Girl at the Rock Shows

I took a year off from covering the event formally known as Wrestlepalooza (long story there, long story short, it’s now called WREMIX), put on by F1rst Wrestling. I honestly have no reason why I took last year off from covering this event, but I know that 2025 just didn’t feel complete without it, so kicking off 2026 with this amazing event just felt right. It was like [vegetarian] chicken soup for the soul and, as I walked into the iconic First Avenue main room, everything just felt right. Although it felt right, it also felt different. Many of the faces were new to me, and the crowd felt a bit different than it had in the past for this event, again, it just felt right, and I quickly found a good spot to take it all in.

WREMIX is more than just a wrestling event. Sure, wrestling is at the forefront, but there’s also burlesque and live music. The way that this organization creates such a seamless show with so many moving elements is something that I will never quite understand but will always appreciate. I will also always appreciate the fact that you can walk into this show without knowing much about any of the wrestlers or anything, but instantly fall into the storylines happening. That was key when it came to me jumping back into this world on Friday night. Sure, the majority of the faces in the ring were new to me, but it didn’t take me long to figure out who the “good guys” were and who I was supposed to boo.

Since it’s leaning that way, let’s talk about the wrestling aspect of this event first. I seriously can not say enough about the athleticism shown throughout this event. It’s not just the jaw-dropping high-flying stunts; it’s also what’s happening on the ground. All the wrestlers may bring their own style to the ring, but the one constant is the talent they each possess. Yes, I know wrestling is fake (spoiler alert), but there’s something about the talent of everyone involved in this event that, for just a few hours, makes you forget about reality. You get lost in the moves, the pile drives, clotheslines, and the dropkicks to a point where you really start to worry about the safety of some of the players while also enjoying the drama behind it all.

What sets this event apart from other wrestling (like the stuff you see on TV) is the humor it brings to the table. This has always been a huge selling point for me, and I love how the humor always changes. It wasn’t Wildcat chasing a ball of yarn around the ring this year that got me rolling. It was Effy “drowning” so he could be saved by the highly attractive lifeguard-themed wrestler Shane Black. It started as super cute fun, but Shane Black was quick to turn the life-saving efforts into a sort of waterboarding in the corner of the ring. This escalated to a kiss between the two men, which absolutely got the crowd roaring with laughter and cheers, and, well, okay, you just had to be there, but it’s stunts like that that bring a sense of humor to the talent showcased throughout this event.

As mentioned, WREMIX is more than just wrestling; it also brings burlesque to the spotlight. On Friday night, the two burlesque dancers were Sweet Pea and Emerald Eve. I’m not going to give away what their shticks were, but I will see that each woman was stunningly beautiful and didn’t just show off their bodies, but showed off the talent and restraint that it takes to be a killer burlesque dancer. I don’t know what it is, but I feel like burlesque dancing is something that has really stayed in a bit of a hidden world, but events like this and others that happen throughout the Twin Cities on what feels like a weekly basis are definitely flipping the script in all of the right ways. Sure, these ladies weren’t doing high-flying stunts or wrestling with each other, but that didn’t mean that they didn’t get the same amount of attention as the wrestlers, and I loved that sense of respect and appreciation.

Sure, I can easily get wrapped up in the wrestling of WREMIX and definitely get dazzled by the burlesque performances every time, but what really got me into this event and scene the first time was the music, and I love that that has remained a constant as this event has evolved. Friday night’s musical guest was Cheap Bouquet- a local punk band that I just can not get enough of. I’ve seen a lot of different styles of music showcased during this event, and I feel like Cheap Bouquet’s high-energy and fun pop-punk sound fit the night oh so very perfectly. The band had two sets, each consisting of about three songs, and they definitely made each of those songs count. I loved the way that they performed a Paramore cover because I feel like it was their way of relating to people in the audience who may be there more for the wrestling than the music, but, at the same time, this band’s sound is strong enough that I don’t think they needed the cover song. There was so much going on throughout the night, but Cheap Bouquet held their own and definitely proved that they were the perfect pick for this event.

There were many surprises on Friday night. Some of those surprises were in the form of upsets and triumphs. Others were in the form of familiar faces showing up without much notice (such as Eddie Kingston of AEW fame). I won’t list off all of the winners and losers of the night because, as in the past, that’s just not the point of this event for me, but I will say that I am excited to see what Saturday night holds, as I will be doing this all over again for a second night. I can not wait and hope to see you there!

Line Up:

F1rst Wrestling

Cheap Bouquet

Venue: First Avenue

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd: 42

Crowd Surfers- 0

Stage Divers- Do Wrestlers Leaping From The Top Rope Count?

Mosh-ability- 0 out of 10

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

Broken Bones- None Noticed

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Wrestlers!

Fights- None

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)-

Cheap Bouquet – 3

Show on Deck — bathtub cig / Kiernan / Nona Invie // WREMIX featuring Gully Boys

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