W♥M (Archive)

Ásgeir, with Tusks, at Fine Line Music Cafe, Minneapolis (21 Sep 2017) (Updated)

Ásgeir Setlist Hold Fennir Yfir Higher Here Comes the Wave in Underneath It New Day Head in the Snow Dreaming In Harmony Afterglow I Know You Know King and Cross Unbound Going Home -- Encore -- Stardust Torrent Read More Ásgeir Icelandic singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ásgeir will be headlining the Fine Line Music Café on Thursday, in support of his new album Afterglow. ... Tusks Be sure to show up early to check out UK’s Tusks (aka Emily Underhill). She’ll be likely playing tracks from her forthcoming debut album Dissolve, due for release on October 13th via One Little Indian. …

Icelandic singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ásgeir headlined the Fine Line Music Café in Minneapolis last Thursday, in support of his new album Afterglow.

Ásgeir was last seen in town in Febuary 2015 with Irish singer-songwriter Hozier.

UK’s Tusks opened up the show. The singer / songwriter / producer did publish some songs (‘Ghosts’ and ‘Snow’ for example) under her real name, Emily Underhill, before deciding to officially use the stagename Tusks sometime in 2013.

Underhill was rather excited to be touring the U.S.A., mentioning how everything was new and exciting to her. I believe this was her first time in the country, or at least “first time ever” in Minneapolis, so she was taking it all in... and based on her excitement of traveling, this won’t be her last time here.

With only two EPs (Ink and False) and a forthcoming debut album Dissolve, due for release on October 13th via One Little Indian, she decided to fill her set 30-min set with a cover of Foals’ ‘London Thunder’, played very early in. A couple of singles from the previous EPs were played, including ‘Torn’ and ‘Dissolve’ (which ended her set).

Underhill spent her entire set in near-darkness (with dim blood-red lighting), and it’s maybe because she wanted to give the audience a reason to actually listen to her music rather than watching her perform. All of the songs were basically deconstructed and reconstructed to be played live by a one-woman band. This would sometime require using music loops and working double microphones (for two different vocal effects).

There was a 30 minute gap before Ásgeir took the stage. He’s actually known as Ásgeir Trausti in Iceland, but for America, he thought his name was unique enough to be billed under just the first name... like Elvis or Prince.

Ásgeir had already made a splash in Iceland with his debut album Dýrð í dauðaþögn, in 2012. His singles shot up in the charts: ‘Sumargestur’, ‘Leyndarmál’, and the the title track, ‘Dýrð í dauðaþögn’, all top ten singles in the Icelandic charts.

The album was so successful that he decided to re-record the record in English, with the help of American singer John Grant, for the U.S. and U.K. market, as a result In the Silence came out in early 1994 via One Little Indian. After a successful sold-out series of dates with Hozier, Ásgeir was eager to go back in the recording studio for his new all-English record Afterglow released earlier this year.

The hour long setlist was a good mix of his two English albums (In the Silence and Afterglow )

Remaining tour dates:

10/1/2017 Philadelphia, PA Union Transfer
10/2/2017 Washington D.C Sixth and I
10/4/2017 Nashville, TN Mercy Lounge
10/7/2017 Austin, TX Austin City Limits

Tusks

Tusks

Tusks

Asgeir

Asgeir

Asgeir at Fine Line Music Cafe, Minneapolis (21 September 2017)

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

Rocktober: October 6, 2017

Here are some concerts taking place in the Minneapolis/St Paul area from October 6, 2017.

Read more Minneapolis Music Guide.

Read More Frankie Rose Guess who is opening up for Franz Ferdinand for all their U.S. tour dates? That's right, Frankie Rose. She'll be here on Wednesday at the Skyway Theatre in Minneapolis..…

FRANKIE ROSE
at Turf Club
Friday 10/06/2017 (8pm/$12)
turfclub.net

It’s been four years since we last saw Frankie Rose when the former Dum Dum Girls drummer went solo.

Rose is back now with her fourth studio album Cage Tropical (Slumberland Records and Grey Market) and she’ll be stopping by the Turf Club in St Paul this October 6th.

Originally UK’s Splashh was supposed to open, but due to “immigration problems” set by Donald Trump’s administration (according to Splashh anyway), they had to cancel their U.S. tour.

Instead, Suburban Living and DJ Jake Rudh will happily take their place.

Tour Dates:

09/30 - Vancouver - Biltmore
10/02 - Salt Lake City - Kilby Court
10/03 - Denver - Globe Hall
10/06 - St Paul - Turf Club
10/07 - Chicago - Empty Bottle
10/08 - Detroit - Ufo Factory
10/09 - Pittsburgh - Club Cafe
10/10 - Buffalo - Studio At Waiting Room
10/11 - Allston - Great Scott
10/12- New York - Rough Trade
10/17 - Brighton - The Joker
10/18 - London - Moth Club
10/19 - Manchester - Castle
10/20 - Edinburgh - Sneaky Pete
10/21 - Coventry - Kasbah
10/22 - Nottingham - Bodega
10/24 - Leeds - Brudenell Social Club
10/25 - Turnbridge Wells - The Forum
10/26 - Antwerp - Trix Club
10/27 - Eindhoven - Dutch Design Week
10/28 - Amsterdam - London Calling
10/30 - Limoges - Le Phare
10/31 - Paris - Pitchfork Avant Garde
11/01 - Cologne - Mtc
11/02 - Berlin - Badehause
11/04 - Sion - Le Port Franc
11/05 - Zurich - Paplersaal
11/06 - Munich - Backstage Club
11/07 - Vienna - B72

Read More Jr. Jr. Detroit duo Jr Jr (Josh Epstein and Daniel Zott) - formerly known as Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. Minneapolis trio Denny (Alex, Jack, and Sully). … ZZ Ward Thanks to massive support from local radio station Cities 97, ZZ Ward has consistently sold out all her shows in the Twin Cities. …

Other shows in the area:

10/06/2017 Detroit duo Jr. Jr. (formerly Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.) will be playing at the Fine Line Music Café on Friday, with Hembree

JR JR North American Fall Tour Dates

10/5 - Chicago, IL - House of Blues
10/6 - Minneapolis, MN - Fine Line
10/7 - Kansas City, MO - Record Bar
10/9 - Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater
10/10 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
10/12 - Seattle, WA - Neumos
10/13 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne
10/14 - San Francisco, CA - Independent
10/16 - Sacramento, CA - Harlow's
10/17 - Pomona, CA - Glasshouse
10/19 - Los Angeles, CA - El Rey
10/20 - San Diego, CA - Irenic
10/21 - Phoenix, AZ - Lost Lake Music Fest
10/22 - Santa Fe, NM - Meow Wolf
10/24 - Dallas, TX - Trees
10/25 - Austin, TX - Mohawk
10/26 - Houston, TX - WOMH
10/27 - Birmingham, AL - Saturn
10/28 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade - Hell Stage
10/30 - Nashville, TN - Basement East
10/31 - Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
11/02 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
11/03 - Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church
11/04 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza
11/05 - Cambridge, MA - Sinclair
11/07 - Buffalo, NY - Waiting Room
11/08 - Toronto, ON - Velvet Underground
11/09 - Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
11/17 - Detroit, MI - El Club
11/18 - Detroit, MI - El Club

9pm, $16.

