Concert Announcements - April 26, 2013

Brace yourself for massive updates to the concert calendar (see the complete calendar on the right)! There's a huge variety of shows that have been confirmed during the last week, including additions to Moondance Jam and Halfway Jam and hints that Blue Öyster Cult will be playing the Minnesota State Fair.

Neisen’s in Savage has lined up a big night of local metal on Saturday, May 11 with Blue Felix, Throw The Fight, Gabriel And The Apocalypse, and A Sound Theory.

The Mandy Lion, Scream At The Sun, Hooligans Union, and Crashmatic show at Station 4 in St. Paul scheduled for Monday, May 13, along with all May concert dates, has been CANCELED. A post on the Mandy Lion Facebook page has the press release from Hard Attack Entertainment, the band’s new booking agency:

“Unfortunately, Mandy and his former booking agency had reached a stalemate in the their professional relationship after only a hand-full of dates were scheduled across the USA. We (Hard Attack) do not feel we have enough time to get the fill in dates booked properly at this point. There is just no way that we can logistically or financially make it a sensible run of dates as it stands now. We do however want to let EVERYONE know that we will have Mandy back out on the road starting in late June and there will be 14-17 shows booked accordingly.”

Mandy adds:

“I would like to apologize to the fans, venues and promoters for the delay. This was not an easy decision for us to make but unfortunately prior associates booked single sporadic dates with too much down time in between concerts and routing which makes it impossible to honor the dates. We are, however, very excited to let everyone know that Hard Attack Entertainment is currently rescheduling a tour with proper routing. We are looking at only a few weeks delay before we are coming to your town. I want to thank you all for being patient and kind. Looking forward to seeing you all soon!”

French technical death metal band Gorod invades Station 4 in St. Paul with Inanimate Existence, Kamikabe, Vale Of Pnath, Sadistic Passage, and Solar Slaughter on Tuesday, May 28.

Local metal band Tepetricy has lined up a show with Heaven’s Gate, Embrace The Ending, and Minos at the Wicked Moose in Rochester on Friday, May 31.

Quirky punk legends The Dead Milkmen return for a show at First Avenue in Minneapolis on Friday, June 7. No support bands have been announced at this time, and tickets go on sale today, Friday, April 26 at 12:00 noon through etix.

Pop punk band Face To Face plays the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis on Saturday, June 22 with Teenage Bottlerocket, Blacklist Royals, and Joshua Black Wilkins. Tickets go on sale today, Friday, April 26 at 12:00 noon through etix.

Underrated 70s progressive rock legends Martin Turner’s Wishbone Ash and Nektar play together on Sunday, June 30 at Famous Dave’s BBQ & Blues in Minneapolis (this is the Uptown location).

As reported here yesterday, industrial shock superstar Marilyn Manson plays Myth in St. Paul on Tuesday, July 2. It looks like support will come from Picture Me Broken, and tickets go on sale today, Friday, April 26 at 12:00 noon through etix.

Impaler performing July 17, 2011 at Station 4 in St. Paul. Click on the picture to see more photos from this show (10).

Following their July 18 show at the What’s Up Lounge in Mankato, costumed metal band Green Jellÿ (of “Three Little Pigs” fame) is now also confirmed to play the next night, Friday, July 19 at Station 4 in St. Paul with Impaler, Iguana, The Rock & Roll Whores, and Screaming Mechanical Brain (their The Policy Of Universal Hate is reviewed here, 9/10).

Cain singer Jiggs Lee performing at the band's first ever reunion show at their induction into the Mid-America Music Hall Of Fame on September 17, 2010 in Minneapolis. Click on the picture to see more photos from this show (27).

Moondance Jam, taking place July 17-20 in Walker, has added some interesting bands to the bill each night. On Thursday, July 18, rounding out the bill topped by Mötley Crüe and Cheap Trick are Buckcherry and 70s cult bands Shooting Star and Cain! The lineup for Friday, July 19 is Slash & Myles Kennedy, Bachman & Turner, Blue Öyster Cult, and Sweet. Saturday, July 20 has The Offspring, Theory Of A Deadman, Halestorm, and Head East. There’s still a couple slots remaining to be filled, and the bands playing the pre-jam party on Wednesday, July 17 have yet to be announced.

Survivor singer Jimi Jamison performing a solo show at the Minnesota Music Cafe in St. Paul on March 1, 2013. Click on the picture to see more photos from this show (48).

