HowWasTheShow Blog

How I Spent the first annual Wellstone World Music Day

There was so much going on Saturday for the first annual Paul and Sheila Wellstone World Music Day that my head was literally swimming while weighing my options. Music had started in some places as early as 10 a.m. and bars like Lee’s and the Turf Club both had all-star shows that kicked off in mid afternoon. In some cases it looked like this could have been called Paul and Sheila Wellstone Drink Too Much All Day Day. But how you chose to honor or not honor the one year anniversary of the Wellstones’ deaths is your business.

After Prairie Home Companion in the late afternoon (review forthcoming) I caught about 5 minutes of the action at Lee's Liquor Lounge before being overcome by claustrophobia in the huge crowd. So I left downtown and headed for the less-crowded Uptown bar.

Headlining at the Uptown were Minneapolis-based Iowa transplants Boy with Stick. BWS is a young band who met at Luther College in Decorah and moved to Minneapolis in 2002. They have a pleasing sound and an energetic stage show. Adamchrismichaelshawn, as they are apt to sign their emails, have a clear talent in their poppy sound that leads me to peg than as a kind of young Rex Daisy. With time to flower (no pun intended) there should be a new kick-ass member of the Minneapolis passion pop scene in not so long. The boy's are working on a full-length album with producer John Hermanson (Alva Star, Friends Like These) which should be out in the spring. In the meantime they have a few rough MP3's on their website at http://www.boywithstick.com/multi.html.


Boy with Stick performed Saturday at the Uptown Bar

I talked to BWS guitarist/singer Adam Svec a bit after the show saying I wouldn't write a full review of Saturday’s show but that I would definitely let people know it's safe to go out and see these guys.

After a quick jaunt to the CC Club it was off to Pete Scholtes party. The keg was already gone by the time we arrived, but in the true Wellstone sprit of taking care of each other we all managed to find enough to drink somehow. (I found one bottle of Stella Artois that I shared out with 3 other people. A gin and tonic left on a utility sink hours before was remembered by another guest and whet the whistle of 4-5 more. And Mark Baumgarten former Lost Cause editor, who was in town for the weekend from Portland, pulled a bottle of Jameson seemingly out of nowhere giving us still another reason to canonize him as if there already weren’t enough.