Music

​Sarah Neufeld to play at the Aquarium

March 30th, 2016

With the many projects violinist Sarah Neufeld is involved in, it’s hard for her to catch a break from it all and do her own thing. But with her two bands — Arcade Fire and instrumental band Bell Orchestre — taking some time off, she finally has time to do a proper tour for her second solo album.

Released Feb. 26, “The Ridge” builds on Neufeld’s sound by adding more instrumentation and stepping more into pop minimalism than her violin-centric 2013 release “Hero Brother.”

This…

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​Egypt takes flight

March 24th, 2016

Egypt had broken up, but their self‐titled EP of demos spread across the globe and the stoner rock band acquired metal fans they weren’t even aware of through word of mouth alone.

Now, having been reunited for close to six years, the band has just released their second full‐length album “Endless Flight” and will be flying to Europe where they have a number of dates lined up, including slots at DesertFest in both London and Berlin.

“That self‐titled record we put out a long time…

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​Greensky Bluegrass’s Michael Bont talks success and improvisation

March 16th, 2016

Greensky Bluegrass’s Michael Bont talks success and improvisation

By Jamie Hutchinson

jamie@hpr1.com

The success of Greensky Bluegrass in the past few years has led to sold out shows across the country as they’ve shared their love of bluegrass and jam band music, hitting up the summer festival circuit and even headlining at Colorado’s Red Rock Amphitheater.

But while the band plays traditional bluegrass instruments and bluegrass is in the name of the band, don’t refer to them as a…

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​VII-VII-VII: The Neighborhood of the Beast

March 7th, 2016

It’s been five years since guitarist Gary Holt joined Slayer, but their latest album “Repentless” is the first time he’s had the chance to appear on one of their albums and he gave it his all, shredding so hard he blew out his left wrist. Yet even with tendinitis, he kept playing.

“I fought through it ’cause it was hurting when I was doing it, but it felt like I was in the flow and I would just keep going,” says Holt the afternoon before the start of their North American…

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​DylanFest to revisit Broadway

February 25th, 2016

Merrill Piepkorn isn’t the biggest Bob Dylan fan. He finds Dylan’s trademark nasally voice difficult to understand and as a harmonica player himself, he dislikes Dylan’s handling of the instrument, which he admits are limited by the harness Dylan wears.

“I always looked at Bob Dylan and his talent from kind of tunnel vision as a harmonica player and it’s not that great,” says Piepkorn, who has played in country western and blues groups since about 1972.

But it was through…

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​Rogue Valley Moves on to the Next Season

February 22nd, 2016

It’s been almost five years since Minneapolis band Rogue Valley released their last album “False Floors,” which marked the end of a yearlong effort to release four concept albums based on the seasons of the year.

The success of the albums and their live performances can be measured by the number of songs they’ve had featured in television shows and movies, with their song “The Wolves and the Raven” being featured in the Ben Stiller-starring drama “The Secret Life of Walter…

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S​till: Beautiful noise

February 19th, 2016

by Ben Rheault

Fargo has a bit of a reputation for noise. Whether it’s the bands of yesteryear like GodheadSilo and Hammerhead or more recent projects such as Manchester Buldge and Monowolf. Still falls in between both extremes. On one end of the spectrum, there is this distorted albeit beautiful music, and on the other a cacophony of noise that threatens to obscure it, but winds up highlighting it. There has never been anything like it here before.

I sat down with Chris Marteny…

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​19 Years of Celebrating Women and their Music

February 18th, 2016

By David McCoy

Following their successful showcase in December, Deborah Jenkins’ brainchild The Celebration of Women and their Music, is back for their 19th year of inspiring and entertaining the Fargo community. This year they have three days dedicated to the musical celebration that honors women in the performing arts.

The Celebration of Women and their Music was founded by chef and renowned blues singer, Deborah Jenkins. The show was made to recognize the creative passion and…

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​A Step in the Right Direction

February 17th, 2016

photo by Kaytlin Darger

Since its inception in 2011, The New Direction has played an important role in the FM music scene. It’s a community-minded, all-ages venue with a strong DIY aesthetic. New Direction Fest started as a way to stay open during a slow month in their inaugural year. Since then the three-day extravaganza gained the moniker New Direction Fest. HPR had the opportunity to speak with Jack Stenerson, the man behind the venue.


High Plains Reader: How did the New Direction come to be and how has it…

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​Wrekmeister Harmonies and Bell Witch bring the noise

February 16th, 2016

Since their first recording in 2009, drone band Wrekmeister Harmonies has offered an ever-growing collaboration between musicians from numerous bands. Their latest release, “Night of Your Ascension,” has a cast of over 30 musicians with members coming from bands such as Indian, Cave and The Body.

The Chicago collective will play the Aquarium along with Seattle doom band Bell Witch on Feb. 19. Unlike the large ensemble which plays on their records, this will be a lighter version of…

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