Frogleg, the Minneapolis jamband that came out of hibernation last fall after a brief hiatus, has a lot cooking.
For starters, they are headlining a show at The Hook and Ladder Saturday, with Duluth’s New Salty Dog and Apocalypse Girlfriend out of Minneapolis.
It’s not a show local jamband fans should miss. Purchase tickets here.
New Salty Dog is a band I’ve really enjoyed seeing in the last year. Led by brothers Jacob and Owen Mahon, I love watching and hearing the energy, ideas and joy they bring to their improvisations.
New Salty Dog has been tearing it up and drawing crowds for “Highkey” Mondays at Bent Paddle Brewing Co. in Duluth. Photo by Javier Serna
Frogleg guitarist Demitri Rallis had similar feelings about them.
“They are really exciting to me,” said Rallis, who hinted at potential sit-ins with New Salty Dog at Saturday’s show.
He also mentioned Apocalypse Girflriend, the singer-songwriter band that will be opening up the night.
“They have incredible harmonies,” Rallis said, mentioning some banjo play. “These two women crush it on harmonies.”
Check out their new single here.
On top of all of that, local fan Ben Perrier, whose birthday is Friday, will be doing a food drive, the “15th Annual Food Shelf Fundraiser and Ben’s Bday Bash.” Cash and food donations are accepted.
“We encourage people to bring canned and nonperishable foods,” Rallis said.
Rallis said that Frogleg would also be doing a drawing for three tickets to the Harmony Park Family Reunion over Memorial Day, featuring both Frogleg and Useful Jenkins.
Without letting on too much on what was in store for Frogleg’s own set, Rallis noted the band planned to debut a new song, “Back Down to Earth.”
Demitri Rallis said the couple of Cymande songs the band has covered in the past are still in the rotation. Photo provided
“It is one I have had kicking around for a little while,” he said. “I finished it recently. (Vocalist and guitarist) Joe (Dunn) wrote a couple of words to it and a whole bridge section.”
The song hasn’t seen real time in the studio, but for “a scratch recording on my phone,” Rallis said.
He first mentioned the song talking about saxophonist Brian “Snowman” Powers, the recent addition to the band’s lineup.
Snowman’s resume includes work as a studio engineer and producer, and he’s recorded with the likes of Victor Wooten, Cory Wong and Charlie Hunter, to name a few giants on the related music scene.
Snowman came on recently at the show the band played at 56 Brewing in October.
“He wasn’t able to get a rehearsal in with us that week,” Rallis said. “We played one of our songs, ‘Silver Spirit,’ and he nailed it on stage. It is a tricky part for the horn. He is a total pro. Every time I hang out with him, I learn something more about his resume.”
Snowman comes from the New Orleans Funk scene and also did a stint in New York.
“He has a great ear,” Rallis said. “We are really excited to have him with us.”
Of the new song, “He had some great ideas for that. We are really looking forward to what he can do when we start writing together.”
The band does plan to start work on a new album, hopefully this July, Rallis said.
But first, it is working on releasing “Frogleg UnCroaked,” an acoustic set they recorded at KJ’s Hideaway in St. Paul on Feb. 5.
“It is getting closer to being finished,” Rallis said.
The band hopes to release that at their next booked show at The Hook and Ladder in July.
Rallis said the amount of studio time they book for their upcoming album will be dictated by how well things go financially with ticket and merchandise sales, so fans, do what you can to support these guys.