Concert Announcements - June 27, 2014

The returning A Taste of Minnesota festival has been moved to the Carver County Fairgrounds in Waconia due to Harriet island in St. Paul being completely flooded from recent heavy rains in the metro area. Waconia is located about 30 miles southwest of Minneapolis. Bands of interest this year are Soul Asylum on Thursday, July 3, and Halestorm, Cinderella frontman Tom Keifer, Gypsy, and Crow on Saturday, July 5.

San Francisco doom band Castle will play Memory Lanes in Minneapolis on Monday, July 7.

Rock band Fuel has added a stop at Clyde Iron Works in Duluth to their tour itinerary with support from Royal Bliss on Wednesday, July 9. Tickets are on sale now through Twin Ports Nightlife.

Death/metalcore bands Suffokate, Abiotic, Aegaeon, and As They Sleep play The Garage in Burnsville on Thursday, July 10. Additional local support will come from Reaping Asmodeia, Roads Of Glass, So Long Orion, Death Punch, Axiom, and Bring Out Your Dead. Tickets are on sale now through Ticketfly.

A cool mix of local and Midwest metal bands are lined for Bummerfest at the Amsterdam Bar & Hall in St. Paul on Friday, July 18. Topping the bill is Ambassador Gun, and House Of Atreus, Cold Colours, Noble Beast, Nuklear Frost, Vukari, Seidr, Krawg, and Ire Wolves are also slated to play. Tickets are available now through Ticketfly.

Punk legends Black Flag return the area on Sunday, July 20 at the Amsterdam Bar & Hall in St. Paul with support from Greg Ginn & The Royal We and Cinema Cinema. Tickets are on sale now through Ticketfly. A review of Black Flag's June 15 show in Minneapolis will be posted soon!

Buckcherry has added a date in Rochester at the Wicked Moose on Tuesday, August 12 with support from Pop Evil. Tickets are on sale now through Tempo Tickets.

Minneapolis hard rock band Throw The Fight are calling it quits, and have announced their final show will be Saturday, August 23 at the Fine Line in Minneapolis. The band’s farewell announcement, posted on their Facebook page, reads in part, “After 11 years of being a band, we have decided to move in another direction and focus on different areas of our lives (family, other careers, etc.). We can look back on our years as Throw The Fight knowing that we have accomplished everything we set out to do and had a hell of a good time doing it!” Opening the show will be Emergent, Fifth Hour, and The Missing Letters. Tickets go on sale Saturday, June 28; see the Fine Line event page for up to date ticket information.

Long-running UK punk band Buzzcocks come to Minneapolis on Thursday, September 11 for a show at the Varsity Theater. No support band has been announced yet, and tickets go on sale today, Friday, June 27 at 10:00 am through Ticketfly.

In Concert This Week - June 23, 2014

There are two big show tonight, Monday, June 23 in Minneapolis, the first being the long overdue return of guitar sensation Yngwie J. Malmsteen with Gary Hoey and Bumblefoot at the Skyway Theatre (remember, Uli Jon Roth was forced to cancel!). This is an all ages show that starts early (5:30), and both floor seating and balcony standing seats are still available for $40.50 and $65 (gold seating is sold out). There’s any excellent new interview with Yngwie done by Jim Fusilli titled “A Guitar God Among Men” at the Wall Street Journal (behind their paywall). Speaking with his usual candor, Yngwie slams his time with Steeler:

“He arrived in Los Angeles in 1983, recruited by a producer who placed him in a group that was beneath his talents. ‘It was the most banal band I could be with, but I wanted to be on a piece of vinyl,’ Mr. Malmsteen said.”

San Franciscan black metal band Deafheaven plays a SOLD OUT show tonight at the Triple Rock Social Club with Pallbearer and Wreck And Reference. Doors are at 8:00.

This rest of the week is relatively quiet. On Friday, June 27, Portland’s Raw Nerves, Much Worse, P.A.W.N., and Marrow play a free show at the Hexagon Bar in Minneapolis (21+, 10:00 show), and Oblivion, Bongonya, and Drug Budget also have a free show at the Red Carpet Keller Bar in St. Cloud (21+, 9:00 doors).

