Lineup for Grand RockTember 2 Festival at Grand Casino Hinckley Unveiled

Grand Casino Hinckley in Hinckley is reprising last year’s 80s-focused Grand RockTember Festival with (what else?) the Grand RockTember 2 Festival to be held this year over two days, Friday, September 12 and Saturday, September 13.

Blue Öyster Cult performing August 25, 2013 at the Minnesota State Fair. Check out the review of this show here, and click the pictures to see more photos (20).

The Friday show is a 70s classic rock bill with Sweet, April Wine, Foghat, and Blue Öyster Cult. Saturday’s show features Dee Snider, Jack Russell’s Great White, Lita Ford, Winger, Firehouse, Warrant, and Scrap Metal, which boasts an all-star lineup of singers Eric Martin (Mr. Big), Derek St. Holmes (Ted Nugent), Stephen Pearcy (Ratt), Mark Slaughter (Slaughter, Vinnie Vincent Invasion), and Gunnar Nelson and Matthew Nelson (Nelson). Single-day and two-day tickets will be available when tickets go on sale through Ticketmaster on Wednesday, June 4 at 10:00 am. You can get the latest information at the Grand Casino Hinckley site.

Concert Announcements - May 10, 2013

Taproot has added a stop at Buster’s in Mankato on Tuesday, May 14 with Boy Hits Car and Intertwined.

Reaping Asmodeia has added a date on Friday, May 17 at the What’s Up Lounge in Mankato with Conflicts, Fail To Decay, and Valor Tracks.

Metalcore band Phinehas will play Station 4 in St. Paul on Monday, May 20 with Ark Of The Covenant, Chugchugwob, When Glory Came Home, and Watchmen in support.

Local noise crew Burn Fetish is having a release party for their new album Sun And Dust at the 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis with With A Gun For A Face, Torch The Spires, and Fury Things on Sunday, May 26.

Singer guitarist Bob Mould of Minneapolis punk legends Hüsker Dü and alternative rock band Sugar is a part of the Rock The Garden concert that is already SOLD OUT. Sponsored by 89.3 The Current, Rock The Garden takes place in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden at the Walker Art Center on Saturday, June 15. Headlining the event is Metric with Silversun Pickups, Low, and Dan Deacon also performing. Local writer Jeff Severns Guntzel has written an interesting piece on Bob Mould for the Walker Art Center that extensively quotes Bob from various fanzine interviews from the early 80s.

The next night, Sunday, June 16, Bob Mould plays Grandma’s Sports Garden in Duluth.

Grant Hart, former drummer of Hüsker Dü, plays the Turf Club in St. Paul on Friday, July 12 to coincide with the release of his new solo album The Argument.

Sevendust has scheduled a show in Rochester at the Wicked Moose on Saturday, July 13 with support from Otherwise and Devour The Day.

The Cabooze in Minneapolis on Thursday, July 25 will host the All Stars Tour with Every Time I Die, Chelsea Grin, Veil Of Maya, Terror, Stray From The Path, Capture The Crown, Iwrestledabearonce, For All Those Sleeping, Structures, and Ice Nine Kills.

On Saturday, July 27 Chicago’s Kommandant, which features ex-members of black metal band Nachtmystium, will play Station 4 in St. Paul with Atrum Inritus and Nuklear Frost.

Saturday, July 27 also has Face Of Oblivion teaming with Goregatron, Byleth, Mastiff, and First Against The Wall for a show at the What’s Up Lounge in Mankato.

Great White Featuring Jack Russell returns to Neisen’s in Savage on Saturday, July 27 the day after their appearance at Halfway Jam in Royalton.

BulletBoys also return to Neisen’s in Savage on Saturday, August 10.

CORRECTION: Thanks to reader mad angel for catching my mistake - Grant Hart is the former drummer (not bassist) of Hüsker Dü. This has been corrected and updated with the title of Grant's forthcoming solo album, The Argument.

In Concert This Week - June 22

This is a crazy week for concerts, so pick and choose wisely!

There’s four shows going on tonight, Friday, June 22. My pick is the quality 80s revival roadshow headlined by Jack Russell’s Great White, also featuring Faster Pussycat, BulletBoys, Pretty Boy Floyd, and Lillian Axe. Lillian Axe starts the show early at 7:00, so get there early! If radio-friendly hard rock is your thing, Collective Soul plays at The Brick in Minneapolis. Local band Severah has a show at G.B. Leighton’s Pickle Park in Fridley, and Station 4 in St. Paul is hosting 15 sick death metal bands (headlined by Face Of Oblivion).

Lillian Axe live at Primetime in Burnsville in 2009. Click the photo to see more pictures from this show (12).

This weekend brings the first annual River’s Edge Music Festival to Harriet Island in St. Paul. Local media have been slobbering over this for a while, but unless you’re a major Tool fan this is a steaming pile of crap. Tool headlines the first day, Saturday, June 23, in what is being billed as their only North American show this year. Coheed and Cambria is midway down the bill, but there’s nothing else of even remote interest to metal fans. It gets worse on Sunday, June 24, despite the appearance of Pusifer, with the Dave Matthews Band headlining.

There’s also a couple worthwhile local shows on Saturday. Throw The Fight continues their assault of area clubs this month with show at Dean’s Tavern in St. Paul. Meanwhile, Screaming Mechanical Brain, Gabriel And The Apocalypse, Dead Horse Trauma, Dead Bundy And The Neat Neat Neats, and Reaping Asmodia team up for a show at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis.

On Sunday, June 24 Korn invades Myth in St. Paul in support of their controversial new album, The Path Of Totality, with support from Sluggo and J Devil. That same night, the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis is hosting Valient Thorr, Holy Grail, Royal Thunder, and The Kickass.

