Hudson Wisconsin Nightlife

February, 2014Archive for

Friday, February 14th, 2014

For Valentine’s Day, it’s not just about food, stir the heart of your loved one with some music! It may not be Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, but here’s what’s going on locally.

– At Dick’s Bar and Grill, the rockin’ starts early at 6:30 p.m. and the featured artist is Harvey Fields, and he’s just the drummer. The flavorful foursome’s full name is the Puzzle Piece and they are advertised as playing “tasty blues, jazz and R ‘n’ B.”

– At Willow River Saloon in Burkhardt on Friday night its a locally based group, the Rick’s, followed on Saturday night with Who Hash. Also featured is Zach Paxson, whose wide-ranging cross-country tour also included a private party in Houlton on Valentine’s Day.

– Guv’s Place in Houlton has another locally based band in Practical Goods on tap on Friday night, and on Saturday night its Ella and Ward.

– Also getting into the groove, last weekend, was Willie b Blues, a band that performing quite a bit locally of late, this time at a new joint that’s opened in Lakeland, Shiner’s. They were given rave reviews, much greater than you would normally hear, from an off-duty bouncer friend who had a rare night off from Ellie’s on Main.

 

Thursday, February 6th, 2014

Fun, fun, fun rises from this annual Affair and its accompanying music, and that’s not just a bunch of blustery hot air.
The Hudson Hot Air Affair is all about revelry, and there are some music and nightlife activities lesser-known than the balloon launches that this year go far toward that end. So with the entertainment emphasis, it’s fitting that this year’s theme is “Silver Screen.” Here are some of the activities:
– The Hangar Taproom of the American Sky Brewery on Swasey Street, south of Fleet Farm, has bands that promise to make the trip through the industrial park worthwhile. On Friday from 6-9 p.m. are area favorites the Tommy Bentz Band, which specializes in, amongst other things, pop-meets-rock takes on Beatles songs that have won them acclaim. On Saturday from 5-8 p.m. is Joe Carey, who along with his band feature a unique guitar playing style that began forming in, literally, a garage when Joe was a preteen. He even plays virtually all the instruments on one of his CDs.
– Downtown, Urban Olive and Vine has Jazz Savvy on Friday evening and Quinn and Meyer on Saturday, starting early at 6:30 p.m. – at about the same time as the Friday torchlight parade set for downtown. Jazz Savvy gives a sound you might not expect to hear locally, steering away from the usual jazz standards to give the audience an experience that is different every time, its members say.
Quinn and Meyer, a male and female combo who have great range in their voices, mix in a little mandolin and harmonica with song selections that include old time and folk music and also go far from the usual, with some of their cover songs being lesser-heard versions of songs from other artists. One thing that makes them unique is that they frequently switch instruments back and forth, including all of the ones adorning their stage.
– The American Idol connection to Hudson, in its multiple forms, lives on. Idol finalist Reed Grimm, in addition to family members Jennifer and Trey, will perform an empty bowls and concert for charity at Hudson High School auditorium on Saturday. There will be an empty bowls homemade soup for goodwill donation from 5-7 p.m., with music from 7:30-9:30 p.m. with proceeds benefiting Youth Action Hudson and Hudson SAFE. Concert general admission tickets are available at County Market and Family Fresh Market.
– Rounding out the music options connected with the Hot Air Affair are deejay music at Dick’s Bar and Grill on Friday and Saturday starting at 10 p.m., which gives a chance to mingle with the pilots, and karaoke in an intimate setting at the bar at the Hudson Bowling Center on both nights, a venue not far from the Moonglow or Field of Fire that’s Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
– A Taste of the Flyway Silver Screen Edition, a sampling of spirits, wine and beer, along with decadent chocolates and artisan cheeses, is Saturday from 7:30-10 p.m. at the Hudson House Grand Hotel. Sponsors are 45th parallel Spirits, Villa Bellezza Winery and Pitchfork Brewing Co. All these are from the St. Croix and Mississippi River Valleys.
– Other noteworthy Hot Air Affair events are balloon launches at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and at 3 p.m. on Saturday, and smoosh boarding at 1 p.m. Saturday. All are at the Rock Elementary School grounds.
– For a different visual and otherwise sensual experience, check out the sixth annual Sexy in the City Ladies Night Out at Woody’s in Bayport on Saturday starting at 6:30 p.m. There are about a dozen vendors from area businesses such as boutiques, a deejay, drink specials, prize giveaways and sampling of wine and spirits.

Ice, ice baby! The weather’s impact on local partying has been more than just vanilla