10/06/2017 Mark Chesnutt, who previously had to cancel a couple of UK shows no thanks to Hurricane Harvey, will be in town at the Medina Entertainment Center in Medina, Minnesota. The Devon Worley Band to open.

Tour Dates:

09/30 Central Washington State Fair - Yakima, WA
10/06 Medina Ent Center - Medina, MN
10/07 Q & Z Expo Center - Ringle, WI
10/14 Municipal Auditorium - Nashville, TN
10/15 Showplace Music Hall - Memphis, TN
10/20 Arlington Music Hall - Arlington, TX
10/21 Highland Bayou Park - La Marque, TX
10/27 Space Coast State Fair - Melbourne, FL
10/28 Coastal Carolina Fair - Ladson, SC
11/08 American Bandstand Theater - Branson, MO
11/10 The Center for the Perf Arts - Carmel, IN
11/11 Meyer Theatre - Green Bay, WI
12/01 Memorial Auditorium - Chattanooga, TN
12/02 Freedom Hall Civic Center - Johnson City, TN
12/03 Knoxville Coliseum - Knoxville, TN
12/08 Coach’s & Cowboy’s - Tyler, TX
12/09 Dosey Doe - Conroe, TX
12/16 Midnight Rodeo Mobile - Mobile, AL

7:30pm, $28.82.

10/06/2017 Icelandic band Kaleo and ZZ Ward will be in Minneapolis at the State Theatre this Friday.

Tour dates:

10/02/2017 Revention Music Center Houston, TX
10/04/2017 Arvest Bank Theatre Kansas City, MO
10/06/2017 State Theatre Minneapolis, MN
10/07/2017 Orpheum Theater Madison, WI
10/11/2017 The Tabernacle Atlanta, GA
10/14/2017 The Anthem Washington, DC
10/16/2017 House Of Blues Boston Boston, MA
10/18/2017 Tower Theater Upper Darby, PA
10/20/2017 The Dome Wallingford, CT
10/21/2017 Hammerstein Ballroom New York, NY
10/29/2017 Event Halle Basel Basel, Switzerland
10/31/2017 O2 Apollo Manchester Manchester
11/01/2017 Roundhouse London
11/03/2017 Barrowland Glasgow
11/04/2017 O2 Academy Birmingham Birmingham

7:30pm, $35.

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

Afghan Whigs w/ Har Mar Superstar at First Avenue, Minneapolis (21 Sept 2017)

Afghan Whigs Setlist Arabian Heights Matamoros Debonair Light as a Feather Teenage Wristband (The Twilight Singers cover) Oriole Toy Automatic Can Rova / Last Goodbye (Jeff Buckley cover) Turn On the Water Coffee (Sylvan Esso cover) Algiers Going to Town (slight return) Demon In Profile with Har Mar Superstar It Kills John the Baptist Somethin’ Hot Into the Floor with Don Henley’s ‘Boys of Summer’ snippet -- Encore -- Keep Hanging On (Hüsker Dü cover) with Har Mar Superstar Summer's Kiss Faded with Prince’s ‘Sometimes it Snows in April’ snippet Har Mar Superstar Setlist Personal Boy Prisoner Anybody's Game Restless Leg These Arms of Mine (Otis Redding cover) How Did I Get Through the Day Power of Love (Huey Lewis and the News cover) Youth Without Love Tall Boy We Don’t Sleep Lady, You Shot Me Afghan Whigs Tour Dates 09/29/2017 Nashville, TN Exit / In 09/30/2017 Birmingham, AL Saturn 10/12/2017 Solana Beach, CA Belly Up Tavern 10/13/2017 Los Angeles, CA The Fonda Theatre 10/14/2017 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore 10/16/2017 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom 10/17/2017 Vancouver, BC Rickshaw Theatre 10/18/2017 Seattle, WA The Showbox 10/19/2017 Salt Lake City, UT Urban Lounge 10/21/2017 Englewood, CO Gothic Theatre 10/22/2017 Kansas City, MO recordBar 10/24/2017 Austin, TX The Mohawk 10/25/2017 Dallas, TX Trees 10/26/2017 Houston, TX Heights Theater 10/27/2017 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience* with Har Mar Superstar except * Read More The Afghan Whigs Surely, you remember the high-drama swagger of the Afghan Whigs, the 90s rock act reuniting after eleven years, who invoked both hard rock and soul into their moody arrangements.…

Plenty was on the menu as two seemingly different acts filled First Avenue in Minneapolis-

The Afghan Whigs and Har Mar Superstar are out on a two-month fall tour together that turns out to have many more musical similarities between the pair, than differences.  Har Mar aka Sean Tillman was even inspired to curate a gig-celebrating menu at the next door Depot that included Afghan Whings and Eggs Dulli, among the night’s other delicacies.

The evening’s music in the Mainroom started with a forty-minute opening set from hometown hero Har Mar Superstar, bringing the sunshine with his irresistible mix of r&b, soul, and funk, playing on a stage Tillman should know like the back of his hand. Opening with the new ‘Personal Boy’ from the just-released EP of the same name (on Love OnLine Records), the band shimmered in matching satin jackets while its leader wore an unassuming drab green jacket and pants. 

Any idea that maybe Tillman wouldn’t disrobe given the short set, was dispelled in less than ten minutes as he had his jacket off and shirt soon after, during a retro ‘Restless Leg’. “It’s good to be back home, right in the middle of the tour” Tillman said, as numerous friends and his parents, looked on.

Dedicating the heart wrenching ’ How Did I Get Through the Day’ to the recently fallen Grant Hart was one of the most emotional moments of the evening, with Tillman then shifting to say “We're gonna bring up the mood” as he and the band ramped things up with a breezy Huey Lewis cover, saying “thank you for indulging us” after.

The electro-pop ‘Youth Without Love’, falsetto-filled ‘Tall Boy’ and crooning ‘Lady, You Shot Me would end the set, with Tillman saying “We're psyched to be here, it's always the best” about the venue he’s played numerous times and mentioned he’d be back  on Thanksgiving eve at the Turf Club, to stir things up all over again.

Warnings were given before The Afghan Whigs ever hit the stage. 

Keeping with the Whigs’ dark theme and the low, dim lights over a spare stage that would frame their set the whole night, a strict message against any kind of flash photography was given, though fans could otherwise feel free to take all the pictures and video they wanted.  The band is out in support of In Spades (Sub Pop Records) their second original release, since reforming full-time, just over five years ago and the band opened roaring with the album’s track two, ‘Arabian Heights’.

