Chris Osgood
Age: 52 Background: Formed the seminal Minneapolis punk band, The Suicide Commandos, in 1974 and then went on to serve as label manager/producer for Twin/Tone Records. Currently serves as director of artist services for Springboard for the Arts, a St. Paul-based nonprofit dedicated to helping self-employed creative folks earn a living.
Name some of the local bands you’re listening to.
The three newest things in my purview are Tim O’Reagan’s new record—I was listening to that just today. I was listening to the Mad Ripple, which is Jim Walsh’s new project. I’ve also been listening to a new band called Texatonka. I listen to a lot of local music because of my gig at Springboard.
Where do you go to buy music?
I try to support the indies out there as much as possible—the Roadrunners of the world and, of course, Treehouse. I give a plug to both of them. And a plug to the [Electric] Fetus as well. I throw as much of my business to brick-and-mortar stores as I can.
What’s your concertgoing schedule like these days?
I’m not the inveterate concertgoer I used to be. Back when I worked at Twin/Tone, there were years I was out at concerts three hundred days out of the year. These days, there are other things I like to do. I like to fly-fish, and fly-fishing is exactly the opposite of being at First Ave.
Ryan Cameron
Age: 46 Background: Owner of Let It Be, the record store that stood on Tenth Street and Nicollet Avenue in downtown Minneapolis from 1987 to 2005. The store hosted many notable in-store performances by local and national bands. Since it closed, “I’ve just been concentrating on selling things online and a few other places—collectibles, out-of-print stuff, and rarities.”
How do you find out about new music?
By reading the couple of magazines that I read. Mojo is a good one. Uncut is another good one. The Wire is good for electronic music, although that’s not my forte in terms of what I listen to.
So, is the good stuff still out there?
There’s always been really, really good music; there just always has been! Sometimes you just have to dig deeper. And now it’s gotten to be a little confusing. Do you go to a record store? Do you download it?
Do you have any local favorites?
I have to be honest and say that I don’t listen to a lot of local stuff. I just don’t. It’s a fault of mine. I just don’t go out and see a lot of local shows, and I think that’s the best way to experience local music.
Lindsay Kimball
Age: 23 Background: Intern at 89.3 The Current; former music director at Luther College’s KWLC. She also booked all the campus concerts and wrote all the music reviews for the student newspaper. “They called me the ‘music monopoly.’ ”
How do you go about finding new music?
A lot of it is talking to friends and people I run into at shows, just seeing what they’re listening to. The other two ways are, one, going to shows—whether it’s a small local show or a national show—and two, MySpace.
Name some of the local bands you like.
I was just listening to the Get-Up Johns this morning—for a completely different style of music, more of an O Brother, Where Art Thou? sound. The Duplomacy disc is pretty good. I’m still digging Coach Said Not To, the Alarmists. At first I wasn’t sure about the Alarmists, but then I saw them live and thought, yeah, they’re pretty fun.
Warm fuzzies for the Minneapolis music scene:
The cool thing about the Minneapolis scene is that there’s a huge sense of community. You see the same people at all the shows. The bands go out of their way to support each other. I’ve made tons of friends just by running into people at shows. I don’t want to say it’s a quality-of-life thing—but for me, it is.
David de Young
Age: 42 Background: Publishes HowWasTheShow .com, a website that, since 2002, has featured reviews of concerts by local and national acts. “When I go out, say, on a Saturday, I might see ten different bands because I go to four different venues. I try to go to as many shows as possible.”
Local music scene: alive or dead?
I’m not one of those people who says these are the heydays as opposed to five years ago, because I’m kind of old and I’ve seen it all—and it’s always kind of been the same.
Where do you go to hear new music these days?
For brand-new bands I’ve never seen before, I’ve probably seen more new bands at the Hexagon than I have at First Ave or the Turf Club, because crazy stuff, unexpected stuff, just happens there more often. But the answer is not venues, it’s people. I’d have to say that I hear about new bands from other musicians faster than people who just go to shows.
What are some of your favorite local bands?
The Alarmists, White Light Riot, Stook, Espionage! … which I guess includes some former Man Planet guys.
Are there any bands you haven’t seen yet but plan to?
Middlepicker, I’ve heard good things about. I haven’t seen ’em but I know I’m supposed to.
Any local discs people ought to hear?
I think everyone should buy Tim O’Reagan’s new CD because it’s amazing. For people who like the Minneapolis sound, Stook’s Soundtrack to My Minneapolis is good.
Sonia Grover
Age: 31 Background: Started working at First Avenue as a booking assistant in 1998; has since been thoroughly entrenched in the process of booking Minneapolis’ most prominent club.
How often are you out hearing live music?
I’m here [at First Avenue] like four or five nights a week. So if I go to another venue, it’s probably just one or two nights outside of First Ave. Sometimes if you get a night off, you just don’t want to go see another band.
What are some of your favorite local bands right now?
Well, I’ll always check out Mark Mallman’s shows. I’m a big fan of Chooglin’, or someone like the God Damn Doo Wop Band, or the Dad in Common.
Any favorite local discs?
We [at First Avenue] get a lot of music sent to us, so we’re lucky that way. And then I have friends who are experts with downloading, so I tend not to buy a lot of music. But I listen to it. I see most of these bands live or maybe listen to them on MySpace, but I’m not listening to any one local record right now. And you know, there are a lot of stations in town with good local shows, so I just tune into those anyway—like the Homegrown Show [KQRS], Jason Nagel’s show on Cities 97, and the Local Show on The Current. Radio K tends to play local music throughout the day, but also on Off the Record.
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