On Wednesday morning we hit the road for Spring Green, WI to play at the legendary Shitty Barn. The folks that run this joint may tell you it isn’t legendary, but they’re just being classic Midwestern humble. Many of my favorite bands from around Minneapolis have played that room. In fact, I first found out about it from my pal Gabe in The4onthefloor. Ever since he told me about it, I’ve wanted to play there… A little barn out in the sticks that always manages to draw a super-dedicated, music-loving crowd… I mean come on…
It is by far the coolest little venue you’ve never heard of. It’s located about 40 minutes west of Madison in a very rural environment. It’s not just a clever name, the venue is actually a shitty barn. Well, to be fair, the barn has been made into a pretty hip little space. At no point did it ever feel dirty, rundown, or unsafe. “Shitty” doesn’t quite do it justice, but it is still a barn never the less. They’ve hosted some very cool artists over the years including Low, Charlie Parr, Phox, S Carey, The4onthefloor, Bo Ramsey, and countless other kick ass regional artists.
Owned and operated by a group of about 9 people, the Barn presents shows on Wednesday nights (as well as the occasional Thurs, Fri, or Sat) from May through October. People come out to the barn at around 6pm for dinner and beers (of which they have an awesome selection), and music usually goes from about 7:30 - 10:30 (with a healthy break for socializing in the middle). They seem to mostly book regional acts (WI, IA, IL), and focus heavily on the Americana side of things.
We rolled in a little ahead of schedule and quickly proceeded to set up and check. Honestly, it felt like we were overplaying the modest sized room, so we dialed everything back a couple clicks and then things started sounding good. Shortly after check their on-site food vendor, Enos Farms, showed up to serve some of the finest farm to table food I’ve ever come across. I had the veggie burger and it was easily the best I’eve ever had.
The sold out crowd began filtering in right on cue at 6pm. We hit the stage a little after 7:30 and played two sets with a nice long break for hanging out in between. Over the course of the night we met some of the most fun, genuine people we’ve ever encountered on the road. I’ve often said that next to playing music with Sonny, my favorite part of this gig is hanging out at the merch booth after the show and meeting all the great people. This night was awesome for both!
Nick (bass) and Tony (trombone) had some things to get back for, and I had a mixing session for Sonny’s new record scheduled for the following day. So the three of us packed up and headed back that night. It was long one, but Nick is quite the road dog. He powered through and drove the entire 4 hour trip. I didn’t walk into my home in South Minneapolis until about 4am, but at least I made it home for the session. Oh wait, the sessions wound up being cancelled anyways! Oh well, it was still nice to be home with the misses and sleep in my own bed.
Apparently the rest of the guys had a great time staying over in Spring Green. Some folks from the Shitty Barn called over to a bar they work at and asked them to stay open late and make some pizza for the guys. I believe they may have even played sober cab for the boys, but you’d have to ask them about that.
One very cool thing about the Barn is that there seems to be a very cool community of creative people built around it. Every show has an incredible poster designed by one of their many designers. They also record shows and take incredible photos. Here are some awesome photos taken by the incomparable Connie Ward.
Friday morning we packed up and went to Des Moines for our second appearance at The Des Moines Social Club. I will forego the lengthy description of this place and defer to my previous blog post about it. Just know that somehow, since our last visit there in December, if anything, it got more awesome!
We played upstairs in the Kum & Go theater this time. While we were sound checking, we could hear the faint sound of another band playing downstairs (where we played last time). After check we went down and had a look. I’ll be damned if there wasn’t an old-timey jazz band playing their asses off at like 5pm on a Friday. They sounded great, too! After enjoying their music for a bit, we hit the town for some food. We wound up eating at Tacopocalypse, where the food is every bit as awesome as the name!
I had the ranch tofu burrito and it was incredible. Most of the other guys got the wasabi brisket burrito and sang its praises for the rest of the night. If you dig hot sauces, be sure to try all of theirs. I paid for a side of their special habanero sauce and it was well worth it.
Shortly after we got back from taco heaven, The Maytags took the stage and got the party started. These guys were great… Super tight, very tasteful, and lots of energy. They had a cool mixture of new and old soul that felt uniquely their own. I very seriously hope that we get to play with them again soon. I’ll be surprised if they don’t start playing up here more often, too. I think once Minneapolis sees them, they’ll love ’em!
After The Maytags finished, we made our way up from the basement green room to the backstage. The show was being broadcast live by Iowa Public Radio (thanks IPR!!!) and there was a little bit of confusion as to exactly when we should take the stage. We got it all straightened out and the show went off without a hitch.
The crowd that night came to party! People danced all night long. Also, and I’ve said it before on this blog, I was particularly impressed by the number of people who took to slow dancing during the ballads. Those are my favorite crowds… the ones that hop on for the ENTIRE ride, not just the parts when Sonny is screaming in their faces to hop on. Slow dancing has become some sort of lost art or something. But I’ll just say this and move on. Next time you’re at a show and you’re standing around all awkward-like during a ballad, and you see a couple start slow dancing, just remember that they are probably going to go home and have more fun that you.
After the show there was a serious dance party going on down in the basement. Sonny and a few of the guys checked it out while a few of us, myself included, hung out in the dressing room with a couple of The Maytags and enjoyed some fine Sulry Beer. Eventually we made our way back to the hotel where we proceeded to stay up too late, drink too much, and probably talk a little too loud. The following morning Tony, Nick, and I hit the road before 9am. The others left a little after us, but it couldn’t have been too late as I know a few of the guys had other gigs to be back for. Riley (trombone) stayed down there because he was playing with Black Market Brass the next day at a food truck festival held by the venue, which I heard was awesome.
We’ve only got one other gig this month, a festival here in town at Bauhaus Brew Labs on 5/21. Other than that, John (Secret Stash Records Chief Engineer) and I will just be finishing the new album. Also, Sam (keys) is getting married on 5/28. Things pick up again next month and should stay that way through most of summer and fall. We’re looking forward to hitting it hard again real soon.
-Eric (drums)