener P.E. Teacher History Eraser -- Encore -- Depreston Read More Courtney Barnett Melbourne's Courtney Barnett was previously here earlier this year, which we caught in Chicago, but now she's back with a full expanded North American tour.… Benjamin Booker Thursday’s show started off with Benjamin Booker, a New Orleans guitarist accompanied by Max Norton on drums and an additional guitarist. …

Having recently sold out all three of her NXNE shows and various shows around the country, including her appearance at the Varsity Theater, in Minneapolis, on Tuesday night, Courtney Barnett is taking North America by storm.

Benjamin Booker

New Orleans' Benjamin Booker opened up the show with a 40-min performance of this nice mix of rock/punk/blues fusion music. We recently caught Booker at Northside Festival, in New York, which Justina described as "[having] a traditional rocker stage presence, swinging his guitar around, seemingly not giving a s**t..."

His eight song set included tracks from his upcoming self-titled debut album, set for an August 19th release date by ATO Records. He ended the set with his biggest song, "Violent Shiver," which was his choice track on his national television debut on Late Show With David Letterman. Look for Booker to next appear as the support act for Jack White's summer tour.

Setlist

Typical of new artists, Courtney Barnett played an hour of music, with the majority of songs taken from her two EPs, The Double EP: A Sea Of Split Peas, out now on Mom + Pop Music. This is a perfect show for fans who already bought / imported the EPs and know and love these songs.

Not all the songs were known, Barnett threw in some new tracks, including "Blah" and "P.E. Teacher," which will likely appear on her upcoming debut album, which she promised will be recorded "very soon."

Courtney Barnett and Bones

Barnett also mentioned that this was her first time ever in Minneapolis, along with her bassist Bones (yes, as in skeleton bones) and drummer Dave. She was grateful to be on this really successful North American tour (having sold out numerous shows across the country) and mentioned a couple of time that she was happy to be in Minneapolis and to see so many fans.

Courtney Barnett

At the end of the show, she asked the audience for some feedback, "Do you have anything you'd like to say?" One fan shouted for them to come back, which Barnett quickly replied, "Oh, we'll come back!" as if that was the obvious answer.

The encore had Barnett coming back, minus the band, to do a new track, "Depreston." As she confessed, like many of her songs, Barnett's songs starts off fun, but ends up sounding very depressing.

Courtney Barnett is in the middle of her North American tour, in support of her debut The Double EP: A Sea Of Split Peas. She recently added a string of new dates with San Fermin and Mikhael Paskalev:

07.01.14 - Larimer Lounge - Denver, CO ^^ 07.02.14 - Urban Lounge - Salt Lake City, UT ^^ 07.04.14 - Fortune Sound Club - Vancouver, BC ^^ 07.05.14 - Neptune - Seattle, WA ^ 07.30.14 - Schubas Tavern - Chicago, IL 08.01.14 - Lollapalooza - Chicago, IL 08.02.14 - Osheaga Festival - Montreal, QC 08.03.14 - Pickathon Festival - Happy Valley, OR 08.07.14 - Casbah - San Diego, CA 08.08.14 - Pappy and Harriets - Pioneertown, CA 08.08.14 - 08.10.14 - Outside Lands Festival 10.16.14 - The Loft - Atlanta, GA *

10.17.14 - Visulite Theatre - Charlotte, NC * 10.18.14 - Black Cat - Washington, DC * 10.20.14 - Union Transfer - Philadelphia, PA * 10.22.14 - Webster Hall - New York, NY * 10.24.14 - Cabaret Mile End - Montreal, QC * 10.25.14 - Lee's Palace - Toronto, ON * 11.07.14 - Fun Fun Fun Fest - Austin, TX ** w/ Benjamin Booker ^ w/ Sharon Van Etten ^^ w/ Your Friend * w/ San Fermin and Mikhael Paskalev

Courtney Barnett at the Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (24 Jun 2014)

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