Three LSB performances in March, including a return to the Aster Cafe with BCF!

Well, Lazy Susan fans, February gets an extra day this year, but Punxsutawney Phil says spring is coming early, so we figure now is as good a time as any to let you know about our shows booked for March! (Mike said we should put Phil in charge of these blog posts, but he got outvoted.)

But let’s not bury the lede, here, folks – we’re uber excited to announce we’ll be returning to the Aster Cafe in Minneapolis on March 22! The Aster is absolutely one of our favorite rooms to play in the Twin Cities and it’s even better that we get to share the stage with Ben Cook-Feltz again. As usual, we’re going to suggest that you get your reservations early, because history tells us this gig will sell out. And if that wasn’t enough motivation for you, we’re planning to sprinkle in some unusual song choices, including the live debut of a brand new song. So click that reservation link now so you don’t miss it, mmkay?

But wait! That’s not the only full band show on the books – we’ll also be returning to the Block North Brew Pub in downtown Aitkin on March 9. We love making the trip “up north” to see our fans and friends in that area, and rumor has it this won’t be our only trip there this year. But nevertheless, we’re itching to get back after helping them celebrate the opening of their “Locker Room” last winter.

And if you’ve read this far, perhaps you’re wondering what this third performance is about – well, March 21 will see the LSB Trio’s first trip of 2024 to Rush River Brewing in River Falls, Wisconsin – but not the last! What pairs better with good beer than the LSB?

Yep, that’s two full band shows, one trio performance, three towns and two states for March. And if you haven’t been paying attention to our events page, now is a good time to peek and see more about how the rest of 2024 is shaping up. See you soon!

Happy Holidays from the LSB

You could probably get some Christmas lights on that cactus in the background.

With tomorrow night serving as the winter solstice, we thought it would be a good time to wish you all a happy holiday season! As we look forward to the coming New Year, it’s hard not to look back and marvel at what an amazing year we had in 2023. We did a short tour in Arizona and Mexico, broke in some brand new (for us) venues from Aitkin to Albert Lea, and played our very first theater stage. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg!

All told, we delivered over 30 shows and gave our all at every single one. We’re so thankful to all of the venues, staff, friends, and fans who showed up to help celebrate music with us. As is our new tradition, we’ve set up a 2023 show archive page so we can remember what a great year it was.

We’re taking a short break over the holidays, but it won’t last long! You can already see some gigs filling in for 2024 over at our Events page, and we promise that list will continue to grow as soon as Mike forgets what his New Years’ resolutions are.

Thank you all SO much for joining us out and about in 2023 – see you next year!

Celebrate 2023 with JBLSB at Carbone’s

band members clustered into a photo on stage
We’ve had a great 2023, including our recent show at The Parkway on September 29. Photo by Jason Narverud.

Well, Lazy Susan fans, the leaves on the trees are falling and that typically means that our show calendar is slowing down. But we’ve got one more (public) full band gig in us, coming up this Saturday, 11/11, at Carbone’s in Minneapolis. At the time of this writing, reservations were filling up pretty quickly, so you might want to get yours now while the gettin’ is good.

Much like we did last year around this time, we’re using this occasion to pull out some unique gems in our set list, meaning you can show up and hear some songs that you won’t often hear at our other shows. We really enjoy putting thought into these set lists, and hope you enjoy the variety!

Looking back on 2023, it’s been a pretty special year for us, starting with our 10-day mini tour centered around January Jam in Mexico – which you can of course relive via our January tour tribute page. Add in our first-time visits to new venues from Aitkin to St. Paul, and we’re incredibly grateful for the opportunities we’ve had this year, as well as all of you who came out to support us. See you Saturday night in Minneapolis!

Black and white photo looking up at guitarist, drummer, and vocalist
j.bell, Kent, and BPZ getting into the groove on the Banditos inside stage. Photo Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie, Jr

Only one week left to get advanced Parkway tickets (and freebies)!

Don’t you want to see all these smiles on stage? That’s TWO full band performances!

Well, well, if it isn’t our old friend the Autumnal Equinox just around the corner! We’re not sure exactly what that term means, but it sounds like a cool band name, maybe for a Swedish banjo-core duo. And one thing we DO know is that one week from tonight is our big Parkway Theater show with Preston Gunderson!

We’ve spent a lot of time and energy preparing an extra special set for our theater debut, and we really hope you’ll join us for it. In fact, we’re so confident you’ll like it, we’re offering one free can coozy and one free CD to anyone that orders advance tickets. Not only do advance tickets help the awesome Parkway staff plan for the evening, but it helps us know how much merch to bring, so hit that link now and get yours!

If you have any questions about this show, hit us up on the BookFace or torture Mike by sending him a message on Instagram. (It’s so funny how frustrated he gets trying to figure out that app.)

See you on 9/29! (Doors at 7 pm, LSB at 8.)

Get your tickets now for the LSB with Preston Gunderson at the Parkway, September 29!

Preston Gunderson on a black background, in the upper left, with the full LSB in the lower right

Happy dawg days of summer, LSB fans! Friendly neighborhood bass player Mike D. here checking in for yet another website update. As we ride out the heat and look forward to the state fair, I’ve realized that fall is just around the corner. That must be why my kids are all so miserable…back to school shopping takes a toll! (On their emotions…and my wallet.) But that means it’s time to let you in on a special secret…

We’ve been looking forward to announcing this show for a long time: our first ever appearance at the Parkway Theater in Minneapolis! This exceedingly cool, near-century-old room is, as the Star Tribune’s Chris Riemenschneider says, “one of the cities’ best-loved listening rooms.” And we’ve organized an extra special night for you: we’ll be warming up the stage for local songwriting hero and American Idol alum Preston Gunderson.

