What is FM’s Finest? Click through to find out.
FM’s Finest change
FM’s Finest is only a few months old and it’s already experiencing some growing pains. While the concept started as a way to showcase some of the best bands in the Fargo-Moorhead area we’re expanding FM’s Finest to act a portal to many of the best entertainment, artistic and cultural events in Fargo-Moorhead. Our first venture into that role involves the classic rock act the Moody Blues.
The group that gave us timeless tracks like “Nights in White Satin” and “Tuesday Afternoon” will be performing at Bluestem Center for the Arts, in south Moorhead, on June 8 and we want to take you there.
Through our partnership with Jade Presents, we’ll be giving away ten pairs of tickets to the concert. Click here to enter the drawing.
But while our scope is changing, the purpose of FM’s Finest isn’t. We still aim provide you with information and media about various bands and events, and we still want you to be part of the larger conversation that is the appreciation for local entertainment and the arts. We just want to broaden the topics, a bit.
Video: The Johnson Family Band
The Johnson Family Band kicks off their CD release party at The Venue in Fargo. Here are a couple videos from the beginning of the show. Check back for more throughout the week.
- See more video from the FM’s Finest concert series by joining our group on Vimeo.
- See photos from FM’s Finest on our Photo Gallery page. Add YOUR photos to the gallery by uploading to Flickr and tagging your photo with “fmfinest”.
People’s Choice Winners
The people have spoken! Local groups The Fillers, Michael Pink Band and San Haven Chuckle have been added to the FM’s Finest lineup at The Monkey Bar.
Event Schedule
New dates added! More People’s Choice winners. Michael Pink Band – May 14, San Haven Chuckle – May 21!
The Monkey Bar at The Hub will feature bands Saturday March 12 through Saturday May 21 as follows:
- O’Fosho, March 12
- Haley E and the Rydells, March 19
- Heavy is the Head, March 26
- Sovereign Sect, April 2
- Kipp G and Friends, April 9
- The Suit with Ian Johnson, April 16
- Inside Out Strings, April 23
- People’s Choice, April 30
- Johnson Family Band, May 6
- Michael Pink Band, May 14
- San Haven Chuckle, May 21
Inside Out Strings
Mixing traditional folk and Americana sounds with the zeitgeist of contemporary culture, Inside Out Strings offers a sound for young and old. Hear the band at The Monkey Bar on April 23.
Review: Kipp G and Friends
Musicians with weak stage presence, go watch Kipp G perform. Saturday night at The Monkey Bar he opened his set for the latest installment of FM’s Finest by telling the crowd he was going to throw free beer at them.
Naturally, the crowd compressed together in front of the stage with people eyeing him, searching for their free brews. And while I’m not sure Kipp G and running mate Tony the Butcher gave out more than two or three cans, the crowd didn’t seem to care. The lure of free booze was lost after watching the energy of these Fargo rappers.
Just to be clear, Kipp G isn’t the best lyricist. He doesn’t have superb flow or rhythm. And he’s a bit too smiley to fit into strict hip-hop stereotypes (that’s a good thing). But he’s a superb hype man with a mouth full of hip-hop references. He rips on Asher Roth for stealing Prof’s rhymes in one breath, then convinces the room to bounce with him in the next. Stir in some lyrics that document a hip-hop fan’s life in Fargo and he gets the crowd on his side, waving their hands in the air like they really do care. It was hard not to like Kipp G Saturday night. The rapper has the kind of engaging charisma who makes doing anything captivating. For instance, during Saturday’s gig he flubbed a line, stopped the backing track and admitted his mistake. Somehow, he turned the mistake into a rallying point. I think he could play tic-tac-toe on stage, provide his own commentary into a mic and people would stand rapt in admiration. Match that with his endless energy and it’s easy to understand why he’s become the leading evangelist for Fargo-Moorhead hip-hop.