The main stage lineup of Halfway Jam in Royalton over July 25–27 has been finalized. Thursday, July 25 features Pop Evil, Saliva, and Smile Empty Soul; Friday, July 26 has Tesla, Survivor, Great White Featuring Jack Russell, and BulletBoys; Saturday, July 26 features Loverboy, Ratt, Steelheart, and Electric Eye. Second stage bands have yet to be announced, and tickets, including one- and three-day passes, VIP, and camping, are on sale now.

Steelheart performing July 17, 2010 at G.B. Leighton's Pickle Park in Fridley. Click on the picture to see more photos from this show (13).

The one and only ZZ Top play Myth in St. Paul on August 6. Tickets go on sale Friday, May 3.

The official Blue Öyster Cult page has them performing at the Minnesota State Fair in St. Paul on Saturday, August 24 and Sunday, August 25. I can’t find any other confirmation of this, but I’ll have more information as it’s released.

JIMI JAMISON - March 1, 2013

Longtime Survivor vocalist supreme Jimi Jamison flew into St. Paul a couple weeks ago to play this benefit show for the Herb Brooks Foundation, and here it is for your enjoyment. This wasn't a typical show from Jimi, so I'd encourage you to read my full review (with pictures) of the show here. Jimi's band for the night was local group Headliner, who did an admirable job under the circumstances. In addition to the expected Jamison solo material and Survivor classics, Jimi was joined on stage by former Toto singer Fergie Frederiksen to sing a few Toto songs. The two-hour show was also filled out with some classic rock covers. It was a benefit show that was meant to fun.

The download link is here. As always, please share, but share the link to this post rather than the direct Mediafire link. Enjoy!

Jimi Jamison

w/Fergie Frederiksen and Headliner

Live Benefit

March 1, 2013

St. Paul, MN, Minneota Music Cafe

mp3@192 kbps, 160 MB zip file (artwork included)

1. High On You (5:11)

2. It’s The Singer, Not The Song (5:28)

3. I Can’t Hold Back (4:50)

4. Is This Love (4:05)

5. Hold The Line (w/Fergie Frederiksen) (5:03)

6. Africa (w/Fergie Frederiksen) (5:58)

7. I’ll Be Over You (w/Fergie Frederiksen) (6:12)

8. Burning Heart (5:04)

9. I’m Always Here (5:05)

10. Crossroads Moment (6:16)

11. Love Is Alive (6:20)

12. Good Lovin’ Gone Bad (w/Fergie Frederiksen) (4:44)

13. Feel Like Makin’ Love (6:13)

14. Gone, Gone, Gone (6:03)

15. Separate Ways (w/Fergie Frederiksen) (6:27)

16. The Search Is Over (5:38)

17. Rebel Son (5:21)

18. Gimme All Your Lovin’/Some Kind Of Wonderful/Roadhouse Blues (9:41)

19. Rosanna (w/Fergie Frederiksen) (7:37)

20. Eye Of The Tiger (9:44)

Total time: 2:01:00

Concert Review - JIMI JAMISON

Jimi Jamison with Fergie Frederiksen and Headliner

Friday, March 1, 2013

Minnesota Music Cafe, St. Paul, MN

This was not a typical performance from Jimi Jamison, vocalist extraordinaire for AOR superstars Survivor, due it being a one-off special fundraising event for the Herb Brooks Foundation. Herb Brooks was a legendary hockey player and coach from St. Paul, immortalized as coach of the 1980 US Olympic hockey team. Jimi was flown into St. Paul just for this event, and his band for the night was the local Headliner, who has played as Jimi’s band at previous area shows. In this context, mistakes were to be expected and cues would likely be missed. I expected a short set of Survivor’s biggest hits, but Jimi and Headliner put on a long, two-hour show that delivered on its purpose – to have fun for a good cause. In addition to a healthy dose of Survivor songs, a number of covers were played and the band was joined by former Toto vocalist (and St. Paul resident) Fergie Frederiksen (who sang on 1984’s Isolation album).

Click on any of the pictures to see more photos of Jimi Jamison, Fergie Frederiksen, and Headliner (48)

Jimi got the crowd worked up immediately with show opener “High On You”, followed by more Survivor classics: “It’s The Singer, Not The Song”, “I Can’t Hold Back”, and “Is This Love”. Fergie was then introduced to the crowd, and he took over and sang great renditions of the Toto classics “Hold The Line”, “Africa” (as a duet with one of the guitarists), and “I’ll Be Over You”. Jimi returned to the stage and after singing mega-smash “Burning Heart” from the Rocky IV movie soundtrack, he focused on some solo material, including “I’m Always Here” (the Baywatch theme song), “Crossroads Moment”, and his cover of Gary Wright’s “Love Is Alive”.

