Girl at the Rock Shows

If you have been struggling to get into the holiday spirit, you should have spent some time at The Turf Club on Monday night. I know it’s not even Thanksgiving, but come on, after all the craziness of this year, I feel like it’s okay to spread some holiday cheer a bit earlier than usual, and that’s what was happening at the cozy club in Saint Paul. Even if you didn’t make it downstairs to the famed Clown Lounge to see First Avenue staff portraying what it would look like if Santa puked all over the bar, there was something warm, cozy, and oddly holiday-spirit feeling about the show happening in the main venue portion of the bar.

Local singer/songwriter Caleb Dee opened the show. Backed by an incredibly talented and tight band, Caleb’s sweet yet strong vocals rang perfectly through the air. I honestly wasn’t expecting such a feeling of strength to come from his vocals after he had a somewhat subdued and almost nervous-feeling introduction to the audience. He seemed to stumble over words and purely suggested that the people sitting in the back come closer to the stage, but as he started singing his smooth and pop-based jams, there was a sense of power behind it that almost forced people to move up to the stage in a way. Sure, Caleb’s set was one of those sets where all of the songs seemed to sound a bit the same to me, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying every single one of them. Caleb’s name is new to me but, clearly, not to some people in the audience as they had come prepared with Caleb’s name plastered on their shirts, and I loved that feeling of support. I feel like it added to the warmth that radiated from the stage as Caleb played in an absolutely flawless way.

Between sets, my friends and I tucked downstairs to see how the Santa puke bar was coming. Glittery tinsel, ornaments hanging from the sky, and tufts of cotton that looked like a light dusting of snow had taken over the usually clown-themed bar. We bellied up to the bar and watched the little elves continue to do their work. I know that, as a Jew, this shouldn’t have gotten me super into the holiday spirit, but it did. Beyond the decorations, there was just this feeling of cheer that was fluttering through the air. Spirited conversations mixed with spirited drinks really set the stage and had me feeling all warm and cozy, so I was a bit bummed to have to leave my post and go back upstairs to catch the headlining act of the night. That being said, somehow, that feeling of holiday cheer followed me and only grew as I watched Krooked Kings.

Honestly, I don’t think the music of Krooked Kings is as cozy as other music out there. It’s a pop-leaning indie-rock sound, but it’s done so well and with so much passion that it does feel like a warm and cozy blanket at times, purely due to the reception that this band got from the audience. Maybe it was people seeing what was going on downstairs, or maybe it was the fact that Monday was the first super cold night of the season, regardless, there was just something super comfortable and friendly about Krooked Kings’ set and the audience that was there to enjoy it.

Krooked Kings’ set consisted of seventeen songs of stories, which is what really hooked me on this band. Although the infectious beat and upbeat feeling of their music were great, I found myself concentrating on the words coming through in the songs. From “In a Mood” to “Wish We Could Be Friends,” I found the words from this band to be a bit too relatable. They hit me like a brick. Lines like, “I’m sobbing in the driver’s seat, and I let the water swallow me” in “Landfall” or “Show up to the show, music sucks me in” from the track “Bird Scooter”, just really hit me to the core. It was raw, it was honest, and when mixed with the feeling of comfortable coziness, it was truly perfect. Add the way that every band member in this group was playing with a sense of passion but not aggression and, like I said, just a chef’s kiss, perfect.

In all reality, Monday night was just another show for me. It was another notch in the belt, another line for my lists, another number for my chart. That being said, it was a lovely night and definitely got me feeling better than I have in months. Maybe it was the coziness of the music; perhaps it was seeing the staff of First Avenue get super serious about where certain glitter-covered decorations should go, or maybe it was just the fact that it’s a short week. Regardless, Monday night was the show I didn’t know I needed this week, and I am so glad that that’s how I chose to spend my night.

Line Up:

Caleb Dee

Krooked Kings

Venue: Turf Club

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd: 34

Crowd Surfers- 0

Stage Divers- 0

Mosh-ability- 0 out of 10

Broken Bones- None Spotted

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Nothing

Fights- None Witnessed

Pukers- 0

Passed Out People- 0

Idiots Taken Out By Security – 0

First Avenue Staff’s Holiday Decorating Ability – 8 out of 10

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

Caleb Dee – 0

Krooked Kings – 0

Celebrity Sightings – Andy of Whiskey Rock N Roll Club MPLS; James of Unstable Shapes/ Lamaar

Overall Score – 8 out of 10

Show on Deck —TBD

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