No warnings were given as to the sheer volume level the band played at for their ninety-minute set, though most fans knew better and came prepared. An empty space was to singer Greg Dulli’s left, the one usually filled by guitarist Dave Rosser, who lost his cancer battle in June.

“One hand striking another makes a lovely sound” Dulli mentioned as everyone clapped along for the elegantly dark ‘Light as a Feather’ and ‘Teenage Wristband’ was a setlist surprise, being from one of Dulli’s many side projects, The Twilight Singers.  After which, he called out one of a couple people that apparently didn’t get the no-flash message, “if you can’t take a picture without a flash, you can’t take a picture”, he chided.

As Dulli spoke solemnly about his fallen guitarist, numerous homemade signs reading ‘Viva Le Rosser’ shot up from the crowd, with the band seguing into one of Rosser’s favorite newer songs, 2014’s ‘Can Rova’ which artfully segued an outro from Jeff Buckley’s ‘Last Goodbye’ to finish the song. 

Always one to work in bits of what he’s listening to, a Sylvan Esso cover was also somewhat unexpected, but neatly fit into the rest of the oeuvre.  “What you got, Minneapolis!?” Dulli screamed as metal-esque guitars powered the black, suffocating gut-punch of ‘John the Baptist’. Sensing autumn has arrived, the main set closing ‘Into the Floor’ morphed into Don Henley’s ‘Boys of Summer’ slowing, then accelerating with one last flourish. 

Dulli came out alone for the encore, still lamenting lost friends but celebrating Minneapolis saying “the music that has come out of here… has changed my life”. Tillman would then join Dulli for an aching Hüsker Dü cover with the crowd joining in on the chorus as means of their own needed emotional release.

The band rejoined on stage to test the amp volume for two final songs from 1996’s Black Love- ‘Summer’s Kiss’ and ‘Faded’, managing to slow the tempo enough to work in a touching Prince cover before the volume cranked one last time with Dulli saying “Take me away!” as one last farewell.

With two seemingly different bands on the menu, that would somehow (and often) come so close together, The Afghan Whigs and Har Mar Superstar served up a musical plate that left no one attending, unsatisfied.

Har Mar Superstar at First Ave, Minneapolis (21 Sept 2017)

Har Mar Superstar

Afghan Whigs

Afghan Whigs

Afghan Whigs

Afghan Whigs

Afghan Whigs at First Ave, Minneapolis (21 Sept 2017)

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

Falling in Reverse, with All That Remains, at Skyway Theatre, Minneapolis (27 Sep 2017)

Falling In Reverse Setlist I'm Not A Vampire Superhero God, If You Are Above ... Loser Raised By Wolves F*** You and All Your Friends I'm Bad at Life Alone Bad Girls Club The Drug In Me Is You Just Like You All That Remains Setlist Madness Halo This Probably Won't End Well Stand Up Six The Last Time The Thunder Rolls (Garth Brooks cover) What If I Was Nothing? This Calling Two Weeks Tour Dates 09/30/2017 JJO Sonic Boom 10/01/2017 Louder Than Life Festival 10/02/2017 New Daisy Theatre Memphis, TN 10/04/2017 Marathon Music Works Nashville, TN 10/06/2017 Piere's Entertainment Center Fort Wayne, IN 10/07/2017 Self Help Festival Read More Falling in Reverse Las Vegas’ Falling in Reverse is touring support of their latest record Coming Home (Epitaph Records). Show up early to check out Massachusetts-based … All That Remains As expected, fans are divided on the approach that All That Remains have taken on their new album but I think the least anyone could say is that it's a giant step forward from the disaster that was A War You … By The Thousands I saw my boys in By The Thousands play the First Avenue mainroom. This is the same venue I saw Social Distortion play. The same stage that I saw Sage Francis play on. And there were my boys. ....

American rock band Falling in Reverse just headlined the Skyway Theatre in Minneapolis on Thursday night, September 27, in support of their new album Coming Home (released in 2017 via legendary punk label Epitaph Records).

Unfortunately, due to Visa issues, Melbourne’s Ocean Grove had to cancel their entire U.S. tour.

The Australian band sent in this heartfelt explanation:

The universe wasn’t on our side this time, and it saddens us all to announce that our tour of the United States this September/October has now been cancelled. This is due to the prolonged bureaucracy of obtaining work visas. While frustrating, this is a process we have to treat with legitimacy as to not jeopardize our careers and the many more US tours we will embark on in the future.

US fans don’t fret, we will be in your country soon enough playing shows, with news of that coming very shortly. We are so sorry to any other bands or fans who this has let down. In our eyes this isn’t a setback, but just the world reassuring us that good things come to those who wait. We will see you soon USA

Stepping in at the last minute was local metal band By The Thousands (bassist Adam Sullivan, drummer Carlos Monserrate, guitarist Dustin Korth, guitarist John Riviere, and vocalist Hondo Torres-Pena). We previously caught them in Iowa in 2015 and noted, “Their music sounded great, as always. It was clean and tight and perfect. I could hear the people around us talking about how great they sounded and I couldn’t help but let the smile creep across my face.”

If you’ve never seen By the Thousands, sometime they have a “Cookie Monster” metal sound, and by the end of their set, singer Hondo Torres-Pena would often do some heavy head banging with his hair let loose.

Massachusetts-based All That Remains (Philip Labonte Oli Herbert, Mike Martin, Jason Costa, and Aaron Patrick) came on next, playing some tracks from the new album Madness (Razor & Tie Records). All That Remains is unique in that they crossed over many musical genre, including pop/punk and country music, which they demonstrated with a cover of the great Garth Brooks’ ‘The Thunder Rolls’. Believe me, you haven’t lived until you see body surfing to a country song.

When asked why they decided to cover ‘The Thunder Rolls’, former Shadows Fall and current All That Remains vocalist, Phil Labonte said, “We’re continuing to push what people’s notion of what All That Remains is and what we’re allowed to do and what we’re willing to do, in what ways we’re willing to go and experiment… That's always our point -- How can we reach out to new people?”

We last saw the group at the Skyway Theatre in 2015, when they were touring for The Order Of Things (their 7th studio album on Razor & Tie).

Now back with Madness (also on Razor & Tie), this is one of the band’s biggest hit album to date, hitting #1 US Top Hard Rock Albums and #9 US Top Rock Albums charts. The band was obligated to play a few tracks from the album, including the previously mentioned Garth Brooks cover and the title track, ‘Madness’ which started their set.

Highlight of their set was ‘What If I Was Nothing?’, a song done in the styles of “an 80s power ballad”, as Labonte explained. It was as epic as you would imagine the song to be live.

Falling In Reverse (singer Ronnie Radke, rhythm guitarist Derek Jones, bassist Zakk Sandler, guitarist Christian Thompson, and drummer Chris Kamrada) was last seen touring with Atreyu for their Christmas Vacation tour, right after their Supervillains Tour (with Attila, Metro Station, and Assuming We Survive), and now they are on their Coming Home Tour. At this point, the band is never going back home to Las Vegas.

