Late last spring I got a job as an usher at Northrop, the newly refurbished concert hall at the heart of the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities campus. The majestic architecture and the famous acts who play the venue had always intrigued me, and working as an usher seemed like the perfect way to get to know both…

At the end of May, MSU-Mankato band Navigating North drove through the night to North Carolina and recorded an entire EP, all in about 48 hours. The members of the band—Hailey Johnson, Josiah Jorgensen, and Jay Seaser—originally met as part of a worship team in the MSU campus ministry, the Navigators. The band happened organically, says Seaser. “We just started jamming…

Hozier has been sparring with singer-songwriter Chilly Gonzales, who pointed out similarities between Hozier’s 2013 hit “Take Me to Church” and the 2011 song “How Come You Never Go There” by Feist—a single that Gonzales played piano on. Hozier threatened to sue Gonzales for implying that he plagiarized the song; Gonzales apologized, and Hozier now says “there are no hard feelings…

For one night only, this Friday the Duluth Homegrown Music Festival will bring its “up north” vibes down to Minneapolis for an evening of music at the University of Minnesota’s Whole Music Club at Coffman Memorial Union. Performers will include Mary Bue, Dad’s Acid, Cherry Cola, and Unknown Creatures. The annual Duluth Homegrown Festival started…

Since December’s last Blowout show ever, Doomtree have kept busy; sites like First Avenue, Boston Calling, and Justin Vernon’s Eaux Claires Festival have all seen high-energy sets. Among fans, though, a question still lingered: what—if anything—could replace the Blowouts? This year, the answer is Doomtree Zoo. A one-day festival at CHS Field (home to the St. Paul…

Este Haim, 29, never saw the original Lillith Fair—but she says that she and her sisters (who are also her bandmates in Haim) talk “all the time” about how they’d love to revive the festival, or create a female-driven festival like it. Her dream lineup would include Lorde, Florence + the Machine, CHVRCHES, Jenny Lewis, Savages, and of course Haim’s tourmate Taylor…

Tomorrow night, Saturday, Oct. 3, Chastity Brown will join Vieux Farka Touré at the Dakota Jazz Club. Brown will be stepping in for NYC-based singer Julia Easterlin—Touré’s tour collaborator, who was unable to perform for the Minneapolis show. Born in Niafunké, Mali, Touré – often referred to as “The Hendrix of the Sahara” – is the son of the late…

A battle of the bands for people of color has been announced for December at the Cedar Cultural Center, and submissions for entrants are now open. So far, Sonic Rain and Ashley DuBose have been confirmed as a co-emcee and Tall Paul and Maria Isa have been announced as judges, with more to come. ROCK4LOVE: POC Battle…

It’s Friday! It’s fall! Pumpkin Spice Lattes for everyone! Doomtree With their inaugural Doomtree Zoo coming up tomorrow—a Blowout-style full crew throwdown at CHS Field that will also feature acts like Aesop Rock, Open Mic Eagle, and Aby Wolf—Doomtree dropped their latest in a long string of videos from their most recent album, All Hands. The…

“I’ll be with you in a minute,” said John Kass as I entered Go Johnny Go—his small, crowded White Bear Lake record store. “I have go give these people the bad news.” Kass stepped outside and spoke to a couple who had just brought a batch of records in for him to appraise. “I can give…