One of the hardest things for a fun party band to do is keep the party going. Black Diet not only maintained its festive vibe on sophomore album "The Good One," but did so even while recording it during the dreary dog days of winter.
Minnesota Music Notes: Black Diet fattens up, Honeydogs reel in 'Years'
The soulful party band makes good on its buzz with its second album "The Good One."
July 24, 2015 at 3:10PM
![Black Diet performs on the main stage at Are You Local on March 6, 2014 at First Avenue. ] Photo by Leslie Plesser.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/HK24NS2EZMV5FELHGY4UFUWK34.jpg?&w=712)
The upbeat, punky soul-rock sextet — which won Vita.mn's Are You Local? contest in 2014 and then played just about every local block party last summer — injects a little more retro flavor in its hip-shaking new sounds. Keyboardist Sean Schultze wraps his Booker T.-like organ parts around lead singer Jonathan Tolliver's wavering voice in such peppy groovers as "Used to Be in Love" and the heavier gem "Brother." Black Diet makes its headlining debut at First Avenue on Friday for the release party with JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound, Red Daughters and Southside Desire (9 p.m., $12-$15). …
Issuing a complex concept album about apocalyptic warfare and ethnic conflict probably wasn't a smart career move in the aftermath of Sept. 11, and it may not be much wiser in 2015. But the Honeydogs' 2003 opus "10,000 Years" remains the band's underrated masterpiece and an artistic calling card for frontman Adam Levy, who poured his experiences as a social worker and Holocaust scholar into the album — a sharp lyrical contrast to the group's earlier, poppy radio hits "Miss You" and "Losing Transmission," but still some mighty catchy work at times.
Levy and the band will revisit "10kY" at the Cedar Cultural Center on Friday to tout a vinyl reissue of the record, originally released on Aimee Mann's and Michael Penn's label United Musicians (but never on vinyl). The show also marks the return of old-school Honeydogs members Noah Levy and Brian Halverson. Alpha Consumer opens (8 p.m., $12-$15, all ages). …
Incendiary rap vet Muja Messiah headlines the Cabooze on Saturday to tout his new Mike the Martyr-produced album, "Angel Blood Soup" (9 p.m., $12-$15). DJ Maseo of De La Soul guests on the record, as do Maria Isa, Metasota, Greg Grease and Sophia Eris. … A band that was big on the scene in the mid-'90s, Walt Mink will reunite Oct. 30 at the Varsity Theater for the 20th anniversary bash of Ciceron, a big local marketing firm that was just a little upstart in the mid-'90s. Tickets go on sale Aug. 1 via VarsityTheater.org. …
West Bank nightlife mainstay Palmer's Bar is hosting another of its Palmfests indoors and out this weekend, with Spider John Koerner, Charlie Parr, Wain McFarlane and the Sex Rays among Friday's performers (5 p.m.-close) and Eleganza!, McNasty Brass Band, Cadillac Kolstad, Red Flags and many more on tap Saturday (2 p.m. start). …
Treehouse Records is hosting another of its free Breakfast Series in-store gigs noon Sunday with old pal Eleni Mendell, who also plays the Turf Club that night. … Long out of place (and price range) among its neighboring condo developments, Cheapo Records in Uptown is finally letting go of its 17-year-old location but thankfully won't close. It will relocate in September to Eat Street's former Payday America storefront, 2600 Nicollet Av. S. And thus will end one of the last reasons some of us still head to Uptown.
chrisr@startribune.com • 612-673-4658
Critics’ picks for entertainment in the week ahead.