Although it was clear that vocalist Ronnie Radke was sick, due to his raspy voice, Radke said he wouldn’t cancel the show because of his fans. He gave it his all, jumping, screaming “mother****rs!” and being his usual hyperactive self. If this was an ill Radke, wait until you see Radke in tip top form.

Although their new album Coming Home just came out, they did play it a little safe by playing some of their biggest hit from their #1 third album Just Like You, such as ‘God, If You Are Above ...’, which, a woman fan in the front had taken off her bra and tossed it to Radke.

The remainder of their set was basically dedicated to Coming Home, so if you love the new album, you’ll love this current tour.

All That Remains

By the Thousands

By the Thousands

All That Remains

All That Remains

Falling in Reverse

Falling in Reverse at Skyway Theatre, Minneapolis (27 September 2017)

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

Gorillaz at Roy Wilkins Auditorium, St. Paul (20 Sep 2017) (Updated)

Gorillaz Setlist M1 A1 Last Living Souls 📺 Murdoc BB Saturnz Barz Tomorrow Comes Today Rhinestone Eyes Every Planet We Reach Is Dead Sleeping Powder 📺 Indent: Madam On Melancholy Hill Busted and Blue El Mañana Ascension with Vince Staples Strobelite with Peven Everett Submission with Danny Brown 📺 Noodle BB Andromeda Sex Murder Party with Jamie Principle and Zebra Katz Garage Palace with Little Simz Superfast Jellyfish with De La Soul Kids With Guns 📺 Russell BB We Got the Power with Jehnny Beth -- Encore -- Stylo with Peven Everett Feel Good Inc. with De La Soul 📺 2D BB Clint Eastwood Don't Get Lost in Heaven Demon Days Danny Brown Setlist Side B (Dope Song) Kool Aid Smokin & Drinkin Grown Up 25 Bucks Ain’t It Funny Really Doe When It Rain Pneumonia Attak (Rustie cover) Vince Staples Setlist Birds & Bees Homage Rain Come Down Love Can Be... 745 Loco Surf War Ready Big Fish Norf Norf Read More Gorillaz I'm not going to lie, I love me some Gorillaz-action. Being a fan of Blur and Tank Girl and Dan the Automator, it was only natural that I fell in love with this cartoon band's first single, "Clint Eastwood"…

Gorillaz headlined the Roy Wilkins Auditorium in St Paul last week (September 20th) in support of their new album Humanz.

It was the band’s first tour in seven years. As expected, the show sold out, leaving many fans and families standing outside the venue looking for spare tickets. The most interesting thing about the audience is that it was a good mixture of Black, White, and Asian fans. The audience was as diverse as some of the music of Gorillaz.

Vince Staples (one third of the hip hop Cutthroat Boyz) started the show with ‘Birds & Bees’ in a dark, deep red smoke. It would make sense that Gorillaz personally asked Staples (and other opener Danny Brown) to open for them, as Staples (among many others) collaborated with Gorillaz on their new Humanz album.

Currently signed to ARTium Recordings, Blacksmith Records, and Def Jam Recordings, Staples’ sophomore album Big Fish Theory debut at number 16 on the US Billboard 200 on the strength of his singles ‘Rain Come Down’ and ‘Big Fish’.

Staples spent the majority of his set in near darkness with a red backdrop, with the exceptions of ‘745’, which had a custom video of a car driving down a desert freeway, and ‘Big Fish’ with a video of a gold fish.

Detroit’s Danny Brown had a lot of buzz from the crowd coming on stage. Even if the audience were only casual Brown fans, they knew enough to sing along to ’25 Bucks’ and ‘Smokin & Drinkin’, both taken from his critically acclaimed album Old.

‘When It Rain’ and ‘Pneumonia’ was played near the end of his set, which was taken from Brown’s most recent album Atrocity Exhibition (Warp Records).

If you’re in the Detroit area, Brown and DJ Assault & Bruiser Brigade will be taking over Club Fantasy for their “Bruiser Thanksgiving 4” on November 22nd.

As for Gorillaz (a British “virtual band” created by Blur’s Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett), what can we say, other than that they put on a fantastic show. No expenses were spared when it came to audio/visual displays, and bringing in top talents. Seeing the original collaborators on stage really brought their live shows to another level. While most bands would settle for a video duet or employing another band member, Gorillaz spent the extra money on their budget to bring in Peven Everett, Jamie Principle, Zebra Katz Little Simz, Jehnny Beth, and De La Soul.

For the artists they couldn’t get to commit to the tour, notably Popcaan (for ‘Saturnz Barz’) and Del the Funky Homosapien (for ‘Clint Eastwood’), their contributions were shown on the video screen.

On the music portion of Gorillaz is, of course, Damon Albarn on singing duties, but occasional on piano, guitars, keytar, and the melodica, when the song called for it. Mike Smith on keyboards, Jeff Wootton on lead guitar, Seye Adelekan on bass and ukulele, Gabriel Wallace on drums, Karl Vanden Bossche on additional drums and percussion, Jesse Hackett on keyboards, and a gospel choir: Angel Silvera, Petra Luke, Rebecca Freckleton, Michelle, Matthew Allen, and Marcus Anthony Johnson.

For the guest rappers, they often bring an interesting take of their songs. The songs aren’t 100% the same as you hear on the recorded studio album. For example, De La Soul changed some of their verses around, and Zebra Katz brought a visual element to their song by dressing up in a truly unique fashion. The visuals and dancing from Katz and Jamie Principle definitely change the way you perceive ‘Sex Murder Party’.

The biggest surprise, at least for me, was the appearance of Jehnny Beth (from Savages), as she isn’t considered a hip hop or rapper. Savages is more on the punk / rock side of the genre, so hearing her sing with Damon Albarn for ‘We Got the Power’ was a real treat.

We’re happy to see Gorillaz do so well in America, especially because we have previously stated that Albarn’s other band Blur had failed to break America after possibly seeing Blur’s last American show in 2015.

