And the big outdoor summer rock shows just keep coming: Alabama Shakes and Father John Misty will pair up for a special one-night party May 30 on Minneapolis' historic Hall's Island, located under the refurbished Plymouth Avenue Bridge on the Mississippi River just north of downtown. Tickets go on sale Friday at 11 a.m. for $45 via eTix.com and First Avenue outlets.
After putting their proposed First Avenue Festival in Parade Stadium permanently on the backburner two summers ago, the club's bookers kept their eyes on other possible outdoor music ideas. They helped put together the Trampled by Turtles-led Festival Palomino with co-promoter Rose Presents at Canterbury Park last September (on again for this year), and they teamed with Chicago's Jam Productions for this special May 30 concert.
Hall's Island housed a popular bath house and park in the early 1900s before it was taken over by the Scherrer Bros. Lumber Co. The Minneapolis Parks Department recently took it back over and has been reshaping it to be part of the Above the Falls Regional Park. Concertgoers will be able to access the site via a short walk from the North Loop area of downtown or the Boom Island area across the river in northeast Minneapolis. About 8,000 tickets will be sold, a capacity that has more to do with limiting the impact on the surrounding neighborhoods than how many people the island can actually hold (a lot more, apparently).
"When we started working on this show, I immediately thought of the Hall's Island site as the perfect location," First Ave general manager Nate Kranz said, crediting the parks department for bringing the island to their attention two years ago and other city staffers for getting behind the idea.
In a press release Jam and First Ave put out on the concert, Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges said, "I'm extremely proud that they are bringing live music to our river front. I can't wait for this concert to happen in our city."
Gates to the show will open at 4:30 p.m., and local food offerings and craft beers are being promised along with the skyline-framed sunset (weather-permitting, of course).
Both Alabama Shakes and Father John Misty will be touring to tout their sophomore albums, following big breakout debuts that generated especially strong Twin Cities followings 2012-2013. FJM's April 4 show at First Ave sold out instantaneously. Alabama Shakes' last time in town was a sold-out outdoor gig at Cabooze Plaza in July 2013, also a First Ave-promoted event.
