The only theme on Wednesday night was that there was no theme and I loved it. I didn’t quite know what I was going to get from the night but I was excited to check out three local bands that I knew very little about and, like most local shows go, all three of them absolutely delivered whatever it was that they do.
The night got started with the dramatic entrance of shrimp olympics. With a beat from the keyboard playing while the keyboardist introduced each member as they took the stage, there was something almost theatrical about the entrance and they seemed to be something that continued throughout their opening set. From nods to lo-fi beats to a song that had an almost elevator music vibe featuring a flute all the way to a hoedown breakdown that had the audience jumping around, this band was all over the place. It was one of those identity crisis bands that can catch you off guard at first but, after a few songs, you can’t help but fall in love with their charm. Overall, shrimp olympic’s sound is creative and interesting. With a fiddle sitting loud and proud in the forefront of a lot of their songs and severe mood swings within each song, I wasn’t sure what I was getting stylistically from this band but I knew that I liked it and wanted to see it again.
The description for Northern Hammer, the next band to take the stage, said to not “expect expert musicianship” but I feel like that’s what we got in a super creative way. Northern Hammer is a duo that has a very sludgy and power-metal feel to them. Although just a duo, Scott and Nick gave the audience more than enough to watch. From Scott Skoog on drums who gave the audience plenty of laughs with his stories between the tracks to the intensity with which Nick Streine played the baritone guitar, I found myself completely captivated by every move this band made. If I’m being quite honest, their overall sound was a bit more fuzzy than I tend to go for but, when mixed with the heavy hitting drums and the occasional vocals that were more like primal screams than anything else, I was left with a sound that hit me so hard both volume-wise and heart-wise.
I know I started off this post saying that there was no theme but that may be too broad of a statement. There was a theme of the night and it can be labeled perfectly by something that Scott explained during their set. “We don’t have a set list… we’re just going where our hearts go”. I got that organic feeling from Northern Hammer for sure and, looking back on the night, also got it from the other two bands. There was just something so free and chill about the whole movement throughout the night whether that was the movement between acts, songs, audience members– whatever. It was just one of those nights where I feel like all of the bands were just so excited to be there as was the audience.
Headlining that Wednesday night show at the 7th Street Entry was Time Room. I’ve been seeing this band’s name float around here and there lately so I was so excited to get a chance to check out what they were all about. This trio split the difference between the sound of shrimp olympics and Northern Hammer perfectly. They had some of the fuzz that Northern Hammer had brought to the night and also had the creativity that I loved oh so much from shrimp olympics. The song compositions that Time Room has are definitely unique and, at times, a bit odd but playful, but they worked perfectly with the way they were delivered on Wednesday night.
For some reason, I want to relate Time Room to Primus but that’s not a super great comparison. There was just something about the tone of the guitar and the layout of the vocals that had me thinking that this is what Primus would have been had they been a midwestern garage rock band. There were also times where I felt like the vocals had an almost The Strokes sound to them– I promise I’m not crazy– it was subtle but something that I just couldn’t shake. But I digress. Regardless of what you want to compare their sound to, it was a treat to watch this trio perform. I’ve talked about seeing bands and feeling like each member was in their own world. When it comes to Time Room, it’s as if each member is on their own planet and I think that nods to their unique sound and song compositions. Throughout their set, I found myself just trying to figure this band out and what influence each member brought to the band but I quickly realized that this is something I will never know nor did I need to. All I needed to know was that Time Room is another perfect example of how amazing and diverse the Twin Cities music scene.
So yes, there was really no theme at all to Wednesday night’s show. From a theatrical fiddle-driven garage punk band to a doomy sludge band and all the way to the uniqueness that is Time Room– the night, much like the crowd was all over the place. The one connecting factor throughout Wednesday night was the passion and heart that was felt from the stage and throughout the audience and that will always make for a stand-out show in my mind.
Line Up:
Venue: 7th Street Entry
Smell-O-Meter: Nothing
Average Age of the Crowd: 28
Crowd Surfers- One kid leapt on his buddy’s shoulders– does that count for anything?
Stage Divers- None
Dance-ability- 3 out of 10
Sausage-Fest Meter- 7 out of 10
Amount of Beer Spilled On Me While Walking Around- $0
Broken Bones- None
Spotted Flying Through The Air- Nothing
Fights- None Witnessed
Pukers- 0
Randomly Shirtless Men – 0
Passed Out Kids- 0
Idiots Taken Out By Security – None Spotted
How Irritated I Was With The Audience – 0 out of 10
How Many Times I’ve Seen These Bands Before (or at least how many times I can remember)-
shrimp olympics – 0
Northern Hammer – 0
Time Room – 0
Celebrity Sightings – None but I saw on social media that a member (or members) of Butter Boys were there
Overall Score- 7.8 out of 10
Show on Deck —JoJo Green / Elour / Space Hug / Red Eye Ruby
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