Bright Eyes at 400 Bar on 10/4/04

By: Jim Brunzell III
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On the eve of the Twin Cities Vote for Change concert at the Xcel Energy Center, Bright Eyes lead singer Conor Oberst took the stage at the gloomy and smoky 400 bar for a “secret” headlining show. Once on stage he began to strum an acoustic guitar with both eyes closed. Looking as if he didn’t have a care in the world, he brushed back his dangling hair before his voice brought the noisy crowd down to a hush. Fragile is one word to describe his opening song, or...

Will Johnson at Triple Rock Social Club on 10/1/04

By: Karla Ludzack
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Will Johnson - Publicity photo by Matt Pence Friday I went to see the opening band at The Triple Rock. And I mean just the opening band. The reason was that this opening band was Mr. Will Johnson, lead singer and songwriter of the Texas band Centro-matic. Centro-matic’s appeal is hard to describe, but if you've seen them, you know what I ...

Nick Lowe w/ Geraint Watkins at Fine Line Music Café on 9/10/04

By: David de Young
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Nick Lowe - Publicity photo Nick Lowe stepped onto stage a little before 11 p.m. Friday night at the Fine Line Music Café in Minneapolis, his nearly pure white hair giving him the look of a stately, more dashing version of Walter Mondale, who is just 21 years his senior. (Lowe is 55.) But there’s something still so boyish about Lowe that it’s hard to believe that he was already 31 when he ha...

Richard Thompson at First Avenue on 4/24/04

By: David de Young
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Richard Thompson at a recent show in London - photo credit Chris Bates Richard Thompson has been one of my heroes for years. I love him for his resiliency as much as his beautiful music. Having gotten his start in Britain's folk/rock group Fairport Convention in 1968, 35 years later at age 54 he's still touring, and still contrib...

The Pixies at Fine Line Music Café on 4/13/04

By: David de Young
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There has been higher demand for reviews of the Pixies’ first show of their re-union tour than for any show I’ve ever written about. HowWasTheShow readers had been emailing me for days asking if I’d be there, and once I was into the event people were eagerly inquiring when my review would be up before the show was even over. Part 1 is my personal account of events leading up to the show. Part 2 is about entering the venue. ...

The Pixies with The Capitol Years at Fine Line Music Café on 4/13/04

By: Jim Froehlich
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The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it.                                                                   ...

The Dames at The Turf Club on 3/24/04

By: David de Young
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The Dames at the Turf Club (Photo by David de Young - click for full sized version.) Members: Tony Bennett - guitar/vocals Rusty Johnson - bass Ian Prince - drums Official website: http://www.the-dames.com Interview with Tony Bennett at the Reader Weekly (a good read) The...

Tiffany at Fine Line Music Café on 3/24/04

By: Jim Froehlich
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Anyone looking for a smug hatchet job on an easy mark can just keep moving. I'm saving my acid-pen for more deserving targets, like the scruffy little monkeys in that Lou Reed tribute band called The Strokes. Back in 1998, Peter Tork played the Fine Line with some obscure Austin folkie, Henry Lee Something or another. It was an afternoon acoustic show and maybe 60 people showed up, 40 of whom were middle-aged housewives in homemade Monkees T-Shirts w...

22nd Annual Battle of the Jugbands at Cabooze on 2/8/04

By: David de Young
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Photos by David de Young - click images for full size versions Washboard Player Slipped a Mickey The Band Schedule Hippies on Jugs ...