Pert Near Sandstone is a new-timey string band from Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN, established in 2003. They play a hard-driving acoustic music in the old-time vein, but with a fresh sense and new-time urban grit. Pert Near approaches the American stringband tradition with reverence, infusing their own ideas and character to deliver a sound and style uniquely their own. In Pert Near's songwriting there is as much depth and diversity (and often quirkiness) as their traditional material.  You'll find them gathered around a single, old-timey microphone in a choreographed dance of lyric & melody, regardless of being in a rock venue or formal theater. Their originality & energy has won them fans across generations and genres. Pert Near's rhythm gets people dancing, tight harmonies keep folks singing along, and the fiddle/mandolin melodies and hot solos tear a crowd up with excitement. Having become a force in the Minnesota roots music scene, Pert Near Sandstone is stretching out along the rivers and roads of the region.

There’s certainly nothing average about the music of God Johnson. After leaving the Wu Fladager took a year off from music and then began the band as a hobby as he explains; “It started as a hobby, but it's grown into more of a regional sensation. We've got a lot of rock to us. Our bass player, Jimmy Rogers and our drummer Royce Rock have been playing together their entire lives so naturally they are a SOLID veteran rhythm section. We've got dueling keyboards with Scott Roerick and Tim Carrow. Tim has got New Orleans in his soul while Scott has the hardcore synth capabilities in his equipment. Having two keyboards seems like it could be quite a bit of stepping on each other's toes, but they work together like one giant brain. I think it's one of the things that make the Johnson so kick ass. The band simply goes out and rocks it. It just feels right and you know you are on to something good when it feels right. “

 

Pleasure Pause

"...A Power Trio From The Depths Of Funk Hell..."  

-Pulse of the Twin Cities Best Of 2000.

 

Hailing from from the little known jam/funk mecca of St. Louis Park, MN and birthed out of early improvisations in their high school Jazzlab class,  Pleasure Pause creates a unique fusion of Funk, Jazz, Jam, and Hip Hop, that defies the compartmentalized nature of the genres that spawned it. "The Pause," is made up of Royce Rock, and Jimmy Rogers of Minneapolis' God Johnson, and Yoni, the featured MC on Matisyahu's gold-selling debut, "Live At Stubb's."  The Pause put out 3 records in their 8 years together, and although they officially disbanded in 2005, Pleasure Pause will re-unite Memorial Day weekend in celebration of the next chapter of the Festi Di Bella saga.

 

 

Heiruspecs (pronounced high-roo-spex) is a live rap/hip hop band based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, specifically the Midway neighborhood. The band's name is based on a deliberate misspelling of haruspex.. Their album, 10 Years Strong, was released in December of 2007 and is a compilation of new and old songs, many taken from Live from the Studio and Antidisestablishmetabolism, both of which are now out-of-print. The most recent Heiruspecs recording is the self-titled "Heiruspecs", released on December 13th 2008.

The band is mostly known for their live performances. In contrast to many contemporary hip hop groups that use sampling and turntables, Heiruspecs emphasize a raw, live sound, portraying their roots and the local scene. They have also been known to do shows with Minnesota-local hip hop label Rhymesayers Entertainment. Their sound is particularly upbeat and the band is typically on the road performing for more than half the year. The group style has been compared to the live hip hop band The Roots.

 

If you could only hear Heatbox but not see him you wouldn't know what the hell was going on. It sometimes sounds like there is an entire band playing a song, but no it is just one man and he isn't even playing any instruments. Even when you CAN see Heatbox most people don't really understand how the show is happening. That's OK because Heatbox sings from the heart and after you are drawn in by the strangeness, you will stick around for the music.

 

 

Roster McCabe's new album, "The Rhythm/The Elements" is ripe with poppy,

tight riffs and laced with deep, feel-good grooves. The artists they

look up to are heard clearly in a few songs. "The Traveler" sounds like

a mix of the reggae beats of Sublime and Matisyahu. "Take Me Higher" has

the dynamics of The String Cheese Incident, with a latin breakdown

thrown in for good measure. Other songs are singular to the Roster

McCabe sound. "Night Phoenix," an instrumental track, could be the

opening credits to Oceans 14. "Southern Shore," with its acoustic sound,

closes the album with the rolling sounds of the beach, and all of us in

Minnesota could always use a little more beach. Roster McCabe's jazzy

tunes chill and smooth out all the wrinkles of a bad day. Then, as soon

as everything is clear as glass, you're drawn to the dance floor with

the funk they send riddling through your body. "We want to make a

serious connection," said Michael Daum, on lead guitar. "We want to do

for everyone else what our favorite artists' did for us in our hard

times."  

It seems a band with a name this overt must either be ironic or doomed to failure. But Dance Band has successfully transcended the pinnacle of sarcasm to voyage in a whole new land of sincerity. They want you to dance as they sing in matching jumpsuits (or equally audacious costuming) about clapping, dancing, and riding bicycles - and you probably will. This is because Dance Band is the love child of a late night rendezvous between Devo and P-Funk on Seasame Street.  Dance Band seems to come from both another time and another planet, but a planet where disco and funk are things citizens are required to do before breakfast each morning.

Jason Hann and Michael Travis (percussionist and drummer from the band The String Cheese Incident) make up this 100% improvised live Breakbeat/ House/ Drum n Bass/ Trip Hop project. Drawing from the ethos of some of the great DJ's and computer artists of the world, they use cutting edge technology to create truly original and melodic dance music in the moment, with the undeniable power of live drums. The music is all created on the spot, recorded, then mixed and remixed LIVE to create an ever evolving musical experience. Since the project is 100% improvised, every night promises to be a unique dance experience. Hann and Travis play different roles in this band than in SCI. Jason plays the drum kit, percussion and sampler, while Travis is in charge of the tonal elements, playing bass, guitar, keyboards, as well as hand percussion and live mixing.

Launched into the hip-hop scene in 1990, Del started off his professional mceeing career writing lyrics for his cousin Ice Cube's crew, The Lench Mob at the age of 18. After he had his share of contributing to other people's albums, Del felt it necessary to go off and do his own thing. With the help of cousin Ice Cube, Del put out his first album in 1991 on the Elektra Recording Group entitled, "I Wish My Brother George Was Here".

The album was met with critical acclaim, obtaining radio and video play nationwide. Yet, his cousin's influence on the album was profound. As a whole, the hip-hop community had mixed feelings about I.W.M.B.G.W.H. Some felt it to be just too corny, while others thought it the flyest shit out there. Yet, there was no denying Del had lyrical talent just waiting to bubble up. However, his obvious Parliament/Funkadelic-inspired beats (Courtesy cousin, Ice Cube), did seem a bit played. Del, not pleased with the album himself, took matters into his own hands, and completely severed his relationship with Ice Cube for his next album, No Need For Alarm (Dec., 1994).

"I [took] matters into my own hands, me and Hieroglyphics, you know what I'm sayin'?", states Del. No Need represented the independence Del sorely needed to express his creativity. In addition, we saw the emergence of Del's highly touted crew, Hieroglyphics, now consisting of members Souls of Mischief, Casual, Pep Love & JBiz (Now The Prose), manager and producer Domino and former Hiero member Snupe of Extra Prolific. Tracks such as "No More Worries" summoned the lyrical prowess of the Hiero crew in a torrential downfall. Around the same time, Del's protégés Souls of Mischief were rockin' heads with their debut album 93 Til Infinity. Hieroglyphics had profoundly etched themselves as a force to be reckoned with within the hip hop community.