Lottery hosts free Minneapolis rock shows

The Minnesota Lottery has put together a great set of free shows with many of HowWasTheShow's favorite bands on board. Check out the summary below. The Lottery has engaged social media marketers to reach the fans directly and has been successful in generating buzz about these top notch lineups. Check out the summary of May's events in the e-press release below.

MINNEAPOLIS – Free rock will be on tap at local venues in May, courtesy of a new concert-themed scratch game from the Minnesota State Lottery. The shows are open to anyone 18 years and older:

• Sunday, May 16, 8 p.m. – Triple Rock Social Club: Red Pens with BNLX and Voytek. (Facebook event - http://bit.ly/bJ4I3C)
• Wednesday, May 19, 8 p.m. – Fine Line Music Café: Melismatics with Alarmists and The Idle Hands. (Facebook event - http://bit.ly/9E5FX9)
• Thursday, May 27, 8 p.m. – Varsity Theater: Rogue Valley with the Jason Shannon Band and Strangelights. (Facebook event - http://bit.ly/dCdyk8)

Cash & Concerts is a concert-themed Scratch Game that features music downloads and VIP concert tickets, in addition to cash prizes. Details for the shows and the new game at LuckyMN.com/rock.

Chasing the Sun: The Best of The Honeydogs

Just in time for them to help First Avenue celebrate its 40th Birthday on Saturday, The Honeydogs are releasing a digital compilation of some of their best songs of the past 15 years.

The Honeydogs play First Avenue Saturday night, May 8th along with Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles and Anders Ponders. The 18+ show starts at 6PM. (Tickets and details here.)

Kings Wine Bar will be hosting a special listening party for the Honeydogs with members of the band on hand to help celebrate featuring rare live tracks and studio outtakes on Wednesday, May 5th. That event gets underway at 9:30 p.m.

I was honored to be asked to write the "liner notes" for the digital release of the record:

There aren't many Twin Cities bands or contemporary bands, for that matter, who would dare (or even could) assemble a “best of” album 35 tracks deep, but from the first song on the new Honeydogs compilation "Chasing the Sun: The Best of The Honeydogs,” you will find yourself swimming in an ocean of smart, catchy songs selected from their nine studio albums since 1995, and you won’t see the shore for more than two hours.

They aren’t all obvious singles like “Rumor Has It” (the opening track) or “I Miss You,” two of the Honeydogs most recognizable songs; but you can’t throw a dart at this collection and hit anything that even comes close to being considered filler. This truly is an “essential” Honeydogs collection.

Drawing on some of the best pop of the last 50 years (Elvis Costello, Merle Haggard, Brian Wilson, Harry Nillsson, Dylan, Bacharach, Randy Newman, Serge Gainbourg, Brazilian Tropicalia,and Nick Drake)“Chasing the Sun” delivers pop, country, rock, jazz, boss nova, and occasional middle eastern seasoning, showcasing the broad spectrum of musical styles the band has not just dabbled in, but mastered over the years. However you cut it, this is addictively listenable music: pop with a conscience, and proof that brainy rock can be fun.

- David de Young (April, 2010)