{{{http://www.startribune.co...43053.html Chris Riemenschneider
Published Oct 9, 2002

They aren't the most successful. They aren't even necessarily the best. If you want a well-rounded sense of what the Twin Cities live music scene has to offer, though, these are 10 acts you should definitely see perform.}}}

1. Soul Asylum. The last living remnant of the Twin Cities' mid-'80s, indie-rock heyday, this foursome hasn't let one-hit-wonder status (with 1993's "Runaway Train") and innumerable drummer changes soften its powerful, wall-of-guitars delivery on stage. Recent gigs have found the guys brandishing unreleased new material that's some of their best stuff in years.

2. Lamont Cranston Band. It isn't KQRS' occasional airing of "Upper Mississippi Shakedown" that has kept this rocking blues band in business for three decades. With Pat Hayes still out front (there never was a Lamont), it's easy to see from their concerts today what Dan Aykroyd saw in the group before inventing the Blues Brothers.

3. Sounds of Blackness. Also into its third decade, Sounds' enormous roster -- membership is usually about 30 singers and 10 musicians -- thinks equally big when it comes to the music. No longer just a choir, Sounds blends old African styles and modern R&B and funk into one divine repertoire.

4. Koerner, Ray & Glover. Sure, they can claim to have influenced John Lennon and Bonnie Raitt or hung with Bob Dylan while he was still a Zimmerman. But more impressive than their storied history is that these three blues and folk vets -- guitarists "Spider" John Koerner and "Snaker" Dave Ray and harmonica blower Tony Glover -- still rock steady into their senior years. Let's hope they continue doing so.

5. The Jayhawks. These makers of not-so-merry melodies helped pioneer the so-called alt-country/No Depression genre of the '90s and now provide some of the warmest sing-alongs in town.

6. Happy Apple. Jazz doesn't have to be boring. In fact, this six-year-old trio has helped bring in a wide range of young fans -- from Deadheads to punk rockers -- with its adventurous yet well-respected updating of jazz composition and improvisation.

7. Sangre del Alma. Younger and far flashier bands have formed to meet the growing demands of Latino and Latin-music-loving audiences in recent years, but this veteran Tejano band led by Luis Costilla is still one of the best live acts on St. Paul's West Side or any side.

8. Becky Thompson. She's been singing country music since the '70s and has never been swayed by what's happening in mainstream or alternative twang circles. With a voice like hers, she can do whatever she wants.

9. Atmosphere. Even before Eminem, there was a brash white rapper named Slug who scared the heck out of everybody, mostly just because he was so weird. Now, his group is one of our best-known acts out of the state, when many people in-state didn't even know there was a hip-hop scene here.

10. Prince. Sure, he's caused more head-scratching than a lice epidemic. But living in Minnesota without ever seeing this home-grown legend perform is like being a Texan and never going to a Willie Nelson concert or living in Vermont without ever picking an apple, plain and simple. His current live band is arguably his best ever, too.