In 1955, Augie Garcia cut a single, "Hi Yo Silver," which many consider to be Minnesota's first rock and roll record. A year later, he opened for Elvis Presley, and was pulled from the stage by Presley's manager for whipping the crowd into a frenzy.

Gram Parsons is credited as being a huge influence on the alt country genre. After a short stint with The Byrds and his time with The Flying Burrito Brothers, he created a blend of rock and country music that he called "American Cosmic Music." He made two solo records in the early 70's with his singing partner Emmylou Harris. "GP" was loved by critics, but failed to break into the mainstream. Parsons died of a drug overdose in 1973 at the age of 26 at the Joshua Tree Inn.

Special Local Show episode goes "Back To School"

The Current has partnered with the interactive internet radio service Slacker Radio to bring you another great way to experience our unique mix of music, knowledge and personality.

When Asa Taccone's brother told him to share some of the music he was working on to his friend Brian, Asa didn't think it would lead to much. But luckily for him Brian was working on other projects as Danger Mouse and liked the sound that Asa was putting together. Through Danger Mouse Asa met Matthew Compton and Electric Guest was formed.

Local bands that deserve must-hear status this week

It’s been a short but tough run for downtown Minneapolis’s The Brick, the AEG-owned venue that opened to poor reviews from both journalists and fans last March. The venue was initially slated to hold up to 2,000 people and had hoped to be a “next step” above the 1,500-person capacity of First Avene’s Mainroom. But…

Anyone familiar with The Big Lebowski will probably connect this record to The Dude. In 2003, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked "Cosmo's Factory" 265 on its list of 500 Greatest Albums.

Experimental rock trio Liars' career has been defined by nomadic wanderings, both geographically and sonically. Formed in L.A., the group relocated to Brooklyn, shed a few members and wound up in rural New Jersey, and eventually made their way to Berlin, before returning to L.A.

It was business as usual for Minneapolis bassist and barista Matt Call as he left Urban Bean Coffee on Lyndale Ave. and 24th St. on June 27 to run errands with his girlfriend, Missy Morken, after work. But then, the unthinkable happened. As she stood at the passenger’s side of Call’s car and waited for…