Retro is as retro does … and sings … and drinks … throughout the tri-state area:
– Who knows, they may be the hottest act to come out of Iowa since Slipknot, although the genre is definitely different, and they get their name from a classic tractor built much nearer to Burkhardt, where they play the Willow River Saloon on Saturday night, April 30. The Minneapolis Molines are made up of various ages but say they are definitely retro country, playing songs from the 1980s and ’90s, the latter being their key influence. They hail from eastern Iowa and were formed, their online site says, in year “201.” Now that’s old enough to be way beyond retro, although they describe themselves as the hottest such quintet “in the tri-state area,” with four different people on vocals. Members include Todd Ellis on guitar and vocals, Joel Thielen on drums, Mark McGranahan on lead guitar and vocals, Bill George on fiddle, guitar and vocals, and Jimmy Welty on bass and vocals.
– The retro theme prevails with one of the liquor choices advertised at Dick’s Bar and Grill, the Lagunitas IPA that shows a retro-or-even-earlier dressed woman with jean shorts sitting on the hood of a classic car.
– The subtle haromonies of The Way Out will take over Dick’s Bar and Grill on Friday evening. An example given by listener Kim from their last gig here was a cover of Very Superstitious, where there obviously was no horn section, but it was replaced by funky guitar chords here and there. In the reverse of many groups, their sound got rockier in the later sets. There also was a keyboardist-guitarist who took over on bongos on occasion to provide percussion and some flourishes at the end of songs.

So much sand piled up that you almost need to be 8 Foot 4:
– How would you like to play in the sand with a singer like Mel Travolta, (after he’s done playing music?) And just maybe bury him in a makeshift sand castle? All while having a featured summer-ish drink that’s big on “roasted pineapple whiskey?” You can, possibly, do all these things at the spring beach party at Dick’s Bar and Grill on Saturday night, April 23. Travolta is on stage a little later than usual for bands at Dick’s, from 7-10 p.m., but then, hey it’s summer coming, and there is a shift in the attraction to the sand, sand, shifting sand that’s being brought in to fill the dance floor.
– Have they truly not been there before? You would think that because most of the players are homeboys to Hudson, literally, it would’ve happened before. But with that said, the band 8 Foot 4 announced online that they will be playing their first ever show at the Smilin’ Moose on Friday evening, April 22.
The band’s web page is more interesting than most. The way the name is presented on their home page is riveting to say the least, with different letters and numbers portrayed by using sheet metal pinned together with bolts. The site even provides a typical stage plan, showing where the different players will be positioned, including a deejay making sounds with a sampler!
– And, if you get too many empty carbs at a place like The Moose, you might want to wear them off at a place like the River Front Athletic Club, across the street from Pudge’s Bar, to which members have access 24 hours. While we’re not encouraging people to work out while they are tipsy, keep in mind that the summer swimsuit season is coming fast upon us, and this might give you — especially if you’re boaters on the St. Croix — the what’s-my-weight leeway to have that extra Bloody Mary downtown at a place like The Moose or Dick’s.
– The Smokedale four-20 sale, and we all know that that means, featured such a great demand they are extending it through Friday (that’s the day of this post, for all you stoners). Get 25-30 percent off all kinds of stuff, even ecigs, Hookahs and water pipes, and it has cool brand names such as Zombie Venom and Devil’s Touch! See them at their outlet on Coulee Road.

It’s not a Big Mac, but it brings the beef (two forms) along with special, secret seasonings and sauce:
– Now that Lent’s been laid dormant for a while, Season’s Tavern in North Hudson has officially resurrected its meaty Shepherd’s Pie, which you would know is heavy on the prime rib, of course being Season’s, and also on the ground beef, along with special seasonings that are so closely guarded that not many people other than the chef know them, (kind of like the secret sauce on a Big Mac). And to be certain, the Shepherd’s Pie has its own special sauce, a beef braise.
When I talked with Brad, the owner, it was 11:52 a.m. and the vegies were being freshly cut by that chef — they are carrots, onions and sweet peas, and the ingredients are then rolled into one with mashed potatoes and cheese, and put in the oven.
Right now, this is the chef’s special, which changes and varies every two or three weeks, depending on what the public is clamoring for. (That means that since Lent has ended, we have already been through one cycle). Get it now, for when summer comes, the chef’s special will evolve to lighter fare, Brad said, and that fare will often include house band Thirsty Camel, which just maybe needs quenching drink because the Shepherd’s Pie is so hearty.
– Back on bass for Buck Tucker, for a while now, is Hudson’s own Skip Ballard, showing an uncharacteristic scowl on their Facebook site. The band will play the Willow River Saloon in Burkhardt on Saturday evening, April 16. Noteworthy on their wideranging set list, which has more quality then quantity compared to some, are songs by Third Day, StainD, Sweet, Keith Whitley, Incubus, Craig Campbell and even former Hudson stalwart Tommy Tutone, although not all of these are typical of one of the group’s shows.
– Hot Wheels vs. Matchbox. Hmm… Maybe it depends who has the home track. That would be Dick’s Bar and Grill on its own Hot Wheels course this Sunday, April 17, when patrons will gather at 1 p.m. to “test their childhood skills” by racing the tiny cars, or trucks, which can be tweaked or redesigned, and thus be stocks or modified. Then stay for Jeff Loven and maybe win “a brand new car” to use for the next in the racing series. There will be cash prizes for fastest racer, first, second and third, and also door prizes, and a drink token for anyone who brings a car. However, all cars must finish to qualify for the prizes, so don’t bring a clunker.
– Also at Dick’s for all of this month, a new take on the Chicago style hot dog. You’ll get all the ingredients that usually come on it, but on top of a burger not a weiner, plus an Old Style beer, for $10.95.