Gorillaz continues their successful Humanz tour:

09/30/2017 KeyArena At Seattle Center Seattle, WA
10/05/2017 Forum Inglewood, CA
10/08/2017 Austin City Limits Music Festiva
10/11/2017 Infinite Energy Center Duluth, GA
10/13/2017 III Points Festival
10/15/2017 Austin City Limits Music Festival
11/01/2017 Rockhal Club Luxembourg, Luxembourg
11/02/2017 Wiener Stadthalle Vienna, Austria
11/04/2017 Royal Arena Copenhagen, Denmark
11/05/2017 Oslo Spektrum Arena Oslo, Norway
11/06/2017 Hovet Stockholm, Sweden
11/08/2017 Samsung Hall Zurich, Switzerland
11/09/2017 Geneva Arena Geneva, Switzerland
11/11/2017 Zenith - Die Kulturhalle Munich, Germany
11/13/2017 BudapestArena Budapest, Hungary
11/14/2017 O2 Arena Prague, Czech Republic
11/17/2017 Max-Schmeling-Halle Berlin, Germany
11/18/2017 Mitsubishi Electric Halle Dusseldorf, Germany
11/19/2017 Alsterdorfer Sporthalle Hamburg, Germany
11/21/2017 Ziggo Dome Amsterdam, Netherlands
11/22/2017 Forest National Brussels, Belgium
11/24/2017 Zenith Paris Paris, France
11/25/2017 Zenith Paris Paris, France
11/27/2017 The Brighton Centre Brighton, United Kingdom
11/29/2017 The SSE Hydro Glasgow, United Kingdom
12/01/2017 Manchester Arena Manchester, United Kingdom
12/02/2017 Arena Birmingham Birmingham, United Kingdom
12/04/2017 The O2 - London London, United Kingdom
12/05/2017 The O2 - London London, United Kingdom
12/13/2017 Velodromo Montevideo, Uruguay
12/16/2017 Bue Festival

Vince Staple

Danny Brown

Gorillaz Setlist

Gorillaz (Damon Albarn)

Gorillaz (Damon Albarn)

Gorillaz (Damon Albarn)

Zebra Katz

Gorillaz

Peven Everett

Little Simz

Gorillaz with Jehnny Beth

Gorillaz (with De La Soul) at Roy Wilkins Auditorium, St. Paul (20 September 2017)

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

Gene Simmons w/ Ace Frehley & friends - The Children Matter Benefit, St. Paul (20 Sept 2017)

Setlist Jayhawks I’m Gonna Make You Love Me Quiet Corners & Empty Spaces Blue Waiting for the Sun I’d Run Away Flipp Clone Me I Wish I Was a Planet Freak Half a Brain Cheap Trick Hello There Long Time Coming Dream Police I Want You to Want Me Surrender Gonna Raise Hell > Goodnight Don Felder Take It Easy (Eagles song) Pride and Joy (Stevie Ray Vaughn cover) Hotel California (Eagles song) Gene Simmons Band Deuce Shout It Out Loud Nothin' to Lose Do You Love Me Charisma Radioactive Christine Sixteen Calling Dr. Love Parasite Cold Gin Shock Me Rock and Roll All Nite with Ace Frehley Gene Simmons Band Tour Dates 10/15/17 Loud Park Festival Tokyo, Japan 10/17/17 Osaka Zepp Osaka 10/21/17 Festival Scream Bolivia 2017 10/24/17 Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, Argentina 10/26/17 Teatro Cariola Chile 10/28/17 Northside Festival Monterrey, Mexico 10/30/17 Pepsi Centre Mexico City 11/11/17 Rhode Island Comic Con Rhode Island 11/12/17 Rhode Island Comic Con Rhode Island 11/17/17 Austin Wizard World Con Austin, TX 11/18/17 Austin Wizard World Con Austin, TX 02/16/18 Lynn Theater Lynn, MA Read More Kiss Gene Simmons, the man behind KISS and is a franchise king, has opened up a restaurant called Rock & Brews, with impresario Michael Zislis and concert promoter Dave Furano. … The Eagles Capitol Records will be releasing the DVD/Blu-ray to History of the Eagles on Tuesday, April 30th, 2013. The documentary is on three discs: History of the Eagles… Cheap Trick Cheap Trick was next and they played a 90 min set. These guys are amazing. They have their set down, cranking out one song after the other. Yes, they play stuff from Cheap Trick at Budokan… Flipp Then it all went terribly wrong: Flipp, in clown makeup, came on stage with fake baseball bats and pretend to beat the young men to a pulp. A little deceiving, but what an entrance. .. The Jayhawks We got an unexpected preview of The Jayhawks' new album when we caught Gary Louris at Loring Park last year. Louris explained, “The real reason we’re playing here …

The classic rock equivalent of baseball’s All-Star Game took place fittingly, at a minor-league ball park for a great cause, and featured a little KISSstory in the making, to boot—

KISS bassist Gene Simmons headlined The Children Matter: Hurricane Benefit Concert at the home of the St. Paul Saints baseball team, CHS Field, a benefit concert to support the victims of recent hurricanes which also featured the all-star line-up of Don Felder (former lead guitarist of The Eagles), Cheap Trick, The Jayhawks and Flipp.

With just a week to go before the show, egos were put aside and fences were mended as former KISS bandmate Ace Frehley was a surprising add-on to the bill, making this the first time in over sixteen years that the pair has shared the same stage and performed together. 

All proceeds from the concert went towards MATTER's relief efforts for hurricane relief in partnership with their on-ground partners. MATTER will send and distribute MATTERbox Meals Kits, sanitation supplies, contamination prevention supplies and more, to the over 100,000 children and families affected and displaced by the recent storms. The Children Matter is a collaborative initiative created by Simmons and the nonprofit on the simple belief that the lives of children matter, regardless of race, income, gender, religion, or location.

The concert was well-run, acoustically sound (more summer concerts at this venue, please) and started a bit ahead of its scheduled time, as The Jayhawks took the stage for a brief 22 min. opening mini-set (all sets were abbreviated due to the limited time and number of acts). Gary Louris and co. seemed in fine form, going through a quick set of hits and happy to be involved in the show, with ‘Waiting for the Sun’ nicely stretched with on a slinky groove worthy of Petty and the Heartbreakers. 

Locally resurrected band Flipp was next, revving up the audience and the volume, with a short set of two-decade old favorites that made the band a name on as a homegrown favorite in 1995-2003.  “It’s a beautiful day, people, let’s do this thing!” singer Brynn Arens yelled, hair slightly more white and without face makeup, but dressed in a Joker-esque black and white striped suit he was known for. 

With new member Less Able Paul, the band crunched through its twenty-minute set with charting single ‘Freak’ retaining the energy of the original and Arens recruited an audience member (named Beth, cue the Kiss references) on stage to try and play guitar to close out with ‘Half a Brain’.

Ringmaster Gene Simmons came out following, to not only to explain the aim of the night’s benefit but to also introduce Cheap Trick, in perhaps their shortest set in years.  Playing just thirty-minutes, the band turned up the energy with singer Robin Zander in familiar white jacket and police cap and guitarist Rick Nielsen throwing picks out to the crowd by the handful. 

The foursome managed to work in several of their hits, even working in a drum solo by drummer Daxx Neilsen on a ten-minute ‘Gonna Raise Hell’, anchored by the steady bass of Tom Petersson. “Thanks to Gene Simmons for all the talent they brought here tonight… including ourselves, of course!”, the elder Neilsen quipped.

Former Eagles guitarist Don Felder made the most of his three-song, eighteen minute set by bringing out members of Cheap Trick to help out, beginning with Zander guesting on The Eagles’ ‘Take it Easy’. “Anybody here like the blues?” Felder asked as he brought out Rick Neilsen to play on a smoking cover of SRV’s ‘Pride and Joy’ then switched to his familiar double-neck guitar for the closing ‘Hotel California’, a song he wrote the music for. 

