ArtCars, Birthday Suits, Lake Street Live: This Week’s Best Events

Welcome to Event Horizon, your weekly roundup of the best events in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and beyond. 

TUESDAY 7.21

Pavement

Palace Theatre 

Let me tell ya something about Pavement… no, wait, actually I have nothing to say about Pavement that I didn’t say here. But there are so many touring indie vets out there on the road this summer cashing in on your nostalgia (not that I begrudge them) that I had to mention one of ’em at least. Stephen Malkmus and his pals get the nod over the still un-unretired LCD Soundsystem (OK, I begrudge them a little) and the still sullen Modest Mouse (I can’t shake memories of their dreary 2015 Rock the Garden set). Pavement offers the full-catalog exhumations that bigger-than-cult, smaller-than-mass band reunion should. Hope they get off the road before the enthusiasm wanes. With Nap Eyes. $100–$452. 8 p.m. 17 W. Seventh Place, St. Paul; find more info here.—Keith Harris

WEDNESDAY 7.22

The Sloppy Boys

Zhora Darling

If you’re a fan of the extended “Boys” comedy universe (Birthday Boys, Doughboys, Sloppy Boys, and, for a real deep cut, Deli Boys), you’ve had this one circled on your calendar for months. The Sloppy Boys are Tim Kalpakis, Jefferson Dutton, and onetime Racket interview subject Mike Hanford, and they're both a party-rock band and a cocktail review podcast. Tonight’s all about the L.A. trio’s fun, funny, and (somewhat surprising, considering the subject matter) occasionally formidable rock ‘n’ roll. Expect Sloppy Boys favorites like “Here for the Beer,” “Smashing the Plates,” and "Mastah Bong Rippah," alongside the best stage banter you'll hear all year. For devoted Twin Cities-based Slopheads, Christmas is truly coming in July. Craving a localish angle? Birthday Boy Dave Ferguson married the heiress to the Cannon Falls-headquartered Ferndale Farms turkey fortune, a fact his sketch-group buddies in the Sloppy Boys celebrated earlier this year. 21+. $20/$25 at the door. 7:30 p.m. 509 First Ave. NE, Minneapolis; find more info here.—Jay Boller

FRIDAY 7.24

Longfellow Corn Roast

Longfellow Park

Could this be another psyop for Big Corn? I’m gonna tell you right now: I don’t care. There are few summer delights that rival an ear of freshly roasted corn on the cob, and eating one in a park while relaxing in a lawn chair? Is it Friday yet? Bring cash if you plan to partake of the roasted corn (it’s $2 per ear), and if you don’t fill up on cob-based delights you can grab a snack from local food trucks Nashville Coop, Parkway Pizza, and Habanero Tacos. Also in play: a “family-friendly” DJ (what, no Korn?), face painting, and large inflatables. Free. 6–8 p.m. 3435 36th Ave. S., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Em Cassel

Birthday Suits

Turf Club

We use “beloved” way too much here at Racket. Really, we’re always asking each other, “Can’t you use another word?” What can I say? The Twin Cities is just full of intense belovers. There’s no dodging it here, though—the noisy duo of guitarist Hideo Takahashi and drummer Matthew Kazama long ago earned the “b” word in perpetuity. Birthday Suits doesn’t reunite often now that Kazama has become a ramen impresario, but this is a special benefit for Peelander Zee, the Austin, Texas-based punks who were injured in a terrible traffic accident two months ago in Albuquerque. With Panel and Me Me Me. 21+. $15. 8 p.m. 1601 University Ave. W., St. Paul; find more info here.—Keith Harris

Eaux Claires

Carson Park, Eau Claire

“Wake up babe, I got us Dylan tix!” “Oh cool, I really want to check out that new amphitheater!” “Ha, no, I mean Bon Dylan tickets.” Yes, as this long-dormant western Wisconsin gathering swings back into action, festmeister Justin Vernon will be singing his Dylan faves—probably more faithfully than Bob ever does, if that’s a selling point. I respect EC for not trying to bowl you over with big names: There’s no Paul Simon, Wilco, or Chance the Rapper this time around. But Aimee Mann singing Bachelor No. 2 and R&B auteurs Dijon and Daniel Caesar ain’t nothing to sneeze at. As always with Eaux Claires, the music is only half the fun (OK, maybe 3/4 of the fun). This year the fest will have writers in residence hosting panels and discussions: You can catch locals Katie Ka Vang and Benjamin Percy as well as (relevant to my interests) rock critic Amanda Petrusich and celebrated autofiction novelist Sheila Heti, who was once married to a rock critic. Prices and more info here. Also Saturday—Keith Harris

