Church and Rock do mix

Going to the Basilica Block Party this weekend reminded me of how much I love Minnesota in the summer. It was pretty idyllic to listen to good music with the Minneapolis skyline providing the backdrop on one side and the historic basilica providing it on the other. The weather was just about perfect both nights, warm and sunny. Every once in awhile we'd get a refreshing touch of cool northern breeze — nature's air conditioner. It was pretty relaxing.

The only part of the block party that usually causes me any anxiety is that there's two stages and it's sometimes hard to choose what band I want to see more. Friday I started out by getting my first taste of Romantica, a local Twin Cities band with an alt rock feel. They were quite entertaining, even if the lead singer seemed to be affecting a Bono-imitation Irish accent when he talked to the crowd between songs. Maybe it wasn't entirely fake — their song "Fiona" suggests at least some Irish roots, and is also a great sample of their sound.

Next up was a trip to the main stage for Mat Kearney, who is one of my favorite up-and-coming singer-songwriters. For my money one of the highlights of the weekend was seeing him perform "Closer to love" :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbdxzSHn-QM

Best line: "I guess we're all one phone call from our knees."

After Kearney we got to see the reunion of the Jayhawks, a Minnesota institution (despite their decidedly "Kansas" name). They were good, especially the guy on lead guitar. But after about a half hour all the songs started to sound the same. Basically the Jayhawks are a band that's cool to listen to while you're doing other things (or if you're high, judging by the two squinty-eyed dudes who were jamming out next to us). So, before the Jayhawks were done we hopped over to the other stage and caught the end of the Black Crowes' set. It was kind of disappointing. Seemed like a bunch of long-haired dudes who just got together for an impromptu jam session — long guitar solo, then long drum solo, then long harmonica solo, then long keyboard solo, etc. But we did get to hear "Hard to Handle" when they were finally done with all that, so that was nice.

Day 2 was highlighted by Matt Nathanson, who played a great set of music and was also pretty darn funny. He played his hits, of course, like "C'mon get higher," and "Car crash" and also some ultimate audience-participation cover songs like "Jessie's girl" and Don't stop believing." He also did a rollicking version of the song "Laid" which is technically a cover, I guess, but he recorded a version of it for the American Wedding soundtrack, so it's kind of his, too. In between he ripped on self-absorbed music stars like Miley Cyrus and Eminem, and didn't spare the sarcasm when talking about the cinematic brilliance of American Wedding, which I thought was gutsy, considering he played a part (albeit a small one) in that project.

After Nathanson I stayed near the main stage for the Counting Crows. It was the second time I've seen them and the second time I've left early. I think I like the Counting Crows, but maybe I only like the Counting Crows of the '90s. I stayed there for almost an hour, then went over and caught the last 20 minutes of The Hold Steady's set and found myself wishing I had come over earlier. The Hold Steady is super-fun.

So that was the block party. I got to hang out with old friends and listen to great music outside in great weather at a great venue. Sure there were a lot of 50-year-olds trying to act 25 and a lot of 15-year-olds trying to act 25. Sure it was crowded and all the food and drinks were overpriced. But, all in all, it was a pretty nice way to spend a summer weekend.