Cursive And mewithoutYou Give A Rainy Friday Night It’s Soundtrack At The Fine Line

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Friday night was a rainy one. The whole day had been cloudy and dark, so the idea of being indoors sounded great to me. What sounded even better was being indoors, at the Fine Line Music Cafe, seeing Cursive and mewithoutYou on their first night of a co-headlining tour. This show was something that everyone I’ve shared music tastes with for the past decade or two had been talking about for months, so my anticipation was high. 

As I finally, after what felt like a very long day, walked into the Fine Line I was hit with nostalgia almost immediately. In the few years that I’ve been living in the Twin Cities, I’ve come to notice that all of the best shows I’ve been to have been at this venue. There’s something about the little (comparatively) two-leveled space that feels intimate and special. I pulled my usual money-spending shenanigans and bought a limited edition tour poster (only 20 available, how could I resist!?)  and a shirt from both headliners. 

As I settled into my spot towards the front of the crowd, I was approached by a familiar face, and ended up chatting with a friend who I’d met seeing The Dear Hunter a few years back until The Appleseed Cast popped on the stage. I had only heard bits and pieces of their music, but was pretty confident coming into the night that I would like them, solely based on the fact that the rest of this tour’s lineup was so ideal… and I was right. I loved their set, and got some pretty “Sunny Day Real Estate” vibes from their music. The crowd was still trickling in as they played so there was some commotion going on near the front door but overall, it seemed like everyone definitely agreed with me. As they exited the stage I made a mental note to look them up and become more acquainted when I got home, and I’d suggest you do the same!

Next up was mewithoutYou, a band who I was definitely more familiar with. They’re from Philly, like me, so the second they stepped on stage I felt at ease. I’ve seen them dozens of times in the past 15-ish years, but it had been a while since the last time (I drove to Madison to see them play with Circa Survive a few years ago!) They jumped right in, and I was clearly not the only one who knew this band like the back of my hand. I can honestly say that I don’t think there was one song played that everyone wasn’t singing along to. Some crowd favorites seemed to be “Julia (or, ‘Holy to the LORD’ on the Bells of Horses,)” and their last song of the evening, “Rainbow Signs.” As they stepped off stage I got excited all over again that, even though that set was amazing and fulfilling, there was still more to come!

A little after 10 o’ clock, Cursive hit the stage, as promised. Cursive was my pride and joy growing up. I thought they were, pretty much, the coolest band ever, and all I ever wanted to do was tell people about them. I distinctly remember walking around my Catholic School freshman year, Cursive playing through my Zune music player, doing my best to escape reality via their lyrics. I saw Tim Kasher, their lead singer, open for Say Anything two years ago in Philadelphia, another show I made a huge trip for, and ever since then I’ve been itching to see Cursive in full… they did not disappoint. 

Partway through the set I looked around, just for a split second, and noticed that the crowd had shifted between mewithoutYou and Cursive, and all the faces around me were unfamiliar. That made me appreciate that “Minnesota Nice,” that sometimes is a real thing that actually helps people. I lost track of time during Cursive’s set, it had seriously been years since I was so sucked into a performance. Every single song they played took me back to a specific moment in my life, and the emotions were flowing, for sure. Suddenly, the set was over and they were thanking us and saying their goodbyes. 

 As I left the Fine Line, I was glad that I had driven myself to the venue for once, so I could blast more Cursive the whole way home. A day or two later, I’m still really only wanting to listen to them, and urge all of you to take some time out of your day today to listen to some old school Cursive songs and jam out today.

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