Photopsia: Risk Factors and Treatments

Resource MPLS

Title aside, this wide-ranging three-day “experimental mini-fest,” organized by singer-songwriter Dylan Hicks, will feature no ophthalmological lectures. At least I don’t think so. Each day includes a musical performance, then a literary reading, maybe “an improvised collaboration between the writer and the musician,” and closes with a performance by Hicks and his band the Small Screens, which will feature material from their upcoming album (oh, now I get it) Photopsia. Friday serves up musician Kata Fried and poet Hallee Kirkwood; Saturday offers improvisational duo Davu Seru (drums) and deVon Russell Gray (keys) plus a reading from Michael Kleber-Diggs; and Sunday wraps up with trombonist JC Sanford’s EQ (guitarist Toivo Hannigan, bassist Erik Fratzke, and drummer Ben Ehrlich) and writer Patrick Nathan. I recognize just enough of those names for my curiosity about the others to be sparked. $15–$25 sliding scale. 6 p.m. Fri.-Sat.; 4 p.m. Sun. 512 E. 24th St., Minneapolis; find more info here. Through Sunday—Keith Harris

Tattoo Fest

RiverCentre

While some folks prefer to buy art on canvas, others would rather put it directly on their bodies, and they’ll be able to do just that at Tattoo Fest. This weekend, first-timers and serious collectors alike will converge to celebrate and explore the inkiest of arts. Over 300 artists will be onsite, from local to international talents, answering questions, scheduling consultations, and doing live tattooing. Daily competitions for work both healed and fresh will be judged by a panel of experts, and an artist market rounds out the event. $30 daily; $65 weekend pass (all tickets are cash-only). 1–10 p.m. Fri.; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sat.; 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sun. 175 Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul; find more info here. Through Sunday—Jessica Armbruster 

SATURDAY 7.25

Lake Street Live

Lake Street

Lake Street is for lovers, as Lifter Puller once proclaimed, but between the unrest and Operation Metro Surge that Minneapolis thoroughfare hasn’t been feeling the love this decade. That changes tonight! Hosted by Arbeiter Brewing Co. and the Lake Street Council, Lake Street Live is a family-friendly fest. Like any self-respecting block party, that means a rippin’ roster of live music (American Cream Band, Brandyn Tulloch, Cowboy Thoughts, Los Malos Pasos, Oyster World, Butter Boys, Good Morning Midnight, Ciao Bello), food trucks (La Tortilla, Amazing Momo, Trio Plant-Based), and local vendors. “Come for the music. Stay for the community. Leave knowing you helped keep Lake Street thriving,” organizers write, noting that donations will benefit the Lake Street Council’s outreach efforts with immigrant-owned businesses. Free. Noon to 10 p.m. 3038 Minnehaha Ave., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Jay Boller

ArtCar + ArtBike Parade

Bde Uman/Lake Harriet at the Rose Gardens

Hooray for ArtCars and ArtBikes! In a sea of Honda Civics and Schwinns, these guys add a little bit of whimsy to the traffic jams of the season. This weekend, they’ll travel en masse for the gang’s annual parade, a casual drive around the lake and garden. Past rides have included vehicles covered in wine corks and crochet, cars topped with giant lipsticks and DJ rigs, and bikes adorned with butterflies and mosquitos (the papier-mâché kind). It’s cute, it’s free, and there’s nary a corporate sponsor (ad-free experiences are rare these days). Bring a blanket and some snacks, and head on over to the bandshell afterward for some free music from Minnesota Pops. Free. 4–6 p.m. 4124 Roseway Rd., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Jessica Armbruster

Black Business Week Street Mall 

Capri Plaza

Stick it to Target and Amazon by spending your money in the North Side, where it does way more good. Privy to that are the organizers behind Black Business Week’s Street Mall, which’ll feature dozens of Black-owned vendors sprawled out along the Capri Theater’s plaza. There'll be an open mic contest for comics, musicians, and poets featuring cash prizes, as well as the promise of “mouthwatering food” and family-friendly activities. “You’re not just making a purchase—you’re investing in the future of our community,” organizers write. Hard to argue with that. Free. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; 2027 W. Broadway, Minneapolis; find more info here.—Jay Boller 

