Jimmy Eat World at First Avenue on 7/7/08

By: Will McClain
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Jimmy Eat World - Photo from Purevolume.com When Jimmy Eat World took the stage at First Avenue Monday night, it was to a different crowd than the ones they played for in their formative years of the early ‘90s—a dramatically different one, even, than they met when the national scene began to show them love in the early days of this millennium.   Musically, the pop-punk purveyors ran lean and ...

The Dodos at Triple Rock Social Club on 7/7/08

By: Carl Atiya Swanson
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The Dodos - Photo by Stacy Schwartz It seems almost pointless to add to the snowball of glowing reviews for The Dodos. The San Francisco duo’s Visiter release garnered an 8.5 rating from Pitchfork and an avalanche of good press has followed their herculean 2008 touring schedule. It would be pointless if they weren’t working so hard, and if they weren’t so goddamn goo...

Drive-By Truckers at First Avenue on 7/3/08

By: Will McClain
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Drive-By Truckers - Photo by Alexa Jones The Drive-By Truckers want you to know they’re not just some Southern-rock novelty act. With album titles like Southern Rock Opera and The Dirty South—not to mention their moniker—the Truckers had much to prove to the uninitiated when they ambled into town Wednesday in support of their latest effort, Brighter Than Creation&rsqu...

We All Have Hooks for Hands with The Battle Royale and Tiny Moving Parts at Minnesota Museum of American Art on 7/3/08

By: Stacy Schwartz
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Our Photo Editor, Stacy Schwartz, provides this photo essay from the excellent patio night series at the Minnesota Museum of American Art. This particular night featured performances from We All Have Hooks for Hands, The Battle Royale and Tiny Moving Parts.   Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR. ...

Merle Haggard at Mystic Lake Casino on 7/1/08

By: Jen Paulson
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Merle Haggard - Photo courtesy of Myspace.com A stint in the slammer, a pardon from then Governor of California Ronald Reagan—those lines alone could start a good country song. But Merle Haggard lived it. The country legend played Mystic Lake Casino on Tuesday night, and I had been getting overly excited about it since the moment I saw it announcing itself on a giant billboard i...

Podcast: HowWasTheShow/Minneapoliscast CD Review Podcast for July on 6/30/08

By: Bob Longmore, David de Young
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HowWasTheShow CD review for July 2008 from David de Young and Bob Longmore. Recorded for Minneapoliscast.com. City on the Make - “Chicks on Bikes” Ready Goes - “If I Ever See You Again” Brian Just - “Me & You” The Small Cities - “Fargo” Aviette - “Ghost Town” MP3 File...

Dosh with P.O.S. and Kill The Vultures at First Avenue on 6/27/08

By: Carl Atiya Swanson
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Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-style-parent:""; font-size:10.0pt;"Times New Roman";} Dosh - Photo by Stacy Schwartz It was Dosh’s night, but I’ll admit we didn&rsqu...

Hayden with Haley Bonar at Cedar Cultural Center on 6/27/08

By: Bob Longmore
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Hayden - Photo courtesy of myspace.com/hayden One lonely winter, unemployed, spending my days and nights in a cramped basement apartment without much light (literally and metaphorically), I discovered Hayden. The Canadian lo-fi wonder can spin the dourest tales about love and loneliness, as well as wring feeling out of abstract stories like being chased by a bear (“Killbear”), the perils of choking (...

Rock The Garden at Walker Art Center on 6/21/08

By: Jon Behm
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  The Rock the Garden festival at the Walker Sculpture Garden last Saturday had all the trappings of a disaster waiting to happen: Huge lines to get in, huge lines for beer tickets, huge lines for beer, huge lines for the bathroom, etc. etc.  Somehow the Walker and Current sponsored concert defied logic and pulled it off though, making the whole experience less a drag and more the quintessential summer concert experience then circumstances would imply.     ...

An Interview with Matt Jennings on 6/18/08

By: David Rachac
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Singer/songwriter Matt Jennings sings both in Spanish and English on his new CD Todavia. In this interview, Jennings talks about how he arrived in Minnesota, how living abroad impacted his musical vision and his CD release party at the 400 Bar on June 21.   How Was The Show: When did your interest in music and performing begin?   Matt Jennings: When I somehow got the cassette for the soundtrack of Rocky IV—powerful songs abou...