Tony Nelson

T.I. at Epic, 4/19/13

T.I. Epic, Minneapolis Friday, April 19, 2013 Some nights you walk into a club wondering if an MC is still relevant. Then you watch a 32-year-old pro blast through more than two dozen songs in a little more than an hour, flaunting a nimble flow and basking comfortably in the familiarity of his hits ... More >>

Are You Local? at Mill City Nights, 3/1/2013

Are You Local? With Solid Gold, Sims, Wiping Out Thousands, L'Assassins, Carroll, Bad Bad Hats, Audio PermMill City Nights, MinneapolisFriday, March 1, 2013The Twin Cities takes a lot of pride in their local music scene -- and much of that pride is warranted. Sifted from a group of 223 entries, Bad ... More >>

Street Hassle: Ten years is about four months of actual practice

Things get better with time, and so has Minneapolis band Street Hassle. The group has been together for ten-plus years, but are just now releasing their debut album. How do they describe their sound? Rock, indie, garage? No need to categorize the band, but their new album Feeling Machine creates a s ... More >>

The Current's 8th Birthday Party, Night One, 1/18/13

The Current's 8th Birthday Party, Night One Featuring the 4onthefloor, the Twin Cities Funk and Soul All-Stars, Chastity Brown, and John Mark Nelson (with special guests Nicholas David and Zach Sobiech) First Avenue, Minneapolis Friday, January 18, 2013 While the Current's 8th Birthday party lacked ... More >>

The Last Waltz Tribute at the Cabooze, 1/4/13

By Tony NelsonLast Waltz TributeThe Cabooze, MinneapolisFriday, January 4, 2013Billing themselves as Big Pink, local music vests Rob Hilstrom, Jon Herchert, Chad Whittaker, Dave Russ and Pete Sands became the Band to host the 8th Annual Tribute to the Last Waltz, the Band's 1976 farewell concert tha ... More >>

KDWB's Jingle Ball at Xcel Energy Center, 12/4/12

KDWB's Jingle Ball With Psy, Train, Ed Sheeran, One Republic, Owl City, Cher Lloyd, Ellie Goulding, and Conor MaynardXcel Energy Center, St. PaulTuesday, December 4, 2012If a venue hands out earplugs as you are walking in, make sure you take them and use them. With as many screaming tweens as there ... More >>

Cold Specks at Cedar Cultural Center, 11/28/12

By Tony NelsonCold SpecksCedar Cultural Center, MinneapolisWednesday, November 28, 2012 Cold Specks, the British-based act led by the Toronto-raised singer Al Spx, returned to the Cedar Cultural Center as a full band Wednesday night, having been an opening act there earlier in the year as a much sma ... More >>

Journey, Pat Benatar and Loverboy at the Minnesota State Fair, 9/1/12

Journey, Pat Benatar featuring Neil Giraldo, Loverboy September 2, 2012 Minnesota State Fair Grandstand Looking kind of like what a band of dudes who jam out in a suburban basement to Loverboy tunes might look like, the Canadian band Loverboy took to the stage as the sun set on an amazing Saturday ... More >>

Die Antwoord at First Avenue, 8/5/12

See Also:Slideshow: Die Antwoord at First AvenueBest Of Lollapalooza 2012, day one: Afghan Whigs, Die Antwoord, and moreDie Antwoord with DJ Soviet PandaFirst Avenue MainroomSaturday, August 5, 2012South African rap group Die Antwoord invaded First Avenue Saturday night, playing their bizarre brand ... More >>

The Walkmen at First Avenue, 6/30/12

See Also:Slideshow: The Walkmen at First AvenueThe WalkmenWith Young ManFirst Avenue, MinneapolisSaturday, June 30, 2012Usually, a heralded indie rock act decays, disappears, or revamps over a decade, but the five East Coast-bred gents in the Walkmen have simply grown up before our eyes. No longer ... More >>

Florence the Machine at State Theatre, 4/27/12

Florence the MachineState Theatre, MinneapolisFriday, April 27, 2012View a slideshow from the concert here."This is such a beautiful venue," Florence Welch said to her assembled subjects midway through Friday's performance. And indeed the ornate State Theatre is one of the few spots worthy of the ... More >>

Poliça's City Pages cover story interview and photo outtakes

​By now you've hopefully already seen our cover story on Polica in today's City Pages. You may also have seen Gimme Noise's slideshow and our review of last night's album release show at First Ave. But those aren't the only goodies we have for you.Below the break, check out excerpts from my conver ... More >>

Craig Finn at Triple Rock Social Club, 02/04/12

Photo by Tony Nelson​Craig FinnWith Mount MoriahTriple Rock Social Club, MinneapolisSaturday, February 4, 2012Any Craig Finn performance in Minneapolis is a sea of talking points -- and he went through most of them Saturday in front of an attentive Triple Rock crowd. This is the home of 86 percent ... More >>

