Show Recap – 04/17/2025 – Phase Meridian / Onlytime / Thunder Goat / As Bullets Baptize @ Underground Music Cafe

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Review by ÆRæder

Venue

Because I am a dumbass, I found out day of show that this is not at the other Underground. So, while still at work I had to jam in a bunch of searches to figure out where this was. Fairly familiar territory around the North Loop area, but a new venue to me. Driving straight from work / kid pickup, through a lightning and heavy rain storm, navigating downtown Minneapolis, I was off my game. Found an expensive street parking spot open in front of Underground Music Cafe. Went inside and got dinner (no food here, so dinner was a Nordeast and a THC… which is just fine, but totalling $27+tip). Quaint, intimate brick setup with ample space and seating, but long and narrow. (Editor’s note: The “stage” is right next to the front door, in with a giant wall of windows directly behind it. Putting the stage at the other end would likely provide a far better experience for the crowd and performers). The staff was friendly and helpful . Holding off on the critique for a bit with this one…

Sound

When I got there, the sound initially seemed rough (lacking low end, balance), but it soon started improving as the sound guy moved around to hear and tweak things. I always choose to wear earplugs, and check without them from time to time. They needed to stay in at this one, which is fine. As the show got on, it was enjoyable, with varied sound pictures depending on where you stood, but plenty of areas where you could “feel” different aspects.

Crowd

Ok turnout for a weeknight, probably 2 dozen attendants, with some flow between bands. Chill crowd mostly hanging out toward the narrow back section. Calls from the bands brought some forward throughout the evening. Sorry if my big back blocked your view; I hate standing far back.

Band Mix and Performance Flow

This https://mnbleedsmetal.com/ project is still in development, so all of this perspective taking is a work in progress; bear with us. The Bleed’s curators met up for this one, so multiple perspectives and idea sharing post-show influence this summary. Also, we do this for fun and the love of the scene, and this week was thick with shows, so the details we would love to give on each artist might be lacking.

BANDS:

This show was a fantastic mix of artists that all flowed into one another in a way that enhanced what each brought to the table. 

AS BULLETS BAPTIZE

I saw northern WI on the bio and that piqued my interest! Working men, rough around the edges, absolute energy, savagery, and excitement on that stage. A fucking handgun mic… lmfao… and utilized so perfectly in so many ways. Some sound/balance issues on stage and in the PA mix. They also got screwed visually with the daylight coming in the wall of windows behind the stage, but these dudes and their crew were into it and got a Thursday night show off to a vicious start.

THUNDERGOAT

I crammed this band’s tunes over the last couple weeks. Coming out of the show, I was impressed to see how the live show reflected their recordings, and live you can really “feel” the music. I was driving home listening to their EP (Labyrinthian Scales), and literally thought “Holy fucking space doom sabbath”… circling back and reading their bandcamp description and album/song titles more carefully, I had to pat myself on the back for such a correct assessment. This band on record and in person is some of the heaviest, earthiest, spaciest shit you will ever hear. We encourage you to listen and ask these dudes to come back soon.

ONLYTIME

Coming off Thundergoat, Onlytime launched into another level of space, intermixing their heavy blackened riffs/beats/screams to perfection. Their ambience gets so soft, soothing, and calming, then their explosive portions suddenly interject and get you so disoriented you can’t do anything but bang your head in response. The back and forth between low key and aggressive with this band is an experience you need to have. In this show, the placement was perfect.

PHASE MERIDIAN

I have missed these guys so many times, I willed myself to get to this show. I was not disappointed. They brought it back home and picked up on the vicious tempos and aggression laid down by ‘Bullets, but also built on the spacey progginess ‘Goat and Onlytime set up. Plenty of portions that leave you hypnotized, with headbangy material interjected. Drummer sings (dirty and clean)!!! This unit was tight; my eyes were spinning between the three watching all the complicated riffs and drum beats coming together perfectly. 

Highlights

I will say this again, all this (MNBleedsMetal) is for fun and the love of the scene. I am a working professional, dad of 3 middle/highschoolers, and my priorities are family, work, fishing, with music being the fun element that binds shit together in a multitude of ways. Coming out of work on a week night and leaving kids at home with my wife at work was tough, but shows like this make it worth it. Specifically, the mix of bands and the energy they all brought to the table. It created a high for me that made the next day at work a breeze. Thank you everyone who played, contributed to setup, sound, and the friendly staff who fielded some of my abstract/random questions!

Shade

It is not a cheap part of town, and parking can be a pain. Rough sound to start made it tough to get in to. Small, narrow space, and the windows above the stage made for sensory overload. As the dark set it, this was less relevant. I will go back.

Summary

See above in highlights. ¾ of the way into the show a thought popped into my head, “you are living the dream”, just being able to experience shit like this, both highs and lows. 

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