KT Tunstall and Barenaked Ladies kick off the “Last Summer on Earth” at Mystic Lake

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When the Barenaked Ladies announced the “Last Summer on Earth 2018” tour with KT Tunstall and Better Than Ezra, my 2005 heart skipped a beat and I decided that I needed to be there. The only downside was that it was at Mystic Lake instead of their usual touring stop at the Cabooze, but I figured it would be worth it. Arriving at the venue surrounded by sad, smoky, grandparents at slot machines- I wasn’t so sure that I had made a good choice. But, once I walked outside and saw the stage I became more excited and my mind was changed.

First up was Better Than Ezra. My knowledge of their musical library isn’t super expansive, but I’ve absolutely added “Desperately Wanting” to many mix CDs back in the day. They started with a few songs that sounded vaguely familiar to me, and then played a new song. Finally, my jam (and clearly everyone else’s according to the crowd’s reaction) came on and suddenly it was a late ’90s sing along.

Next up was KT Tunstall, who’s music I did know a little bit more of. I remember watching the music video for “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree” and vowing to learn at least one of the instruments she was playing in the video. Did that ever happen? Nope. But I got to cross hearing those instruments live off my list, so it’s all the same to me. She covered “Seven Nation Army” and ran through all of her hits, including “Suddenly I See,” which made me feel like I was in a rom com in the best possible way. After a short but satisfying set she graciously left the stage and the crowd prepared for the main act.

Before Barenaked Ladies took the stage, I found myself looking around to check out the crowd around me. Lots of parents out on date night. Quite a few 40-somethings in bowling shirts with their arms full of tour merch. And a surprisingly large amount of people my age who probably also grew up with their parents blasting “If I Had a Million Dollars” during every car ride. I was glad to know that I wasn’t the only one who still had every BNL lyric somewhere deep in my memory.

Finally, Barenaked Ladies appeared on stage. There was a big screen behind them that shuffled between cute LED images, trippy videos of smoke or shapes floating around, and  slot-machine-like graphics. Definitely very fitting for the venue. The first few songs played I didn’t know, but finally the first few notes of “Pinch Me” played and the memories awoke in me. From then on, it was a full on sing along for everyone in sight. KT Tunstall came on stage to sing along on “Brian Wilson,” and Better Than Ezra’s Kevin Griffin joined the band for “Lookin’ Up.” Looking up at the stage, I realized that any these guys could totally be my dad, and it made me appreciate even more the experience and passion that they had.

The band played the Big Bang Theory (yes, that one) theme song which sent me into a fit of surreal laughter but… it did sound awesome and the crowd loved it. From there they played “One Week,” “If I Had 1,000,000 Dollars,” and covered Queen’s “Another one Bites the Dust” before leaving the stage. They quickly came back to play their encore song, “Light Up My Room,” and then left the stage for real.

I left the venue feeling much less jaded about the fact that I was in a casino and happily made my way back to the Twin Cities. The whole car ride home, I blasted BNL and sang along as if I was still at the show. The energy never once slowed down during Barenaked Ladies’ set… both the crowd and the band themselves seemed so happy to be there. The next morning I called my parents to tell them where I had been the night before and their jealousy could be heard through the phone- and I don’t blame them. It was a great show to be able to cross off my bucket list.

Editor’s Note: There was some confusion around photo passes issued so our photographer was only able to cover KT Tunstall’s set

 

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