Mick in the hospital wearing a Y&T shirt! (Photo from Mick’s YouCaring page – click to donate!)

The Benefit For Mickster event for Metal Witch, Maiden Mpls., and Eternal Voyager guitarist Mick Dougherty takes place Saturday, June 28 at Pov’s 65 in Spring Lake Park. Mick is recovering from renal cancer that necessitated removal of a kidney, and he needs help with massive medical bills. The benefit show is only a $10 donation, and you can also make donations online through YouCaring. All ages are free to attend from 3–6 for a silent auction, games for kids, and the chance at door prizes, while an 18 and over crowd can stick around for the bands starting at 9:00, including Hollowstone, Jokers N Thieves, Electric Eye, Cold Colours, Maiden Mpls., and The Goodbars.

Mick playing with Eternal Voyager on September 29, 2011 at Station 4 in St. Paul opening for Cage. Click on the picture to see more photos of Eternal Voyager (17).

Hollowstone performing April 27, 2013 at Station 4 in St. Paul opening for Sanctuary. Click on the picture to see more photos of Hollowstone (32).

A little bit south of the metro area, the What’s Up Lounge in Mankato has a brutal night of death metal and grind with Ambassador Gun, Glutton For Punishment, Human Bashing, Cantharone, Exmordium, and The Rising Plague. It’s $10 at the door, and is a 21+ show that starts at 10:00.

Weekly Concert Update - June 7, 2014

The What’s Up Lounge in Mankato has announced a crazy night of death metal and grindcore with Ambassador Gun, Glutton For Punishment, Human Bashing, Cantharone, Exmordium, and The Rising Plague on Saturday, June 28.

Mill City Nights in Minneapolis has Buckcherry returning to town on Thursday, August 7. No opening bands have been announced yet, and tickets are available now through AXS.

Rock band Saving Abel has added a second area show on Thursday, August 28 at the House of Rock in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. No other information is available at this time.

Hard rock legends Boston storm into Prior Lake at the Mystic Lake Casino Hotel Showroom on Friday, August 29. Tickets went on sale through Ticketmaster today, Saturday, June 7 at 10:00 am. This show is near the end of a mammoth three-month-long U.S. tour for the band. Click here to check out some cool videos of PBS interviewing guitarist Tom Scholz for their web-series “The Secret Life of Scientists and Engineers”. The coolest video is “Sound Machine”, which features Tom talking about some of his custom make equipment he uses to get unique guitar sounds, and where he reveals that his favorite moment as an engineer was when he received two warranty cards for his company’s equipment from Jeff Beck!

Rock bands Hawthorne Heights and The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus team up for a tour that brings them to The Garage in Burnsville on Tuesday, September 2. Rounding out the bill are New Empire, Famous Last Words, The Ongoing Concept, and Everybody Run. Tickets are on sale now through Ticketfly.

Clutch will be back in town, this time at First Avenue in Minneapolis, on Monday, September 15 with support from Lionize and American Sharks. Tickets are on sale now through etix.

Clutch performing on The Elephant Riders tour in 1998.

Underground alternative rock icons The Afghan Whigs return to town for a concert at First Avenue in Minneapolis on Saturday, October 11. The band reformed a couple years ago, and will be promoting their first album since 1998, Do To The Beast. Their show two years ago at the Varsity Theater sold out, so get your tickets early; they’re on sale now through etix.

Dave Davies, vocalist and guitarist for The Kinks, will play the Medina Entertainment Center in Medina, on Friday, November 7. No further information is available at this time.

This show has been rescheduled for Friday, November 29

Former Journey and Tyketto vocalist Steve Augeri will rock Clyde Iron Works in Duluth on Friday, November 29. Guns 'N' Garters will open the show. This is a rescheduled show originally to take place on June 6, so check with the venue about refunds or to find out if tickets you already purchased are good for the new date.