Music

Swing Revival Revival

January 8th, 2018

The Squirrel Nut Zippers I missed much of the 90’s, especially the late part. It’s a cultural blank space for me thanks to my undue sense of superiority. I dismissed all things popular. Nothing had cultural merit unless I knew about if before you did and I would’ve loved to have discussed it with you in exhausting detail.

The “swing revival” was one of those things. I’d see scores of weekend-only high school kids at punk shows wearing hats incorrectly thought to be fedoras, atop ill-fitting suits…

Having a Chuckle in Fargo

December 27th, 2017

Chuckle - photograph courtesy of Travis Gilbertson The San Haven Chuckle have been a long-time fixture in the Fargo music scene. I remember seeing them shortly after I first moved to Fargo, a little over seven years ago. As a matter of fact, the band has been around for twelve years. Despite the fact that I’ve had the honor of calling them friends for some time, surprisingly it is only now that I find myself writing an article about them. Recently I had the opportunity to sit down for an interview with a couple of members of the…

The making of ‘Midwest MixTape’

December 13th, 2017

“The DIY scene welcomed me in at the age of 15 and I never left. The DIY scene has allowed me to travel to 49 of the 50 US states. I have made friends all over this country that I will have for the rest of my life. People involved in DIY music care.” says Mike Hansen, the man behind the See You Never label.

He continued, “We really care about the music. It’s not about money, it’s a community that helps each other out and supports each others projects. Everything my bands have…

From the basement: Best of 2017

December 13th, 2017

Heavy music in 2017 was a bit of a disappointment in my eyes, as some of the genres I love have become greatly oversaturated, and as a result stale and boring to my ears (Stoner Rock, Doom, and Sludge).

Black Metal also, which started as a breath of fresh air, has devolved into hundreds of copycat artists that do not look at attempting anything outside of the tried and true formula.

In some ways Vinyl collection has seemed to jump start the music industry while on the other hand it has…

Big band meets the big stage at FMCT

December 6th, 2017

ae@ndsuspectrum.com

This holiday season, the Fargo-Moorhead Community Theatre is bringing nostalgia to their stage in their adaptation of the 1979 musical, “The 1940s Radio Hour.”

Set in 1942, Radio Hour centers on the small radio station WOV in New York, which is recording a special broadcast for the soldiers overseas. The cast and crew of WOV are a hodgepodge of characters, including a haggard producer, a drunken lead singer and the delivery boy who dreams of singing in the…

Barbershop chorus goes international

November 29th, 2017

Fargo-Moorhead’s barbershop chorus, Great Plains Harmony (GPH) has earned a spot in the prestigious and competitive Barbershop Harmony Society International Competition in Orlando, Florida in July 2018. They will be competing against 30 choruses from around the world.

To earn this honor, the GPH competed against 18 other barbershop choruses from three states and two Canadian provinces at the Land O’ Lakes District competition in October.

This is only the third time in 67 years GPH…

Redemption songs

November 24th, 2017

Jon Wayne and Thom Wilder bring a story of redemption back to Fargo

“He can’t remember every single detail of his past few months, but he knows this makes three times this summer alone that he’s overdosed. But there’s no celebration in cheating death, no victory dance or celebratory lap. Maybe there’s no victory to celebrate. Maybe, deep down, he wants the easy way out.” -Thom Wilder in “One More Trip: Jon Wayne’s Journey from Addiction to Redemption.”

It’s been…

Punk rock puppets and technical difficulties

November 16th, 2017

I’m told that there is nothing quite like a live Green Jelly show, where anarchy and foam puppets reign. So perhaps it’s in the spirit of the upcoming show that my intended interview with the mastermind and vocalist behind the band, Bill Manspeaker, went off the rails.

The intent was for me to fire off some questions to Bill on Cam Dewald’s KRFF radio show. Cam, as well as being the bassist for local death metal outfit Gorgatron, is also a part-time drummer and bassist for Green…

Pert Near: Perfect.

November 15th, 2017

Cut a rug and your teeth with these American Roots animals.

Pert Near Sandstone is a musical thunderstorm. The energy held within their music can only be matched by nature. As the melody swells you know you’re watching something amazing and that it’s unique and breathtaking.

This is a band that must be experienced live.

Their most unique asset is their percussion section, or the lack thereof. In lieu of a traditional drum kit, all the demonstratively rhythmic action is produced by…

Blue Gritt : Blues rock and hand-built amps

November 9th, 2017

“When you’re involved in a song and just everything is going great, you can hear it,” says Blue Gritt drummer Ross Cariveau, “Everyone’s playing great. There’s a pocket or a bubble that you’re in and you always want to be there, but you can’t find it all the time. When we can find it we don’t ever want to leave it.”

According to guitarist Maurice “Mo” Skogen, “The hardest part with singing and playing an instrument is finding a song that puts my hands on…