Tiger Army made a stop in Minneapolis on Thursday, June 16th, 2016 at the Varsity Theater and gave everyone there the show they were waiting for! They brought with them The Bellfuries and The Pine Hill Haints which rounded out the evening with some very interesting music. I arrived at the Varsity about 15 minutes before the show was scheduled to start and I was amazed at the lack of people there. Only a few people sitting on the raised side areas and that was about it.
The show started right at 8:00 pm and The Pine Hill Haints started it out. I was excited to see them live after watching their videos online mostly because they used more than just the standard instruments. One of the band members was playing an accordion and one had a metal bucket with stick and a string! The band member on stage right changed what she was playing depending on the song, but they included a hand saw and a washboard! Musically, The Pine Hill Haints entertained with what I would call a “Rockabilly” style of music and brought the people out of their sitting places and up near the stage to enjoy as well. It certainly was a treat to watch and listen to them play!
The Pine Hill Haints
Next up was The Bellfuries. By this time, the crowd had gotten a little larger and there were more people up by the stage for these guys. Going back to the standard instruments with the exception of switching the bass guitar for a upright bass, The Bellfuries stepped up the rock and speed during their set. Each song was quicker and people started dancing along as the singer engaged the crowd during each of the songs. I highly recommend seeing them play live as they will not disappoint with their high energy performance and fun, upbeat music!
The Bellfuries
Closing out the show on their headlining tour was Tiger Army. The Varsity doesn’t have a crowd barrier, so I had to be quick and get a spot up front as everyone was now up close to the stage ready and excited to see Tiger Army. The floor was now almost full, which was nice to see and while talking to some people in the crowd, they had seen them play at the Myth last time they were here and were excited to get a closer view of them this time around! Tiger Army is a three piece and they also used the upright bass, but the band member that played it ran around quite a bit more! He even climbed on it while playing which was cool to see! They definitely kicked up the energy level for the crowd and everyone loved it! Even though I didn’t catch the entire set, I heard there was even a small circle pit during the show! With all the energy and the great music from Tiger Army, I will be excited to see them again in the future!
Tiger Army
Even with a slow start, this show was quite an interesting one! Like I say at the end of most my reviews, get out and see some live shows! You might be happily surprised at what you see if you take a chance on some different music!
Varsity Theater
As always, get out and support live music and I’ll see you out there!
