Godcaster opened and immediately pulled everything off center in the best way. They started with “Gut Sink Moan” and “Vivian Heck,” flipping between heavy, almost overwhelming sections and moments that hung in midair. They remind me a little of Black Country, New Road or maybe a looser Black Midi that was sharp, unpredictable, and full of those sudden turns where you realize the song’s in a completely different place than where it started. Halfway through, the singer stepped into the crowd, staring people down while spinning and moving like a ballerina, and somehow it didn’t feel like a gimmick; it just made sense. The band stayed locked in through “Draw Breath Cry Out” and “Pluto Shoots His Gaze into the Sun,” before “All The Feral Girls In The Universe” tore the room up. They closed with “Judy Living Daylights” and left the crowd charged.

Lifeguard kept that energy but made it tighter. They opened with “It’ll Get Worse” and “(I Wanna) Break Out,” hitting hard right from the first note. They have this kind of direct, driving sound where the bass and drums lead everything and the guitars carve around them. “A Tightwire” and “France And” hit with clipped intensity, while “Ripped And Torn” and “Like You Lose” opened things up just enough to give the set some space. “T.L.A.” had the whole room leaning forward, and “Under Your Reach” and “Alarm” closed it out with a push that felt like it could’ve kept going another twenty minutes without losing anyone. It was one of those sets where you realize halfway through that the crowd isn’t just watching the show, they’re fully with it.

Horsegirl came on last and shifted the pace without dropping it. They started with “Where’d You Go?” and “Switch Over,” the guitars winding around each other in a way that sounded looser and more alive than the recordings. They also had a synth that they would set tools on the keys to make a droning noise over what they played, which I thought was so cool. “Option 8” and “Well I Know You’re Shy” felt like the heart of the set, the kind of songs that pull everyone into the same headspace. Midway through, “Julie” and “In Twos” got some of the biggest reactions of the night, and “Sport Meets Sound” worked as a breather before “Anti-glory” and “2468” wrapped everything up in a way that felt unhurried but final.

Both Lifeguard and Horsegirl are from Chicago, and they share siblings in their lineups, which made the night feel less like a stacked bill and more like a connected thing. A friend mentioned seeing them play in a living room once, and watching them fill this space now made that feel wild. I was super glad that the two sibling bands were able to line up here in Minneapolis, it made for a great show.

Show Review: Hunter Hagedorn 
Photos: Tove Moen