Best Minneapolis Concerts of 2013
I love Minneapolis and its always awesome local and national music scene. In 2013, I was graced with the opportunity to shoot a few of the biggest bands in rock, with plenty of smaller club acts mixed in. Here is my end of the year top 10 list of favorite shows I photographed this year. Cheers to 2014!
- Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers at Target Center, June 29 – What an unbelievable rock-n-roll show this band puts on. The members may have aged like the rest of us, but they are still playing like they are in their prime. For this tour, Petty reached deeper into his library and played songs he hasn’t played live in years. It was still the hits like “Mary Jane’s Last Dance”, “Free Fallin'”, and “American Girl” that brought the house down. This show was a ridiculous amount of fun. And I feel so incredibly honored to have finally photographed these Rock-n-Roll Hall of Famers.
- Jim James at First Avenue, April 21 – By the end of the opening track “State Of The Art (A.E.I.O.U)”, which is also opens James’ first solo album Regions of Light and Sound of God, I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. The rest of this show was equally amazing with the dapper-dressed James gliding across the stage all evening. His backing band was spot on, and I’m not sure I’ve ever heard First Avenue sound so good and pure. We even got to hear James play “Wonderful”, the only My Morning Jacket song played all night. I remember in 2008 how excited I was to photograph My Morning Jacket at the Orpheum Theatre. Photographing Jim James at First Avenue on this night was equally awesome. What a gem of a show!
- The National at Roy Wilkins Auditorium, August 6, – On tour to support their 2013 release, Trouble Will Find Me, The National plowed through a dark and beautiful set to a nearly sold out Roy Wilkins Auditorium. This was my first time seeing the band, and it was all I expected, and then some. The tunes off of their 2010 masterpiece High Violet stood out the most to me, especially “Terrible Love” during the encore. Outside on this night, St. Paul was hit by a very powerful thunderstorm. Inside of Roy Wilkins Auditorium, The National brought equal intensity. It was a beautiful show, and the UK band Daughter who opened, were also excellent.
- Django Django at First Avenue, March 16 – This show took me by surprise. With a thumping tempo full of percussive goodness, the UK band Django Django, rocked my socks off. While their debut album self-titled album is solid, the live versions of those tunes sounded outstanding. It was extremely dark in First Avenue with only a few projected lights hitting the stage. The atmosphere was a bit outlandish, and that made the music hit even harder. I’m very proud of Minneapolis for filling the mainroom for the Django Django’s first stop in town. They truly deserved it.
- Soundgarden at Orpheum Theatre, February 2 – For the first time in nearly twenty years, Seattle grunge-rockers Soundgarden played in the Twin Cities. And from the beginning of this stellar performance, they sounded as great as ever. Soundgarden rocked for well over two hours, hitting on songs from their beginnings, up to their most recent release, King Animal. It was wonderful being in the photo pit for this one, getting blasted in the chest by their powerful rock sound.
- Muse at Target Center, March 7 – Muse is one of the biggest rock bands on the planet, and it was truly an honor to photograph them. How a 3-piece can produce such a huge anthemic sound still astounds me, but Muse does it with ease. Their stage setup for this tour in support of their 2012 album 2nd Law was massive, very spacey, and had stellar lighting. It was a pleasure chasing singer / guitarist Matthew Bellamy as he strolled around the stage shredding. I’m not sure how it sounded from the back of the arena, but from up front, it hit hard and was fantastic.
- Sigur Rós at Roy Wilkins Auditorium, April 3 – On more than one occasion during this concert I nearly cried. And I wasn’t the only one, as several people around me in the crowd were shedding tears. There is something about the ethereal sound of the Icelandic band Sigur Rós that will do that to you. Photographing this show was a challenge, as there was only access for two songs and I was stuck in the left front and couldn’t move within the pit. I was still able to capture some shots, but in the end, this one was better seen from a distance. Once I was in the crowd, the dramatic lighting and beautiful landscape video scenes moving behind the band really set the ambience. Their sound is emotional, and this show left me feeling very appreciative for the human experience.
- Paramore at Roy Wilkins Auditorium, November 23 – I will admit that I never really got into Paramore, and was mostly at this show for Metric. But upon leaving, I was quite happy to have finally seen and photographed Paramore, and their very photogenic and energetic lead singer Hayley Williams. Their set was high-power from the start with a pounding rhythm section and Hayley flying around the stage. Metric played before Paramore, and absolutely rocked as they always do. Singer, Emily Haines, is very photogenic herself, and Metric’s nearly hour-long set was worth the price of the ticket alone.
- Umphrey’s McGee at Cabooze Outdoor Plaza, July 5 – I’ve seen the progressive-rock band Umphrey’s McGee well over twenty times now, and this was the best Minneapolis show that they have played in several years. Their annual run at First Avenue is always something I look forward to, but it’s hard to compare to seeing them outside on a warm summer evening. And they brought the heat to this show, with a fantastic set that included keyboardist Joel Cummins absolutely nailing an extended piano solo in “Thin Air” during the first set. The second set included a cover of “Heart and Soul” by Huey Lewis, as well as a thundering and very danceable “The Triple Wide” to close out the night. As always, lighting designer Jefferson Waful makes Umphrey’s McGee a huge pleasure to photograph and see.
- The Postal Service at Roy Wilkins Auditorium, August 2 – I remember in 2003 when an ex-girlfriend gave me a copy of Give Up. At the time I thought the digital drums and overall sound was pure rubbish. But after a while it grew on me, and to finally see The Postal Service some ten years later was a true pleasure. It was ten years since The Postal Service last played in the Twin Cities as well, making this show extra unique. Jenny Lewis looked and sounded great, and from beginning to end the band made the normally acoustically-unfriendly Roy Wilkins Auditorium sound pleasant. There were a lot of strobes lights making photography a little tricky, but I am very glad I witnessed this show.
Great shows I saw but didn’t have photo passes for
- Father John Misty at First Avenue, May 21 – There is a spot in my heart for Father John Misty. The 2012 album Fear Fun is a masterpiece, and I am very lucky to have seen the band at 7th Street Entry that year. J. Tillman is no stranger to Minneapolis having played here many times since then. This First Avenue show in 2013 was good, but nothing will match the first time I saw this band play.
- AmericanaramA at Midway Stadium, July 10 – Bob Dylan, Wilco, My Morning Jacket, and Richard Thompson Trio on one bill, yes please! I was here mostly for Wilco and My Morning Jacket, and both put on stellar sets. Here is a video of My Morning Jacket playing “Wonderful” with local heroes Trampled by Turtles. What a beautiful summer day this was in St. Paul.
- Metric at Rock the Garden, June 15 – Metric made a lot of new fans on this day. Their headlining performance at Rock the Garden was incredible, with a good majority of the 10,000 in attendance rocking along to their blistering set, feet soaked deep in mud from the early-day torrential rains or not. Silversun Pickups also put on a fantastic rock set in the slot before Metric.
Other notables
- Passion Pit at Orpheum Theater in Madison, WI, February 23 – I shot my first show in Madison and it was a great night. Swedish dance duo Icona Pop were amazing. But Matt & Kim totally stole the show. I love that band.
- James Blake at First Avenue, May 1 – English electronic singer/songwriter James Blake puts on a fantastic show, and he’s still only 25 years old. He will be around for a while and that is a very good thing.
- Oh Land at Varsity Theatre, October 9 – This super cute Danish pop songstress is incredibly fun with an upbeat danceable electronic sound. At one point during this show she held my hand for like 10 seconds which I thoroughly enjoyed!
Previous Best of Lists
So what were your favorite concerts of 2013?
