2018 was a great year for live music as you have found out by reading these TCM staffers “My Favorite Sets of 2018” posts. So far, you have read about 15 of these lists. Although we all share a love for music, we all have different favorites. The one thing we do share though, is that trying to make a short list of 3-5 of our favorite sets for this year was a tedious task. It wasn’t easy, and I feel like mine is incomplete. Every show I’ve been to this year was special in its own way.
Just like most of the staffers here, I had an honorable mention list. But I won’t bore you with the fact that seeing Courtney Barnett at Surly Field or seeing Crowbar at First Ave was rad. And I won’t tell you that seeing The Lillingtons at 7th St Entry was one of the coolest shows I’ve seen there. Do I dare mention that covering Slayers farewell show at the Armory and standing 3 feet away from Kerry King was pure black magic?? Nah,I won’t bore you with that.
What I will do, is bore you with my Favorite Sets of 2018. I put them in chronological order and not in a favorite order because like I said previously, each show is special, and I couldn’t even begin to rate these hows. So, without further ado…
#1. February 17, 2018. Local H at the O2 Academy in Newcastle, England.
While I was visiting the U.K. in February, Local H just happened to be hitting the U.K. the same time I was arriving. Having loved this band since I was in high school and having seen them in every state in the United States, I thought why not see them in the U.K? I have managed to becomebuddies with the guys and I asked if I could come out to hang with them for acouple of dates and that is what I did. My usual home sickness was starting tokick in but having a little bit of ‘home’ with me while over there madeeverything a little bit better. What makes this show super rad was seeing a whole new audience experience a band like Local H. Seeing the guys having funand playing to a new audience was really awesome to see in person. I’ve seenthem many more times in the States since this brief U.K. visit and some of hose shows were also awesome. However, there is something special about being that far away from home hanging out with some super rad people playing super rad music in those really cool Northern England towns.
#2. March 16, 2018. Hot Snakes at Turf Club in St Paul, Minnesota.
Some people are born to do certain things in their life.Some become doctors, some become accountants and then a very extremely rare few become Rock & Roll Superheroes. John Reis aka Speedo is one of those superheroes. It doesn’t matter which of the many bands he is in at the time,Rocket from the Crypt or the Night Marchers or Drive Like Jehu or the HotSnakes. John just drips charisma and oozes Rock & Roll coolness. This show at the Turf Club was in support of the Hot Snakes latest album “Jericho Sirens”and after an 11-year hiatus, the band didn’t miss a beat. I had so many cuts and bruises from being slammed against the Turf Club stage and I wore them with honor and I’d do it all over again just to experience a band like the Hot Snakes or whatever band Speedo is in at the time.
3. April 28, 2018. Jeff Rosenstock at the Whole Music Club in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
January 1st 2018, I woke up early to a notification that Jeff Rosenstock released an album sometime while everyone was sleeping. Without any promotion or any heads up,Jeff just releases an album on day 1 of the new year. I mean, who does that?What makes things even better is that the album is a strong Album of the Year candidate! Fast forward a couple months and Jeff Rosenstock announced that he is coming to Minneapolis. I was ecstatic. The show was played on campus at the Whole Music Club, which is a really nice venue that I don’t get to go to as much as I should. The show was just bonkers crazy! There were scream alongs from the second Jeff took the stage. The energy in that small room was beyond expectations and amplified the show to a new level. This was going to be a hard show to top.
4. June 30, 2018. D4th of July at Grumpy’s in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
This is kind of cheating, but this entire show deserves to be listed in a favorite list. There wasn’t anything about this day that should be ignored. Each and every band played on a whole next level and there wasn’t any slowing down. It was hard knowing we weren’t at the Triple Rock this year but Grumpy’s held its own and it felt like home. Starting with Dan from Murf spitting blood all over me and my camera to Ryan from Off With Their Head staking the show into the crowd and being swamped by other fans to the allmighty Dillinger Four singing to a bride and groom who were getting married next door, this was definitely a D4th of July to remember. D4th of July’s are always a great time and I can’t wait till D4th of July ’19.
5. September 29, 2018. Night Birds at Mortimers in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
With the demise of the Triple Rock, the shows that would normally be held there have been held at Mortimers. The physical place might have changed but nothing else. Night Birds, who was on a super tiny tour of just a handful of cities across the United States, decided that they should make a stop in our town and chose Morts as their venue. The second I saw they were coming, I knew I had to be there. In your face punk rock in a small,intimate environment never sounded better. With their new album, “Roll Credits”in tow, the Birds played a blistering set that was over before you knew it. If you missed this show, you missed something special and won’t see it again for along time since these dudes don’t tour much anymore.
