I'm lucky in that I'm almost never tagged in these random "25 things" notes, but I tend to see a ton of people writing these things on almost any subject. That's great and all, but it's just another example of how Facebook is essentially becoming one and the same with MySpace.
I like MySpace because it's become the universal go-to for music and concert info. People are more likely to go to a band's MySpace page than their website because of its simplicity in getting info on the next show, and bands will keep it pretty regularly updated for that reason.
But I dislike MySpace for the vast proliferation of stereotype, trite Internet fads/chain bulletins, poor design, unnecessary add-ons/apps, and overmarketed hype. And Facebook is slowly turning into the same thing.
We all have an intrinsic need to be able to relate to one another, but can we please do it in a way that is more intelligent than posting random "25 things" notes? It's fine to treat Facespace like a giant water cooler for us to share funny videos and communicate with friends, I just think it would be nicer if we weren't all a bunch of sheep in following one another on posting chain notes...
Monday, February 16, 2009
Friday, February 13, 2009
Seems to be the story of my life...
I'm going to introduce a new section to my website soon, and for the time being I'm going to refer to it as "Journey". No, it has nothing to do with the band... rather, it's going to be a running autobiography of sorts, documenting in words and photos how my life has evolved through music and everything else these past 3 1/2 years. And eventually it may even go beyond that.
Now, you might ask, "Why not just use your blog for this endeavor?" Well, when I've really got something on my mind and plenty of time on my hands, I tend to get incredibly long-winded in my writing. Sometimes I need to be able to really just let myself type and type and type and type and type and type and type in order to really spark my memory.
I figure I'll pull out excerpts here and there and post them on this blog, but if you're down for reading an in-progress novel of sorts you'll want to be reading the new pages coming soon to my website. I'll be sure to let you know and update this post when the first "chapter" goes up anyway.
My goal is to quite literally write a book's worth of material as a result of all this, because who knows if I'll be able to remember it all if someone actually approaches me about writing one...
Now, you might ask, "Why not just use your blog for this endeavor?" Well, when I've really got something on my mind and plenty of time on my hands, I tend to get incredibly long-winded in my writing. Sometimes I need to be able to really just let myself type and type and type and type and type and type and type in order to really spark my memory.
I figure I'll pull out excerpts here and there and post them on this blog, but if you're down for reading an in-progress novel of sorts you'll want to be reading the new pages coming soon to my website. I'll be sure to let you know and update this post when the first "chapter" goes up anyway.
My goal is to quite literally write a book's worth of material as a result of all this, because who knows if I'll be able to remember it all if someone actually approaches me about writing one...
Sunday, February 8, 2009
From the archive...
With all the shows I've shot, I've built up an incredibly huge backlog of photos that I never really got to properly sort through. However, I spent some quality time these past few days digging though my archive, and so far I've edited a trio of shows from The Fineline worthy of posting brand-new galleries for on my website.
1-3-09 Future Antiques CD Release at The Fineline with Sepia Tone and T Minus Ten
12-3-08 Solid Gold, So It Goes, MC/VL, and Dance Band at The Fineline
10-11-08 The Melismatics CD Release at The Fineline with White Light Riot, The Envy Corps, and The Silent Years
And you can bet there'll be plenty more to come eventually.
1-3-09 Future Antiques CD Release at The Fineline with Sepia Tone and T Minus Ten
12-3-08 Solid Gold, So It Goes, MC/VL, and Dance Band at The Fineline
10-11-08 The Melismatics CD Release at The Fineline with White Light Riot, The Envy Corps, and The Silent Years
And you can bet there'll be plenty more to come eventually.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Sick of Sarah, The Alarmists, and The Soviet Machines at 7th Street Entry, 1/24/09
[For a full gallery of photos from this show, visit http://www.mikeminehart.com/entry-1-24-09/index.html.]
A billing of three excellent bands like these is undoubtedly a can't-miss show. A lot of people must have also realized that, as the late 21+ performance sold out days in advance and I found myself without a ticket for it. So I wound up going to the early all-ages show instead, which was also packed.
