By Kelsey Simpkins
This Saturday night, February 20, five Minnesotan bands take to the stage at 7th Street Entry to compete for the title of best new band, as proclaimed by the Star Tribune’s 2016’s Are You Local? Contest. Rebranded after the end of Vita.mn, this series continues with some exciting prizes, including a slot in two upcoming concerts: March 11 in the First Avenue Mainroom and March 18 in Austin, Texas! The winning band will also receive $1,500 and a profile in the Star Tribune. Recent winners include Baby Shel (2015), Black Diet (2014), Carroll (2013), and Prissy Clerks (2012). It’s easy to say that whoever wins this annual gig has a great future in the Minnesota scene ahead of them.
One of the finalists in this year’s competition is indie rock band Good Night Gold Dust. In 2015, Good Night Gold Dust played many (many) shows around the Midwest and in Minneapolis, including a Daytrotter, White Wall Session (Sioux Falls), and their EP release at Triple Rock Social Club in November. Their hard work has paid off, breaking through in the Twin Cities to become a known name and opening for popular and successful groups like Bad Bad Hats, Enemy Planes, and Bora York.
Their story starts five years ago, although the current four-piece lineup is just over a year strong. Laura Schultz, Colin Scharf, and Michelle Roche are the oldest members, surviving several changes in personnel and genre. Zach Arney approached the group in April 2014, and they opened for Cloud Cult soon after.
It’s atypical, being a rock band in Minnesota not based in Minneapolis-St Paul or Duluth. Mankato, an area home to collegiate and recreational industries, is not known for producing indie musicians. It’s no Northfield, yet close enough to the Cities in the same way to foster enough talent and opportunity for these rockers. Yet the only real negative consequence of this distance from Minneapolis seems to be that Twin Cities’ residents are only now getting acquainted with their music.
Featured on the Are You Local? Finalists page, is their song “Waves.”
In “Waves,” Schultz croons to a sharp beat, “I’ve forgotten how to forget the bad parts / It’s getting harder to remember the good,” as the guitars come in loud. There’s a sense of implied loss, with her chanting “make it through the night,” at the end of the first chorus. Although the instruments are poppy and the beat is feel-good, the story makes you feel that something – or someone – is missing.
Recorded and produced by Brett Bullion (Caroline Smith, Poliça, Now, Now, Bad Bad Hats), the creative choices that Good Night Gold Dust have made for this EP are purposeful, with strong intention to make the most of what comes of making music. Informed by many forms of loss and trial, their EP also stems from chances at good luck, as well as accepting one’s limitations in order to go beyond them.
I had the chance to catch up with Colin Scharf and Laura Schultz recently, to pick their brains over how 2016 is going so far and what is at stake for them in this upcoming contest finale.
KS: Hey! Congrats on being a finalist for the 2016 Are You Local? Contest! I feel like this has all happened very fast. How did this all come about for you guys?
CS: Hey thanks! Yeah, things feel like they’ve been moving really fast, but when we look back to last year at this same time, we’d just received the final mixes of our EP from Brett Bullion, and we were deciding on track sequencing. It took us most of 2015 to figure out how to sound like the band on the album, as well as how to make a name for ourselves outside of Mankato. We played a lot of shows last summer and fall, and were lucky to get great single premieres and EP reviews online (Chris from Warehouse Eyes helped us out a lot). But yeah, being Are You Local? finalists was totally unexpected. We’re super thankful to all the folks who voted for us.
LS: Yeah, like Colin said, in some ways it feels sudden, but in other ways it feels like we’ve been working for ages to get here.
KS: I understand that if you win, you win some prizes, too. You’d get to play at First Avenue for the SXSW Send-Off in March and be a part of the Star Tribune/First Avenue music showcase in Austin, Texas, on March 18, and they help you pay to get there! What a deal. Oh and I hear there’s a cash prize in there somewhere. What are you all most excited about if Good Night Gold Dust were to win this year?
CS: It’s amazing to be included in the top five local bands for this contest, so that in itself is validating. We’re really excited about the potential of being in the sun down in Austin, haha. Playing First Avenue would be amazing, too.
LS: I know it’s really clichè to say that we’re honored just to be nominated, but in this case, we really are! Being a band from Mankato has been great in some ways, and in other ways, it’s been hard. Being included in the top five is really legitimizing. We’ve looked at previous winners and finalists, and we’re really amped to be a part of this club. 🙂
KS: Have you ever been to Austin, Texas? What would you do at SXSW if you got to go?
CS: In 2012 and 2013, a completely different lineup of GNGD traveled down to SXSW and played a bunch of shows adjacent to the festival — no SXSW-official gigs, but we had an awesome time playing, hanging out, and seeing so many amazing bands and people. We’d definitely go see We Are The Willows! We’re super excited for the potential to be on an official showcase this year, and for whatever opportunities that may arise.
LS: I’ve got some family and friends there, and actually went and played a couple SXSW-adjacent shows there in 2008 to sing back ups with an ex-boyfriend — so having a legit showcase with this band would be amazing. Seeing family and getting a little sun wouldn’t suck, either.
KS: All things considered, 2016 is off to a great start for Good Night Gold Dust. What else are you excited about this year?
CS: We’re writing new material now and looking to get back into the studio this summer. We’re also playing a couple summer festivals that we’re excited about, as we’re booking weekend & week-long tours. Incidentally, this EP got a fair amount of blog attention in the UK, so we’re kind of considering booking a UK tour. London Calling!
LS: Yeah, really excited about new material and recording again — I’m also working on a solo A-side/B-side that’ll come out this year. Everything that’s happening with the new GNGD record is amazing, and we don’t want to lose the steam that we’re gaining with it.
KS: And the most self-serving question of all: why do you guys think you should win? Or rather, why should people come out to the show for you on February 20th?
CS: If you vote for us, you’ll make our parents really, really proud of us. But seriously, every band on the bill is awesome. We’re excited to play and hang with all the other groups, and to play with them in the future.
LS: I’m really thinking about this show as a killer showcase — so coming out to see some curated new stuff is gonna be a great time. We’ll put on a great show for you, too.
And it will be a great show. So come out this Saturday to see some of the best new talent in Minnesota! Tickets may be limited, so plan ahead, kids.
Are You Local? Finalist Contest
with Holidae, Dives, Danami And The Blue, Ness Nite, and Good Night Gold Dust
Saturday, February 20, 2016 at 7pm
$5 / 18+ / 7th St Entry
http://first-avenue.com/event/2016/02/areyoulocal
Learn more about Good Night Gold Dust:
http://www.goodnightgolddust.com/
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