Big Bounce

Boom Island Park

As Racket’s resident Gen Z intern and a recent child myself, I’m very pro bounce house. And what’s better than one bouncy structure? A bunch of bouncy structures. At least that’s the thought process behind this weekend’s Boom Island Big Bounce event. The usually peaceful lawn of Boom Island Park will be filled with over 25 different inflatables and attractions—obstacle courses, bounce houses, a mobile rock-climbing wall, and something called a “Euro Bungee” that looks like a lot of fun and also like a medieval torture device. The event will also include classic carnival games in case anyone needs to take a break on solid ground. It’s an elementary schooler’s dream, and maybe, deep down, there’s an elementary schooler at the core of all of us who wants in on the fun. There will also be local food vendors and a lovely view of the Mississippi River. Most of the attractions are open for all ages, but the event will also include a toddler area where small children can have fun without being accidentally stomped on. $25-$50 (gate only). 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sat.; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sun. 724 Sibley St. NE, Minneapolis; find more info here. Also Sunday—Clare O’Connor

Float Fest

Mississippi River

What’s that old quote from “The New Colossus”? “Bring me your kayaks, your canoes, your unused rafts yearning to sail free.” Something like that? At Float Fest, which returns this year after a 2025 pilot float, you can bring whatever kind of human-powered water vessel you’ve got—packraft, stand-up paddleboard—and float the Mississippi River, beginning at one of a few recommended destinations and ending at Graco Park. Don’t have a river-faring vessel of your own? There are a few locations where you can rent a kayak via Paddle Share, the river’s self-serve kayak-sharing system. Free. Start times and locations vary; the earliest recommended start is 9:30 a.m. from Mississippi Gateway Park. Find more info here.—Em Cassel

Loring Park Art Festival

Loring Park

For years, Loring Park, Uptown, and Powderhorn Art Fairs teamed up to turn Minneapolis into a massive juried art show for one weekend. This year, they’ve separated into their own events, which is probably for the best—these fests tend to attract 100,000 to 200,000 folks apiece. Loring Park is up first this summer, offering pretty paths with lake views to walk along, artists both local and national, plenty of food trucks, and shady trees. Entertainment stages will feature local musicians (Frankie Torres, Andra Suchy, Amanda Grace), while an artisan market will feature locally-made foodstuffs. But the big draw are the artists, and there will be hundreds of ‘em in the park this year.  Free. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sat.; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sun. 1382 Willow St. S., Minneapolis; find more info here. Through Sunday—Jessica Armbruster

Megan Moroney

Target Center 

With Cloud 9 her third brilliant country-pop record in four years, Moroney’s in this for the long haul. Once again producer Kristian Bush and assorted song doctors tone up the hooks to accentuate that purty catch in her voice just right, and if anything she effervesces more poppily than ever—she’s so infatuated on the title track she’s even fine getting Pepsi when she wants a Coke. Of course she’s even better when she’s heartbroken or pissed: Try “You don't like my short black dress/Well, it's going out tonight/And if it hits a floor, it won't be yours this time,” “What doesn’t kill you calls you six months later,” and a nasty line about ex Riley Green’s veneers. Kacey Musgraves fans who give Moroney a pass ‘cause she’s too Nashville deserve to never know what they’re missing. With JP Saxe and Solon Holt. $118 and up. 7 p.m. 600 N. First Ave., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Keith Harris

ONGOING

Minneapolis Aquatennial

Various Locations

Last October, the Minneapolis Downtown Council announced it would no longer be organizing the 85-year-old Minneapolis Aquatennial—a multi-day event celebrating the city’s lakes, rivers, creeks, and waterways—due to unpredictable funding. Now the Aquatennial Ambassador Organization has taken the reins, with plans to revive the multi-site festival thanks to a $25,000 grant… from the Minneapolis Downtown Council. Whatever keeps the boat afloat, I guess. While we'd be remiss not to point out the fest’s anti-labor origins, for the past decade it’s really been a Frankenfest, with a variety of events on the schedule that would have happened with or without Aquatennial—TC River Rats shows, Caribbean culture celebration Carifest, Loring Park Art Fest (see above)—but the lineup does include some singular Aquatennial happenings. Those include the Torchlight Parade on Nicollet Mall this Wednesday. Most events are free; check out aquatennial.com for more details. Through July 26—Jessica Armbruster

