September 3rd, 2015
A few years ago, in a now-famous appearance on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” comedian Louis C.K. went on a tangent that decried us as a society for griping about our #firstworldproblems. In the skit, he claimed that “everything is amazing, and nobody’s happy,” pointing out that we’re more irritated that we can’t reliably get Wi-Fi on a plane than we are astounded by the mere fact that we have pocket-sized devices that allow us to speak, in real time, to somebody a…
September 3rd, 2015
In 2004 Chris Lindstrom and his bandmate Chris Moore wanted to throw a party -- a BIG party. Both were active in the music scene and the idea of a battle of the bands came about. Add a $10 30 pack of Hamm’s as an entry fee, enter 10 bands and the Battle of the Hamm’s was born. The victor would collect all the beer, be king of the after party and win a custom-made championship belt made of the finest cardboard and duct tape money could buy.
A few months ago Lindstrom was having a…
August 26th, 2015
I’ve tried hard to source it, but Google fails me. The first review I ever read of Andrew Wilkes-Krier’s massively successful debut album, "I Get Wet," went on and on about how brazenly and cleverly dumb it was. Many reviews did at the time. I can’t remember if this was before or after Pitchfork moaned “Alright, this is bullshit” and gave the album a 0.6 out of 10 (not everyone knew what to make of the guy, and probably still don’t).
At any rate, this forgotten review from…
August 26th, 2015
When bluegrass musician Becky Buller returns to North Dakota this Sunday, what she’s really hoping for is rhubarb pie.
“I am trying to grow some rhubarb down here in Tennessee but it’s so hot that it doesn’t do very well,” she said to HPR.
Perhaps she’ll get a slice at her upcoming concert at Crooked Lane Farms in Colfax, N.D. Buller will be one of the most significant acts to perform at the one-of-a-kind…
August 19th, 2015
The New Direction opened as Fargo-Moorhead’s only full time all-ages D.I.Y. punk venue almost 5 years ago in downtown Fargo by a group of local musicians and promoters hoping to have a steady place to host bands for kids. While punk and hardcore music are its main sources of music, the venue is really open to letting anyone come in and use the space for any type of genre of music.
As college students return to town, we thought it would…
August 19th, 2015
There’s a deep satisfaction I take in the fact that Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats’ self-titled debut comes courtesy of the revitalized Stax Records imprint, a label that historically pumped out album after soaked-brow album by the likes of Otis Redding, Booker T & the MGs and Sam & Dave until folding in the mid-’70s. The label’s 21st century reboot signifies the unassailable place that soul music has carved out within the canon of popular American music, evident in the…
August 14th, 2015
Canadian blues virtuoso Jack Semple is one of Friday’s Fargo Blues Festival headliners. This will be the award-winning, veteran guitarist’s first show ever in North Dakota.
HPR: You definitely have different elements of style represented in your music, but you describe blues as your “center of gravity.” Why keep blues as your “center”?
Jack Semple: I grew up on a farm in Saskatchewan, which is probably very similar to people who grew up on farms in North Dakota. You know,…
August 14th, 2015
Dan Bredell has a hard job.
The Fargo Blues Festival executive director listened to 200 acts over six months in advance of the 20th annual Fargo Blues Festival, set for this Friday and Saturday at Newman Outdoor Field. Making choices on groups can be hard, he said, especially with just 12 slots to fill.
“We always take pride in having good bands, beginning to end,” Bredell said.
Fargo Blues Festival rarely brings back artists from…
August 5th, 2015
In the two years that Redline has been a band, it has performed at WE Fest, Ribfest and Red River Valley Fair in support of national acts like Joe Nichols, Hunter Hayes and Phil Vassar.
Although the band is young, the players are veterans. Bassist Nathan Stang is a former member of 32 Below and Fat Daddys. Guitarist/vocalist Joe Dretsch played in the band 8th Hour and is also currently in the Lars and Joe Pony…
August 5th, 2015
No matter how many creative ways musicians have released their work into the wild listening world – surprise releases, pay-what-you-want downloads, hidden records in upholstered furniture, etc. – it still comes almost infallibly in one of three denominations:
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Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.com A midnight wedding ceremony at the Clay County Courthouse in Moorhead on August 1, 2013 was more than a romantic gesture. Eighteen couples made history on that day by exchanging vows in the…
By Michael M. Millermichael.miller@ndsu.edu On March 11, 2024, we celebrated the 121st birthday of bandleader Lawrence Welk. He was born March 11, 1903 in a sod house near Strasburg, North Dakota, and died on May 17,1992. The…
Saturday, May 117 p.m., gates at 5 p.m.Outdoors at Fargo Brewing Company610 University Dr. N, FargoWisconsin’s finest export, The Violent Femmes, started out in Milwaukee in 1981 as an acoustic punk band, and they’ve been…
Is this a repeating pattern?By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comThere’s a quote circulating around the world wide web, misattributed to Sinclair Lewis: "When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a…
by Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comAccording to my great-grandfather many years ago, my French ancestors migrated from Normandy to Quebec to Manitoba to Wisconsin to Minnesota over the spread of more than two centuries, finally…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com In this land of hotdish and ham, the knoephla soup of German-Russian heritage seems to reign supreme. In my opinion though, the French have the superior soup. With a cheesy top layer, toasted baguette…
By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.com It is not unheard of for bands to go on hiatus. However, as the old saying goes, “Absence makes the heart grow fonder.” That is why when a local group like STILL comes back to…
Now playing at the Fargo Theatre.By Greg Carlson gregcarlson1@gmail.comPalme d’Or recipient “Anatomy of a Fall” is now enjoying an award-season victory tour, recently picking up Golden Globe wins for both screenplay and…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com There’s no exaggeration when we say that this year’s Plains Art Gala is going to be out of this world, with a sci-fi theme inspired by a painting housed in the Plains Art Museum’s permanent…
By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comHigh Plains Reader had the opportunity to interview two mysterious new game show hosts named Milt and Bradley Barker about an upcoming event they will be putting on at Brewhalla. What…
By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…
By John Showalter john.d.showalter@gmail.comThey sell fentanyl test strips and kits to harm-reduction organizations and…
JANUARY 19, 1967– MARCH 8, 2023 Brittney Leigh Goodman, 56, of Fargo, N.D., passed away unexpectedly at her home on March 8, 2023. Brittney was born January 19, 1967, to Ruth Wilson Pollock and Donald Ray Goodman, in Hardinsburg,…
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Dismissing the value of small towns for the future of our nation is a mistakeBy Bill Oberlanderarcandburn@gmail.comAccording to U.S. Census projections, by the middle of this century, roughly 90% of the total population will live…
