Terrapin Stallion illuminated — with some help from liquid lights artist Soop Lightshow — 7th Street Entry Friday.
There was much intention and energy put into the affair on the eve of Fourth of July, including two sets (plus encore) split nearly evenly between 8 Ween and 7 Grateful Dead songs, plus one Jerry Garcia Band song.
Tyler of Soop Lightshow has been active as of late, recently lighting TWINE’s residency at Bunkers in North Loop.
Terrapin Stallion — made up of members of Dream of the Wild — emerged less than a year ago, billed as “Boognish meets Bertha.”
On Friday, they packed First Avenue’s subterranean smaller room.
Deadheads and Ween fans alike packed into 7th Street.
To start, the band opened with “The Wind is Whispering,” a song that Ween opened up with on the same stage back on March 4, 1991.
From there, they went into “Here Comes Sunshine,” one of the lesser-known Dead songs that comforted the room warmed over in Soop’s incredible liquid light show.
Soop had four projectors lined up near the sound board, using a combination of dishes with dyes and oil/water mixtures, patterned gels and vintage glassware to dramatically light the performance using a technique with origins in 1960s psychedelia.
Jay McKinney singing from the Jerry Garcia part of his heart.
Terrapin Stallion frontman Jay McKinney knows his shit — and he was deliberate with the setlist throughout.
There was “New New Minglewood Blues,” based on the folk-blues traditional “Minglewood Blues” from the 1920s jug band scene. “New New” is one of two versions of the song the Dead played, this one appearing on their 1967 self-titled LP.
There was a “Jack Straw” near the end of the first set, with its nod to the American holiday.
And Ween’s “Spinal Meningitis (Got Me Down)” from 1994’s Chocolate and Cheese closed out the set.
The lone Jerry Garcia Band cover, “Cats Under the Stars” opened the second set, and up until this point, the band had alternated between the bands. But then came two consecutive Ween songs in “Can You Taste the Waste” and “Chocolate Town.”
Late in the set, McKinney saw to an acidic rendering of Ween’s “Mushroom Festival in Hell.”
Several beloved Dead songs were played, including “Unbroken Chain,” another nod to the holiday with “U.S. Blues,” and an inspired set-closing “Morning Dew,” with “Shakedown Street” as an encore.
Terrapin Stallion is somewhat of the alter ego of Dream of the Wild, the jam band formed nearly a decade ago by Jay McKinney with various lineups that once included DJ Kool Akiem. Yet the band was almost a secret among local musicians and the headiest of music fans.
But Terrapin Stallion has struck a chord in a world full of Grateful Dead cover acts — bringing together two bands that have been disparate in style yet finding crossover among fans and improvisation.
Also, Ween’s highly regarded bassist Dave Dreiwitz has kept busy as a member of Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, probably the most popular touring Dead cover act (sorry, DSO fans) while Ween has been inactive in recent years.
Terrapin Stallion with Soop Lightship
July 3, 2026, 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis
Set One: The Wind is Whispering > Here Comes Sunshine, Big Jim, New New Minglewood Blues, Among His Tribe, Jack Straw, Spinal Meningitis
Set Two: Cats Under the Stars, Can You Taste the Waste, Chocolate Town, Unbroken Chain, Awesome Sound, U.S. Blues, Mushroom Festival in Hell > L.M.L.Y.P. Jam > Morning Dew
Encore: Shakedown Street