The funny thing about all-ages shows, besides the obvious presence of under-agers, is how certain bands react to the young audience. The Soviet Machines, a band of three pretty young dudes themselves, kicked off the show. And as I would assume is the norm for The Soviet Machines, they didn't change a thing about their language.
Cussing up a storm at an all-ages show is something I usually frown upon, but in this case it was actually pretty badass. Call me crazy, but these guys remind me a lot of early Green Day, which is a huge accolade in my book because Green Day is by far one of my favorite bands of all-time. A trio of three young dudes playing catchy punk rock and going crazy on stage... hmm... that does sound familiar...
I've been intrigued by The Soviet Machines ever since I first saw them at the Taste of Minnesota in 2007. They won the battle of the bands for it, and as such, got to play on the main stage. It took me a year to see them again after that at The Varsity, but now I'm definitely convinced that this is a band worth checking out more frequently. Young and full of potential, I see a bright future ahead if they keep doing what they do. And I see no reason why they wouldn't.
Yet as some bands rise to prominence, others will inevitably see their time cut short far too early. I didn't know until a week or so before this show that this was apparently the final time The Alarmists would ever play, at least in their current incarnation. But how could this happen? The Alarmists have been one of my favorite bands period ever since I first saw them back in 2006, and their EP release show at The Varsity that year proved to be the show of the year in my opinion.
(Lest we forget that the most epic moment of the year happened there as well, as Mike Schwandt from White Light Riot busted his head wide open early in the set and finished it while bleeding throughout. I sure hope someone got a picture of that right after it happened anyway...)
The only real indication to me that this may have been their final show though was the fact that The Alarmists didn't play many of their new unrecorded songs like they had been in recent months. Maybe they played just one (it's not like I'm there writing setlists down, I'm shooting and enjoying the music), but it seemed to me that it was more of a "classic" set with tunes from the first two releases and their SXSW promo sampler.
I would've loved for their set to have ended with "Soldados", but alas, when they were finished I found myself feeling blissful from the music (as usual) but confused by what the future might hold for this band. You can't take one of the best bands this town has seen and erase them from existence, that's just not possible. If people can still talk about The Replacements and Hüsker Dü these days, then you'll probably hear me going on and on about The Alarmists when I'm 64...
Closing out the early show was another new favorite of mine, Sick of Sarah. Their brand of poppy punk rock with a female twist (after all, it is an all-girl band) has really been stuck in my head as of late, and their dedicated following of fans was out in droves once again.
While soundchecking before their set, lead singer Abisha Uhl asked if it was okay to swear on stage, seeing how it was an all-ages show and everything. Someone pointed out the fact that The Soviet Machines were swearing up a storm during their set, so Sick of Sarah playfully obliged not to hold anything back as well. The band even brought up a friend of theirs to dance on stage at one point.
With plenty of energy and a crowd that sang along a lot of time, Sick of Sarah showed yet again why they are undoubtedly the best all-girl band in town, if not one of the best period. Go see them if you haven't already, and if you already have go see them again. Cause like I said before, you never really know for sure when a good band is going to call it quits.
A billing of three excellent bands like these is undoubtedly a can't-miss show. A lot of people must have also realized that, as the late 21+ performance sold out days in advance and I found myself without a ticket for it. So I wound up going to the early all-ages show instead, which was also packed.
The funny thing about all-ages shows, besides the obvious presence of under-agers, is how certain bands react to the young audience. The Soviet Machines, a band of three pretty young dudes themselves, kicked off the show. And as I would assume is the norm for The Soviet Machines, they didn't change a thing about their language.
Cussing up a storm at an all-ages show is something I usually frown upon, but in this case it was actually pretty badass. Call me crazy, but these guys remind me a lot of early Green Day, which is a huge accolade in my book because Green Day is by far one of my favorite bands of all-time. A trio of three young dudes playing catchy punk rock and going crazy on stage... hmm... that does sound familiar...
I've been intrigued by The Soviet Machines ever since I first saw them at the Taste of Minnesota in 2007. They won the battle of the bands for it, and as such, got to play on the main stage. It took me a year to see them again after that at The Varsity, but now I'm definitely convinced that this is a band worth checking out more frequently. Young and full of potential, I see a bright future ahead if they keep doing what they do. And I see no reason why they wouldn't.