Fergie Frederiksen

Jimi and Fergie

The second half of the show focused more on some fun cover tunes, starting with a batch of Bad Company. Fergie sang lead on “Good Lovin’ Gone Bad”, while Jimi took over for “Feel Like Makin’ Love” and “Gone, Gone, Gone”. While the keyboards were a weak point, Fergie then sang a great rendition of “Separate Ways” by Journey. Some more Survivor was in order, and Jimi sounded his best on “The Search Is Over” and “Rebel Son”. A revved up version of “Gimme All Your Lovin’” (Jimi sang background vocals on many ZZ Top albums, including Eliminator) that evolved into an extended, impromptu jam on “Some Kind Of Wonderful” and “Roadhouse Blues”. Fergie returned one more time to sing “Rosanna”, and Jimi closed the night with Survivor’s biggest hit, “Eye Of The Tiger”, from the Rocky III soundtrack. The exhausted crowd roared with approval at what everyone knew what a special performance.

Not everything was perfect, but this didn’t distract much from the fun, loose vibe of the evening. If you’ve heard Jimi’s outstanding new solo album, Never Too Late, you know that his voice remains strong, and he still sings with all of his characteristic strength and power. Despite his long public battles with hepatitis C and liver cancer, Fergie still sounds great and did an impressive job on his songs. He was a great addition to the show, and everyone on stage was clearly enjoying playing. Headliner did a suitable job playing with Jimi, and the show benefitted from excellent stage rapport between Jimi and the band. The only disappointment was that the title track from Jimi’s new album was cut from the set list (I was personally hoping to hear “Street Survivor” or “The Air That I Breathe, which should be a major pop radio hit) as was “Isolation” from the lone Toto album on which Fergie sang. Nevertheless, the concert was enjoyable and fun. Hopefully Jimi returns to town while Never Too Late is being promoted to play more of his solo material.

In Concert This Week - March 1, 2013

Didn't find out about this one until recently - Survivor vocalist Jimi Jamison is playing a solo show with The Dean Weisser Band tonight, Friday, March 1 at the Minnesota Music Cafe in St. Paul to promote his November 2012 solo album Never Too Late. Jimi was the frontman for Chicago rock band Survivor during its arguably most successful period in the mid-80s, singing smash US hits such as "Burning Heart" (#2), "The Search Is Over" (#4), "High On You" (#8), "Is This Love" (#9), "I Can't Hold Back" (#13), "First Night" (#53), and "The Moment Of Truth" (#63). Prior to joining Survivor, Jimi sang for the heavier bands Target and Cobra. Survivor's Vital Signs album is revered by AOR/hard rock fans, with Jimi's voice being a major reason. Jimi was even supposed to replace Ian Gillan in Deep Purple instead of Joe Lynn Turner in 1989, but it was not to be. There's a great account of this in Martin Popoff's excellent book A Castle Full Of Rascals: Deep Purple: '83–'09 (2009):

"In fact, Jamison, of Survivor fame, had done more than auditioned. He had recorded with the band in September of 1989 and as far as Purple was concerned, he had the job. But Jamison had just recorded his first solo album, and, as Jon Lord tells the story, the record label had strong Italo-American family connections, and they strongly advised Jamison not to join Deep Purple.

'We auditioned Jimi who had been the lead singer in Survivor and he wanted the gig so much,' adds Lord, leaving out the mafia reference. 'He sounded fantastic and we had some wonderful rehearsals but then his management told him that he couldn't as he was going to be big on his own. He really would've been great in the band, I can tell you. You want to hear him sing Highway Star - it was absolutely marvelous. We did things like Sail Away with him and a couple of others like Maybe I'm A Leo that he did brilliantly. I think he would've been just brilliant for us. I didn't want Joe in the band. I thought he was totally wrong and that's not with hindsight. I fought against it.'"

Back to this week's shows, tonight also has Impaler, Black Rainbow, Ripsnorter, and Regenerators playing at Neisen's in Savage.

Tomorrow, Saturday, March 2, classic hard/boogie rockers Foghat are paired with Head East at the Medina Entertainment Center in Medina. That same night locals Nuisance are doing a video at their show Killwire and Strate-Jak-It at Station 4 in St. Paul.

The only other show on tap this week is Cleveland metalcore band Affiance with support from Glamour Of The Kill and Adestria at Station 4 in St. Paul on Tuesday, March 5.