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Showing posts from 2019

The Hopefuls

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Bio Imagine John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr each had solo careers, and got together to form the Beatles. Olympic Hopefuls were the Minneapolis indie rock version of that. Their damaged power pop anthems took Minneapolis by storm from 2004 to 2006. Arising from Erik Appelwick and Darren Jackson's feverish melodic minds, the band began in 2000 as a scrappy quartet called Camaro. They reconfigured a couple of years later, adding John Hermanson (keys, vocals), Heath Henjum (bass), and Matt O'Laughlin (drums).  Eventually, former Spymob drummer Eric Fawcett replaced O'Laughlin. A run-in with the United States Olympic Committee led to the band becoming The Hopefuls in 2006. Erik Appelwick exited the band the same year.  The original line-up disbanded in 2009. Discography The Fuses Refuse to Burn  (2004, 2024 Records) Now Playing at the One-Seat Theatre  ( 2008, Draw Fire Records)

Alva Star

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Bio Starting in 2000 as a John Hermanson solo project, Alva Star came together as a real band with players Darren Jackson (guitars, vocals), Brian Roessler (bass), and Peter Anderson (drums).  Their second album featured Erik Appelwick on bass and Ian Prince on drums. Links Alva Star on Bandcamp Alva Star on Soundcloud Discography Alligators in the Lobby  ( 2001) Escalator (2004)

John Hermanson

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Bio Bozeman, Montana native John Hermanson began his musical career as one half of Chris & Johnny / Storyhill. He went solo in 1997 before reuniting with Chris in 2001. He's the guiding force behind Alva Star, a key member of the Hopefuls, and is also a member of Intl Falls. Links Official website Bandcamp Discography John Hermanson (1998) Psalms (2009) Dragonfly (2015) Isaiah (2016)

Kid Dakota

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Bio Kid Dakota is the musical appellation of South Dakota bred songwriter Darren Jackson. Originally forming in Minneapolis in 1999 with 12 Rods drummer Christopher McGuire, the duo's dark, brooding, confessional, hard-hitting music brought them to the attention of indie rock darlings Low, who would end up helping Kid Dakota release their first two records. Through ensuing albums and personnel changes, Jackson's visceral songwriting vision has served as the constant. Links Official Website for Kid Dakota Bandcamp Official Website for Darren Jackson Discography So Pretty EP (2000) So Pretty LP (2002, Chairkickers' Music) The West is the Future (2004, Chairkickers' Music) A Winner's Shadow (2008, Graveface Records) How the Light Gets In , with the Fantastic Merlins (2009, Hope Street) Listen to the Crows as They Take Flight ( 2011,  Graveface Records) Blunt Force Trauma  (2016) Denervation ( 2018, Graveface Records) Age of Roaches (2020, Graveface Records

Spymob

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Bio Formed in the mid-'90s in Minneapolis by singer/keyboardist John Ostby, drummer Eric Fawcett, guitarist Brent Paschke, and bassist Brian Roessler (who left in 2000 and was replaced by Christian Twigg),  Spymob spent a few years perfecting a unique blend of funk, pop, and rock before being discovered by songwriter/producer Pharrell Williams and recruited as the backing band (both in the studio and live) in his N.E.R.D. project. Their own album, Sitting Around Keeping Score , was released in 2004 on Ruthless Records after a handful of frustrating false starts. The band parted ways in 2005, but left behind a rich catalog to explore. Links Facebook Soundcloud Discography Reno (1994) Townhouse Stereo (1996) Spymob EP (1999) On Pilot Mountain (2000, unreleased Epic Records version of first album) Basement Tapes (2001) N.E.R.D. - In Search Of... (2002, Virgin Records) Sitting Around Keeping Score (2004, Ruthless Records) Memphis (2014, recorded in 2004) Sitting Around Kee

Storyhill

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Bio Storyhill is a folk harmony duo consisting of Bozeman, Montana natives Chris Cunningham and John Hermanson, who have performed together off and on since 1989. Starting in high school performing as Chris and Johnny, the friends ended up at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota and started to record albums and perform on and off campus, becoming a local sensation. After graduation they toured the country, built up a sizable fanbase, and changed their name to Storyhill before burning out and calling it quits in 1997. After exploring solo exploits, the duo reunited in 2000. They started a yearly festival, Storyhillfest, and in 2007 signed to Red House Records, releasing two acclaimed albums on the venerable label. In summer 2019 the duo celebrated the 30th anniversary of their first recording. Links Official website Bandcamp Storyhill.info Discography As Chris and Johnny: Chris and Johnny   (1989) Shapeshifting (1991) Different Waters (1992) L ive at the Grand  (1993) Mi

Tropical Depression

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Bio After writing a set of songs he felt didn't fit under the Vicious Vicious umbrella, Erik Appelwick devised Tropical Depression along with Martin Dosh, James Buckley, and Adam Krinsky. He told City Pages , "It's a laugh at wealth culture. It's hedonistic spray-tan absurdism. It's the antithesis of a polar vortex." Of the first record he wrote, tongue firmly in cheek, "The album is mostly an autobiographical account of the travels and tribulations, wanderings and meanderings, islands and beaches, party people, and paparazzi I encountered along the way from the Tropic of Capricorn to the Cape of Good Hope, Straits of Magellan to Micronesia." Links Official website Twitter Discography Tropical Depression (2014, Egg Music) Islands (2016)