Gene Simmons has always been smart enough to surround himself with gifted players and the current incarnation of The Gene Simmons Band is no exception, which features guitarist Phil Shouse (Rodney Atkins, John Corabi, Lipstick), drummer Jarred Pope (Thee Rock N Roll Residency), guitarist/bassist Jeremy Asbrock (The Shazam, John Corabi) and guitarist Ryan Cook (Hair Of The Dog) and their hour-long headlining set was an axe shredding tour-de-force peppered with plenty of Kiss songs.

Drummer Pope stepped off the drum kit so Logan “Robot” Gladden could take over for a couple songs, “how old are you?” Simmons asked, “Thirteen”, Gladden replied, “That’s good… I’m 113”, Simmons answered.  Simmons then brought up ten ladies to dance along to 1976’s ‘Do You Love Me’ and a couple rarities were played including 1979’s ‘Charisma’ (“the #1 song in Mexico… who knows why?” Simmons mentioned) and 1978’s ‘Radioactive’, the lone single released from the Kiss bassist’s first solo album.

“Tonight is a very special night” Simmons said “let’s hear it for Ace Frehley!” and the crowd roared to see the reunion that fans have been waiting sixteen years for.  Simmons generously gave the stage to Frehley for a trio of songs written by the Space Ace beginning with 1974’s ‘Parasite’, which also showed that his guitar chops haven’t rusted.

Signature Ace songs ‘Cold Gin’ and ‘Shock Me’ followed, fitting again like a familiar glove and with fans beaming to see the pair playing these classic songs together again.  “I got electrocuted in Lakeland, FL… 1977, I think… I wrote a song about it” Frehley said, the crunchy guitar riffs doing the rest of the talking. And to close the show, Simmons invited thirty more people on stage (though more came up) for the closing party of ‘Rock and Roll All Nite’, including the “Kiss Kids”, four grade schoolers in full makeup. 

With talk of any future band reunions being completely dismissed both by Simmons and Paul Stanley separately, this may have been the one rare occurrence to see Gene Simmons and Ace Frehley play together one last time, in the name of charity. For at least this night, not only did the music matter, but the children mattered as well, as all was put aside for a good cause.

The Jayhawks

The Jayhawks

Flipp

Flipp

Flipp

Cheap Trick

Cheap Trick

Cheap Trick

Cheap Trick

Cheap Trick

Don Felder with Rick Neilsen

Don Felder

Don Felder, with Robin Zander

Don Felder

Setlist

Gene Simmons

Gene Simmons at The Children Matter Benefit, St. Paul (20 Sept 2017)

Gene Simmons

Gene Simmons with Ace Frehley

Gene Simmons with Ace Frehley

Gene Simmons with Ace Frehley

Gene Simmons with Ace Frehley

Gene Simmons at The Children Matter Benefit, St. Paul (20 Sept 2017)

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

Steve Parke - Picturing Prince book signing at Barnes & Noble, Edina, MN (19 Sept 2017)

Picturing Prince PICTURING PRINCE sees the late icon's former art director, STEVE PARKE, revealing stunning intimate photographs of the singer from his time working at Paisley Park. At least half of the images in the book are exclusively published here for the first time; most other images in the book are rare to the public eye. Alongside these remarkable images are fifty engaging, poignant and often funny written vignettes by Parke, which reveal the very human man behind the reclusive superstar: from shooting hoops to renting out movie theatres at 4am; from midnight requests for camels to meaningful conversations that shed light on Prince as a man and artist. STEVE PARKE started working with Prince in 1988, after a mutual friend showed Prince some of Steve's photorealistic paintings. He designed everything from album covers and merchandise to sets for Prince's tours and videos. Somewhere in all of this, he became Paisley Park's official art director. He began photographing Prince at the request of the star himself, and continued to do so for the next several years. The images in this book are the arresting result of this collaboration. Read More Prince The two big shows on this date will be the Prince Tribute Concert (featuring Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan) at Xcel Energy Center and Sia at Target Center. …

“In the early morning when I'm feeling nice, I walk by the mirror and kiss it twice” —Prince, ‘Prettyman’

As one of the most recognizable and photogenic musical icons ever, the late great Purple One has been the subject of thousands of photographs, but with his untimely death, even more of these have started to see the light of day.  Picturing Prince: An Intimate Portrait (Cassell Books) is a new volume by Steve Parke, the esteemed digital illustrator, photographer, and one time Art Director at Paisley Park that reveals a different side of musician, and its release was celebrated at a recent public discussion/signing with NPG band member Morris Hayes in Edina. 

The 200+pg book includes numerous photographs that have never before been seen and also finds the Baltimore-based Parke reminiscing about his time working for Prince in stories that are touching, funny, and displaying of a more human side of the icon.  Parke began working for Prince in 1988 and became Art Director for a decade and a half, before leaving after the birth of his son and increasingly unpredictable work schedule, made him change his priorities. 

Hayes began by asking Parke how he began working with Prince, hired by Alan Leeds to help design the ‘Glam Slam’ video set, after a friend had seen some of Parke’s paintings.  Parke came on board at the advent of digital artwork (Photoshop, Quark) and photography, and was allowed to learn while working for Prince, on the fly, helping craft the musician’s visual image as the late ‘80s gave way to the early ‘90s.

Parke learned very early on, that Prince would be very hands-on with his participation and overseeing of all projects, that no response from Prince was a sign to keep going, and that he always encouraged pushing the creative envelope as far as possible. 

Hayes spoke about Prince often renting out movie theaters and bowling halls for the band after shows, and Prince after watching everyone else bowl, then managing to show everyone else up, with skills simply learned by observation.  As evidenced in the book, the nearby Arboretum in Chanhassen was a favorite place for Prince to be, able to relax and reflect there, more so than back in the business confines of Paisley Park.

Parke was also partially responsible for changing the look of Paisley Park, from a sterile studio complex to a building that better reflected Prince’s personality by adding images, graffiti, and paintings to several of the recording rooms.

Hayes told a story about Steve Vai giving a new signature seven-string guitar to him to present to Prince, as Prince was one of Vai’s guitar heroes, but Prince was unfazed, remarking, “I can do what I need to do with six (strings)”. 

Both also spoke of Prince’s work ethic (“he’s the hardest working person I’ve ever met” Parke said) and his uncanny ability to see the most minute detail, whether it was in an angle of a photograph or able to pick out an off half-note played by one of many horn players.

The photos in the book (most being portraits as the few “live” shots were actually paused and posed for) give additional inside insight to a man most thought to be mysterious and private, to be warm, funny and a creative individual that was undoubtedly, one of a kind.

Picturing Prince: An Intimate Portrait is in bookstores everywhere now and online at Amazon and elsewhere.

