Rhythms on the Root: Bad Bad Hats

Description

Lanesboro Arts is thrilled to present Bad Bad Hats as the sole 2024 Rhythms on the Root concert on Saturday, July 13th at 6:00 p.m. in Gateway Park. Bad Bad Hats is an indie rock band duo from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Bad Bad Hats are celebrated for crispy, lived-in melodies, big choruses that stick for days, and an easy musicianship that carries across their eclectic, wide-ranging releases. Their fourth album Bad Bad Hats was released April 12, 2024 on Don Giovanni Records.

“Psychic Reader,” BBH’s debut LP, arrived in 2015. Led by the ebullient single “Midway,” the album highlighted the band’s cinematic sound, punchy rhythm sections, and Kerry’s heart-aching vocals. With “Psychic Reader,” the band expanded their audience beyond local Twin Cities venues, as their music spread organically via college radio and shared links. With their follow up full length albums “Lightning Round” (2018) and “Walkman” (2021), Bad Bad Hats expanded their sound and look, with hilariously DIY music videos that cast the band as ice hockey players, Elvis impersonators, secret agents and more. In the years since their initial noodling around St. Paul, Bad Bad Hats have toured globally with peers like The Beths and Hippo Campus, and storied acts like The Front Bottoms and the aforementioned Michelle Branch, who picked them up for her 2022 headlining world tour. It was a full-circle moment for Kerry, one that she made clear on stage at
each show.

Last January, Kerry, Chris, and longtime bandmate Con Davison cozied up under frigid winter in Chris and Kerry’s Twin Cities home, writing and recording their latest, self-titled LP. Where BBH are typically known for big song topics like love and heartache, Kerry took to smaller ideas this go round—included are songs inspired by parking tickets, scorching Tampa grocery store lots she remembered from her youth, and other autobiographical scenes woven into dancefloor-ready numbers.

Today, Bad Bad Hats are back to their founding duo, and their upcoming record is the band’s first time self-producing, with a freewheeling, pristine tone and several unexpectedly funky turns. The new album suggests a band still having deep fun creating and playing, inviting listeners new and old to live life to their heartfelt tunes. “Bad Bad Hats” came out on April 12th, 2024 via Don Giovanni Records

Rhythms on the Root activates the vibrant asset of Gateway Park as a place for the Lanesboro community and visitors to gather and celebrate with live music. The 2024 sole show of Rhythms on the Root features the indie rock stylings of regionally acclaimed band Bad Bad Hats.

The concert will take place from 6:00 – 7:30 pm on July 13th. Tickets are $20 General Admission for individuals age 13+ and $15 Lanesboro Arts Members (free for 12 and under, but ticket still required). Seating will be first come, first served general admission. Bring your own lawn chair or blanket to sit on in the park! In the event of rain the concert will be held at the St. Mane Theatre.

The Rhythms on the Root series is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.