Supersuckers at the Entry, 01/31/12

​The Supersuckers7th St. Entry, MinneapolisJanuary 31, 2012In less capable hands, this would have been just another aging, veteran rock band rolling through Minneapolis, looking to get paid for nothing, and eager to get the hell out of the Minnesota winter as quickly as possible. But we're talk ... More >>

Howler at the Triple Rock, 01/14/12

​HowlerJanuary 14, 2012Triple Rock Social ClubAfter setting the U.K. ablaze with both hype and hyperbole in 2011, Howler returned home to Minneapolis to try and do the same thing to the sold-out Triple Rock on Saturday night. While the groundswell of support for the quintet has been slowly buil ... More >>

Battles at Fine Line, 10/8/11

​BattlesOctober 8, 2011Fine Line Music CafeEven by Battles' radical standards, their highly charged performance at the Fine Line Saturday night was an extremely experimental show. The avant-garde New York trio were in a festive and feisty mood (along with everyone else packed into the smal ... More >>

X at the Cabooze, 10/6/11

​XOctober 6, 2011Cabooze, MinneapolisLast night's show at the Cabooze took a slightly unusual approach to the typical concert routine. There were no openers this time around, just X. And, also, X.Before the legendary L.A. punk rockers took the stage to play their debut album, Los Angeles, in its e ... More >>

Wild Flag at the Varsity Theater, 10/3/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​Wild FlagOctober 3, 2011Varsity Theater, Minneapolis"There's really no better place to start a tour than Minneapolis," Carrie Brownstein gushed near the end of Wild Flag's set, one of the only times they really stopped to address the audience at length. "There's really nothin ... More >>

St. Vincent at the McGuire Theater, 10/02/2011

​St. Vincent October 2, 2011 (Early Show)McGuire Theater at the Walker Art CenterWith a light show more fitting for a venue five times the size of the 385-seat McGuire Theater, St. Vincent captivated the sold-out crowd with an artfully arresting flurry of both sight and sound. Frontwoman Ann ... More >>

Top 10 concert photos of August 2011

It's been another big month for concert photography on the Gimme Noise blog and in City Pages -- so big, in fact, that one of our photographer's photos of the Flaming Lips ended up on the cover of the paper last week (well done, Erik Hess!). See that photo and nine other favorites from the month bel ... More >>

The Head and the Heart at the Varsity Theater, 8/7/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​The Head and the Heart August 7, 2011 Varsity Theater, Minneapolis There's a line from the Head and the Heart's standout track "Down in the Valley" where Jonathan Russell sings, "Lord have mercy on my rough and rowdy ways." The line fits in perfectly with the rest of the ... More >>

Atmosphere take a stand against domestic violence in 'The Last to Say' video

Photo by Tony Nelson​On Atmosphere's latest album, The Family Sign, "The Last to Say" stands out as one of the most sobering and plain-spoken tracks on the album, riffing on a message warning against domestic violence with lines like "Just tear it all apart and build new / Cause if you don't kill ... More >>

Sam Roberts Band at the 7th St. Entry, 6/6/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​Sam Roberts Band June 6, 2011 7th St. Entry, Minneapolis There is something to be said for music that embodies straight-ahead rock 'n roll in 100% pure form. Actually, there is a lot to be said for it. In this era of bands sounding like a mixture of [insert 2-3 bands of ... More >>

Weezer covers Radiohead, and it's surprisingly not horrific

Photo by Tony Nelson​Just when you're ready to write of Weezer as the perpetual party band, so extraordinarily tongue-in-cheek that maybe their whole take on surfy indie rock was just a parody, dear god, WE HAVE BEEN DUPED, they drop this little bomb on us all: A video of the band in the studio la ... More >>

Bruno Mars and Janelle Monae at Roy Wilkins, 5/25/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​Bruno Mars and Janelle MonaeMay 25, 2011Roy Wilkins Auditorium, St. PaulThere's really nothing that compares to the exhilarating sound of an arena full of teenage girls shrieking. It's the sound of hearts breaking in unison, of ecstatic and un-jaded joy. And it was the sound ... More >>

The Kills at First Avenue, 5/5/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​The Kills May 5, 2011 First Avenue, Minneapolis If film exists of Thursday night's show turned in by the Kills, it's something that other bands should view immediately, study, and commit to memory. It unfolded exactly how a show in this vein should -- and even with the f ... More >>

The Raveonettes at the Fine Line, 04/07/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​The Raveonettes and TamarynApril 7, 2011Fine Line, MinneapolisGoing into the Raveonettes set at the Fine Line on Thursday night, I was concerned that the show would be overshadowed by the incendiary performance I had witnessed the night before as the Joy Formidable laid wa ... More >>

Bright Eyes and Titus Andronicus at First Avenue, 4/4/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​Bright Eyes and Titus AndronicusApril 4, 2010First Avenue, MinneapolisConor Oberst has always seemed quite comfortable on the First Avenue stage. Monday night proved to be no exception, as Oberst, back performing under the Bright Eyes moniker, treated the sold-out crowd to a ... More >>

Gucci Mane and Waka Flocka Flame at Epic 4/3/11

Photo by Tony Nelson​For most people Sunday evenings tend to be a quiet night to relax but by the looks of 5th Street and 2nd Avenue outside Epic late last night, you'd never know it. Hundreds of hyped rap fans lined both ends of the street around 11 p.m. to hear two of radio rap's current headlin ... More >>

Lucinda Williams at Dakota Jazz Club, 2/20/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​Lucinda WilliamsFebruary 20, 2011Dakota Jazz Club, MinneapolisSnowstorms be damned. While over a foot of snow came wafting down from the clouds last night, the Dakota Jazz Club was dry and packed for the first of three sold-out solo performances by Lucinda Williams.