Locals Saints Hesitation, Dark Cell, Ambrotos, Apothecary, Sinful Angel, and Paradise Falls perform Monday, June 25 at Station 4 in St. Paul.

An unusual bill of Volbeat, Hellyeah, and Iced Earth lands at Myth in St. Paul on Tuesday, June 26.

Finishing off the week are progressive metal legends Dream Theater with Crimson ProjeKct at the State Theatre in downtown Minneapolis.

Weekly Concert Update and Announcements

Now that things have settled back to some semblance of normalcy post-Google suspension (more about the reason for this to come, haha), here's some shows of note coming up during the next week as well a crush of recent announcements. I'll be out of town this next week, and it's always frustrating when some killer shows happen during these times (arg!).


Yes vocalist Jon Anderson hits the Dakota Jazz Club in Minneapolis tonight, Friday, June 1 for an evening that promises many Yes classics as only he can sing them.


Bret Michaels tours much more frequently as a solo act than with Poison these days, and he's back again with locals Scarlet Haze this Saturday, June 2 at the Medina Entertainment Center in Medina.


The much-ballyhooed The Queen Extravaganza also plays Saturday, June 2 at The Brick in Minneapolis. This is the official Queen tribute tour, and it features Jeff Scott Soto as one of the vocalists. Jeff has sung with numerous bands, including Journey. I've seen him sing with Yngwie J. Malmsteen's Rising Force, Soul Sirkus, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra—check out some of his Queen audition videos to see how awesome a singer he is.


Roger Waters returns to the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul on Sunday, June 3 to play The Wall in its entirety. I'm really bummed because I had to sell my tickets to this. This is probably the most elaborate production you'll ever see. I caught this tour on the previous run about 2 years ago, and it's a spectacle worth every dollar. Tickets were still available last time I checked.


Power metal fans will not want to miss Italy's Rhapsody Of Fire with locals Hollowstone on Wednesday, June 6 at Station 4 in St. Paul. This is the first US tour for these over the top fantasy buffs. This is the Fabio Lione-fronted version of the band with original guitarist Alex Staropoli on board. I'd rather see the (other original guitarist) Luca Turilli's version, now back to original moniker Rhapsody, but this show should not disappoint.

On to the recently announced shows:


The reunited Spineshank will be coming to Station 4 in St. Paul on June 20 with support from The Agonist, 9 Electric, and Mureau for a 16+ show.


A big night of 80's metal hits Neisen's in Savage on June 22 with Jack Russell's Great White, Faster Pussycat, Pretty Boy Floyd, BulletBoys, and Lillian Axe. Look for Lillian Axe to steal the show.


Metal legends Dokken also added a St. Paul date at Station 4 on June 29. This 21+ show also features support bands Hoodlum Johnny, The Grand Machine, and Next To Nothing. This show will probably sell out in advance.

Sludge/stoner rock band Black Cobra will crush the Turf Club in St. Paul with Gaza on July 1.


Venerable rockers Sevendust return to town on July 19 at First Avenue in Minneapolis.


Hair metal joke band Steel Panther will play The Brick in Minneapolis on July 27. My unpublished review of their first album Feel The Steel rated a big fat 0 (really, it's not funny when you grew up listening to the Mentors), but nevertheless this show will be a riot. Ralph Saenz is the most entertaining frontman you'll see—I've seen him countless times with guitarist Russ Parrish (ex-Fight) in Atomic Punks. Legend has it that Ralph jumped a heckler mid-song in the Twin Cities while he briefly fronted L.A. Guns. 


The death/extreme metal package tour dubbed The Slaughter Survivors Tour lands at Station 4 in St. Paul on July 29. Featuring Pathology, Enfold Darkness, Fallujah, Fit For An Autopsy, and Aegaeon, this one will be brutal.

Rock radio staple Theory Of A Deadman comes to The Brick in Minneapolis on July 29 with Aranda and Charm City Devils in tow. Tickets for this 18+ show go on sale today at 10:00 am.


Powerglove returns as support to MC Chris on August 9 at the Varsity Theatre in Minneapolis.


Long-running punk stalwarts Strung Out should pack in the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis on August 12 with Handguns and The Darlings.


Legendary but underrated guitarist Pat Travers will play the Gaslight Bar in Ellsworth, Wisconsin on September 8.


Progressive rock icons Kansas return, this time to Myth in St. Paul on September 24 with the criminally overlooked King's X. This is an 18+ show, and tickets go on sale June 15 at 10:00 am.


Lastly, looking far into the future, the Heathen Crusade 4 tour will be coming to Station 4 in St. Paul on March 9, 2013. Mark this one down Viking metal fans - Einherjer will be headlining a bill rounded out with Ashaena, Vanir, Hammer Horde, Trelleborg, Bolero, and Rochester's Minos. More bands will be announced.

Ex-Warrant Singer Jani Lane To Sing For Great White; Great White And Warrant To Play Together November 12 In Medina

Blabbermouth is reporting this morning that former Warrant singer Jani Lane will step in as the replacement for Jack Russell on the remaining live dates of Great White’s 25th anniversary tour. Earlier this month Jack Russell underwent emergency surgery to repair a perforated bowl, and a six to eight week recovery is expected. XYZ vocalist Terry Ilous filled in for Russell earlier this month, but it had been unclear if he would be able to continue.

This will set up an interesting situation on November 12, when Great White and Warrant are scheduled to play together at the Medina Entertainment Center in Medina, Minnesota. Warrant’s website does not list this tour date, but you can view the confirmed pairing of these two bands at the Medina Entertainment Center website.

Great White will perform Saturday, September 25 in Farmington at Rocktoberfest, and then will be back with Warrant on Friday, November 12 at the Medina Entertainment Center in Medina.