Big Thief at Surly Brewing Festival Field (August 15, 2026)

Heading to Surly Brewing Festival Field, there was a family of four ahead of me, one of the teenage sons dragging the group from behind.  At the entrance they completely stopped with the son still trying to pull up the tickets on his smartphone.  Inside the venue a guy my age grabbed the other half of a sturdy picnic table.  He was also there with his children, but his daughters already had their spot in front of the stage, which was something he had no intention of doing. Eating nachos seemed a better use of his pre-concert time.

In a span of ten years Big Thief has slowly grown their fan base from young to old.  We’ve been big fans, catching their steady rise at 7th Street, Triple Rock and First Ave, last seeing them at Liberty Hall in September, 2021. By chance we caught Adrianne Lenker and Buck Meek as solo acts within a month of each other in 2024, Meek playing Cedar Cultural Center in May and Lenker playing the State Theatre in June.  And now as a group they were now playing a sold-out show at Surly Brewing Festival Field.

Ben LaMar Gay and his band opened the evening with spittles of rain in the air.  

How best to describe Gay. He is a singer and composer from Chicago.  He also plays the cornet as well as diving into electronics with samplers and synths.  He has a degree in Music Education from Northeastern Illinois University and spent a three-year residency in Brazil.  After seeing his generous opening set, I would say that he is a musical conjurer that produces musical collages instead of straight-ahead songs.  

Case in point:  As a photographer, you are given a chance to shoot the first three songs of a performer from the pit, which is the space between the stage and the audience.  After ten minutes of listening to Gay and his band, I felt I snapped enough photos, so I headed back into the crowd.  And as he opened the gate, one of the security guards joked, “Was that the third song?”

I had no idea for there was no traditional form that would indicate the markers from song to song.  Instead, a collage.  I had to believe a lot of it was improvisational between Gay and his band, a group that had a guitarist, a drummer and a Sousaphone and flute player.  The music would be challenging for those wanting structure, but if you just let go and let it happen, it was an experience to hear a group of talented musicians flow through a stream of musical genres like Motown, Blues, hip hop, Cool, bebop, Avant-Guarde, Experimental and free jazz.  

A highlight is when Gay and his band put down their instruments and picked up church bells.  But instead of ringing out carrol and wishing everyone an early Merry Christmas they started to chant like a group of funky monks.  It was definitely not on my musical bingo card, but it was moving and indicated to me that Gay is someone to see in the future.  

Lenker and Meek next took the stage with James Krivchenia on drums. Long-time bassist, Max Oleartchik, left Big Thief in 2024 and the group has officially remained a trio since, but they have invited Joshua Crumbly on bass to tour with them on their Somersault Slide 360 Tour.  

Lenker started off the evening with a solo of “Cruel and Beautiful World”  before remarking about the beautiful sunset and quickly thanking the crowd for “… being here with us.”  

The band didn’t seem to be in any hurry, and with the summer weather about as perfect as it could be and a receptive crowd, young and old, it felt like the music could go on forever as the band played fan favorites like “Vampire Empire” and “Cattails”  

Many of the prior We Heart Music reviews described Lenker as shy, but with the balmy weather and receptive crowd, she did take some time to show appreciation.  “I’m in love with Minneapolis,” she said, and after a brief pause added, “… and St. Paul.”  

“I haven’t lived here in a while, but I grew up here.  I have family here today and friends.”  Then after another pause added, “… teachers.” 

Then in the middle of “Shark Smile” something happened.  The main speakers went out.  Not a mic.  Not an amp.  The towering bank of speakers that hung from booths sides of the stage completely popped.  But no matter.  The band kept playing.  Their mics and vintage amps still kicking, the groove too good to stop as Crumbly held everything together on the bass, Krivchenia having the time of his life on drums, and Meek and Lenker creating a guitar sound that filled maybe the stage and the first few rows of the crowd.  

After the song, the band waited a couple of minutes, but that pop was not a quick fix.  So Lenker took charge and turned summer camp counselor and led the first few rows to sing to “Paul” and “Change.”

Eventually the mains came back online and the band started playing again along with the singing crowd.  

“Wow, I never played the song in that key before,” said Lenker after they finished.  

“The crowd set the key,” added Meek.  

It was that kind of night.  All that was needed was a campfire big enough to fit the sold-out crowd.