Atmosphere

[caption id="attachment_576142" align="aligncenter" width="513"] Brother Ali performing at the Fifth Element stage[/caption] Soundset's perennial success might come as a surprise to the casual onlooker, but anyone digging deeper knows the stalwart power of what it means to those who keep attending. Minnesota would seem like an odd place for one of the world's top hip-hop festivals, yet Rhymesayers (our local label) has found the terrain quite fertile. Soundset year upon year keeps springing forth a complete ecosystem of hip-hop that's...

October will bring a thrilling pair of back-to-back concerts presented by 89.3 the Current into First Ave's mainroom. Grieves, one of my favorite artists from Rhymesayers, Minnesota's greatest hip hop label, will be unleashing songs from his hypnotically original album Winter & the Wolves onto downtown Minneapolis. Grieves, who is originally from Washington state, will be joined by Soulcrate (of Sioux Falls, SD) for his show on October 10th. "...

[caption id="attachment_263283" align="aligncenter" width="540"] Cypress Hill embodied many of the day's themes.[/caption] Sunday's weather proved that perfection in Minnesota May is possible. The state's largest music festival deserved the lucky break; unlike the chilly Soundset of 2013 or the heat followed by the tornado of 2012, the only seasonal question fans had to answer was how much sunscreen to put on (answer: not much). The sold-out event, which celebrated its seventh year, has been growing despite numerous set backs over its short run. This year, the problems proved to be merely minor inconveniences; the show has hit its stride.

The Price of Success

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One of Minnesota’s largest music events is just around the corner. If you like hip-hop, the outdoors, large crowds and beer, then Soundset is for you. The event is in Shakopee, MN at Canterbury Park, rain or shine. The gates open at 11 am and stay open until 8:30 pm. On Sunday, May 25th, Memorial Weekend will host a multi-concert event that will cap off the long weekend.

With general admission at the reasonable price of $55, audiences will get to hear the beats of major headliners such as resident hip-hop artists...

Monday night at First Avenue saw the conclusion of the 2014 Welcome to MN tour. A week back I interviewed Slug about this "homecoming" tour -- though some may have had off Monday for Presidents' Day, they likely didn't have off Tuesday, but that reality didn't dampen the party vibe one bit. By the time Atmosphere took the stage around 10:30 pm, the mainroom was drunk, figuratively and literally. Slug, dressed in a long puffy winter coat, casually sauntered on stage...