Transviolet at 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis (28 April 2023)

Los Angeles’ alternate pop/rock band Transviolet (singer Sarah McTaggart
guitarist Judah McCarthy,
multi-instrumentalist Michael Panek,
and drummer Jon Garcia) returned to Minneapolis, headlining the 7th Street Entry on Friday night.



Opening the show was Jagwar Twin (Roy English). Joining English on stage was his drummer, Luke V on guitars, and a video person (who was perhaps live broadcasting the entire show). They had a fog machine that was constantly running and they seemed excited to play tracks from 33 (Big Loud Rock).



From what I’ve heard, they sounded really good. Great vocals. It’s amped up, but you can tell that English can really, really sing. Songs like “Loser” had “L” hand signs, while “I Like to Party” was pure dancing/going wild.



Highlight of the set was before “Great Time To Be Human”, Luke V (solo artist Luke Villegas) brought out his melodica. English claims that V can play “any song”. To prove his point, he asked the audience to name a song. Sometime shouted out “The Office Theme Song”… in which V started to play the theme song.



The group ended their set with “Happy Face”, with its catchy chorus, “Hey, put on a happy face”. While the song is on an upbeat, happy note, you do get a sense of sad commentary when English sings, “Death of my generation.”



Transviolet came on stage in near darkness. That’s because when they reveal the outfit what singer Sarah McTaggart was wearing, in Jem’s catchphrase, it was truly outrageous! McTaggart, of course, was completely comfortable dancing and jumping and singing in her body… just like their new album (and theme) The Body.

Transviolet (13 Oct 2015)

To be perfectly honest, it didn’t surprise me, because when we first saw the band, on their first-ever tour, in Oct 2015, I commented, “Based on their bright sound and love for performing live music, this band will be on the road to bigger, better things.”



What I should add is that when you watch Transviolet, in 2015, it was impossible to take your eyes off McTaggart. The way she moves, the way she sings, the way her arms expressed itself… you just knew this band was giving it their all.



Seeing the band, now, in 2023, you can easily see that Transviolet was just very, very happy to be on stage again, performing their songs for their fans. It was heartbreaking to hear McTaggart, on stage, telling the story about how the band was touring in 2020, right before the pandemic hit. Their last show, in Denver (which someone in the audience was at that show), the band thought that was it. That was the last show ever. The end of the world. Now the band is in a much happier mood, now that concerts are back.



If you love alternative rock, big arena pop/rock songs, definitely check out Transviolet. Their latest album, The Body, is out now.

Remaing Tour Dates