My Brightest Diamond has released five albums and played hundreds of shows, but each one is a novel experience. Two of their only constants: Shara Nova’s classically trained voice and her bent toward artsy surprise. In Nov. 2018, she released the My Brightest Diamond album A Million and One, a more electronic, dancey project than […]
When sisters Iman and Siham Hashi were children, they both dreamed of singing, writing and producing music someday, but the road to becoming musicians would prove to be far from easy. Iman, meaning “faith,” and Siham, meaning “arrow,” come together to form the duo’s name FAARROW. Born in Mogadishu, Somalia and now based in Toronto, the […]
Last night, Adrianne Lenker played a sold-out show at the Cedar Cultural Center with special guest Luke Temple. The crowd were seated throughout the night in front of the elevated stage, and I quickly understood why as I let the sounds wash over me without the constant distraction of moving around to get a better […]
“To be honest with you, it always feels like dumb luck. I don’t know why people respond to it. I’ve seen strangers passionately embrace each other and lift my 6’5” body off of the ground just because I presented myself to them as confidently uncool. What the f***?” So says Jo Kellen about figuring out […]
For a group that recently released their debut album, the Midnight Hour are no novices to writing, recording, or producing music. The Midnight Hour is the collaboration of composer/ arranger/ producer Adrian Younge and rapper/ DJ/ producer/ A Tribe Called Quest member Ali Shaheed Muhammad. After collaborating on various projects for years, the duo released […]
“Mountain Man is an all-women group?” One concertgoer asked his friend for clarification outside of the Cedar Cultural Center last night. Before a capella bands like Pentatonix and movies like Pitch Perfect became popular, three voices filled empty hearts with their music, as stark as an autumn night is long. The trio that comprise Mountain […]
How does one create a sound like Roma di Luna’s? I know you can’t set out to make music so singular: with tinges of chamber pop, indie rock, and even Johnny Cash. Plus enough reverb to make aliens feel terrestrial. So I suppose the only answer is evolution. Evolve they have. From the farmer’s market […]
Between sets on Friday night, the crowd at the sold-out Cedar Cultural Center were treated to Gloria Estefan’s “Conga,” Bruno Mars’s “That’s What I Like,” Estelle’s “American Boy,” and even a club remix of Hall & Oates’ “I Can’t Go For That.” No one seemed entirely sure why the house playlist — normally such a […]
Representatives from the Cedar Cultural Center were relieved to inform us that Aar Maanta, the London-based Somali Muslim singer, has successfully returned to Minnesota on a year-long visa to begin planning a statewide residency through the rest of 2018 and into 2019. Back in October, a residency scheduled through the Cedar’s Midnimo program was canceled when Maanta […]
In a performance that featured psychedelic animal costumes, colorful projections, and several wardrobe transitions by lead singer Kevin Barnes, Of Montreal brought unparalleled energy to the Cedar Cultural Center last night. Since the band’s beginning in 1996, Barnes, the only remaining original member of the band, has always strived to push the boundaries of both […]
