Girl at the Rock Shows

My concert-going activities have been a rollercoaster lately. Thursday was amazing. Friday was disappointing. Saturday was gorgeous. Sunday was, well, a show featuring my all-time favorite band. Although the sting of the disappointment of Friday night, a show I had hyped up in my own mind and was less-than-gracefully let down by, was still fresh in my mind, I walked into The Varsity Theater in Minneapolis on Sunday evening optimistic and ready to get blown away.

It has been a year since I last saw the opening act, The Dirty Nil. Since then, the hype has only grown behind this band, and although I’ve always enjoyed seeing them live, they just aren’t one of those bands that really clicks with me. I’m honestly not sure that they clicked with me even after their performance on Sunday night, but I can tell you that they hooked me from the first beat of their set until the very end. This Canadian trio is proving that rock ‘n’ roll is far from dead. Their sound has an almost classic and vintage rock vibe to it, but there are nods to something a bit harder and a bit more punk scattered throughout their set. It was a “heads down and get to work” kind of set for this band since they didn’t have that much time on stage. Usually, I like to see a little bit more banter and a little more personality from a group between songs, but I also got why The Dirty Nil passed on this and just played through powerful track after track. They may not have had a lot of time on stage, but they definitely made it count, and by the end of the performance, I was left wondering if I’ve been a bit too harsh on this band in the past.

Following The Dirty Nil was Lucero. Just to be fully transparent, Lucero is my favorite band of all time, so saying anything bad about them would be hard for me. Luckily, other than a questionable mix coming from the speakers hanging in the club, I really have nothing bad to say about their quick set on Sunday night. Lucero is not my typical in-your-face and aggressive metal or my normal pop-punk-perfection; instead, they are a country-leaning punk band full of sad and slow whiskey-drinking songs. I honestly don’t know why this band has hit me so hard over the years, but with every song and album they put out there, my love and adoration for Lucero grows.

Lucero’s newest album, ‘Should’ve Learned By Now,’ came out last year, so it’s not surprising that they played some of their new tracks throughout their all-too-quick set. What was a surprise was when the band broke into “What Are You Willing To Lose?” from their 2009 album, ‘1372 Overton Park’. Although I feel like I’ve been able to see this band play every song I’ve ever wanted to hear live, whether in complete band form or from a solo show by vocalist Ben Nichols, there was something about hearing the band play this one that really seemed to come out of left field. With a discography spanning fourteen full-length albums, countless singles, and various other releases, I’m not sure why the band picked this song to resurrect during the show, but I’m not complaining.

My only complaint about Lucero’s set, outside of the fact that they didn’t play their whole discography for me, was the sound. Something was off with the mix that the nearly sold-out audience was given. That didn’t stop the band from sounding flawless in my own mind, but for being an outlier on an otherwise super upbeat line-up, I feel like those who had walked into this show without any knowledge of Lucero may have walked away a little confused and, frankly, disappointed. This is such a heartbreaking revelation for me because this band means so much to me and is my ride-or-die when it comes to music, so if you were in attendance last night and just didn’t get it, I highly urge you to give Lucero another chance.

Although I was definitely most excited to see Lucero perform on Sunday night, I was definitely also thrilled to catch yet another performance from Pennsylvania-based The Menzingers. No matter how many times I see this band, I am always left blown away by the energy that they bring to the stage. Beyond that, I adore the flawless nature of their live performances, but how, even with sounding album-ready, there is something fun and organic about their shows. Sunday night was no different. The sound was truly flawless, and, at times, it felt as if I was just listening to one of their various albums at full volume. Sometimes, this can kill a set for me, but not in the case of The Menzingers. It may have sounded like I was listening to an album, but it clearly felt like I was at a show, and I could feel the energy and personalities of this four-piece band radiate all the way to the back of The Varsity Theater.

Much like Lucero, The Menzingers’ set list didn’t stand a chance as far as hitting all of the songs I wanted to hear, but they definitely tried. They played a little bit of everything from their classics to a couple off of their new album ‘Some Of It Was True’. I’ll be honest: I haven’t spent a lot of time with this group’s new material because I truly think they peaked with their 2017 album “After The Party,” but as I stood there and heard some unfamiliar yet perfect songs, I realized that I should really take some time and dig into some of their newer albums.

My rollercoaster ride of concert experiences continues on Monday night with a show that I’m only attending because a friend wants to hang out and check it out. While I’m not overly optimistic about what’s to come, the energy, passion, and sheer love that I felt throughout the show on Sunday night are more than enough to keep me excited and engaged, even if Monday night’s show doesn’t quite hit the mark.

Line Up:

The Dirty Nil

Lucero

The Menzingers

Venue: Varsity Theater

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing

Average Age of the Crowd: 38

Crowd Surfers- 0

Stage Divers- 0

Mosh-ability- 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

Passed Out People- 1

Idiots Taken Out By Security – 0

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

The Dirty Nil – 3

Lucero – Literally zero clue at this point but we’ve got to be at over 30

The Menzingers – 7

Celebrity Sightings – Andy of Whiskey Rock ‘n’ Roll Club MPLS; Greg Norton of Hüsker Dü; Colin Campbell of The Shackletons; Shane Torres (comedian)

Overall Score – 11 out of 10

Show on Deck —Rivals / True North / MVSSIE

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