Featured 09/15/2014 by Tyler Norkunas

LIVE: Rage Vs Rave @ The Garage

This kind of show is what local Minnesota music is all about.

Two genres of music that no one could imagine being on the same bill. Two types of fans who would have never expected to jam together in one night.

And two people who made all of it possible.

Review by Tyler Norkunas - Photos by Tanner Morris

But you can’t just give credit to just these guys putting on the show for making something like this work. You definitely have to thank the fans. Let me tell you something. I’ve been involved in local Minnesota music since I was 17 years old. I’ve toured. I’ve been both in the crowd and on the stage. I’ve been on all sides of the spectrum. I know that there’s a lot to gain from being a part of this community. Yeah, there’s a whole lot of music you can check out, but there’s a lot more than that! There’s friends, family, and experiences. And that right there is what made this night possible.

This show defined community. This show defined equality. No one person, or band, had the spotlight. Guest vocals were in the plentiful amount. Not just from members in other bands, but from fans in the crowd as well. I think that’s one thing that makes local music so great. Bands here know that, even though they’re on stage, it’s not about them. It’s about the people that come out to their shows, give their support, and rock out to what they love to do. People in the crowd view these bands as idols. And the band members treat them as equals. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is.

Which raises the question, how do you define local music? How do you define the experience? I think that people get the wrong idea of what it’s all about. I’ve encountered too many people in my life that view it from the outside in as “a bunch of shitty music”. But, I’ve also seen too many people describe radio music and Billboard Top 100 artists in the same way. So where do you draw the line? There is no line. Music is music, no matter what that music may be. That is the mindset of the artists on a local level and the fans that follow them. That is what keeps them going. That is what makes it work.

Pillow fights in the pit help a bit too.

I felt like it would be the perfect opportunity to talk with some of the fans to gain their insight on what else makes local music so great.

“Give somebody a fair chance. There’s so much talent out there that is so underrated. And a lot of it is super cool…You can’t support everything. You like what you like and that’s not gonna change. I don’t want people to be fake and only like something because “it’s local and they need to go check it out.” They don’t need to go check out local music. They don’t have to. But, I would encourage that if you like a certain type of music, go check it out.” – Sam

“Come with an open mind. Don’t be judgmental because there’s someone there seeing that band and you don’t know what that band has done for them.” – Aaron

“We definitely have some really great bands out here…There’s so much more heart. So much more [creative] music. Just open your eyes a little bit.” – Tyler

“The people are just just amazing. Like, From Concept To Chronicle, they have these amazing, most inspiring lyrics. The people in the band are just amazing people. This is such a friendly scene…It’s all accepting.” – Matthew

So how was the show? Was it a success or a bust? This show was a huge success. People filled the floor from front to back. When one band was done, fans migrated into the other room to jam to some dubstep/electronica. Local shows cannot succeed unless the community that supports it is completely involved. That is why this mix-up of genres works and that’s why it will continue to work.

On a personal note, this was one of the best shows I’ve ever been to. And I’m not ashamed to say that I love Minnesota music. Stay true.