Yet as some bands rise to prominence, others will inevitably see their time cut short far too early. I didn't know until a week or so before this show that this was apparently the final time The Alarmists would ever play, at least in their current incarnation. But how could this happen? The Alarmists have been one of my favorite bands period ever since I first saw them back in 2006, and their EP release show at The Varsity that year proved to be the show of the year in my opinion.
(Lest we forget that the most epic moment of the year happened there as well, as Mike Schwandt from White Light Riot busted his head wide open early in the set and finished it while bleeding throughout. I sure hope someone got a picture of that right after it happened anyway...)
The only real indication to me that this may have been their final show though was the fact that The Alarmists didn't play many of their new unrecorded songs like they had been in recent months. Maybe they played just one (it's not like I'm there writing setlists down, I'm shooting and enjoying the music), but it seemed to me that it was more of a "classic" set with tunes from the first two releases and their SXSW promo sampler.
I would've loved for their set to have ended with "Soldados", but alas, when they were finished I found myself feeling blissful from the music (as usual) but confused by what the future might hold for this band. You can't take one of the best bands this town has seen and erase them from existence, that's just not possible. If people can still talk about The Replacements and Hüsker Dü these days, then you'll probably hear me going on and on about The Alarmists when I'm 64...
Closing out the early show was another new favorite of mine, Sick of Sarah. Their brand of poppy punk rock with a female twist (after all, it is an all-girl band) has really been stuck in my head as of late, and their dedicated following of fans was out in droves once again.
While soundchecking before their set, lead singer Abisha Uhl asked if it was okay to swear on stage, seeing how it was an all-ages show and everything. Someone pointed out the fact that The Soviet Machines were swearing up a storm during their set, so Sick of Sarah playfully obliged not to hold anything back as well. The band even brought up a friend of theirs to dance on stage at one point.
With plenty of energy and a crowd that sang along a lot of time, Sick of Sarah showed yet again why they are undoubtedly the best all-girl band in town, if not one of the best period. Go see them if you haven't already, and if you already have go see them again. Cause like I said before, you never really know for sure when a good band is going to call it quits.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
New photos by the boatload
Just a quick little tidbit, but I thought I'd mention that I've posted four brand-new galleries on my website from the School of Rock's shows these past two weekends. The Eden Prairie school performed Aerosmith and Hair Metal at Trocaderos and the St. Paul school performed Old School Punk and Van Halen at Minnesota Music Cafe.
In other news, January has proven to be an insane month, which is pretty insane by itself because normally it's one of the slowest months for music. I'm on pace for potentially 21 shows this month, and I've already seen more shows this January (17) than I saw in the previous two Januarys combined. Not bad for a month that's been just plagued with -10 degree weather this year.
By the way, I have a personal countdown going until October 24th of this year. Not only is it my golden birthday (on a Saturday, lucky me), but it's also the deadline I've set for completing my New Year's resolution. Remember those? Everyone else tends to forget about theirs by about January 4th, but I'm not forgetting mine this time around...
In other news, January has proven to be an insane month, which is pretty insane by itself because normally it's one of the slowest months for music. I'm on pace for potentially 21 shows this month, and I've already seen more shows this January (17) than I saw in the previous two Januarys combined. Not bad for a month that's been just plagued with -10 degree weather this year.
By the way, I have a personal countdown going until October 24th of this year. Not only is it my golden birthday (on a Saturday, lucky me), but it's also the deadline I've set for completing my New Year's resolution. Remember those? Everyone else tends to forget about theirs by about January 4th, but I'm not forgetting mine this time around...
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
ReadyGoes at The Red Carpet in St. Cloud, 1/16/09
Making a journey up to St. Cloud for the second half of a Friday night doubleheader, I arrived about 2 songs into the first set from ReadyGoes. Usually I get to The Red Carpet earlier than 11:45, but I was at The Varsity until about 10:30 and it took me a while to get to St. Cloud obviously.
