Druzy Rose-Concert Review

Druzy Rose-“Kiddie Pool” EP Release Show

Sunday November 24th 2019 at the 7th Street Entry

Concert review by Joslyn Danielson

So many Minnesota musicians dream of playing a nearly sold out show at the 7th street Entry, let alone their first EP release show. On Sunday, November 24th Druzy Rose achieved that dream. Partnered with The Immaculate Beings and Mrs. Pinky and The Great Fox, which consist of their friends/fellow bandmates, the crew filled up the famous local venue with friends and fans alike.

The show kicked off with Mrs. Pinky and The Great Fox, with a soulful alternative R&B sound. The group filled the room with the energy of anticipation, and got the crowd moving to their alt-jazzy tunes. Lead singer Tatyana pulled the audience in with their endearing stage presence and huge voice (surprisingly huge for such a small human).

Next up was the local band that is quickly increasing in popularity, The Immaculate Beings. They are slightly more established and are awaiting the release of their second album on January 29th. According to their artist bio, the group has come together from all across the mid-west, and is a family of queer eclectic human beings who promote the importance of self-love, self-care, and self-validation through their music and performance. The feeling of love and community flooded the entire venue as lead singer Trevor Devine belted out heartfelt ballads about love, friendship, and mental health. The music is strongly rooted in Psych-rock, folk, and jazz, and is inspired by artists such as Alabama Shakes and Tame Impala.

Headlining the night was Druzy Rose and their newly released EP entitled “Kiddie Pool”. Beautifully described in their band biography, “Druzy Rose is a seven piece group born in a basement of Minneapolis, Minnesota in November of 2018. Although driven primarily by dreamy lyrics about the life and times of a part time party girl, full time cynic, the band also features high energy performances on alto and tenor saxophone, piano, synth, guitar, bass, production, and drums. Seamlessly combining the genres of bedroom/ dream pop and piano driven indie, Druzy Rose creates music that speaks deeply to the troubled collective human consciousness in a manner that is both charmingly whimsical and brutally raw.”

The band is fronted by lead singer and keyboardist Megan Gunderman, whose voice is somehow both dreamy and gritty. She has moments of serene and sultry, and seamlessly switches to a deep blues belt with grungy rasp. Her whimsical songwriting is lyrically driven, and technically surprising, with jazz-like time signature changes and key changes that almost go unnoticed because of how well her vocal melodies carry the songs. With a Winehouse-esque grit, and opening lines like “Let’s go to Benihana’s and get totally fucking trashed”, it’s hard not to relate to her brutally honest story-telling; tales of a young woman learning to love herself through the tough years of early adulthood.

Her vocals are seamlessly reinforced by her backup vocalist and synth-player Sara Leibl. While Sara’s is a bit softer, their voices mesh so well you would almost think they are the same singer when listening to their recordings. Sara ads subtle high harmonies and is instrumental (pun intended) in the energy building during their more powerful vocal moments. Her synth also ads a depth and power to the music without taking over the raw sound.

Also worth noting is the saxophone playing of Dante Leyva whose sax solos bring the house down with a blues/funk sauciness. The addition of the sax ads a whole new element that crosses genre lines of space and time. Nik Pellinen on the guitar is very technically skilled and crazy to watch. His dirty blues riff during their song “Bird of Paradise” is reminiscent of many classic blues/rock legends. Joe Barron kept the heads bobbing with his groovy bass lines and filled the room with powerful deep notes. Powerhouse Joe Harris (The Immaculate Beings drummer) rocked the crowd with his tight drum beats and showcased his wide range of styles and genres between both sets.

The final song on the EP called “Feel Like This” sticks to the night’s theme of self-love, with lyrics by Megan stating that she wishes she could talk to her former self and let herself know it gets better, and won’t always ‘feel like this’. Featured on this song was Trevor Devine from The Immaculate Beings who literally shook the place with his falsetto belting along with Megan’s powerful melodies. The band then let every person in the room know that they’re not alone, and that they are all there to talk to, and they have all been in that hopeless mental space.

After some moving moments and tears of togetherness, they brought the tempo back up with a few bumpin’ party beats in collaboration their music producer known as Ghosty. Druzy Rose then finished the night with an encore sing-along cover of Valerie by Amy Winehouse, and closed out the night with an upbeat vibe of friendship and community, encouraging everyone to dance the night away and party with them after the show.

You can catch Druzy Rose live on Thursday, December 19th at 8pm, at the Uptown VFW in Minneapolis. The show is the 4th annual Winter Solstice party. Playing will be Freaque, The Personas, and Druzy Rose, headlined by Space Monkey Mafia, a ska band lead by Druzy Rose’s own Dante Leyva.

Published 12/7/19

Written by Joslyn Danielson