Girl at the Rock Shows

I’m both loving and hating getting out of my comfort zone this year. I love it because I’m experiencing brand-new things and seeing brand-new faces. It’s exciting and has kept my passion for live music thriving this year when, in the past, it has become a bit of a task going to the same thing night after night. I hate it because of nights like Wednesday night. The show was great– it was terrific. But now, as I sit here to review the show, I realize that I know very little about the scene and music I immersed myself in on Wednesday night and, therefore, don’t quite know the words to describe the stunning evening I have. Okay, “hate” is a strong word, and now that I write this, I realize that I kind of love it because it challenges me. Long story short, please bear with me as I describe what happened on Wednesday night at Cloudland, even though I may not know the correct verbiage or words to use.

Brendan Wells took the stage first at the intimate Cloudland in South Minneapolis on Wednesday night. I knew the night was going to be different for me because it was billed as a “night of audio and visual artists, ambient drone, and experimental sounds,” but it wasn’t until Brendan took the stage that I really understood the depth of just how different this show would be. With captivating visuals on the screen behind him, Brendan took his spot behind what looked a bit like a keyboard but with way more bells and whistles. Simple enough, right? But that’s not where it ends. He had this box hanging from his neck with what looked like a chanter from a set of bagpipes attached to that. I watched in awe as he fiddled (terrible word, but I can’t think of a better one) with the box while simultaneously playing the chanter and doing things on this foreign-to-me keyboard.

Although I was clearly intrigued by what was going on and found myself, at times, trying to figure out where what sound was coming from, it was hard because I felt so lost in Brendan’s sounds. They were avant-garde for sure and there never really seemed to be an actual beat throughout his set yet I found a beauty in the sounds he was making. Honestly, none of them should have felt like “music” as the sounds were all electronic and drony (go figure) yet the way he layered all of these unique sounds to make a true soundscape had me mystified.

Following Brendan’s opening set was Reflectors (Crystal Myslajek & John Marks). Although I knew not to expect a classic rock n’ roll band sound, I felt more comfortable as I saw Crystal set up a microphone in front of her keyboard that, again, had way more doodads than a standard keyboard. As this duo jumped into their set, I was plunged back into an unknown world but this one leaned a bit more earthy whereas Brendan’s seemed to have a bit more of an other-worldly undertone. Even the visuals playing during Reflectors’ set had a theme of nature behind them. Videos of ice shifting on a lake, videos of trees and branches matched the more light and airy theme of the music from this duo. Again, I found myself trying to figure out what sound was coming from where, but it was Crystal’s vocals that had me completely struck. They were gorgeous to say the least and had a very airy and siren-like quality, adding an almost organic feeling to a sound that, when you saw how many cords and buttons were on stage, should have been far from organic.

Closing out the Wednesday night local showcase was Material. This duo was the act on the bill that came the closest to having a familiar sound but, even then, what they gave me during their headlining set was, overall, foreign to me. Again, the stage was cluttered with tables of electronic equipment that I will never entirely understand and won’t even attempt to list to you but, with Material, there was also a guitar. It’s not that I was uncomfortable at any point in the evening because, well, I was at a live show and that is truly my happy place, yet something about seeing that guitar had me optimistic that maybe I would finally have the right words to describe what Material did with their time on stage.

Again, I felt like I was being plunged into a different world, but this world came with an infectious beat. Strange sounds were mixed with familiar patterns to create this world that was so easy to literally fall into. As the duo performed through their set, it was as if I could visualize myself falling deeper and deeper into their world with every passing sound. It’s strange and I know I will never have the words to describe what I’m actually trying to accurately but, at the end of the day, their set somehow left me feeling rejuvenated, exhausted, and cool, calm, and collected all at the same time. Again, I loved how the visuals matched the sounds Material was putting out there. Instead of the more earthy tones and images that Reflectors had going, the scene during material was bright and almost psychedelic. It was as if you didn’t get captivated by their sounds, they knew they were going to get you with their visuals.

Wednesday night was like stepping into a whole other world for me. There were beautiful moments of meditation followed by thrilling moments of captivation. I know for a fact that my words do not do Brendan Wells, Reflectors, or Material justice but I hope that after reading this, you feel the urge to go out and check out a show like this. It was indeed an experience that I want more of. Correct words and phrases be damned, I hope to catch another “night of audio and visual artists, ambient drone, and experimental sounds” sooner rather than later.

Line Up:

Brendan Wells

Reflectors

Material

Venue: Cloudland

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd: 37

Crowd Surfers- None

Stage Divers- None

Mosh-ability- 0 out of 10

Amount of Beer Spilled On Me While Walking Around- 0

Broken Bones- None Noticed

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Nothing

Fights- None Witnessed

Pukers- 0

Passed Out People- 0

Idiots Taken Out By Security – 0

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)-

Brendan Wells – 0

Reflectors– 0

Material– 0

Celebrity Sightings – None

Overall Score – 8.3 out of 10

Show on Deck —Admiral Fox / Floodwater Angel / Malamiko

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