With local polls now closed, should we take a poll on Donald’s hair, or is that too hair-raising (much like the rest of this hairy election):
– Maybe this is under the heading of Rock The Vote, in a fashion sense. One woman in North Hudson hit the polls decked out in high-heeled black boots, and tight black leggings with a wide white stripe up the front. Could she be sending a dark message in reaction to the candidates these days? And with her hot fashion sense, and long dark locks, is she trumping their bad hairdos?
– Speaking of that, a Trump Backer who rides a motorcycle displayed a placard not on his lawn, but on top of the handlebars, as the cycle was parked on Main Street just before bar time. Did I say Main Street and Trump in the same sentence?
– Switching gears to baseball’s opening day, Kozy Korner in North Hudson had a message on the marquee that advertised hot dogs and brats for the opener, not to mention four free Brewer tickets. Unfortunately, the Brewers got blown out, and hopefully the winner of those tickets will get to see a better performance. The message was still up last Wednesday, as if to provide encouragement to the Brew Crew and their backers who on that Monday opener were crying in their beer. And then as far as the Twins …
Across the street, at another sports bar, there has been a sign at the Village Inn’s patio that welcomes backers of the Packers, Badgers, Bucks and the Brew. Only in Wisconsin would you find such shorthand.
– Back to politics, bartender Sue at The Village said that in a way that’s been totally atypical in her long tenure, election day attendance was way down at the bar. I guess that with the huge voter turnout, they just hung around the polls. You’d think they’d want to drink instead.
– But as far as that vote, I personally back the Pizza Party, as shown by its very unofficial nominee, the Pizza King himself, Rich Raley. Despite the recent divisions in our country about politics, I think will all can agree on a well-cut pepperoni. And that’s with extra cheese — and not so cheesy as Donald Trump and his hairdo.
– And as far as name recognition, combining both local and national, there are presidential candidates Rand Paul, (much like the same-amount-of-letters-in-the-first-and-last-name Tall Paul, a bassist for the former local band Deviant Distraction), and Martin O’Malley, (the surnames of both the local alderman who was not too much in favor of rock concerts in the Lakefront Park band shell and their noise, and of a longtime bartender and now manager at Buffalo Wild Wings). At least in the Hudson area, the locals are less obscure than the candidates.
– And of course, there’s the hair. I told the bartender at Green Mill that her hair was much more presidential than that of the Donald, after a fellow patron had praised her locks. What did so think of such a comparison? “Ooh, no, no.” But like the aforementioned pizza, I think we all can agree to stump about Mandy’s mane.
– Across the street, a lawyer from Dublin wanted to talk U.S. politics, and its obvious from body language that the way its done their is different. Voting came up and the bartender said that like many servers who border hop between the two states as far as residence vs. workplace, it was difficult to find time and driving ability to vote. She still managed to do so before her shift, but said the long lines in Woodbury added to her time bind.
– Across town, the Vine Street reconstruction project may have an effect on night travel — as I’ve been told there is a good party or two to be had when going eastward on that road — but there are other ways to head out on the highway that also are chilled, (or are they?) Specifically when the big sign that says “road closed ahead” is turned at 90 degrees during the evening, it might make you think that historic Third Street is the one shut down.
– And speaking of degrees, at least on some very warm nights, the guys at the cigar store downtown are back into sitting outside their establishment late at night and having a puff, while listening to the music from the Smilin’ Moose bounce off the building facade on the other side of Second Street and bounce their way. And just of late, the interior of the store has been getting a big makeover, with workers going at it well into the evening, but cutting it off just after midnight — by coincidence about when The Moose lifts their cover on Friday nights. And two doors down, on the corner, a coffee shop is going in where the yogurt shop was. What coffee shop, you ask? The cuthead on a photo in the local paper gives it away. It reads simply: “Almost Dunn.”