Wednesday, February 5th, 2014

Who knows where the cold wind blows … But until the bad weather stops, weird things will continue to happen to local party-goers at their nightlife events.
– The PepperFest’s ceremonial pepper, which stands the height of a corn stalk, has again become part of the frozen foods. The iconic village vegetable sculpture was kidnapped by local ninja-dressed wannabes who asked a ransom for charity as part of an annual ritual, and is back where it should be, propped up to just above the snowbanks, which is a tall order, outside of the house of my neighbor Ron. He happens to be the PepperFest king. Since its return to its rightful place, the top of the pepper was first adorned with a impressive deer rack and hide to mark the hunting season, then the bottom with a big banner that said “Merry Christmas.” Since then, the hide blew off the top for a brief time in one of our icy windstorms.
– Speaking of ice, if you glanced to the north side of Coulee Road after a night out on the town, and saw what looks like a cascading snow sculpture wider than two garage doors, it wasn’t necessarily because you imbibed. The people at Casanova Historic Liquors and The Nova have created the icescape that is across the street, and their sign directs drivers to take a look at “the eighth wonder of the world.” Recently, a truck below the sculpture was scraping snow from the street. Not sure if he was making way for more viewers, or adding yet another layer of ice to the work of art.
– Part of the recent deep freeze was that fewer people braved the cold to get a beer. That was only true to a point, however, as my friend Rich pointed out on a particularly frigid night that there would soon be two busloads of 75 people each pulling into Dick’s Bar and Grill. (And that wasn’t even on a weekend).
– Despite the cold, the band Saving Starz really packed them in at the Village Inn in North Hudson, and guitarist Geno, who always has something to say, spent some time talking about things like how in extreme cold, beer can freeze before it even hits your lips. That was applicable because one of his cohorts, Jethro, had Packer tickets the next day on the 50-yard line, in a game whose temps would rival the Ice Bowl.
– The next day, Guv’s Place in Houlton was actually closed for business because of the cold, although the night before, as far as conveying the bar’s coming status, the bartender’s knowledge was a little “green.” (Sorry if that tropical reference hurts).
– Jeff Loven at Dick’s also drew quite a crowd, and the reason people risked near frostbite was the birthday of Brandon, a longtime worker there. A photograph of his face on a stick was a popular part of the evening, and one friend even sported a pair of the images — one in front of his face and another propped into his pants. For his part, Brandon said celebratory shots had a bomb theme, Jag Bombs and Irish Car Bombs (which could have the abbreviation of an ICBM missile).
– With the cold come certain (libation) advantages. The beer of the month at Dick’s had been, fittingly, Alaskan Amber, and Kozy Korner in North Hudson took a reverse turn and had advertized Summer Shandy. Across the way, Village Liquor in keeping with the season had their “Elf on the Shelf” special for two dollars off the top — is that off the price or the height of a typical elf?
– Love to see, shortly, what they give this guy: It goes to show, never leave your driver’s license on the car seat after a hit and run, even if it’s just with a building. That’s what one person did late last year, in the wee hours of a Saturday morning, when allegedly weaving and then driving over great big stump, then hitting the porch of the Octogon House. The person, wouldn’t you know it being from the Twin Cities, then allegedly left the scene. Police soon after made plans to take the person into custody, so the matter could work its way through the courts. Should be pretty easy to find, since they’ve got the DL — unless of course it’s a fake ID.
– Snippets from back in New Year’s celebrations: The cold theme continued, as a couple stood outside the Agave Kitchen and did not go inside for their extended kiss (they must be in the new infatuation stage). At Dick’s, the PDA continued as despite the limited room, there was a lot of twerking going on, (word to the wise, or not so wise, in tight quarters you have about ten square feet to dance with, so respect it. The guy ordering a drink in front of me, and I could only see the back of his shaved head, complete with ears sticking out, was a splitten’ image of President Obama. Lastly, a friend of mine said she had this opportune night to celebrate her 21st birthday, and sat on the curb to linger outside Ellie’s and (1) get my well wishes, (2) continue the B-day experience and (3) most importantly make sure her ride was indeed coming.
– And now snippets from the Christmas season: At Buffalo Wild Wings, there was a big, red and green colored mistletoe in the doorway to the back room, although no one seemed to be taking advantage. Shortly before Christmas Day itself, their was a Santa wandering aimlessly by himself down the sidewalk in downtown Stillwater (don’t know what he was doing). We do know what this other guy was doing, as Santa himself appeared to be a music lover and was seen taking in the band at Guv’s Place back in late November, the first such sighting of St. Nick this holiday. Around the same time, a deer was seen running around the shoulder on the main highway just south of Guv’s, alternately traipsing between the ditch and the edge of the road (could this be construed as Run, Run, Rudolph?) Lastly, an area holiday party played The Grinch Stole Christmas on big screen TV, then had, of all people, the Grinch himself come in the back door and give presents to the kids, who didn’t seem to mind the change-up. There was no immediate word on how many sizes this made this heart grow.
– And lastly at Buffalo Wild Wings, during the NCAA championship football game between the far-afield teams of Florida State and Auburn, there were some people in the house who didn’t look too local and just had to be alumni of those southern schools, based on how loudly they were cheering each small gain.

Saturday, February 1st, 2014

Maybe Sunday is more “super” than the football regular season.
Super Bowl weekend is here, and an event at Ellie’s on Main allows you to score as much food and drink as Peyton Manning scores touchdowns. For $50, you get all you care to eat and drink for the duration of the evening game, which should go on longer than usual with two pass-happy teams. You can order anything off the menu, plus specially made chicken entries, both barbequed and regularly fried, now that we’re past the regular season. And then there is that regular, more-for-your-money Coors Light special, as well as $2 wild cherry bombs.
All this brings to mind some of the sublime moments from the pro football season that have occurred at area sports bars. One guy even came all the way from Brooklyn Park, Minn., to take in a Packer-Viking game at Guv’s Place in Houlton. Then late in the fourth quarter, two fans were sticking it to each other and debating if the Minnesota kicker could hit a pretty easy field goal in the late-season bad weather, or if it would be more of the same across-the-border, woe-is-me result. The rub is that both of them are Viking backers.
In the first of the two Black and Blue Division games, bartender Josie at Woody’s in Bayport was sporting a sweater with Viking colors. She said that being a Packer fan in a predominantly Viking bar gives her that privilege. For what reason? “I’m a girl, I can wear purple,” she told some patrons.
And speaking of Woody’s, if you have too much “spare” time during the game, why don’t you “frame” it with Super Bowling there? Warm-up and draws for partners starts at 1:30 p.m. The pairings are one high and one low average and all skill levels are welcome, so as they also say about the Big Game, anybody can be a winner on this given Sunday. There are drink specials, and snacks and appetizers for bowlers after they finish. Entry fee is $15.

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