Girl at the Rock Shows

I’m staying at my brother’s house this weekend to watch his dog while he and his wife are out of town for a little getaway. He lives in this gorgeous house out in the suburbs. I don’t live downtown or anything like that, but my cozy townhouse has a bit more of a city feel than out here at my brother’s house, so things are already feeling a bit weird. I figured this was a weekend to embrace the inner suburbanite that I tend to try and hide, so naturally, I decided to spend my Friday night at the Medina Entertainment Center.

This is an interesting place right on the edge of farm country, about thirty minutes outside of downtown Minneapolis. It definitely has a suburbanite feel as you drive up to it. It’s situated right next to a giant Target, and the SUV count was off the charts as I pulled into the driveway. As I walked into the building, I was confused. I walked into what seemed to be a somewhat classy restaurant. To the side of that was a little arcade space and a whole dang bowling alley. I was confused but instantly liked the ADHD personified that this place had. After walking through the bowling lanes, I approached a narrow staircase leading to the ballroom. Okay, this was all a bit weird, but it only got weirder as I entered the ballroom portion of this giant structure.

The Medina Entertainment Center Ballroom is a giant space with a teeny-tiny stage in the front and loads of banquet chairs and tables throughout the room. With just a small bar open in the back, I instantly felt a bit out of place and surprised. Being that I had never been here before, I didn’t know what to expect, but I knew that this wasn’t it. As people were taking their seats, I wandered around the edge of the room, trying to get the lay of the land. After grabbing a quick drink to calm my nerves (I’m a creature of habit, and being out of my element is something that always sets me off a bit), I found a table to lean against. That’s when I saw him.

Why was I spending my Friday night out at the Medina Entertainment Center Ballroom rather than at The Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis to see the almighty Gorilla Biscuits surely tear down the room with a sense of fury and intensity? Puddles Pity Party. I wouldn’t be surprised if you have never heard of Puddles before, but I would be disappointed if you didn’t take the time to look up this man. Dubbed the “Sad Clown With A Golden Voice,” Puddles is literally a depressed clown who sings some of the most staggering covers and parodies you have ever heard. I’ve only ever seen his videos online, which is why I was not going to pass up this opportunity to see him live. It was one of those bucket list shows, and I was not about to let a new and fairly strange-to-me setting keep me away from it.

Back to when I saw him– Honestly, I had only ever seen videos of Puddles before, so I knew nothing about this man, but his size instantly took me aback. Standing at 6′ 8″, Puddles (born Michael Geier), Puddles is a larger-than-life character both literally and figuratively. I watched in awe as he went around the room, shaking the hands of nearly everyone who had come out for the show. Sure, he’s not a household name, but in the right scenes, Puddles is absolutely a celebrity, and to see him take the time to thank everyone for spending their Friday night with him was something I wasn’t expecting to see yet it absolutely set the stage for what was to come from the rest of the night.

After a slightly delayed start (due to Puddles wandering the room and shaking hands), it was off to the races, and he jumped into his set, starting with a cover of Alice Cooper’s “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows”. Puddles Pity Party is not your typical cover band. Think Richard Cheese with a slight hint of Weird Al all wrapped up in a clown that will low-key remind you of NOFX’s Cokie the Clown. This cover was slow and deliberate, with an almost lounge vibe to it, but it was the underlying darkness that really made me crack up. There was something about this larger-than-life clown, dressed in all white, singing with a stunningly beautiful operatic-styled voice to an Alice Cooper song. I know I just hit you with a lot in that one description, but I can’t simplify it anymore.

Through the set, Puddles Pity Party gave the audience these super relaxed yet absolutely stunningly beautiful covers of everything from Ozzy Osborne to David Bowie. Sure, I found the covers, and the parody of Bonnie Raitt’s “Something To Talk About” changed to be “Pumpkin to Talk About” in honor of PSL (that’s pumpkin spice latte for you people who aren’t as basic as I am) season but it was Michael’s voice that absolutely had my struck. It’s a deep and dark baritone, but it has this odd sense of brightness behind it. I know that Puddles Pitty Party’s persona is this dark and depressed white-faced clown, but his voice made my heart flutter in a very vivid way. There was definitely this hint of an almost operatic style in some of what he was giving, leading me to believe that this man has some classical voice training, but, at the same time, there was just something very organic and free about the set. Long story short, shtick aside, Puddles Pity Party has a hell of a voice. There’s no other way to put it.

Between stunning songs, Puddles Pity Party treated the audience to all kinds of skits, from hilarious pre-recorded skits promoting everything from his own blend of coffee to just clearly killing some time to skits that included audience participation, I loved that this man really made you feel like you were part of his show. I know we were in this giant ballroom, and it wasn’t by any means a small audience, yet I felt like I was at one of the more intimate shows I have been to in a while. All of this while Puddles didn’t say a single word to the audience. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that? Other than his songs and a few grunts and moans here and there while doing funny little skits between tracks, Puddles didn’t say a word yet absolutely gave the audience a set that was so easy to connect with and so hard to walk away from.

I’ve seen some photos and videos from Gorilla Biscuits’ show at The Cedar on Friday night. I thought I would be watching them in a state of depression and worry that I had picked the wrong show. Although that show looked great, I don’t regret spending my night in the suburbs with the one and only Puddles Pity Party.

Line Up:

Puddles Pity Party

Venue: Medina Entertainment Center

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd: 43

Crowd Surfers- 0

Stage Divers- 0

Mosh-ability- 0 out of 10

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

Broken Bones- None Spotted

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Balloons and Handfuls of Confetti

Fights- None Witnessed

Pukers- 0

Passed Out People- 0

Idiots Taken Out By Security – 0

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

Puddles Pity Party – 0

Celebrity Sightings – None

Overall Score – 9.2 out of 10

Show on Deck — Marianas Trench / Cassadee Pope / Piao

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