Set Times

6:30pm Sophie Hiroko

7:15pm Sophia Eris

7:35pm Keep for Cheap

8:20pm Sophia Eris

8:40pm Durry

Another spring starting to peek around the corner, and it was time for the annual Head Banger’s Ball at First Avenue, hosted by Minnesota United of Major League Soccer. We attended last year’s event (headlined by Polica), and with the recent changes in MLS’s schedule to align to the world’s soccer season, the Loons had already had their opener last weekend, earning a gritty 2-2 tie with a near miraculous late game header down in Austin. Like last year, there were several players in attendance in the early going, with Peter Stroud and Anthony Markanich (the latter a defender who through his amazing ability to score on set pieces, co-led the Loons with 13 goals in 2025). I got a chance to ask him about that incredible year and how he always seemed to have a nose for the goal. He took a second, laughed, and almost shrugging stated, “I’ve always been pretty good in the air”. An understatement for sure, and we’ll be rooting for the Loons to have a great 2026.

Sophia Eris played a DJ set to get things started, and did well with the early time slot, as doors at 6pm made for a slowly building audience. Eris did the gig and worked the crowd as much as possible before introducing the first act of Sophie Hiroko. Eris also noted that the evening had been converted to a benefit concert, supporting local charity Keystone Community Services, as the Twin Cities continues to need support for the brutal impact that ICE has had (and continues!) on the community. We just caught Hiroko and band at Best New Bands, and the trio (vocals/guitar, bass, and drums) really are coming into their own. Like last month, Cashmere Candles, their very new number, was a catchy number, with both bass and lead guitar nearly at a growl, offset by Hiroko’s lighter vocals. Sucker Punch was punctuated by the drums, but really let the full band shine. This longer set compared to Best New Bands revealed a nice depth for Sophie Hiroko. After a shout out to PK, the Loons mascot, the band played Divorce and the significantly larger crowd was digging the band’s sound.

After Eris kept things moving with another DJ set (with PK out on the dance floor), Keep for Cheap was up next. We saw them open for anni xo in December 2025 at the neighboring 7th St. Entry. Aptly self-described as prairie rock, the band’s most recent album is 2024’s Big Grass. The quintet (vocals/guitar, vocals/bass, guitar, guitar, and drums) brought that indie folk vibe with Autumn Vagle and Kate Malanaphy’s dual vocals making a strong impression. The interlude on the first song had Vagel getting the audience to raise their hands and clap, with the clever, “You can clap, you’re sports fans, right?”. That humor carried through the set, but the songs held their own. A switch of instruments for Vagle and Malanaphy (on acoustic guitar and lead vocals) had a more straight up rock tone and had a blistering pace. Day Without You, the band’s first song (released in 2019) and it was fun to see that the band’s identity has been centered in that folk rock the whole time. Those triple guitars added a lot to their overall depth and Keep for Cheap had the crowd fully involved. Bert Northrup (“the birthday boy!”) moved to steel guitar and that is one of my favorite instruments, particularly when supporting that folk rock genre. A late number let guitarist Abe Anderson crush his solo and also had drummer Grace Berg shine a bit as well. Closing on Lakehouse, a song for the Iron Range folk, Keep for Cheap had really nailed their set and kept the energy moving forward for the headliner.

And the headliner, DURRY, was a perfect close for the evening. The sibling duo (Austin and Taryn Durry) were making music during the pandemic and hit a nerve with the brilliant single Who’s Laughing Now. That kicked off an upward trajectory that has them with a pair of albums, including 2025’s This Movie Sucks, and an increasingly large fan base. The quartet (vocals/guitar, guitar/vocals, bass, and drums) had a full background of monitors that played along with their set and was pretty outstanding. As for the music? If you know that original single, DURRY has honed a self-deprecating, satirical tone that strikes at a lot of our sick undertow in these modern times. Coming of Age was a perfect example and DURRY had a professionalism that belied their relatively short existence as a band. This was tight musically, great as a show and was an impressive display. An amusing ask of who was a DURRY fan and who was a Loons fan got us the great, “love the crossover here”. The title track from the new album was perfectly placed and drums were rollicking. We got a live Super Smash Brothers game in the background of a song, which was as hysterical as it sounds. More Dumb nearly had an arena rock feel, which speaks to the level DURRY was performing at. Worse for Wear was a quieter start, but built the whole band in pretty quickly. It was suddenly a rush of hits to the end, with little break between numbers. The Long Goodbye was a touching number with a great backstory and had a minimalist set up. I Told You So was the protest song for the moment, and the absolute f you of it was exactly right. Finishing the main set with Who’s Laughing Now, DURRY had hit all of the requirements for a great show. A quick give away and a final song, and the MNUFC night came to a strong close.