Wu-Tang Clan at Epic, 1/9/11

Photos by Tony Nelson​Wu-Tang ClanJanuary 9, 2011Epic NightclubFor a hip-hop collective with a back catalog as formidable as Wu-Tang Clan's, the potential is there, during a live performance, to just count on the fiery nature of your hits to carry you through a show. Playing the last gig of their ... More >>

Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles go bowling with City Pages

Photo by Tony Nelson​We sent writer Jeff Gage out on a fun assignment this week, tagging along with seven-piece band Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles for an excursion at the Bryant-Lake Bowl. It'd been two years since we'd caught up with Michelle and her gang -- they hadn't been profiled sinc ... More >>

First Avenue's 40th Birthday Party, 12/15/10

Photos by Tony Nelson​First Avenue's 40 Birthday PartyDecember 15, 2010First Avenue's Mainroom & 7th St. EntryNow that is how you throw a birthday party. On a night meant to honor some of the bands and the people who have made the Twin Cities music scene what it is and those that will see it i ... More >>

Atmosphere at First Avenue, 11/27/10

Photos by Tony Nelson​AtmosphereNovember 27, 2010First Avenue, MinneapolisSaturday night was Atmosphere's first of two extraordinarily sold-out shows in the Mainroom, and the buzzing crowd and comparatively intimate environment (much smaller than the group's outdoor shows at Soundset and Taste of ... More >>

Guante and Big Cats! drop new music video for Black Friday

Photo by Tony Nelson​With the Electric Fetus offering "Record Store Day" limited edition releases and Fifth Element bringing in Rhymesayers recording artists to run the registers today, Black Friday is in full swing in our local music community. To celebrate this sacred day of splurging, rapper Gu ... More >>

Clinic at the 7th St. Entry, 11/12/10

Photos by Tony Nelson​ClinicNovember 12, 20107th St. Entry, MinneapolisFriday night at the 7th St. Entry, Liverpool natives Clinic brought their odd brand of -- well, there are no clear reference points for Clinic's sound, really, and for that they should be applauded.

Robyn at the Fine Line, 11/14/10

Photos by Tony Nelson​RobynNovember 14, 2010Fine Line Music Cafe, MinneapolisEndlessly labeled as a "Swedish pop star" by people who likely haven't witnessed her fierceness firsthand and remember her only for her '90s hit "Show Me Love," Robyn proved to a sold-out crowd at the Fine Line on Sunday ... More >>

Cloud Cult extras: Photos and videos

Photo by Tony Nelson​While you were reading today's cover story on Cloud Cult, you hopefully noticed all the great pictures Nick Vlcek snapped of the band during their performance at the Lowertown Music Festival in July. Well, that's not all we have for you. On his visit with the band in Eagan for ... More >>

The Faint at First Avenue, 07/21/10

Photos by Tony Nelson​The FaintJuly 21, 2010First AvenueWith everything that the Faint brought with them on stage Wednesday night at First Avenue, it's possible that the crowd would've been entertained even if the band never played a note. There were seven aliens/mannequins strategically placed ... More >>

The Hold Steady at the Cabooze, 07/03/10

Photos by Tony Nelson​All the pieces were certainly in place for a memorable show from the Hold Steady on Saturday night, with a sold-out crowd awaiting the band at the outdoor stage at the Cabooze on a steamy but glorious summer evening in Minneapolis. I'm not sure if it was the oppressive heat, ... More >>

Taylor Swift returns to the Twin Cities

Photo by Tony Nelson​Pop-country megastar Taylor Swift returned to the Twin Cities (less than a year after playing the Target Center) to charm the Xcel in St. Paul. Tony Nelson got up close and personal with the singer and delivered an amazing slideshow of photos; click here to check them out.

Spoon makes Twin Cities go "Ga Ga" on two-night stand at First Avenue

Indie veterans put on an entertaining, two-encore show to a sold-out Mainroom Friday night

Slideshows: A Prairie Home Companion, Stachefest, and more

Photos from over the weekend.

Slideshows: Metallica, GWAR, and School of Seven Bells

Rocktober is in full swing.

Freeloader Friday: June 19-21

Five bucks? Pffft. Whatever. Check out these totally free events.

Hootenanny: A Community

"Hootenanny: A Community" opening June 19

The photo exhibit provides a unique glimpse into the local folk scene.

TV on the Radio and the Dirtbombs ignite First Avenue

Over the Weekend: October 3-5, 2008

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