Picturing Prince

Steve Parke

Steve Parke

Steve Parke and Morris Hayes

Steve Parke - Picturing Prince book signing at Barnes & Noble, Edina, MN (19 Sept 2017)

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

Rocktober: October 3 to October 5, 2017

Here are some concerts taking place in the Minneapolis/St Paul area from October 3 to October 5, 2017.

Read more Minneapolis Music Guide.

Read More The Posies You might know Ken Stringfellow from The Posies (we all remember "I Can Dream All Day" song) and the re-formed Big Star. Speaking of moons & stars, his latest album is called Danzig in the Moonlight, and it's …

TEARS OF SILVER
at Squirrel Haus Art
Tuesday 10/03/2017 (7pm/$30)
squirrelhausarts.com

Tears of Silver is the new project of The Posies’ Ken Stringfellow and Mercury Rev’s Jonathan Donahue & Grasshopper, and Jesse Chandler.

The group will be playing at the Squirrel Haus Art and the event is “BYOB”, which stands for Bring Your Own Beer.

Note: This is the first time Mercury Rev's music has been performed in many parts of America for nearly a decade (the last time they were touring was in 2008 with the Duke Spirit).

Tour Dates:

09/24 Pasadena, CA
09/25 San Francisco, CA
09/27 Portland, OR
09/28 Seattle, WA
09/29 Boise, ID
09/30 Salt Lake City, UT
10/01 Denver, CO
10/02 Omaha, NE
10/03 Minneapolis, MN
10/04 Milwaukee, WI
10/05 Chicago, IL
10/06 St. Louis, MO
10/07 Cleveland, OH
10/08 Pittsburgh, PA

Read More Tei Shi Tei Shi is about to hit the road on a national tour with buzzworthy Years & Years, also headlining dates in New York and LA along the way. On September 20th, she'll perform at Music Hall … Lucy Wainwright Roche If the name Lucy Wainwright Roche sounds familiar, that's because her father is Grammy Award-winner Loudon Wainwright III and brother is Rufus Wainwright. …

Other shows in the area:

10/03/2017 Moses Sumney is touring in support of his debut record Aromanticism (Jagjaguwar). He’ll be stopping by the Icehouse in Minneapolis. Angelo De Augustine to open.

Tour Dates:

9/26 San Francisco, CA - Great American
9/28 Seattle, WA - Crocodile
9/29 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
9/30 Vancouver, BC - St. James Hall
10/03 Minneapolis, MN - Icehouse
10/04 Chicago, IL - Old Town School of Folk
10/05 Toronto, ON - Mod Club
10/09 Cambridge, MA - Sinclair
10/11 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall
10/12 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church
10/14 Asheville, NC - Mothlight
10/15 Atlanta, GA - Afropunk Festival
10/17 Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall
10/18 Austin, TX - Parish
10/21 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre

9pm, $16.

10/03/2017 Tei Shi will be headlining 7th Street Entry on Tuesday. Dizzy to open.

Tour Dates:

9/26/2017 - Ottawa, ON - Mavericks
9/27/2017 - Montreal, QC - Cafe Campus
9/28/2017 - Toronto, ON - The Mod Club
9/29/2017 - Detroit, MI - El Club
9/30/2017 - Chicago, IL - Schubas
10/3/2017 - Minneapolis, WI - 7th Street Entry
10/4/2017 - Winnipeg, MB - The Park
10/5/2017 - Saskatoon, SK - Amigo's
10/6/2017 - Edmonton, AB - The Needle
10/7/2017 - Calgary, AB - Commonwealth
10/11/2017 - Victoria, BC - Sugar
10/12/2017 - Vancouver, BC - Biltmore
10/14/2017 - Seattle, WA - Barboza
10/15/2017 - Portland, OR - Holocene
10/17/2017 - San Francisco, CA - Popscene
10/18/2017 - Santa Barbara, CA - SOHO Music Club
10/20/2017 - Los Angeles, CA - Popshop
10/21/2017 - San Diego, CA - Soda Bar
10/23/2017 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court
10/24/2017 - Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge

7pm, $14.

10/04/2017 Emily Saliers is headlining The Cedar Cultural Center on Wednesday. Lucy Wainwright Roche to open.

Tour dates:

Oct 04 Cedar Cultural Center Minneapolis, MN
Oct 05 Barrymore Theatre Madison, WI
Oct 06 Delmar Hall St Louis, MO
Oct 07 Old School Town of Folk Music Chicago, IL
Oct 09 The Ark Ann Arbor, MI
Oct 11 The Birchmere Alexandria, VA
Oct 12 World Cafe Live Philadelphia, PA
Oct 13 Le Poisson Rouge New York, NY
Oct 14 The Wonder Bar Asbury Park, NJ
Oct 16 Rams Head On Stage Annapolis, MD
Oct 17 City Winery Nashville, TN
Oct 18 The Grey Eagle Asheville, NC
Oct 20 Haw River Ballroom Graham, NC
Oct 21 Buckhead Theatre Atlanta, GA
Oct 22 Culture Center Theater Charleston, WV
Nov 04 Troubadour West Hollywood, CA
Nov 05 Great American Music Hall San Francisco, CA
Nov 07 Chico Women's Club Chico, CA
Nov 08 Tractor Tavern Seattle, WA
Nov 09 Aladdin Theater Portland, OR

7pm, $30.

10/05/2017 Will Hoge recently released his 11th studio album Anchors on Thirty Tigers. Hoge will stop by the Turf Club in St Paul on Thursday. Dan Layus (of Augustana) to open.

Tour Dates:

Sep. 29th - Milwaukee, WI - Colectivo Coffee
Sep. 30th - Flint, MI - The Machine Shop
Oct. 1st - Indianapolis, IN - Hi Fi
Oct. 3rd - Kansas City, MO - Knuckleheads Saloon
Oct. 4th - Des Moines, IA - Wooly’s
Oct. 5th - St. Paul, MN - Turf Club
Oct. 6th - Chicago, IL - Joe’s
Oct. 7th - Kankakee, IL - 360
Oct. 12th - Chattanooga, TN - Revelry Room
Oct. 14th - Jacksonville, FL - Jack Rabbits
Oct. 15th - Tampa, FL - The Attic
Oct. 26th - San Antonio, TX - Sam’s Burger Joint
Oct. 27th - Houston, TX - Heights Theater
Oct. 28th - Austin, TX - Antones
Oct. 29th - Dallas, TX - The Kessler Theater

7:30pm, $16.

