Girl at the Rock Shows

There was a lot of commotion in downtown Minneapolis on Friday night. You had the Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament happening at The Target Center, a sold-out show at the 7th Street Entry headlined by Tropidelic, and a sold-out show at First Avenue’s mainroom headlined by Two Door Cinema Club. It was easy to tell who was going where, and there was excitement all around, but it was obvious where the most excited people were headed– First Avenue’s mainroom.

Honestly, I was just as excited as everyone else as I entered the legendary venue. It was almost like a two-for-one. The two-band bill consisted of Two Door Cinema Club and Joywave. Both of these bands are headliner quality, so seeing them on the same bill was as surprising as it was thrilling. I made my way through the sold-out crowd to my spot and just took a breath while taking in all of the excitement. I may have been exhausted since this was my sixth show in just three days, but I knew I was about to get a true treat, and as the house lights went down, that exhaustion went away, making way for pure anticipation.

Joywave is an indie rock band from Rochester, New York, with a unique sound, an undeniable sense of personality, and an explosive live show. I knew all of this walking into their set on Friday night because I had seen them multiple times before, but over the time that I hadn’t seen them, I had forgotten just how hard this band hits. The last time I saw them was when they headlined the Fine Line in March of 2022. I remember being struck by their power that night, but I feel like they have honed in on that power over the past two years and created a commanding show that has to be seen.

Vocalist Daniel Armbruster is a true frontman. His personality shines under the spotlight, and the way he connects with his fans, even though he is separated by a stage and a barrier, is absolutely unreal. I struggled to get any clear photos of this man as it seemed that he couldn’t stay in one spot for more than a blink of an eye. He stalked the stage with a sense of ferocity that you may expect from a metal band but gave the audience nothing short of an indie-pop explosion of sound. With swirling lights and his bandmates only enhancing the already endless amount of energy coming off of the frontman, I felt like I had fallen into Joywave’s world within the first few seconds, and there was no hope of escape. I was okay with this because their world is full of fun and energy.

Joywave played through about a dozen songs. I honestly lost count and couldn’t tell you what songs they played because, although I love seeing them live, this is a band that I don’t follow as hard as those around me. That said, I got excited for every song they played based on the conversations around me. Every song was inevitably followed up by a “I didn’t think they were going to play this!” or “This is my favorite song!” from someone around me. Although I couldn’t tell what was coming or name the song that the band had just performed, I got lost in all that excitement, creating a great opening set for a quick and powerful night of music.

Much like I knew what to expect from Joywave but was still kicked in the gut with their power and energy, I knew I would get a hell of a show from headlining act Two Door Cinema Club but forgot how amazing of a show it would be. The last time I saw this band was back in September of 2019. It was at this same venue yet, with nearly five years having passed, everything had changed. This band, whom I referred to as “just another generic indie-pop band,” jumped into what would turn into a twenty-four-song set and instantly won me over. Maybe my taste in music has just changed that much or perhaps I was just in a perfect mood based on how my night was going– regardless, much like when Joywave started, I was instantly whisked into Two Door Cinema Club’s world when they started and I never wanted to leave.

Two Door Cinema Club is a band from Northern Ireland. They have been around since 2007 and have been grinding since day one. As I mentioned, this is one of those bands that I had written off as being generic but, as I started to hear their music more and more, I realized that this group has something that stands out, and that’s the pure talent that they put on stage and the energy that they bring to every live show with their set on Friday being no exception. They let their music do the talking and powered through their set with song after song that you have probably heard before but never knew it was this band. That’s the magic about this group. Although they have a distinct sound and truly unique style, their name doesn’t hit the spotlight as much as their music does, but I am starting to see that change.

The sold-out audience didn’t just stand there and let the music of Two Door Cinema Club wash over them; they danced their hearts out to the infectious indie-pop beats while screaming along to nearly every word of every song. Don’t get me wrong, there wasn’t an epic mosh pit like there had been on Thursday night for Otoboke Beaver, but the energy level was the same, and that just added to the charm of the night. Although I was working both this show and the one next door, meaning I was constantly shifting between rooms as if to try and not miss a single moment, my heart and soul remained in the mainroom throughout the night. And I dreamed of a world where I didn’t feel the need to cover more than one show a night and could have been one of those sweaty faces in the crowd bouncing my way through Two Door Cinema Club’s set.

The show at First Avenue on Friday night was larger-than-life from the lights to the sounds to the excitement in the audience. It was what I needed to help get me through this marathon of a concert binge I seem to be on.

Line Up:

Joywave

Two Door Cinema Club

Venue- First Avenue

Smell-O-Meter- Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd- 38

Crowd Surfers- 0

Mosh-ability- 1 out of 10

Stage Divers- 0

Amount of Beer Spilled On Me While Walking Around- $0

Broken Bones- None Noticed

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Nothing

Fights- None Noticed

Pukers- None Noticed

Idiots Taken Out By Security- 0

How Many Times I’ve Seen These Bands Before (or at least how many times I can remember)-

Joywave – 2

Two Door Cinema Club- 1

Celebrity Sightings – None

Overall Score- 8.2 out of 10

Show on Deck- Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears / Shane Guerrette

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