Source: morecowbell.net
No one actually told me, but someone must’ve declared it White Light Riot Week here in Minneapolis. On Tuesday the boys performed an acoustic set at the Electric Fetus, on Friday they performed outdoors for Tunes at Noon on Peavey Plaza, on Saturday they held a meet and greet for the under-18 crowd, then had an industry party, and finally capped it all off with a raucous CD release show. Couple all that with the ridiculous press of the Cities’ major papers and some on-air love from 89.3 The Current, and it’s officially White Light Riot Week.
Lucky for me I was able to attend three of the five major events surrounding the release of White Light Riot’s new album “Atomism.” If you don’t know who White Light Riot is, you’ve fallen behind in your musical education and you need to brush up. Brothers Mike and Mark Schwandt, along with bandmates Joe Christenson and Dan Larsen put it all out there both on stage and on the new album. Mike Schwandt takes the lead, moving about the stage like a marionette whose strings have been cut. Spastically jerking about with enough energy to make me dizzy, there are frequent jumps, dives and swirls. I generally find myself unable to look away for too long for fear of missing even a single moment.
The CD release party itself was something of an anomaly here in Minneapolis as WLR’s publicity company, 50 Entertainment, really pulled out all the stops. Walking down the street, you would be surprised to find a 2-story set of windows, covered with the letters to make up WHITE LIGHT RIOT. 
There was an industry party with a who’s who of reps and musicians… however, oddly none seemed from Minnesota. Have any of these people ever even seenthe boys live before? It was an interesting atmosphere with tattooed pretty-boy rockers, suits, and girls dressed up in tight dresses and heels. Definitely not the norm for such an occasion as a local band’s CD release. Feeling uncomfortable with the situation, my fellow Mpls musicheads and I left early and hit up the venue to hang with the guys.
Of course, the real reason for any of this spectacle was the music. WLR just may be Minneapolis’s next big thing. They seem to have universal appeal (I base this not on the crowd at the CD release, but at other concerts I’ve attended). There was even a small backlash when their party was announced to be an 18+ event. To compensate, WLR held an ‘underage sound check’ for fans to meet with the band. You can’t say that every group is as aware and accommodating as these guys. After the sold-out show, there was an immediate MySpace message apologizing to fans unable to get into the venue due to the large contingent of out-of-town industry people. It was so bad that even at 11pm there was still a line over a block long of people waiting to get in.
Villains of Verona opened the show with a kick and a bang. Lead Rachel Verona slapped that tambourine and sang her lungs out to a somewhat passive crowd. It’s too bad there weren’t more attendees at this point, because VOV really pushed up my expectations for the night. Like a young pop-rock Blondie, Verona’s chops exceeded her underage appearance and really gave the crowd something to listen to.
Next up were The Alarmists, one of Minneapolis’ most solid bands. The Alarmists and WLR often share the love, which WLR opening up for The Alarmists at their planned First Avenue CD Release on July 20. The Alarmists played one of the best sets I’ve seen in a while, and even the guys themselves came off stage announcing it to be the most fun they’ve had in a long time.
White Light Riot took the stage with fanfare, entering like seasoned rock veterans. The lights dimmed, girly screaming commenced, and the band members flew out onto the stage and dove head first into the new album. WLR mixed it up playing some fan favorites from their last EP, as well as the new album in its entirety. The crowd had finally released themselves from the confines of their cages and pushed forward toward the stage, packing everyone in like little sausages. WLR obliged the crowd by throwing everything down and rocking hard to a sold out audience. The only sad point for me was those fans having to sit outside and listen to the awesomeness that was going on inside the venue.
The show was one giant lovefest as local guest musicians kept appearing from nowhere. At one point I was happily enthused to find violinist extraordinaire Jessy Greene getting ready to go on stage. Seriously, is there anyone cool she hasn’tplayed with? Joining WLR on stage for the entire set was Matt Schwandt on keys, also onstage at various points were Ari Herstand on trumpet and Andrew Schwandt on sax. Eric Lovold from The Alarmists even took the stage for a song with the band.
The highlight of the night came at the very end, with a cover of “My Generation.” Mike Schwandt had exhausted himself, yet with this song he came off like a stealth bomber, screaming over the heads of the crowd. An unannounced running leap into the audience had observers gasping at his bravado. He later told HowWasTheShow.com founder David DeYoung that he came very close to hitting his head on the floor. Lucky for us, he didn’t, and the surging fans pushed him back on stage to finish White Light Riot Week off right. Guitarist Joe Christenson bounced around, achieving air multiple times, bassist Dan Larsen kept his cool and pounded out the heavy undertones needed to keep the band in check, and Mark Schwandt towed the heavy line, beating his drums into submission.
This show will go down as one of my best of 2007, I have no doubt. Yet still, something was missing. It was the local flavor of the crowd, the people I see at every show. I’m definitely not opposed to some new faces - in fact, I wish more people would get out to see our local acts play, but there was an element lacking on Saturday night that had nothing to do with the band.
White Light Riot next opens for Ike Reilly this Friday, June 29 at the Cabooze.
The full set of photos can be seen here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mnconcertphotos/sets/72157600474643011/
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