For those of you who don't know, The Red Carpet in St. Cloud is probably my favorite venue outside of the Twin Cities. Every time I go there crazy stuff happens, whether it's on or off the stage. And even if the crowd is dead when the opener goes on around 10:30, you still know it's going to be insane and wall-to-wall at 2 AM every time.
This night was no exception, and I also got lucky in that they decided to use the good lighting this time around. Check out a few photos from the show below, or click here for the full gallery.
For those of you who don't know, The Red Carpet in St. Cloud is probably my favorite venue outside of the Twin Cities. Every time I go there crazy stuff happens, whether it's on or off the stage. And even if the crowd is dead when the opener goes on around 10:30, you still know it's going to be insane and wall-to-wall at 2 AM every time.
This night was no exception, and I also got lucky in that they decided to use the good lighting this time around. Check out a few photos from the show below, or click here for the full gallery.
Monday, January 19, 2009
The future of rock and roll in Minneapolis
It is almost strange to think of the future when the Twin Cities already boasts arguably the best local music scene in the area between New York & LA at the moment. Sure I can't really speak for anywhere but the Twin Cities, but I challenge you to show me another place where you will find literally dozens of great local bands worth seeing. (And if it's warm, I might have to start spending my winters there...)
But not all of my favorite Twin Cities bands are going to be around forever. Some might not even last till the end of 2009 if the economy continues to suck or other unexpected factors come into play, and no one can ever really predict when the end is for a band, regardless of their level of success. I hate to say it, but we're all living in a perpetual state of uncertainty when it comes to the longevity of our favorite bands.
That's probably part of the reason why I'm constantly out and going to shows, because for all I know it could be the last time I ever get to see a band I like. But there's also the more optimistic side, in that by constantly going out to see bands I like, through them I'll meet even more new bands that I might also enjoy. And I would say from seeing my last entry that it's pretty obvious this has been the case ever since I started checking out the local music scene in 2005.
What intrigues me the most though is the thought that bands that do not exist yet will be dominating rock and roll in the Twin Cities (and beyond) in about 7-10 years. But where are you going to find the people who will eventually play in those bands, especially with the ever-worsening music industry imploding upon itself and making it harder for bands to make a living off their music? It would seem that good rock and roll is dead to America as well, as a glance at the iTunes charts on almost any given day will offer you nothing but total garbage, regardless of genre.
Well my friend (or other random reader of this blog), there's one place in particular that I believe is helping to save rock and roll for our youth, one power chord at a time...
With locations in Eden Prairie and St. Paul, The Paul Green School of Rock has impressed me from the very first moment I checked them out.
Back in February 2008, when I had just begun planning for what eventually became the Give the Gift of Rock benefit show, I first needed to figure out where would be a great place to donate money from a benefit show/photography exhibition I was looking to put together at some point. I talked to Scott Herold from Rock The Cause (another great organization you should check out, and probably the subject of a future blog entry or series of entries) about wanting to give to a music school, and he recommended that I check out the Paul Green School of Rock.
It didn't take me more than one visit to their St. Paul office to see that this place was something that, had I the ability to go back in time to my teen years, I would find myself personally attending. It was a bunch of kids learning how to play rock music, and their teachers were area musicians. And it wasn't like it was any of that Kidz Bop bullcrap, this was Skynyrd, Sabbath, the kind of music that I (and my dad) was raised on.
Let's fast-forward to September. Both the Eden Prairie and St. Paul schools had their fall concerts scheduled for back-to-back weekends, and I was hired on to shoot both of the schools. Sure the fact that I was putting together a benefit show for them didn't hurt, but when you've got Scott Herold saying great things of your photography to them that's pretty dang cool too.
September 13/14 the Eden Prairie school would be performing "Guitar Gods" and KISS at Trocaderos, and September 20/21 the St. Paul school would be performing "Classic Metal", The Who, and "Cream of Clapton" at Minnesota Music Cafe. I shot both of the Sunday shows.
Long story short, the kids absolutely blew me away with their performances. Here you are, watching 9-to-17 year-olds ripping guitar solos like Eric Clapton or Eddie Van Halen was actually their dad. Sure some of the kids had been through a few seasons at the school, but I don't see any other under-18 musicians rocking out like these kids do. If you really want to get a grasp of what it was like seeing those two shows, check out my photo galleries of each set at the links in the paragraph above.