Hamlet

Sociable Cider Werks

We’ve heard of free Shakespeare in the park but what about free Shakespeare in the pub? Gray Mallard Theater Company has been bringing the bard’s work to the masses over the past five years, and this summer the troupe presents Hamlet, a tale of a prince who must avenge the death of his father after his uncle kills the king and claims the throne. (Why yes, this is also the plot of The Lion King.) “In a time when corruption goes unchecked, deception unchallenged, and people are grappling with when and how to take a stand, Hamlet feels remarkably relevant,” director Amanda Fuller says via release. “The play explores what happens when corruption infects not only a single family, but an entire state, and one young person is called upon to act.” Performances are free and take place outdoors in the cidery’s parking lot. Audiences are welcome to bring their own lawn chairs, though a limited number will also be provided. Free. 7 p.m. Wed.–Thu., Sat.; 6:30 p.m. Sun. 1500 Fillmore St. NE, Minneapolis; find more info here. Through August 2—Jessica Armbruster

Sunset Yoga in the Sculpture Garden

Walker Art Center

You don’t have to pay money or hit up YouTube for a good yoga practice this summer. Free classes and special events are happening all over town. One great example: This weekly evening yoga session, held right by the Okciyapi piece in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. Bring a mat and some water for this one-hour Vinyasa-style (pose focused) session led by the Twin Cities Yoga Cooperative. And if you’re really ambitious, you can do free yoga almost every day of the week, with train depot yoga (Mon., Wed., Sat.), Greenway yoga (Fri.), anti-fascist yoga (Sun.), and even cemetery yoga (Sat.). Free; donations accepted. 7:30 p.m. 725 Vineland Place, Minneapolis; find more info here. Through August 6—Jessica Armbruster

Once Upon a Time in Manhood

Walker Art Center

This summer, our fancy modern art museum hands the keys of the Walker Cinema (I know that metaphor doesn’t quite work, just roll with it) to Dallas Goldtooth, who looks back on his youth and the movies that shaped him with a series of films from the '80s and '90s. Goldtooth is an Indigenous (Mdewakanton Dakota/Diné) comic/writer/activist who summered in the Phillips neighborhood of Minneapolis; you probably know him best from Reservation Dogs, where he played William "Spirit" Knifeman, the somewhat unreliable warrior who appears as a vision to Bear. The series starts off with movies that feature Indigenous characters—Ron Howard’s Willow, Michael Mann’s The Last of the Mohicans—and concludes with Taika Waititi’s Boy. In between come some touchstones of cinematic masculinity: Die Hard, The Shawshank Redemption, and Fight Club. $15 ($12 for Walker members.) 725 Vineland Place, Minneapolis; find showtimes and more info here. Through August 14—Keith Harris

Taking the Scenic Route

Trylon

Road trips? In this economy? Fortunately, to save you the cost and hassle of driving across our large, dumb country, the Trylon is screening 14 cinematic road trips throughout the summer. And we’re working with a very expansive definition of “road trip” here, broad enough to take in both Chantal Akerman’s Je Tu Il Elle and The Muppet Movie, at least one of which is sure to sell out quickly. You can catch the muppets on Trylon’s fancy new laser projector, as well as Paris, Texas, because Nastassja Kinski deserves to be seen in the highest definition possible. A mess of these will be on 35mm film, including Ingmar Bergman’s Wild Strawberries (a stone classic even if the dream sequence bored you in film class), It Happened One Night (simply one of the funniest movies of all time), and Two-Lane Blacktop (the definitive ’70s American road race movie). And each screening will only cost you $8, which wouldn’t get you enough gas to get out of the metro area. 2820 E. 33rd St., Minneapolis; find complete listings, showtimes, and more info here. Through September 29—Keith Harris 

Skyline Mini Golf

Walker Art Center

Warmer weather means it’s putt-putt season in Minnesota. Yeah sure, you can play mini-golf year-round in the North Loop, but it’s just not as whimsical an experience when you drop a course into a dimly lit bar with a “hot young singles only” vibe. The Twin Cities’ only putt-putt in the sky is back at the Walker, featuring 10 quirky holes made by local artists. New this year is Indhaha Dayaxa–Eyes of the Moon by Ifrah Mansour, a Minneapolis-based Somali artist who you may have seen performing at the Minnesota State Fair, featured on TPT’s Minnesota Original, or exhibiting works at the Mia. Return holes this year include the hot dog one, the one where you race via color, the one with ping-pong paddles, and the pool-hall one. Bring sunscreen and enjoy those views of Loring Park, downtown Minneapolis, and the endless Hennepin-Lyndale traffic jam. $12. 725 Vineland Place, Minneapolis; reserve a time and find more info here. Through October 4—Jessica Armbruster