Girl at the Rock Shows

I had to miss two days of shows because I was sick. It nearly killed me. Okay, I’m being dramatic, but they were two shows that I really wanted to see, but my body had different plans for me, which included nothing more than cat cuddles and sleeping. Come Wednesday night, I was over it. I took a half day off work because I couldn’t sit at my desk anymore, and I went home to sleep. I woke up after a six-hour coma, still not feeling great but feeling ridiculously restless and ready for the feeling of live music. Was going to a show on Wednesday night my best idea? Probably not, but I wasn’t about to let another amazing show pass me by, and I knew, from past experience, that Wednesday night’s show at The Green Room in Minneapolis was not one I was willing to miss, regardless of how broken my body felt.

The intimate two-story venue was packed by the time opening act Wynchester took the stage. A duo made up of Mike Bray and John Konesky from California, the comparisons between Wynchester and Tenacious D were abundantly clear from the get-go of their set. I feel like that’s a cop-out, though, since there aren’t many acts doing this whole comedy-meets-music thing that are as well known as Tenacious D, but the connection goes deeper than that. It’s in the sound and the spirit of it, and within just a song or two, I realized that I had seen Wynchester once before and, imagine that, it was when they opened for Tenacious D at The Palace Theatre in Saint Paul back in 2019.

Although armed with just two microphones and two guitars, Wynchester instantly filled the entire room with their sound and charisma. When it comes to the style of this duo, it’s very country-esque. It’s rootsy and rocky, with a vibrant hue of singer-songwriter cast over it all, but also with an edge that feels a bit more like a punk band than anything else. If I’m being honest, their overall sound and style aren’t quite my cup of tea. It’s just a bit too, well, country, but the banter between these two men and the audience was perfect. Their cover of R. Kelly’s “Ignition (Remix)” definitely helped, along with them calling out the rapper for being terrible but admitting that nobody can deny that the song is a certified banger. Between that and the sheer talent showcased throughout their set, Wynchester’s time on stage was short and sweet, and the perfect way to set the stage for what was coming next.

I wandered into a Wolves of Glendale show back in February 2024, and it changed my life. Okay, maybe it didn’t change my life, but I remember laughing to the point where I almost peed my pants, and no, that’s not me being dramatic. I was instantly in love with the fun-loving vibe and the hilarity that ensued during that set and was determined to catch them again next time they came to town. I’m not sure if Wednesday night was truly the next time they came to town after that, or if I missed a show or two, but all I know is that I was excited to finally get to witness their genius again.

Never heard of Wolves of Glendale? Totally cool, and I totally get it. Honestly, I feel like they are super underground but with a cult-like following. I’m also willing to bet that you know who this is. Have you seen those CarMax commercials lately? You know that “CarMax House Band” that sings snappy little jingles and adds hilarious commentary to the car-shopping journey shown in the commercials? That’s Wolves of Glendale. Although some people call them the “CarMax Band,” many know them only as Wolves of Glendale, and they came out of the woodwork Thursday night to not only fill the space but also add a super excited atmosphere to an already electric night.

Wolves of Glendale kicked their set off with “Vapin’ In Vegas,” a song that proves nothing really stays in Vegas and shows the wild imagination that makes this band such a stand-out act. It was instant hilarity. The audience seemed split down the middle between people singing along and people just standing there, laughing as they tried to take in all the stories in their songs. Either way, everyone in the room had a smile on their face instantly, and those smiles never left. If anything, they grew bigger with every passing song and every passing antic of this band.

Truthfully, I didn’t make it to the end of this set. I knew that staying up late would be the worst idea, as I was still trying to kick whatever plague had gotten a hold of me earlier in the week, and with a vacation coming up hot in just a couple of days, I knew I needed to fully kick whatever this was before jumping on a plane, but I did have a chance to see the electric connection that this band has with their audience along with their sheer talent. Wolves of Glendale shouted out to the audience, asking who had the crappiest car of them all. It didn’t take long for them to hone in on an audience member who told them about her old Ford EcoSport that had a giant dent down the side of it from where she hit a pole when leaving work. This little story quickly turned into a catchy little song that the band created and performed right there on the spot. Look, freestyling like this is nothing new. I know that. But there was something just so perfect about how all three members of this band instantly knew what to do and turned this small little moment into a truly catchy song. As guitarist/keyboardist Tom McGovern pointed out, the band is currently on tour to promote their brand-new album ‘Go to the Woods!’ Although they were going to play a bunch of songs from that album that the band had spent a lot of time creating and perfecting, the only thing the audience was going to remember was “Ford EcoSport,” and, truthfully, he wasn’t wrong. Between that honesty and the callbacks to that song throughout the set, it was a super memorable little bop that I think should be on their next album.

I hate the fact that I couldn’t stick it through for the whole show, as I’m sure I missed some brilliant moments. I wonder if the band did the audience-called-out mashups where they take a song and cover it in the style of someone completely different, all picked by suggestions shouted from the crowd. That being said, I know my limits, and I was just so happy to have been able to catch even a little bit of this show because it helped snap me out of my sick-induced haze and start getting me back into reality. I woke up on Thursday morning feeling worlds better. Maybe it was taking the afternoon off and having an epic six hours of uninterrupted sleep, or maybe it was the energy and positivity that I got from this show and the sheer healing powers of Wolves of Glendale. I’m going with the latter.

Line Up:

Wynchester

Wolves of Glendale

Venue: Green Room

Smell-O-Meter: Nothing Notable

Average Age of the Crowd: 25

Crowd Surfers- 0

Stage Divers- 0

Dance-ability- 3 out of 10

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

Broken Bones- None

Spotted Flying Through The Air- Nothing

Fights- None

Pukers- 0

Passed Out People- 0

Celebrity Sightings – Member of Space Monkey Mafia

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

Wynchester – 1

Wolves of Glendale – 1

Show on Deck – clovers daughter / Call Me Fritz / Bright Young Things

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