Girl at the Rock Shows

Although it sets my anxiety off, checking out a new venue is one of my favorite things. It’s like opening the door to a new world; each venue brings a different vibe and feeling. Saturday night was my first time at Zhora Darling in northeast Minneapolis. This space has a bit of a “secret venue” feeling to it. Upon entering Zhora Darling, you are greeted by a swanky-looking bar and the aroma of amazing-smelling food that smelt a bit too rich for my bank account. After following a path along the bar and to the back of the restaurant, you find yourself in front of a set of doors that lead into the venue. It’s crazy how everything changes as you walk into the venue portion. Instead of an almost pretentious (okay, I’m being a brat– it wasn’t pretentious, and all of the staff here was incredibly nice, but I just felt a bit uncomfortable in the bar side) atmosphere, you feel yourself step into a more DIY vibe. I loved this and instantly felt at home as I got checked in and entered the dark but cavernous space.

My boyfriend and I had gotten there quite early due to some confusion about the start time, but I was okay with it. It gave me a chance to get comfortable in the new space. As someone with crippling anxiety (not kidding but it’s something that oddly goes away when I’m standing alone at a concert which, I know, makes zero sense), I loved having this chance to cozy up to some new walls and new faces. Although we were standing in the dark room for well over half an hour, time flew by and, before I knew it, opening act Poison Ivy & The People were taking the stage.

Poison Ivy & The People were a brand new act to me, but I instantly recognized the vocalist as one of the fantastic people at The Turf Club. They have always come off as sweet but quiet in my interactions with them at the bar, but on Saturday night, they came off as a powerful force of nature. I mean, I was absolutely shook by Ivy’s vocals. They were the perfect blend of DIY styled heart-on-sleeve vocals and a very polished musical theatre-inspired sound. The amazing and tight behind Ivy followed suit. Everyone was clearly in their own world as they played through the all-too-quick opening set, but at the same time, they interacted with each other and the packed audience in a way that was so special and genuine.

I don’t want to give everything about Poison Ivy & the People’s set away because this is truly an act that you have to see for yourself, but they had this song that hit me perfectly. “All My Friends,” as the title may point you to believe, is an ode to friends, but it’s so painfully honest and sweet. There’s this part in the track where the lyrics are about all of the things we all think about when it comes to our friends. “All my friends have good intentions / All my friends have a lot on their plate” it goes on with a couple of lines like that balancing between real life and politics before coming to the triumphant ending, “And my friends / They all want a revolution / but nobody wants to do the goddamn dishes.” I don’t know why that line and song as a whole hit me so hard but there was just something so real yet playful about the lyrics and delivery. What I’m trying to say here is that Poison Ivy & The People is a new favorite of mine, so brace yourself for many more posts about this amazing local band.

Speaking of excellent local bands– after Poison Ivy & The People was an absolutely flawless set from Jillian Rae. Jillian’s name is not a new one when it comes to the scene. She has been grinding for years and forming quite the following in town, which makes sense after seeing her on Saturday. Although Saturday night wasn’t my first time experiencing her genius on stage, something about her set just hit a little harder. Jillian and her band powered through a set that was a truly a rollercoaster ride. From songs that made me want to start moving around the space a little bit to other songs that had me trying to choke back tears, the way that each song brought a different feeling yet came with a staggering amount of passion left me absolutely in awe.

On top of the feeling I was getting from each song was the pure perfection coming through the speakers. I can’t put into words how tight this band was. Not only were all of Jillian’s words perfectly placed and perfectly in tune, but the band was right in that magical pocket, giving the set an almost organic vibe while coming off as thoroughly rehearsed. Although there were plenty of jokes from Jillian regarding “tuning because we care,” I loved the fact that you could see just how much she cared about her performance. I thought I would have all of these nitty-gritty details to mention from Jillian Rae’s set, but the truth is, I think I was just so in awe that all of the mental notes I had taken didn’t make it to my phone, and now I feel lost for words. Much like Poison Ivy & The People, Jillian Rae is one of those acts that you can expect to read more posts on from me so go ahead and do yourself a favor and check out her music so you’re prepared and you can truly understand my descriptions of her amazing performances.

The name Zaq Baker probably rings a bell because I’ve written about him multiple times. It could also ring a bell because he is one of the hardest working musicians in town. From his solo stuff to his work in other bands to just being out at shows in general, Zaq is one of those kindred spirits where his whole life is music. This is the first thing that drew me to him as a human but his music is what has me stuck and being able to hear those sweet sounds radiate from him and his keyboard on Saturday night was definitely the highlight of my weekend.

Zaq’s set on Saturday night was different from his usual ones. I mean, it was with the way it breathed life into me with his catchy songs and lyrics that often air on the side of hilarity but it was a super unique set in the way it was the “Zaq Baker Team”. At first, I didn’t know what this meant, but it made sense as guest performers graced the stage throughout the night. This was a collective kind of set. From familiar faces to new, every couple of songs would feature a different powerhouse from the local scene. I feel like I don’t want to tell you all of the people that took the stage as I don’t want to ruin the surprise if Zaq chooses to this again but I will say that I was thrilled by who all joined Zaq and his band on Saturday night. The best part of this was how each new person to take the stage fit the vibe and overall style perfectly while bringing their own twist to the set. Each time a new performer would take a little solo, you could see Zaq’s already bright face light up a little more. It was a magical thing and something from Saturday night that I will truly cherish.

I’ve talked your ear off so I’ll let you go and move onto my day full of chores and taxes (big ugh on that one) but I will say that Saturday night at Zhora Darling was a prime example of why I love the local scene in the Twin Cities so much. The entire room and stage were filled with people who genuinely just love music. That’s a feeling you don’t often get from giant arena shows or even national touring acts that hit some of the smaller stages in town. It’s a feeling of love and community that is the only thing that keeps some of us going.

Line Up:

Poison Ivy & The People

Jillian Rae

Zaq Baker

Venue: Zhora Darling

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd: 27

Crowd Surfers- None

Mosh-ability- 1 out of 10

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

Broken Bones- None

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Nothing

Fights- None

Pukers- 0

Passed Out Kids- None

Idiots Taken Out By Security- 1

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

Poison Ivy & The People – 0

Jillian Rae – 2

Zaq Baker – 2

Celebrity Sightings – Leslie Vincent / Natalie Fideler / Spencer of LESLIE / Ann of Mostly MN Music — I know I’m missing so many

Overall Score- 9.1 out of 10

Show on Deck- Sarah Shook & The Disarmers / Buffalo Nichols

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