Miniature Tigers at the Nether Bar, Minneapolis (23 Jul 2014)

Young Rising Sons

Opening up, earlier than set time listed, was Young Rising Sons, the first of four bands. Originally this Red Bank, New Jersey, band was not even listed on bill, so it was actually quite a surprise to see them play. They had a fairly brief five-song set, which lasted less than 25 minutes. All these bands at the show would do really well at Warped Tour, but probably more enjoyable as this was definitely a more intimate experience.



Young Rising Sons basically played their entire self-titled EP, with the exception of “Simple Life.” Singer Steve Patrick (off topic: Morrissey’s name is Steven Patrick) explained that the song was only written a few weeks ago!

Finish Ticket

San Francisco’s Finish Ticket was up next. Admittedly, when I heard their name announced, I thought they were called Finnish Ticket. You know, from Finland.



Finish Ticket’s set consisted of their debut album Tears You Apart, except they threw in a cover of The Killers’ song “When You Were Young.”

The Griswolds

Australia’s The Griswolds took the stage just prior to 10 o’clock to some very excited fans who rushed to the front of the stage to cheer and champion their new favorite band. This shouldn’t surprise anyone, the band was recently chosen by Spotify’s Emerge campaign, so the music is reaching to a younger audience.

Christopher Whitehall

All of the songs from Heart of a Lion EP were really well received, including the title track as closer, “Mississippi,” and “The Courtship of Summer Preasley.” For the latter song, singer Christopher Whitehall introduced the song as “This one’s an old one.” Funny, because that EP was only released last year.



Although the audience were dancing and singing along to “Beware the Dog,” one of their preceding single from Be Impressive (coming out August 26th via Wind-Up Records), I was mostly impressed by their song “Mississippi,” which had a great shift in song style in the middle of the song. It should also be noted that the grand Mississippi River divides our two twin cities, Minneapolis and St Paul.

Charlie Brand

It’s been a long time since Miniature Tigers were in Minneapolis, even singer Charlie Brand confessed that he wasn’t actually sure people were going to show up. But he was wrong, truly dedicated fans were waiting in anticipation, despite the fact that Hennepin Avenue was blocked off due to Life Time Fitness’s “Torchlight 5K” parade.



Sure, it’s been a long time, but fans still remember fondly of Miniature Tigers, singing along to the more well-known songs, particularly with “Female Doctor,” “Used To Be The Sh**”, and ” Cannibal Queen.”



Highlight of their set included “Dream Girl,” which was dedicated to Zoey in the audience, because it was her birthday. However, the biggest hit of the night was their finale, “Cannibal Queen,” which featured a stage invasion from big fans and also members of Finish Ticket and The Griswolds. It was kind of surprising to see so many people on the non-existent stage.



There was no need for an encore, because it’ll be really hard to top that satisfying ending.



Miniature Tigers’ latest release Cruel Runnings came out last month and is available via Yebo Music.



Remaining tour dates: