Wednesdays. Hump day. The little hump before the downhill slide into the weekend. Wednesdays can represent montony or the daily grind of everyday life. Two work days behind you, two work days ahead of you. As I’ve gotten more into the daily grind of life I’ve found there is no better cure to break out the curse of monotony than with live music. And this Wednesday De Lux brought all the good vibes to First Avenue’s 7th Street Entry. Accompanying them on the small but iconic stage was local three-piece Denny as well as fellow Angelenos Trap PS.
Denny took to the stage shortly after 8:00 pm as the 7th Street Entry started to fill up. Though I hadn’t heard the name Denny before it was clear these guys have quite the local following. The Entry filled up as the crowd danced and sang along to Denny’s gritty but feel-good alt-rock sound. This trio has a sound unique enough to capture the ears (and hearts) of Minneapolis’ hipster crowd but also have a mainstream sound that you could hear on Cities97 alongside a Kings of Leon or Bastille. Denny’s short but sweet set definitely left that “we want more” vibe in the air, as the crowd cheered for another song. A stand out from the three-piece set was the infectious “she’s gonna eat your heart out.” The three also perfectly captured the hashtag millennial existential mindset with their line “all my friends are dead inside but at least they’re paying rent.” We look forward to seeing plenty more from the band whose name sounds like the name of your favorite uncle (or late night breakfast joint).
Keeping the power of threes alive, Los Angeles based Traps PS followed Denny on stage. And again, like Denny I didn’t know much about Traps PS other than they were playing with the beloved De Lux. But within just a few moments of their set, I instantly fell in love with Traps PS’ no nonsense, back to basics, punk tunes. Traps PS definely seems to take nods from the classic punk with their short and punchy songs, each seemingly no more than three minutes long. But the three sprinkle in elements of new-wave and lo-fi for a result that is magic. There wasn’t much dialogue from Traps PS on stage but honestly they didn’t need it. Their sound spoke for itself. Catch these guys in a city near you as they continue their tour with De Lux.
After a quick stage turnover, the darlings of the evening, De Lux took to the stage. De Lux is fronted by Sean Guerin and Isaac Franco though they were supported on tour by a full band (and some pretty sick visuals on the screen behind them). De Lux are no newbies, making music together since they were 15 – but with their most recent release More Disco Songs About Love they’re starting to have a moment that is bigger than their homebase of Los Angeles. As someone who spent several years apart of the Los Angeles independent music scene – it was hard to make it far without hearing the name Innovation Leisure – label that boasts Rhye, Nosaj Thing, Classixx, Hanni El Khatib and more. De Lux has been officially staple on Innovation Leisure’s roster for the past year or so and maybe it’s teaming up with Innovative Leisure that is propelling this moment we are starting to see from De Lux.. “The last time we were here there were like four people here,” frontmen Guerin and Franco joked. There was definitely more than four people at the Entry on Wednesday.
De Lux is making a sound that can be described as “disco not disco.” Their sound takes notes from the likes of LCD Soundsystem and The Talking Heads so there’s this feeling of nostalgia but with a sprinkle of something new. It’s clear in their groovy-electro sound that while they take notes from the greats of the past – they are continually looking forward and making a sound all their own. Their set, like those before them, felt all too short but in a good way. De Lux got the crowd moving and even singing along on standouts like “Better At Making Time” and “Writing Money for Music, to Make More Music.”
A big thanks to Denny, Traps PS and De Lux for making a Wednesday night in Minneapolis more than your average hump day. De Lux continues their tour across the US in the coming weeks.