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 And Updates - June 14, 2013, Part 2 of 2

Here's the second half of the latest metal concert news for the Twin Cities area, covering July and August. See Part 1 for the updates for June.

Buckcherry returns to the area for a show on Wednesday, July 3 with Girl On Fire at the Vetter Stone Amphitheater in Mankato.

Cantharone has another show lined up at the Hexagon Bar in Minneapolis with Hate Beast on Thursday, July 4.

Long-running punk band Meat Puppets will play four shows in Minnesota to promote their 14th album, Rat Farm, released on Megaforce earlier this year. They play two shows on Saturday, July 13 – an early 5:00 show at the St. John’s Block Party in Rochester, followed by an 8:30 show at the Twin Cites Roots, Rock and Deep Blues Festival in Minneapolis at Patrick’s Cabaret. The next night, Sunday, July 14 has them at Tycoons in Duluth with Actual Wolf and Enemy Planes.

The day after performing with Sevendust in Rochester, Otherwise has their own headlining show on Sunday, July 14 at Pov’s 65 in Spring Lake Park with special guests Throw The Fight and The Soft Light.

KEN Mode and Virginia doom band Inter Arma play the Turf Club in St. Paul on Thursday, July 18.

Ambassador Gun hooks up with Philadelphia’s Sadgiqacea, Hivelords, and Poney for a show at the Nomad World Pub in Minneapolis on Friday, July 19.

The Meat Puppets’ fourth Minnesota show happens at the What’s Up Lounge in Mankato on Friday, July 19.

Comical metal band Psychostick returns, this time to Pov’s 65 in Spring Lake Park on Friday, July 19 with Outside The Murder and Strate-Jak-It.

Sweden's female-fronted power metal sensations Amaranthe play the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis on Tuesday, July 23 with support from Kobra And The Lotus.

Although they long ago abandoned their early punk roots, Minneapolis’s own Soul Asylum tops the Skyline Music Festival with Big Head Todd And The Monsters, Matthew Sweet, and Gear Daddies to Target Field in Minneapolis on Friday, July 26.

A huge lineup of local bands have organized the Metal For Life event at Neisen’s in Savage on Saturday, July 27—all proceeds will be donated to the Shriners Hospital for Children. Slated to participate are Cantharone, Piranha, Gryzor, Matrekis, Clobberboot, Eldergaad, Dark Mirror, Tomorrow Brings New Blood, Chaostrophe, Deretla, Monogon, and Malice (MN). This event is all ages are starts early at 10:00 am.

Locals Nuisance also play on Saturday, July 27 at the Cabooze in Minneapolis with Slow Spokes, Aeous, We Be Lions, and Up Rock.

Florida instrumentalists Set And Setting play the Hexagon Bar in Minneapolis on Wednesday, July 31. Their debut album Equanimity was released last week through Forcefield and Science of Silence.

Minneapolis-based heavy instrumentalist masters Zebulon Pike rock the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis on Friday, August 2 with Vulgaari, Relentless, and Ashen.

Down in Mankato at the Vetter Stone Amphitheater you can catch rock band Everclear at the Mankato Ribfest on Friday, August 2.

Loverboy plays the Mankato Ribfest at Vetter Stone Amphitheater on Saturday, August 3.

The Monday, August 5 Vampire Weekend show at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis is SOLD OUT.

The Big Night Out Tour with hard rock bands Fuel, Hoobastank, Lit, and Alien Ant Farm comes to Myth in St. Paul on Wednesday, August 7.

The Vetter Stone Amphitheater in Mankato has a big night of 80s metal with Ratt, Sebastian Bach, Dokken, and Lita Ford on Thursday, August 15.

Fresh off their recent show in St. Paul, Bobaflex hits Mankato at Buster’s on Wednesday, August 7 with Royal Bliss.

Grand RockTember Music Festival Announced - September 14

An impressive lineup of 80s metal bands is geared up for the Grand RockTember Music Festival on Saturday, September 14 at the Grand Casino Amphitheater in Hinckley. Acts confirmed so far are Winger, L.A. Guns, Firehouse, Warrant, Dokken, Lita Ford, and Skid Row, with more bands to be announced! Plan on spending the day there, as show time is 2:00 pm. Ticket information has yet to be released, but tickets go on sale June 20.

In Concert This Week - July 27, 2012

This weekend has an insane amount of shows, so let’s get right to what’s coming up.

Glam jokesters Steel Panther and Throw The Fight play to a sold out crowd tonight, Friday, July 27 at the newly renamed and renovated Mill City Nights (formerly The Brick) in Minneapolis. There’s also a slew of great local shows tonight, too: Tepetricy, Eden, Blood Root Mother, Windowvyne, and DJ Diesel play the Fine Line in Minneapolis; Tomorrow Brings New Blood, Beastface, The Atlantis Theorem, Element 33, and Apothecary are at Station 4 in St. Paul; and The Cabooze in Minneapolis is hosting New Medicine for a benefit show with Toussaint Morrison, Sheeped, Dr. Wylie, Big Villian, Q’s Junction, and Chrome Lotus.

The Halfway Jam in Royalton continues this weekend with .38 Special, Molly Hatchet, and Blackfoot playing tonight, Friday July 27. Saturday, July 28 features the first show of Queensrÿche with new vocalist Todd La Torre, Stryper, Lynch Mob, and Enuff Z’nuff. There’s also a number of local second stage acts both night as well.

The Cinderella, Sebastian Bach, and Lita Ford show at Myth in St. Paul scheduled for Saturday, July 28 has been cancelled. I haven’t heard a word about what happened – the listing just disappeared from the Myth website and the tour is now scheduled to play at the Orpheum Theater in Sioux City, Iowa instead.

The Bouncing Souls, Smoking Popes, The Menzingers, and Luther play First Avenue in Minneapolis, Saturday, July 28. Also taking place on Saturday: Station 4 in St. Paul is having a free memorial show to honor Allan Wilson with Metal Witch, Mousia, Eternal Voyager, and Minos; Ted Nugent returns to the area for a show at Treasure Island in Red Wing; and Tesla plays Vetter Stone Amphitheater in Mankato with Jason & The Scorchers.

Tesla guitarist Frank Hannon plays a solo show on Sunday, July 29 at the Rush City Tavern in Rush City. That same night Station 4 in St. Paul has a brutal show with Pathology, Enfold Darkness, Fallujah, Fit For An Autopsy, Aegaeon, Apothecary, Beauty Of Decay, and Sadistic Passage.

Monday, July 30 you can catch Taproot with Smile Empty Soul, Severah, 14 Clicks, Requiems’s End, and Terror Overising at Station 4 in St. Paul.

Theory Of A Deadman, Aranda, and Charm City Devils play at Mill City Nights in Minneapolis on Tuesday, July 31.

On Wednesday, August 1, Bane, Terror, Naysayer, and Rotting Out play the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis. The Banshee show scheduled for Wednesday at Station 4 has apparently been cancelled. It’s been quietly removed from the Station 4 Facebook page, so I’ve removed it from the Concert Calendar.