Saturday night was a night for reinvention—not only for Hall’s Island, a longtime lumber yard that is in the process of being renovated into a new public park, but for the headlining band, Alabama Shakes, who have trampolined to superstar status over the course of just a few short years. It is impossible to overstate…

“Jeff is the single funniest person I’ve ever met in my life,” says Ryan Hanson, referring to his brother, Jeff Hanson. “His wisecracks were downright unrepeatable, but they were sharp and they were quick. If you consider the fact that some of the underpinnings of humor are anger and frustration, Jeff is interesting because he…

Paul McCartney told the Daily Mirror that to set an example for his grandchildren, he’s switched from marijuana to margaritas. “The last time I smoked was a long time ago,” says the former Beatle who used to be such a heavy user that he spent ten days in jail for trying to bring a sizable stash of…

Was it the earrings, Brittany? Alabama Shakes have landed on Prince’s radar in a big way. Just two months after rocking a pair of tiny Prince faces on her earlobes while performing on Saturday Night Live, Brittany Howard and her blues-rocking band have been invited to perform at Prince’s Paisley Park wonderland in Chanhassen. The Shakes will play Paisley Park on…

Thurston Moore, formerly of Sonic Youth, has paid tribute to Minneapolis rock heroines Babes in Toyland as the reunited band—who once toured with Sonic Youth—prepare for a string of European shows before they head home to play Rock the Garden. “For me,” writes Moore, “for a certain period of time, Babes In Toyland were the greatest band on…

Every Friday for the month of May (okay, I taped the shows on Wednesdays), I’ve been fortunate enough to spend the afternoon spinning (okay, mixing digital tracks on a computer) six hours of local music on the Local Current stream. It’s part of a new program that the station is trying out where they bring…

This Saturday, the hot ticket in town is the big Alabama Shakes and Father John Misty show at Hall’s Island in Minneapolis—and not only is it one of the first big outdoor shows of the season, but it’ll be the first on this unique plot of land on the Mississippi River just north of downtown…

A new video for Jenny Lewis‘s song “She’s Not Me” spoofs Lewis’s roles as a child actor—including appearances in The Golden Girls, Troop Beverly Hills, The Wizard. Among Lewis’s celebrity co-stars in the video are Feist, Fred Armisen, and Zosia Mamet. (Billboard) Dennis Sheehan, U2‘s tour manager for over 30 years, has died at age 68. Sheehan also worked with artists…

Lee’s Liquor Lounge is being sold, and its new owner plans to preserve the landmark Minneapolis bar and music venue largely as it is. Louis Sirian, owner of Lee’s for 40 years, will sell the venue to regular customer Craig Kruckeberg, who plans to add a patio and begin accepting credit cards, but otherwise doesn’t plan any major…

Northwest Community Television has brought to light a little-known local music fact: Sisqó, the Dru Hill singer whose 1999 “Thong Song” hit number three on the U.S. pop charts, currently lives in Maple Grove. “No thongs out here!” laughs the Baltimore native in a televised interview—which doesn’t quite seem right, but there are certainly no undergarments in…