His partner in rhyme Saturday was Tony the Butcher, another Fargo rapper whose neck tattoos and shaved head make him look tougher than 98 percent of the people in any room in town (including jail cells). He’s a natural rapper, the kind of guy whose delivery is so smooth it’s easy to think he spends his free time sitting on his couch rapping at the TV, or the wall or anything that looks like it would doubt if this guy has hip-hop game. He does. But he doesn’t have Kipp G’s stage presence. Few do.
That’s why the pair makes such an engaging duo. Tony stands, mostly still, spilling compelling lyrics about life, love and legacy while Kipp hops around the stage getting the crowd into the moment. He’s the party director, instructing the room when to dance, when to yell and when to grab the mic from his hand and take over the song. He walks into the crowd without fear. And when he fills in the gaps with his freestyle verse you see how much the guy has studied the craft he loves so much.
Opening the set was Big Rob, a rapper from Concordia. Dude’s still learning his craft, but you gotta give him props for being a rapper from Concordia – I imagine that’s a little like being a ballerina on a football team. Even Kipp G seemed to laugh at the Concordia fact when he introduced Big Rob to the crowd. He’ll never live that down. Rob also asked the crowd if they’re ever late for class. Gotta say, I’ve never heard a rapper do that – ever. More followed the set by Kipp G and Tony, but, frankly, I had to leave and couldn’t check out the rest of the night.
Kipp G and Friends
Kipp G’s been one of the leaders of the Fargo-Moorhead hip-hop scene for years, along with a lot of help from his friends. Kipp G and Friends will perform at The Monkey Bar April 9. Check out their blog at KippGandFriends.Areavoices.com.
Sovereign Sect serves a different sound
Music fans accustomed to the traditional drum/guitar/bass setup seen through the first three weeks of FM’s Finest might pause this Saturday when they see The Monkey Bar’s stage holding an eight-foot table with computer equipment and a drum set.
And not much else.
Those are the instruments of Sovereign Sect, an electronic group from Fargo-Moorhead that creates thick, nuanced amorphous sounds that swell and recede in sonic waves guided by the four men who produce the songs.
“We’ve run into towns where it’s a little odd,” drummer Seth Holden says of the reaction to the group’s setup. “But it doesn’t seem like it takes too long to realize we are doing something other than just pushing ‘play’ on stage.”
Or, if you’re still trying to catch on, the guys in Sovereign Sect don’t just plug their computers into the PA system and play pre-created tracks. They use their computers, drum machines, samplers and whatever else to pair with Holden’s drum set to create live, original music that feels out and adapts to the crowd it’s playing too.
Formed in the fall of 2007 as a collective for DJs and sound architects, Sovereign Sect soon became a band mixing live instrumentation with digital music before settling on the current form of three producers – Chris Patano, Alex Schalaben and Lucas Petz – and Holden.
“We’re still a work in progress,” Holden says.
Kind of like their music which gives their live shows the feel of dance parties, with people bouncing to the music coming from the producers’ hands.
And with the Saturday night dance session that have been kickin’ it in The Venue – which is attached to The Monkey Bar in The Hub, the guys in Sovereign Sect feel they might be able to bring that crowd into their set of original tunes.
“Come on out if you guys want to dance party,” Holden says.
Sounds like a challenge as much as a rally cry.
People’s Choice
You want the best unknown local band? We’ll give you a concert featuring the best unknown local band. But you need to tell us who it is.
As part of FM’s Finest, the weekly concert series at The Monkey Bar featuring some of Fargo-Moorhead’s best bands, we’re asking people to play the role of promoter and pick the musical act to perform live on April 30.
Getting involved is easy. Tell us which band from the greater Fargo-Moorhead area you want us to showcase. Doesn’t matter what genre. Doesn’t matter what style. Doesn’t even matter if its members are human – as long as they’re local and musicians.
We’ll tally the results with the most popular act selected to earn top billing at the April 30 date of FM’s Finest, which is brought to you buy Inforum.com and Jade Presents.
So put on your promoter hat and book the concert. We can’t do it with you.