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

Dead Cross at First Avenue, Minneapolis (19 Sep 2017) (Updated)

Dead Cross Setlist Seizure and Desist Idiopathic Obedience School Shillelagh New #2 Bela Lugosi's Dead (Bauhaus cover) Divine Filth Grave Slave The Future Has Been Cancelled Prisoner New #1 Gag Reflex Church of the Motherf**** -- Encore -- Nazi Punks F*** Off (Dead Kennedys cover) with teases of Slayer’s ‘Raining Blood’ and Faith No More’s ‘Epic’ Read More Dead Cross What do you get when you cross Dave Lombardo (from Slayer) with Mike Patton (from Faith No More) and Justin Pearson & Michael Crain (of Retox)? You get Dead Cross. … Secret Chiefs 3 2013 release from the Alt-Rock/Avant-Garde instrumental band. Listeners have come to expect a lot from Secret Chiefs 3. for Book of Souls, second in …

Supergroup Dead Cross just headlined First Avenue in Minneapolis last week (September 19th).

Secret Chiefs 3 opened up the show. This is an all-instrumental band led by guitarist/composer Trey Spruance (formerly of Mr. Bungle and Faith No More). They all wore black hooded covers, with the exception of the drummer, who had a massive afro.

The group played all different styles of metal, surf, Persian music, and the audience, who were highly respectful in hearing all the notes played, were just loving Secret Chiefs 3.

By the time they covered John Carpenter’s ‘Halloween Theme’, the horror fans in the audience were absolutely in love and rocking out to the iconic theme song.

This was Dead Cross’ first time in Minnesota, but looking over the audience in front, you can tell they’ve already built in quite a big fanbase here. Many of the audience on the dancefloor were wearing Dead Cross T-Shirts and already own the album on vinyl or CD. This is quite a surprise, considering that the band only formed barely two years ago (formed in late November 2015)… and they didn’t even have Mike Patton on board!

I suppose it shouldn’t surprise anyone, as this was a supergroup of guitarist Mike Crain (Retox), bassist Justin Pearson (the Locust, Head Wound City and Retox), drummer Dave Lombardo (Suicidal Tendencies, Misfits, Slayer and Fantômas) and vocalist Mike Patton (currently of Faith No More, Tomahawk and Fantômas).

If you thought Dead Cross was a bit like Faith No More, you’ll be in for a shock, as Dead Cross is more hardcore punk and metal. The best description of this can be heard on their encore, as the band teases us with Slayer’s ‘Raining Blood’ and Faith No More’s ‘Epic’… as the fans are eating up the guitar chords - the band ruined a few ear drums when they launched into a loud, hardcore version of Dead Kennedys’ ‘Nazi Punks F*** Off’.

Vocalist Mike Patton was in fine form, singing (or rather screaming) at the top of his lungs with incredible energy. Even though Patton would later say that he’s getting too old for this, it didn’t show.

With only one album, the band resorted to include in two brand new songs (written just prior to the tour) and a couple of covers, including Bauhaus’ classic ‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead’.

Although the band just ended their tour, I suspect they will be back on the road when they release a new record. If you plan on seeing them in the future, I recommend bringing a pair of earplugs. You’ll thank me later.

Secret Chiefs 3

Secret Chiefs 3

Setlist

Dead Cross: Justin Pearson

Dead Cross

Dead Cross

Dead Cross at First Avenue, Minneapolis (19 September 2017)

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

Best Coast, with Brilliant Beast, at Turf Club, St Paul (18 Sep 2017) (Updated)

Best Coast Setlist Goodbye Crazy for You The Only Place Heaven Sent So Unaware Fear of My Identity Fine Without You California Nights No One Like You Let's Go Home When I'm With You Do You Love Me Like You Used To I Want To In My Eyes Jealousy Feeling OK Our Deal Boyfriend When Will I Change Brilliant Beast Setlist Slipping High Time Spiders Favorite House Scatter Dancing No Child Like Dreaming Other Side Star Of Read More Best Coast Best Coast is currently touring in support of their latest, California Nights, out now on Harvest Records. .... Brilliant Beast Opening up the show was Brilliant Beast, featuring siblings Hannah and Jordan (who was apparently a massive Morrissey fan). They recently released a split EP with fellow Minneapolis band Fury Things, …

California’s Best Coast just played a sold out show at the Turf Club in St Paul last week (September 18, 2017).

Local band Brilliant Beast (Hannah and Jordan Porter, plus Eric and Ronnie) opened up the show with a solid 40-min set.

As previously mentioned, the band has a shoegaze, a little psych rock to their music. They hardly spoke, except to thank the audience for showing up early… and that they were literally “from down the street”.

‘Other Side’ was dedicated to Kaylee, and they were really excited to actually do a “real tour” at the start of October in support of their new EP Jelly.

Best Coast is a duo of Bethany Cosentino and Bobb Bruno, but for their live shows, they’ve added drummer Brady Miller, bassist Brett Mielke, and keys/additional guitarist Joe Bautista, to their lineup.

Cosentino started her career as a child address, before her love of writing and performing music took over her career in the experimentalist drone group Pocahaunted. It wasn’t until she met Bruno that the two started collaborating with lo-fi demos and eventually started recording under the name Best Coast. Needless to say, Best Coast’s sound has elements of pop, drone, indie, and even jangle rock.

The duo actually haven’t released new music since California Nights (in 2015), but they were touring with Paramore, and saw an opportunity to book some headlining shows in some areas that Paramore wasn’t playing. Luckily that meant that band took over the Turf Club in St Paul on Monday night to a very happy crowd.

‘Boyfriend’ is undoubtedly the band’s biggest hit song to date, and, of course, they saved the song for nearly last on their set list.

Best Coast tour dates:

9/25/17 Berkeley, CA @ Cornerstone *
9/26/17 Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre
9/27/17 Phoenix, AZ @ Comerica Theatre
9/28/17 Lincoln, NE @ Lincoln Calling Music Festival
9/29/17 Sugar Land, TX @ Smart FInancial Centre
9/30/17 Grand Prairie, TX @ Verizon Theater
10/2/17 Atlanta, GA @ Fox Theatre
10/4/17 New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall
10/5/17 New Haven, CT @ College Street Music Hall *
10/7/17 Boston, MA @ Boston Opera House
10/8/17 Brooklyn, NY @ Rough Trade *
10/10/17 Bethlehem, PA @ Sands Bethlehem
10/11/17 Jersey City, NJ @ White Eagle Hall *
10/12/17 Montreal, QC @ Theatre St. Denis
10/13/17 Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall
10/15/17 Akron, OH @ Akron Civic Theater
10/16/17 Cincinnati, OH @ 20th Century Theatre *
10/17/17 Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium

* - headlining show

Brilliant Beast tour dates:

10/05 High Dive Mke Milwaukee, WI
10/06 The Sinkhole St. Louis, MO
10/07 The East Room Nashville, TN
10/09 Cheer Up Charlies Austin, TX
10/10 Outland Bar Springfield, MO
10/11 Columbia, MO
10/13 The Sydney Omaha, NE
10/14 Kitty Cat Klub Minneapolis, MN

Brilliant Beast

Brilliant Beast

Brilliant Beast Setlist

Best Coast Setlist

Best Coast

Best Coast

Best Coast at Turf Club, St Paul (18 September 2017)

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