Indie

“They have terrifyingly beautiful voices … their songs inexhaustibly multilayered, fragile, radiant.” —New York Times

The bold and boundless art-folk duo CocoRosie makes a rare Minneapolis appearance with a full ensemble. Sisters Bianca (Coco) and Sierra (Rosie) Casady have developed an international following for their mystical fairy tale world created through elaborate costumes, sets, and uncategorizable music. Shaped by Bianca’s arresting childlike tremor and Sierra’s classically trained operatic voice—often using vintage, toy, and nontraditional instruments—the duo swirls folk, hip-hop, opera, and reggae into evocative pop songs that are playful yet ominous, with hard-hitting truths voiced through twinkling innocence. Sounding “like two little Billie Holidays an octave higher if you were on acid in Tokyo in 1926” (Jim Jarmusch), CocoRosie performs a clublike, all-standing concert, copresented with The Cedar.

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Icelandic neo-classical composer Ólafur Arnalds returns to the intimate space of The Cedar with his new project, For Now I Am Winter. More complex than the previous records, the new album was produced with help from Nico Muhly on the orchestral arrangements, and vocalist Arnór Dan Arnarson (Agent Fresco) sings on three tracks. Expect a truly transporting evening of music from an artist of ever-growing stature.

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Future Bible Heroes is one of the musical projects from THE MAGNETIC FIELDS' Stephin Merritt, who writes all the melodies and lyrics for the band. Longtime friend and collaborator Christopher Ewen composes the instrumental backing tracks. Joining Merritt on lead vocals on the album is the Magnetic Fields' Claudia Gonson.

Partygoing is FBH's first release since 2002's Eternal Youth. In the interim, Merritt has written four stage musicals, released four Magnetic Fields albums and a Gothic Archies album. Ewen has been working on another band, the Hidden Variable, and DJing in Boston. Gonson has discovered parenthood while navigating the Magnetic Fields' busy post-69 Love Songs schedule.

Prolific Vancouver-based indie pop/folk band is on tour behind new EP I Love You (June 18), a selection of four songs from their upcoming full-length album due in the fall.

Ticket options and info

• On sale date: noon Fri May 3
• Phone: 612-338-2674 ext 0 between 12 noon and 4pm ($2 fee per ticket)
• In person: From a Cedar volunteer in the front lobby during events (no fee; cash, check, credit card), Depth of Field (no fee; cash or check only), or Electric Fetus (approximately $2 fee)
• Online: Ticketweb (typically $2--$3 fee/ticket) (click on red Buy Tickets button at top of this page)
• The Cedar is an all ages venue
• Students with ID, seniors over 65, and children under 12 may purchase tickets at a discount at the door.

Catch Brooklyn-based synth-pop outfit Small Black as they head out on tour in support of new full-length album Limits of Desire (Jagjaguwar, 14 May 2013). The new album is built off the back of 2010's New Chain and 2009's self-titled EP, but takes their sound to a gorgeous new place. Together, the four piece comprising Josh Hayden Kolenik (keys, vocals), Ryan Heyner (guitar, keys, vocals), Juan Pieczanski (bass, guitar) and Jeff Curtin (drums, percussion) have moved past the hazy, bedroom-recorded feel of their previous releases with a refined sound that pares back embellishments, trading dense layers for space and clarity of vision.

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Gregory Alan Isakov's This Empty Northern Hemisphere was one of the finest albums the year. Its melancholy poetics and lush, languid melodies stir me. He churns up his own musical atmosphere, ruled by the moon and the sea, at least aesthetically if not always lyrically. That he can do the same thing alone onstageis remarkable. (No Depression)

Anyone familiar with Gregory Alan Isakov will have experienced the magical silken threaded balance he uses to engage the listener. I still can't explain why he leaves me with such a great calm but those gentle melodies and voice will set you adrift. His music possesses a timeless quality, an exqusite listening experience. (Folk Radio UK)

Gregory Alan Isakov returns to the Cedar after a spellbinding show in October 2011. Gregory has a new album coming out this summer, making this a terrific opportunity to hear the new songs.

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Fragile, daydreaming harmonies. Swirling synths that spin and spin until they fall down dizzy. Steady-galloping drums that coolly pass you by. These Midwestern boys have wrapped them all up into rip-your-heart out ballads about getting older but not necessarily happier – songs that capture the old joy of classic records and do-nothing days, and the ache of knowing they’re mostly gone. Yes, there’s a good kind of sadness, and this is what it sounds like.  (Rolling Stone)

Lions & Lambs’ dark undertones promise an ironically bright future for the band. (Consequence Of Sound)

For Scottish folk revivalist Alasdair Roberts' seventh album A Wonder Working Stone (Jan 2013, Drag City),  Alasdair and his like-minded folk take a walk around this world and determine that it not so different from the one that came before. A thousand years of musical topography are seen from eleven unique song-crafts and all lead back to one undeniable conclusion: "all days will end in joy / they'll never end in evil." Here's hoping!

Band lineup:
Alasdair Roberts: acoustic guitar, voice
Shane Connolly: drums
Stephen Jones: upright bass
Rafe Fitzpatrick: violin
Ben Reynolds: electric guitar

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Unknown Mortal Orchestra on tour behind second album II. 

Ticket options and info

• On sale date: noon Fri Apr 5
• Phone: 612-338-2674 ext 0 between 12 noon and 4pm ($2 fee per ticket)
• In person: From a Cedar volunteer in the front lobby during events (no fee; cash, check, credit card), Depth of Field (no fee; cash or check only), or Electric Fetus (approximately $2 fee)
• Online: Ticketweb (typically $2--$3 fee/ticket) (click on red Buy Tickets button at top of this page)
• The Cedar is an all ages venue
• Students with ID, seniors over 65, and children under 12 may purchase tickets at a discount at the door.

Baby Dee is an enchanting composer, performance artist, classically trained harpist, circus sideshow veteran, and transgender street legend. Known originally for playing harp on Anthony & The Johnsons debut album, her infectious cackle and extraordinary talent on piano, harp and accordion has caught her many musical admirers. Her sound is quintessentially Dee.

Don't miss Baby Dee as she returns to the Bryant Lake Bowl, this time with the smokey contralto, raconteur and restless spirit Little Annie!

"She graduated from the school of hard knocks with her soul still intact, a heart as big as the continental divide" -Lydia Lunch

"A New York baby and a London legend" -Antony Hegarty