I left those shows with my mind blown (half of my mind was blown at the first one, the other half at the second) and certain that the Give the Gift of Rock benefit show in December would be a success. Between the two schools, the School of Rock also has a "Road Crew" of their most talented kids, and they play even more shows around town. The Road Crew would be on the lineup at the benefit alongside a few of my favorite Minneapolis bands (ReadyGoes, So It Goes, Phear & The Bullet, and The Wannabe Hasbeens), with everything going down at The Varsity.
We wound up raising about $650 at the benefit concert with 100+ people through the door, which was impressive when considering that it was snowing like crazy that Sunday. It was kinda cool seeing a mix of each of the bands' fans, parents of the School of Rock kids, and a number of my friends all together at a show.
The Road Crew played third that night, and they seamlessly shuffled through about a dozen or so band members that rocked out together to the likes of Deep Purple and Avenged Sevenfold. To say that my musician friends in the audience that night were impressed would probably be an understatement, because the kids blew everyone away once again. Seriously, how awesome is it to see an all under-18 band ripping harmonized guitar solos like that? I would even argue that the Road Crew is one of the most talented cover bands in the Twin Cities.
That show wasn't the end of the line for me and the School of Rock though. In fact, this past Saturday I decided I would go check out the Eden Prairie school's winter performance. No one from the school called me, E-mailed me, texted me, or contacted me at all about it; I went just because I wanted to see a good show and support a great cause. And once again, they didn't disappoint, as they performed Aerosmith and "Hair Metal" with the same kind of energy and fervor I've come to expect out of students from the School of Rock.
If you've made it all the way to the end of this entry, then I recommend that you check out a School of Rock show for yourself. This coming Saturday/Sunday (24th/25th) the St. Paul school is putting on their winter concert, performing Van Halen and "Old School Punk" at the Minnesota Music Cafe in St. Paul. And on the 31st both of the schools and their teachers are doing a benefit show for their scholarship fund at Bogart's in Apple Valley. Both shows are in the afternoon, so you can still get out and party afterwards.
In the end, when you think about the future of rock and roll in the Twin Cities, the first place you should think about is the Paul Green School of Rock. A national school with a local focus, I believe that it is something that is helping to save rock and roll for our youth, cultivating a new generation of aspiring rockstars and kids who just love music in general. Something that a part of me wishes I could've been a part of when I was that age.
Oh, if I could turn back time, I would probably erase that song from existence. But then I would also move to the Twin Cities and join the School of Rock of course...
But not all of my favorite Twin Cities bands are going to be around forever. Some might not even last till the end of 2009 if the economy continues to suck or other unexpected factors come into play, and no one can ever really predict when the end is for a band, regardless of their level of success. I hate to say it, but we're all living in a perpetual state of uncertainty when it comes to the longevity of our favorite bands.
That's probably part of the reason why I'm constantly out and going to shows, because for all I know it could be the last time I ever get to see a band I like. But there's also the more optimistic side, in that by constantly going out to see bands I like, through them I'll meet even more new bands that I might also enjoy. And I would say from seeing my last entry that it's pretty obvious this has been the case ever since I started checking out the local music scene in 2005.
What intrigues me the most though is the thought that bands that do not exist yet will be dominating rock and roll in the Twin Cities (and beyond) in about 7-10 years. But where are you going to find the people who will eventually play in those bands, especially with the ever-worsening music industry imploding upon itself and making it harder for bands to make a living off their music? It would seem that good rock and roll is dead to America as well, as a glance at the iTunes charts on almost any given day will offer you nothing but total garbage, regardless of genre.
Well my friend (or other random reader of this blog), there's one place in particular that I believe is helping to save rock and roll for our youth, one power chord at a time...
With locations in Eden Prairie and St. Paul, The Paul Green School of Rock has impressed me from the very first moment I checked them out.
