HUG at McGuire Theater at Walker Art Center (October 14, 2026)

Oftentimes, the venue that a band or artist performs at is simply that, a place that has the right availability with a good audience size that fits into the overall tour plans. But sometimes, the pairing of band and venue just feels right, whether that be a recurring l relationship like Ike Reilly’s long running pre-Thanksgiving show at First Avenue or a genre match, such as anything classical playing at the Ordway in Saint Paul. On a Wednesday evening in Minneapolis, it was definitely the latter as experimental ambient band HUG was playing their album in a mixed media event at the McGuire Theatre at the Walker Art Center.

The Walker Art Center is a contemporary art museum of note, and although I have been to the Walker multiple times before, I had never been to the McGuire Theater. Tucked in the back corner and up several floors, this is an impressive and economical use of space, with two sets of balconies on each side and I’d guess an overall capacity of around 350 and was quite full by the time the music started. As for the performers, HUG is a Californian band made up of three friends and collaborators: Devendra Banhart, Gyan Riley, and Noah Georgeson. They were here tonight for a performance of their self-titled debut album with the promise of Beat Generation artist Harry Smith’s animated film shorts providing backing visuals. Banhart is an indie folk artist in a genre variously called New Weird America, Free Folk or Freak Folk. (Side note: Harry Smith of the planned visuals had been associated with Old Weird America.) He has an over ten albums, including 2023’s Flying Wig. One of his frequent collaborators is Georgeson, a multi-instrumentalist who also has a significant career as a producer and sound engineer. Last in the trio was Riley, a well known guitarist who is in high demand as he has toured in bands ranging from Arooj Aftab to Paul Simon.

Intriguingly, the band appeared as a quartet (guitar/keys, guitar, guitar/electronica/bass, and drums/keys/melodica, and I never did find out the drummer’s name). This was an easy flowing, ambient tone, but the guitar work was solid at its core, giving the songs real depth and meaningful beginning and endings. Early in the second piece after a looped intro that was the motif, the guitars layered on each other, giving way to let each of the three drive things for a while. That melodica sounded nearly like an accordion with some lovely guitar for a brief number and HUG had soared in strong with a sense of whimsy and delight. When the first (and nearly only) vocals on Sarva Mangalam came in, it was all three of the guitarists with the loudest they had been all evening. Riley had switched to a tiny hand-held electric stringed instrument and tonally it played counter to the rest of the guitar and vocals in the most effective way. We had an amusing stage discussion turned comedy routine from the band, including topics of succbi, Monster energy drinks (condensed milk flavor!), and that an ambient musician’s rider is “just methamphetamines”. 

They got back into the music, with a “cue up the guest film”, and with a single guitar and synths driving things along, Smith’s Early Abstractions were an excellent fit to the sensational music. The various keys effects allowed that guitar to shine through. The first appearance of bass had the other two guitars out again. We had some Spanish guitar themes bubble through at various times as the two guitars played a near conversation with each other. I was amused that a little after the screen had flashed a title of Circular Tensions, the band had a long and slowly building number, complete with wind effects, and a real sense of grandeur that finally resolved by receding into the background. We rolled into the longest and most experimental sounding of the songs, but even here, there was some structure and growth to it (some frogs in the background was a nice touch). The wholesale switch from guitars to mostly keys brought a chiller vibe with a bit of space age feel, and the range the band showed over the evening was impressive. And the switch back to guitars and drum went back up the energy scale, with a great funk rock sound to finish the set. Some bows and waves to the audience and HUG headed out having brought a joy filled performance to town.