Stick Figure & furry friend, Cocoa, heat up MPLS

Facebooktwittertumblr

Sunday night being filled with reggae music brought a little heat to the Midwest winter we’ve all been dealing with; a little sun and a beach would have made the package complete. I walked into First Ave very excited as I have been wanting to see Stick Figure, Twiddle, and Iya Terra live for quite some time. More bands checked off my bucket list, a perk nonetheless of relocating to the Minneapolis area at the start of the New Year.

I was reminded of one of my favorite things about concerts; each of you immediately have something in common with those around you –music. To narrow it down a little more, each of you have some sort of a connection to the music that will be playing at that specific time at that specific place. As I looked around the venue I recognized individuals from all walks of life and loved the friendly, welcoming atmosphere as differences were set aside for a matter of hours. Having the ability and drive to express yourself comfortably is something I cherish greatly in my own life and throughout this concert I witnessed exactly that. No shame, no judgement, just be you.

To kick it off Iya Terra began the night around 8 p.m. and had no other plan in mind but to impress. And impress they did. Coming from Los Angeles lead guitarist and vocalist, Nathan Feinstein along with other band members wooed the crowd with his relaxing voice in turn getting everyone prepared for what was to come. With the perfect instrumental mix you couldn’t help but feel at one with those around you. The music was flowing and the listeners were dancing –what more could you ask for?

Originating from Vermont, Twiddle played around 9 p.m. and were accompanied by a furry bandana’d friend (Stick Figure’s canine mascot named Cocoa) when welcomed to stage. This fellow seemed just as excited to be there as the crowd behaving well the entire time. Throughout their set the band entertained with numerous solo sequences displaying the individual talent present which in turn got very positive feedback from the crowd.

Stick Figure chose their intro music well when making an appearance around 10:15 p.m. The crowd members’ minds were filled with a bass overload for lack of better term, at times making it difficult to hear your own thoughts or the commentary of fellow concert-goers around you. I haven’t seen many introductions like this, and it was definitely one for the books. About half way through their set we had the opportunity we’ve all been waiting for –to hear their new single, “Easy Runaway” that was released earlier in the week. I had listened to it quite a few times, but hearing it live definitely put a cherry on top.

All in all, there was some incredible talent present at First Ave on Sunday evening, and viewers can tell that each of these musicians are very passionate about what they do. Lyrics speaking of inspiration, lessons and self-realization causes each attendee to leave feeling complete or having discovered something new about themselves. One that I took away from this show:

Don’t hesitate to live life in the here and now –enjoy the experiences that come your way.
Even if it does mean a late night before the start of the work week.

Overall Experience: I had a blast at this concert, and I would definitely go see all of these bands when another opportunity arises.

Venue: I didn’t like the feel as much for this particular concert as I think a show of this type should take place in a more intimate atmosphere. However, First Ave is a sweet venue and I’m happy that this was my first time seeing it.

Attendance: For a Sunday the turnout was pretty good. The floor was pretty busy, but the balcony was rather empty.

Facebooktwitterrssyoutubetumblrinstagram