Concert Review: Needtobreathe

Needtobreathe came to Minneapolis for a FREE show at the Uptown Grill & Bar last night. After listening to their most recent album (The Heat) nonstop for the last week, I was more than a little fired up to get to the show. Amidst the ambiance of greasy food and a really old bar, the band did not disappoint!!

The show opened with “Shine On,” a popular song off of the Daylight album. The band ensued to play for about another hour. The highlights were the songs “More Time” and “Washed By The Water,” both songs off The Heat album. “More Time,” which has started to get some play on local radio stations, and was simply unbelievable. When the song took the twangy turn a few minutes in, the lead guitarist (Bo) went to town. All I can say is wow!!! Made the hairs stand up on the back of my neck.

Shortly following “More Time,” the lead singer (Bear) decided to play “Washed By The Water” entirely acoustic. That meant no mikes, no nothing. This got the crowd a bit fired up. There ended up being many hands raised to the heavens... beers in hand of course! They closed out the show out in style with “We Could Run Away.” Simply awesome.

The most surprising part about the show was the crowd. A local radio station had advertised the show for the week leading up to it, and the band played in studio a few hours before the show. Combine this with the fact it was a free show, we were just hoping to get in the door! We got to the show about an hour early, and not only did we get in the door, but we got a spot front and center. We half way wondered if we were at the right place.

In total, there ended up being about 100 people at the show. In our opinion, along with everyone else that had the privilege of being at the show, the band should be playing in front of thousands of people and in a much different setting. Not 100 people in an old Bar & Grill. We felt like we had won a drawing for an exclusive viewing of the band or something! The band did announce they are going to try and get back to the Minneapolis area come August. With “More Time” starting to get some radio play, we can only hope that show won’t be quite as exclusive…