Local musicians 'savor' State Fair free gigs a year later than planned

Guess who's performing on the Minnesota State Fair's free stages in 2021? Pretty much everyone who was supposed to in 2020.

While the rest of us were sorely lamenting the fair's absence at this time last year, the local and regional musicians scheduled to play there had a silver lining to brighten their outlook: They already knew they'd be on the calendar for this year.

"That felt really good — very hopeful," said Dan "Daddy Squeeze" Newton, whose eclectic gypsy/cabaret group Café Accordion Orchestra plays the fair nearly every year.

"We were holding our breath hoping," said newcomer Zach Beinlich, bassist in the rising young rock band Yam Haus, which was due to headline two nights at the Leinie Lodge Bandshell in 2020 after a breakout year locally.

"Playing those shows meant so much to us. Now, they're going to be our first big shows back."

Once it became clear last year's fair had to be called off due to COVID-19, the fair's entertainment bookers made a point of offering the performers a chance to reschedule for 2021. This was done out of both practical reasons and a classic case of Minnesota Nice.

"It only seemed right and fair keeping them on the books," said Nate Dungan, entertainment supervisor for the free stages at the State Fair.

Not surprisingly, a vast majority of the performers accepted the 2021 offer in less time than it takes to down one of Sweet Martha's cookies. "I'd say about 98% of them said yes nearly right away, and the only ones who didn't had scheduling conflicts to contend with," Dungan recalled.

A musician himself — his country band Trailer Trash lost dozens of gigs during quarantine — Dungan said he knew the 2021 fair dates might wind up being some of the only days circled on the calendar for the working musicians, especially once the fall and winter months set in with infection rates potentially holding steady.

"Most of us are never going to take gigs for granted again after this pandemic," Dungan said.

St. Paul hip-hop fixture Maria Isa, who's playing the International Bazaar stage Sept. 1-2, said last year's cancellation came on top of her losing an ambitious Latin American tour and many other gigs.

"I sort of expected [it] to be canceled once the entire world shut down, and really couldn't be mad," she said.

Iowa-based Midwest blues vets Joe & Vicki Price — due on the Schell's Stage at Schilling Amphitheater for six daytime sets on Sept. 5-6 — had a live calendar stretching into fall last year that had to be erased, save for two gigs they were able to play outdoors with extra safety protocols.

"We were disappointed, of course, but glad [fair organizers] chose public safety," Vicki Price recounted.

The sting of losing last year's gigs, however, has only added to the buzz around this year's performances — especially given how much the Great Minnesota Get-Together symbolizes actually being together.

"Playing the fair will mean so much more, now that we are getting back to some socializing and work," said Price. "It's such a relief."

Mae Simpson, another hot newcomer booked in 2020, called last year's cancellation "a gut punch" but sounded extra excited to play the evenings of Sept. 5-6 on the Schell's Stage.

Adding to her anticipation, Simpson and her bluesy, Southern-flavored Twin Cities group now have a new EP to promote, "Did You Make It Back," as well as one other big gig that carried over from 2021 (the Basilica Block Party on Sept. 10).

"We are truly grateful for having the opportunities lost last year come back full-circle so we can keep that same momentum," said Simpson. "Playing the State Fair was a big deal then, and it's a big deal now after a whole year off."

Maria Isa is piggybacking on the fair's get-together theme to debut a celebratory new live act she worked up during the pandemic called LatinXapolis.

"It's going to be an amazing, percussion-led concert with a live band, DJ party and a message to the audience that our diverse Latinx community and music scene will continue to create more history in Minnesota post-COVID," she said.

Yam Haus is also using its rescheduled two-night stand Sept. 5-6 at the Leinie Lodge Bandshell to try out new songs and really enter a new era.

The band recently signed a production deal with Mark Needham, who was instrumental in the Killers' ascent. Just three days after the fair, the quartet heads out on a major 60-city tour opening for Texas rockers Blue October.

"The State Fair shows really are our jumping-off point," said Beinlich, who remembered seeing the now-flourishing local band Hippo Campus headline the Leinie bandshell in 2017 and thinking, "That's going to be us someday."

"We had to wait an extra year, but I think it's going to be an even bigger, oh-my-gosh moment for us."

One local musician who's played the fair more than most, Newton is content just having things as back-to-usual as possible when his Café Accordion crew returns to the International Bazaar Stage Aug. 26-27 — especially since, as he pointed out, "The pandemic isn't really over yet.

"There's still a little anxiousness because of the new variants, but I'm confident the State Fair will do their best to provide a safe environment for us," Newton said.

"At one point, it felt like large gatherings like the fair and other festivals could be gone forever. I'm trying to savor every day and every experience with music, my band, my family and friends."