Back in February 2008, when I had just begun planning for what eventually became the Give the Gift of Rock benefit show, I first needed to figure out where would be a great place to donate money from a benefit show/photography exhibition I was looking to put together at some point. I talked to Scott Herold from Rock The Cause (another great organization you should check out, and probably the subject of a future blog entry or series of entries) about wanting to give to a music school, and he recommended that I check out the Paul Green School of Rock.
It didn't take me more than one visit to their St. Paul office to see that this place was something that, had I the ability to go back in time to my teen years, I would find myself personally attending. It was a bunch of kids learning how to play rock music, and their teachers were area musicians. And it wasn't like it was any of that Kidz Bop bullcrap, this was Skynyrd, Sabbath, the kind of music that I (and my dad) was raised on.
Let's fast-forward to September. Both the Eden Prairie and St. Paul schools had their fall concerts scheduled for back-to-back weekends, and I was hired on to shoot both of the schools. Sure the fact that I was putting together a benefit show for them didn't hurt, but when you've got Scott Herold saying great things of your photography to them that's pretty dang cool too.
September 13/14 the Eden Prairie school would be performing "Guitar Gods" and KISS at Trocaderos, and September 20/21 the St. Paul school would be performing "Classic Metal", The Who, and "Cream of Clapton" at Minnesota Music Cafe. I shot both of the Sunday shows.
Long story short, the kids absolutely blew me away with their performances. Here you are, watching 9-to-17 year-olds ripping guitar solos like Eric Clapton or Eddie Van Halen was actually their dad. Sure some of the kids had been through a few seasons at the school, but I don't see any other under-18 musicians rocking out like these kids do. If you really want to get a grasp of what it was like seeing those two shows, check out my photo galleries of each set at the links in the paragraph above.
I left those shows with my mind blown (half of my mind was blown at the first one, the other half at the second) and certain that the Give the Gift of Rock benefit show in December would be a success. Between the two schools, the School of Rock also has a "Road Crew" of their most talented kids, and they play even more shows around town. The Road Crew would be on the lineup at the benefit alongside a few of my favorite Minneapolis bands (ReadyGoes, So It Goes, Phear & The Bullet, and The Wannabe Hasbeens), with everything going down at The Varsity.
We wound up raising about $650 at the benefit concert with 100+ people through the door, which was impressive when considering that it was snowing like crazy that Sunday. It was kinda cool seeing a mix of each of the bands' fans, parents of the School of Rock kids, and a number of my friends all together at a show.
The Road Crew played third that night, and they seamlessly shuffled through about a dozen or so band members that rocked out together to the likes of Deep Purple and Avenged Sevenfold. To say that my musician friends in the audience that night were impressed would probably be an understatement, because the kids blew everyone away once again. Seriously, how awesome is it to see an all under-18 band ripping harmonized guitar solos like that? I would even argue that the Road Crew is one of the most talented cover bands in the Twin Cities.
That show wasn't the end of the line for me and the School of Rock though. In fact, this past Saturday I decided I would go check out the Eden Prairie school's winter performance. No one from the school called me, E-mailed me, texted me, or contacted me at all about it; I went just because I wanted to see a good show and support a great cause. And once again, they didn't disappoint, as they performed Aerosmith and "Hair Metal" with the same kind of energy and fervor I've come to expect out of students from the School of Rock.
If you've made it all the way to the end of this entry, then I recommend that you check out a School of Rock show for yourself. This coming Saturday/Sunday (24th/25th) the St. Paul school is putting on their winter concert, performing Van Halen and "Old School Punk" at the Minnesota Music Cafe in St. Paul. And on the 31st both of the schools and their teachers are doing a benefit show for their scholarship fund at Bogart's in Apple Valley. Both shows are in the afternoon, so you can still get out and party afterwards.
In the end, when you think about the future of rock and roll in the Twin Cities, the first place you should think about is the Paul Green School of Rock. A national school with a local focus, I believe that it is something that is helping to save rock and roll for our youth, cultivating a new generation of aspiring rockstars and kids who just love music in general. Something that a part of me wishes I could've been a part of when I was that age.
Oh, if I could turn back time, I would probably erase that song from existence. But then I would also move to the Twin Cities and join the School of Rock of course...
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