Girl at the Rock Shows

I had three nights off from shows. I said that to someone in an almost disappointed tone because it’s way out of character for me, and this person just kind of laughed. Like, “Oh no, three nights off?!” The truth is, I was feeling off my game. As nice as it was to have a kind of clean house and not feel completely exhausted during the day, I was ready for a show. I loaded up my car and started to head to downtown Minneapolis. I was chatting with my boyfriend, who is currently out of town for work, and he quickly pointed out that my show on Wednesday night was actually at The Palace Theatre in Saint Paul, not First Avenue in Minneapolis, like I had mentally prepared for. Like I said, three days off definitely put me off my game, but thankfully, I was able to pivot in the middle of traffic and get back on the right track. I was kicking myself all the way to downtown Saint Paul. How in the heck did I mess that up?! What if I had gotten all the way downtown and paid for parking just to figure out I was at the wrong venue? My mind was going a million miles an hour, but as soon as I got to the lovely Palace Theatre, it calmed, and I braced myself for the insane show I was about to witness.

Philadelphia-based Sheer Mag was the one and only opener for the bill on Wednesday night, but with the amount of power that this group brings to the stage, one opener is all you need. Stylistically, Sheer Mag’s sound is a bit retro with a clear 70s rock and punk edge to it, but this group takes that vintage sound and blends it with something a bit more modern, giving their music a super fresh vibe. For me, it’s Christina Halladay’s vocals that really seal the deal when it comes to my love for this band. They are so gritty to the point where you don’t know if it’s a fake or real voice. At times, it sounds almost like a parody of itself. Wait, that sounds bad, and I truly don’t mean that, but they just feel almost “schticky” with how gritty and grainy they are, and I am here for it. Seeing this distinct voice and putting an energy and aura to the vocals was definitely a highlight of Sheer Mag’s set for me on Wednesday night.

Sheer Mag’s time on the massive stage at The Palace Theatre didn’t last long, but the band did everything they could with the time they were given. People were still streaming into the venue as the band played, but I know that as soon as someone walked in, they were hooked by this group. You could tell this by the way that everyone slowed down as they entered. Instead of racing to the front of the floor or racing to their seats upstairs, I saw people standing there, if only for a second, and just taking in the magic that was Sheer Mag. Even those who were standing in the never-ending merch line could be seen eyeing up the stage and letting giant gaps form in the line because they were so captivated by Sheer Mag. Wednesday night was not my first time seeing Sheer Mag, but the last time I saw them was in 2018 at The Fine Line when they opened for Power Trip. That was a lifetime ago, so it was so nice to be reintroduced to this band in such a beautiful spotlight.

The excitement in the air was palpable as the stage was set up for the night’s headliners. Amyl & The Sniffers is one of those bands that seemed to go viral in a way. This Australian punk band has been doing their thing since 2016, but as of late, has become the new “it” band that spans all kinds of genres, scenes, and audiences. Outside of a few of their singles that seem to consistently hit the random playlists I use to help get me through the day, and seeing them at First Avenue in 2022, I really don’t have a huge connection to this band. Don’t get me wrong, I adore them and every time I hear one of their songs, it fills me with such a sense of energy and life, but I had yet to be wowed by their live show in the way that critics talk about it. Amyl and the Sniffers are notorious for having an insane stage presence and an audience that follows suit, but when I saw them in 2022, Bob Vylan had graced the stage just before them, and, honestly, Bob Vylan turned into an instant favorite of mine. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy seeing Amyl and the Sniffers that night, because I did and it was a true honor, but I just didn’t get bit by the bug that night. I was hoping that seeing them on Wednesday night would change that.

Spoiler alert: it did change. I feel that during Amyl and the Sniffers’ performance on Wednesday night, I finally saw and felt what everyone else has when it comes to this band. There was an insane amount of energy radiating off the stage. Trying to follow vocalist Amy Taylor with my camera was next to impossible, and trying to fathom how, throughout the twenty-song set, she never stood still is something I still can’t wrap my head around. Had this been the same kind of performance that I saw in 2022, and I was just blinded by being wowed by Bob Vylan? Who knows. All I knew on Wednesday night was that, out of all of the shows happening, I had definitely picked the right one to check out, and it was just what I needed to break my three-day dry spell.

Amyl and the Sniffers have a retro lean to their sound, which made the pairing with Sheer Mag so perfect. Whereas Sheer Mag seemed to lean into a more rock vibe, Amyl and the Sniffers definitely lean more punk. Their songs are served with a sense of snark and attitude that just can not be put into words. At times, the vocals feel more like a shouting match than actual sung vocals, but that’s the charm of this band. Add in the guitar, bass, and drums that never seem to stop, and you are left with a sound that matches the energy of this band so perfectly. About halfway through, the band let us see their more sensitive side by playing one of their slower songs, but that peace and calm didn’t last long. It was as if the band was giving the audience a chance to breathe before jumping right back into the high-energy tracks that this band is known for, which instantly threw the audience into a furious mess of headbanging hair, flying limbs, and bodies.

I knew I was in for a treat when it came to Wednesday night’s show, but I don’t think I understood just how delightful that treat would be. I was floored by the energy I got from this nearly sold-out all-ages show. It wasn’t just the energy from the stage, but also from the audience. This was a show that people were excited for and, Wednesday night be damned, nobody was about to let a single second of this night slip away.

Line Up:

Sheer Mag

Amyl and the Sniffers

Venue: The Palace Theatre

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd: 24

Crowd Surfers- 4 Counted (but I’m sure there were more)

Stage Divers- 0

Mosh-ability- 8 out of 10

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

Broken Bones- None Noticed

Spotted Flying Through The Air- A few bodies, a few cans

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)-

Sheer Mag – 1

Amyl and the Sniffers – 1

Celebrity Sightings – Members of: Unstable Shapes / Mary Jam / Husker Du

Overall Score – 9.2 out of 10

Show on Deck — Pinata Protest / Xawaro / America Y Los Sentimientos / DJ Superbrush427 / VJ BooScapes / MC Monserrate Resendiz

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