The origins of the classic-sounding folk-pop duo Storyhill stretch back more than two decades to Bozeman, Montana, the hometown of Chris Cunningham and John Hermanson. They haven't always been together since those early high school years, but often enough to have built a cult following thanks to their striking, close-harmony vocals, warmly engaging acoustic guitar work, and songs that make profound points with artful, economic use of language tied to strong melodies. Cunningham lives back in Bozeman, while Hermanson settled in the Twin Cities, also playing with the Hopefuls and Alva Star. This Guthrie show will celebrate the release of Shade of the Trees, the pair's second album on Red House, a spare but eloquent collection produced by Dan Wilson, who crafted a timeless ambiance using only the guitars and a single mic shared by both singers. Thus hints abound of the Everly Brothers, Simon and Garfunkel, early Jayhawks. The new songs, meanwhile, tackle grand themes of life and death, love and hate, loyalty and betrayal, war and salvation, but always on an intimate scale, their metaphors as earthy as their music. $20. 7:30 p.m. 818 S. Second St., Minneapolis; 612.377.2224. —Rick Mason
King Sunny Ade and the African Beats
Location Info
Map
Fitzgerald Theater
10 E. Exchange St.
St. Paul, MN 55101
Category: Theaters
Region: St. Paul (Downtown)
|
0 user reviews
|
Write A Review |
| Save to foursquare |
|
Related Content
More About
The Cedar
Not only does Nigerian guitarist, singer, and bandleader Sunny Ade have genuine royal blood flowing in his veins, he's the undisputed king of juju, whose joyful, simmering grooves are so infectious it seems entire continents could pick up on its delicious sway. Juju marries traditional Yoruban elements—particularly talking drums and lyrical concerns—with western instruments, most prominently guitars. Ade plays his electric with a distinctly percussive, chattering style whose sinuous, scintillating lines wind their way among effervescent clouds of polyrhythms, bubbling keyboards, and multiple vocalists engaging in sharp call-and-response exchanges—all just part of the teeming activity within his typically large ensembles. When the concept of world music was still a novelty in the late '70s and early '80s, Ade and his Beats were among the first bands to make a significant stateside impression. They still sound fresh and intoxicating. $35/$37 at the door. 7 p.m. 416 Cedar Ave. S., Minneapolis; 612.338.2674. —Rick Mason
MONDAY 4.19
Baby Dee
The Cedar
Baby Dee's biography is about as colorful as it gets. A transgender songstress, she has served as a music director for a Catholic church in the Bronx, joined the circus as a bilateral hermaphrodite at Coney Island, and traveled to Europe as part of the Kamikaze Freak Show. Yet Dee, for all her bawdy backstory, is above all a uniquely gifted musician, a classically trained harpist who is equally adept at playing tunes on an accordion. Most distinctive is her voice, an aching, supernatural instrument that quivers and bellows with a fragile beauty reminiscent of Antony Hegarty. Such talents have brought Dee into collaboration with artists as far-ranging as Will Oldham and Andrew W.K., but when she opened for the Books last fall her performance was something of a shock. While her name may be a little more familiar this time around, the overall effect is unlikely to be much changed. With Dreamland Faces. All ages. $12/$15 at the door. 7 p.m. 416 Cedar Ave. S., Minneapolis; 612.338.2674. —Jeff Gage
TUESDAY 4.20
The Anoushka Shankar Project
Dakota Jazz Club
The daughter of sitar icon and global superstar Ravi Shankar, Anoushka Shankar has followed her father's lead in more ways than one. She studied at the master's knee since she was nine and established herself as a virtuoso in Indian classical music well before her 20th birthday in 1991. She performed mainly as a soloist, while also dabbling in acting. But she really asserted her own musical identity on her 2005 album, Rise, assembling a band and writing original music that fused Indian music with western pop, folk, funk, and contemporary dance rhythms. She further upped the ante on the follow-up, 2007's Breathing Under Water, with starkly modern electronica flirting with classical Indian bits, and such high profile guests as Ravi, Sting, and half-sister Norah Jones. It's music that flows from contemplative to atmospheric to jazzy improvisation to whiplash solos that burn with rock-like energy to steamy stuff that'll pack the dance floor. The Project features a mix of acoustic and electric, eastern and western instruments, and includes fabulous flautist Ravichandra Kulur and tabla ace Tanmoy Bose. $45 at 7 p.m.; $35 at 9:30 p.m. 1010 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis; 612.332.1010. —Rick Mason
-
Voice Places
Find everything you're looking for in your city
-
Happy Hour App
Find the best happy hour deals in your city
-
Daily Deals
Get today's exclusive deals at savings of anywhere from 50-90%
-
Best Of...
Check out the hottest list of places and things to do around your city
- Profile
- Newsletters
- Mobile
- Logout