By: Kristine Lambert
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The Hopefuls at the Turf Club in July 05. Photo by Dan Schultz of mordac.org (Click for gallery)
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The Hopefuls bounded onto the stage at the Fitzgerald Theater in their post-Voltage blue tracksuits for the final installment of Guest Session Sundays and began their set with “Holiday” off of their 2004 release The Fuses Refuse to Burn. They pelted the crowd with energy, and their pogo rhythms and reverb guitar made us wish we were standing center stage listening to the theater-quality sound. The word was that the turnout for the five part concert series wasn’t quite what was expected, though over 700 people turned out on this particular Sunday to the 996 seat venue. But perhaps it isn’t really the right venue for rock and roll. Tickets were $24.00; it was St. Paul on a Sunday; and, a half Dixie cup of Bailey’s cost $4.00. And, perhaps most important, listening to the Hopefuls just doesn’t feel right sitting down.
A few songs in, Semisonic’s Dan Wilson emerged from behind the curtain. The set mellowed as Wilson and the band played the sweetly emotional “Free Life” available here off Ballroom Sessions. Wilson and Hopeful’s guitarist Erik Applewick gravitated toward each other to add more texture to their guitar parts as the music evolved into a bittersweet song called “Sugar.”
Just when the mood started to become serious, Hopefuls human mascot Rupert dressed in his best Sunday suit, galloped through the audience. He did a somersault on to the stage, and began to act out the songs with perfect lip-synch—vigorously encouraging the audience to get involved. The band seems to have accepted him as their biggest cheerleader and an inevitable part of most shows, hardly noticing his free-form dancing as he wove through them. (Although it seemed Wilson was hard-pressed not to crack a smile at his antics.) Rupert continued by threatening a strip tease and sexy dancing with a bar stool.
It was just before intermission when the stage dimmed, the disco ball spun a shower over the crowd, and Hopeful keyboard player John Hermanson serenaded us with his falsetto “Swear to God.” (Couples, watch for this one: it’s a perfect 70’s sounding get-busy song.)
After the break, The Hopefuls returned in their street clothes (although bassist Heath Henjum maintained team spirit by sporting a 1976 Olympics tee shirt). It was then announced that this was the part of the show when they would play songs from their other respective bands. Hermanson led off with the more recent and not yet released Alva Star song entitled “I’m Only Dreaming.” Applewick followed with the Vicious Vicious tune “It’s a Serious Thing” from 2005’s Don’t Look So Surprised.
Matt Wilson and John Munson (Trip Shakespeare, the Flops) strolled onto the stage for the next few numbers. They joked that the only sporting wear they were offered were too short soccer shorts. The Hopefuls left Wilson and Munson on stage to finish up, then they also exited the stage leaving just Hopefuls drummer Eric Fawcett and guest drummer Peter Anderson of Polara and the Flops to rock out.
The rest of The Hopefuls bounced back on stage in their well-worn original orange Puma tracksuits from the days when they were Olympic wannabes. The band launched into “Whisper” and continued with “Stoned Again.” Dan Wilson returned to the stage to perform Semisonic’s “Secret Smile.” The momentum continued when Matt Wilson and Munson joined team Hopeful. At that point there were nine musicians on stage—four on guitar, one on keytar, two percussionists, a bass and a harmonica. The finale was a Minneapolis musical love-in--the crowd was on their feet and Rupert wowed us with his sauciest moves. He gave us Karate Kid wax-on-wax-offs, mock Michael Jackson spasms, and most impressive David Lee Roth lunges. Exhausted, he ultimately resorted to the bicycle.
Location Info:
Fitzgerald Theater
Artist Info: The Hopefuls
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