So, mark your calendars for Friday, September 29 – or better yet, go and get your tickets now! Doors at 7 pm, LSB at 8, Preston at 9. We’re promising you now that this will be a venue – and an evening – that you won’t soon forget!

Kick the Zoom blues with the LSB at the Aster on July 15

We’re…not too good with the virtual meeting technologies…but we do OK on stage!

Well, if it isn’t full-swing, hot-as-an-oven, summer already here in Minnesota! That snuck up on us, didn’t it? Remember deep in the throngs of the pandemic, when the seasons all just melted together because you hardly ever left your house? You know, like when you spent too many hours on Zoom meetings like the crazy one we filmed above? Oh, wait, that’s probably the kind of thing you want to forget

Well, three weeks from tonight, we’ve got the perfect remedy for you! Kick the Zoom blues by joining us at the Aster Cafe in Minneapolis for a split bill with our pals Art Vandalay. Make sure you get your reservations in advance, because we never know how early we might sell out for these limited seating shows!

We’re going to be digging deep into our catalog for this and play some songs that don’t always make the rotation, including “The Reckoning” as you can hear it above. But if you want to know what the other songs are, you have to come out on July 15th!

And while you’re planning out your summer and fall, take a sneak peek at our Events page to save the date(s) for upcoming shows around the metro. We want to see you at all of them, of course, but if you can’t do that, we’re confident you’ll find something that fits your liking. See you soon!

Rock Your Art-a-Whirl Saturday with the LSB at 612

Full Lazy Susan Band photo looking up at the faces of the five boneheads
Caution: do not spin this image “right round baby right round”. If you want to see something spinning, come to Art-a-Whirl!

Art. Beer. Rock & roll from the Lazy Susan Band. What more could you possibly want for your mid-May Saturday? Nothing, we say! (Insert Shooter McGavin rhyming joke here.)

So we’re calling it now: just 10 days from tonight, you’ll be at the famous Art-a-Whirl celebration in Northeast Minneapolis. The sun will be shining, the art will be stunning, and around 6:00 PM you’ll be looking for a refreshing adult beverage. And, as it so happens, our pals at 612 Brew are right in the heart of the action, with incredibly talented artists displaying their works. Oooooo, their patio looks like an enticing place to eat some cheese curd tacos

Wait, what is that sound? Is that the dulcet tones of j.bell’s voice, complimented by BPZ and $2 Bill? Is that a jangly guitar solo floating over organ, drums, and bass? Why YES, IT IS!

Yup, if you haven’t figured it out already, the goofy faces in the photo above will be behind their instruments on the 612 patio, Saturday May 20, at precisely 6 PM. We’ve got an art-friendly set list planned and this is your only time you can catch the full band in May. (As always, our Events page has more info.)

OK, that’s enough bass-player fueled yappin’ for now…I’ll let you go so you can put a big red circle in your calendars for 5/20. See you at 612!

Help the LSB break new ground at kj’s hideaway 2 weeks from tonight!

We know you have lots of choices when it comes to your entertainment dollars, and we want to thank you for “picking” us. 😉

Attention all Lazy Susan Band fans, this is not an April Fools’ Day joke! We have to say that up front, because, let’s face it – Mother Nature has been making us feel foolish for months now here in Minnesota. The blanket of snow we all woke up to here today certainly felt like a cruel joke.

But we’re not joking around when we say how excited we are for a very special, one-of-a-kind, dinner-hour show happening for us on April 15th: we’re playing kj’s hideaway in St. Paul for the very first time! For a low ticket price of $10 you’ll get to see Ben Cook-Feltz at 5 pm, and us at 6, all while enjoying drinks (and dinner if you want) at an amazing new space in downtown.

And you don’t have to take our word for it about this space, folks: none other than the Midwest Country Music Organization has nominated kj’s as “Venue of the Year” for 2022. (Our money is on them to win!) You know you wanna check it out (if you haven’t already).

We’re incredibly fortunate to have a guy like Ben in our corner, since we’re teaming up with him and his pals for the second spring in a row. And just for this show, we’re pulling out at least one “oldie” that doesn’t get the full-band treatment very often. What song, you ask? We’re not telling – you have to come to the show to find out – but we will say that this song is old enough to drive this year!

See you in two weeks!

Blue skies and upside down drummer faces are on the way, St. Paul!

Thank you to Block North Brew Pub and looking forward to spring!

The LSB opens up Block North’s “Locker Room” last Saturday night. (Photo credit: Shannon Johnson)

Well well well, Lazy Susan fans, it seems we have a new favorite “up north” venue, for both the band and our fans! We couldn’t have been more pleased with the crew at Block North Brew Pub for hosting us at the Grand Opening of their new “Locker Room” space in downtown Aitkin, MN. Their team, and all the amazing locals who came out to see us, gave us all such a warm welcome and helped us enjoy our first full-band gig after our January tour. Some folks even drove a few hours to be there; we are so incredibly grateful. Thank you all, and we hope to be back soon!

Now that we’re finally all writing “2023” in our checkbooks, it’s time to start looking ahead to spring and summer. We highly recommend checking out our Events page, where you can mark your calendars for full band gigs in April, May, and June. And as usual, you have plenty of opportunities to check out an acoustic show, starting with j.bell & $2 Bill playing at No Neck Tony’s in Lake Elmo next Friday night (2/24).

Looking forward to seeing you soon!