Copeland, w/ Eisley and We Are The City at Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (17 November 2015)

Copeland made a stop at the Varsity Theater on Tuesday night in support of their new album Ixora released on Tooth & Nail Records.



The last time I saw Copeland was about ten years back at the House of Bricks in my hometown of Des Moines, IA. These guys announced a final tour in 2008 and that was it… until they released Ixora in October of last year. Then boom, they were back at it touring consistently and playing to crowds bigger than they did back in the early 2000’s.



Copeland’s sound is relaxing and soothing. Aaron Marsh, vocalist, has a voice that just puts your heart at ease. Add the powerful piano lines, a string trio, and expressive drums, guitar, and bass, and you have an amazing live show.



Although the string trio was hidden towards the back corner of the stage, they seemed to really add something to the music. It added the depth and emotion that you got from Copeland’s earlier releases. That’s something I never got from their live shows years ago. Not that those were bad shows, but last night they were really able to express the emotion that their songs emit and the crowd was feeling.



Copeland played a great mix of new songs and songs that dated back to their debut release Beneath Medicine Tree which came out in 2003 on The Militia Group. It didn’t matter what song these guys played, new or old, the crowd sang along to every word.

We Are The City

We Are The City was the opening band of the night. WATC are a trio from Vancouver, Canada who recently released their third full length album. This was their first U.S. tour and they are definitely turning heads on it.



WATC have a unique sound that seemed to catch the crowd off guard but kept them captivated. The sound is part pop, part weird prog rock, part indie, all talent. At some points during their songs, you really have no clue what’s going to happen. It sounds like a train wreck but the most beautiful train wreck you have ever heard and then, right when you’re ready for a massive explosion, they bring it back together and it sounds like a normal indie-pop song again.



Their newest album Above Club was released on Tooth & Nail Records on Friday, November 20th and was available for a “pay what you want” fee at the show.



Also opening the show was Eisley, an indie rock band from Texas consisting of four siblings and their cousin. Singer/ rhythm guitarist Sherri DuPree-Bemis is the wife of Max Bemis, frontman for the iconic pop-punk band Say Anything. Eisley has been releasing music and touring since 2005. In 2013, they released their newest album Currents on Equal Vision Records.



Remaining tour dates:

langen (langen@weheartmusic.com)
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