DOROTHY previews her Redemption Tour at Treasure Island

CONCERT REVIEW :: DOROTHY, BULLETS & BUTTERFLIES
Treasure Island Event Center – Welch, MN
3/29/25
Photos by Brett Zisler
Review by Nick

DOROTHY brought the heat of her Redemption Tour to the Treasure Island Event Center in Welch, MN on a cold and rainy Saturday night. Cold weather isn’t going to stop any MN rock fans and they definitely showed up for this excellent double bill of female fronted rock and roll. DOROTHY’s new album “The Way” that’s a great mixture of her first album “Rockisdead” and her previous album “Gifts from the Holy Ghost”, strong songwriting and great riffs.

If you ever wanted to attend what feels like a private soundstage rehearsal before tour, that’s what the vibe was like for this show. Two weeks before the tour starts, DOROTHY provided MN with a peek behind the curtain as she gets ready to take the show on the road. DOROTHY has a strong band behind her that can solo and jam wherever needed as the show started out with a little jam session before DOROTHY came out and they launched in to “Down to the Bottom”. DOROTHY’s vocals were on point for “The Devil I Know” from her new album The Way before making “Ain’t Our Time to Die” a little heavier fitting nicely in to the set.

DOROTHY got a nice sing along going for the newer track “Mud” showing the crowd has lots of love for the new material along with the live debut of the standout track from the new album “Bones”. Which then was followed by a little reimagination of the classic “After Midnight” taking a little slower approach from the original while still keeping it pretty rocking. Before “After Midnight”, DOROTHY told the crowd her life is a little different now than when those songs came out, going to bed by 9pm. DOROTHY even lovingly poked a little fun at those who just might have had a few drinks before the show leading in to “Whiskey Fever” and the crowd ate it up. This is when DOROTHY was at her best, rocking out and having fun with the crowd even though she says she’s bad at banter between songs.

Let’s be honest, no one is having a bad time when “Raise Hell” comes on. DOROTHY then brought out a little bit of a deep cut with the cover of “Key to the Highway” from Slash’s new blues covers record. The track fit very well in to the set and was a nice nod for everyone looking for something new in the set. “Gifts from the Holy Ghost” closed out the main set before the encore brought the house down with a fired up “Tombstone Town”. DOROTHY fans going to the Redemption Tour are in for a treat when this rolls in to town. Bare bones, no bull, warts and all rock show the way it should be.

Minneapolis’ BULLETS AND BUTTERFLIES opened the show celebrating the release of their debut album “Full Circle” playing a chock full 40 minute set showcasing the release. The newer band featuring local scene vets from Skywind, Vaudeville and Cold Kingdom played to their strengths right away with “Rabbit Hole” kicking off the set – with newcomer Josephine’s vocals shining in the forefront over a rocker that shows how tight of a band the 5 of them are together. The band had a good fan base they brought with for the show as evident by the Bullets and Butterflies shirts in the crowd. Newer song “Complicated” sounded great along side previously released singles “Abandon Ship” and “Sleepless Nights.” The band tore it up for their last song, the unreleased sassy rocker “Ain’t Yours to Lose” proving this band still has many tricks up their sleeve for the future. Keep an eye on this band, it’s only the beginning for them and they’ll only get stronger.

SEE MORE OF BRETT'S PHOTOS OF DOROTHY & BULLETS AND BUTTERFLIES HERE!

JOYOUS WOLF and DOROTHY deliver at the Varsity

CONCERT REVIEW :: DOROTHY, JOYOUS WOLF
Varsity Theater in Minneapolis
May 2, 2022
Photos by Brett Zisler
Review by Nick

It’s been a minute since Dorothy and/or Joyous Wolf has been back to MN and it’s been awhile since I’ve been to the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis. All 3 were overdue.

JOYOUS WOLF played a rowdy 40 min set that saw vocalist Nick Reese all over the stage barely standing still long enough to take the pictures you see included here. Matched with an incredibly tight rhythm section of Greg Braccio on bass and Robert Sodaro on drums creating a massive sound for guitarist Blake Allard to riff all over. This band has seriously spent time perfecting their music to come across loud and proud live. You could tell they were traveling with their own sound guy who had everything dialed in perfect to make the band sound the best they could be.

Opening with “Quiet Heart” from their Place in Time record, the band was firing on all cylinders and never let up until the 40 min set was over. They came with a mission to make new fans and they definitely accomplished that. Reese’s outgoing personality on stage doing cartwheels including parting the crowd down the middle to jump down and do one from the floor made for a show you couldn’t take your eyes off of. Add in that you want to watch Braccio, Sodaro and Allard playing just as intensely and you’ve got yourself a hard act to follow.

Half the set seemed to be made up of songs from a forthcoming record including a very memorable “Get Myself Right” that should prove to be a stunner on record as it was live. I definitely was bummed that they didn’t have a CD or any vinyl at the merch booth, I’m guessing they would’ve sold big after that set. Keep an eye on this band - they are one big song away from becoming huge!

DOROTHY came out with a new band that was equally as talented as JOYOUS WOLF that came out making “Down to the Bottom” a little more heavier to make the song’s catchiness making it a great show opener. DOROTHY was in fine vocal form with the tracks like “Gun In My Hand” and “Raise Hell” from Rockisdead and did incredible versions of the new songs “Rest in Peace” and “Beautiful Life”.

The band had plenty of time to shine, making the songs in the set larger than their recorded counterparts. The show went by super quick with DOROTHY performing 11 songs from her 3 albums. My only minor gripe was that DOROTHY ended the show with “Flawless” and “Freedom” from 28 Days in the Valley and ended the show on an awkward note. The show just ended after those two songs with no encore. No “Raise Hell”, no “Whiskey Fever”, no “After Midnight” or no “Kiss It” all which would have been excellent show closers, let alone set additions.

In the end, it was fantastic to see DOROTHY live again with such a great band behind her to let her really deliver some powerhouse performances during the set. I’m betting that this was just an appetizer for the main event coming soon. Check out DOROTHY’s new record “Gifts from the Holy Ghost” as it is a fantastic listen. Dorothy could definitely come back and just play the new record and I’d walk out a happy fan!

SEE MORE OF BRETT'S PHOTOS OF DOROTHY and JOYOUS WOLF HERE!

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 02/24/17 - DOROTHY & REAPING ASMODEIA

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 02/24/17
GUESTS :: DOROTHY & REAPING ASMODEIA

HOUR 1
LATE NIGHT FIGHTS - "galvanized" // jousthouse
ARMORED SAINT - "win hands down" (live) // carpe noctum
PROF - "farout" // liability
DOROTHY - "kiss it" // rockisdead
DOROTHY - "whiskey fever" // rockisdead
DOROTHY - "shelter" // rockisdead

ANGRY WATERS - "ours to be had" // angry waters III
AMARANTHE - "21" // maxamalism
BOBAFLEX - "hey you" // hey you - single
ARROWS AT DAWN - "on the run" // pieces
DISKORD - "stamina" // crunch
HIGHLY SUSPECT - "postres" // the boy who died wolf
COLD KINGDOM - "let it burn" (acoustic) // acoustic ep

HOUR 2
P.O.S - "wearing a bear" // chill, dummy
WOVENWAR - "lines in the sand" // honor is dead
AMON AMARTH - "raise your horns" // jomsviking
THE CHARM THE FURY - "down on the ropes" // the sick, dumb and happy
EVERY TIME I DIE - "I didn't want to join your stupid cult anyways" // low teens
REAPING ASMODEIA - "of talons and teeth" // impuritize

REAPING ASMODEIA - "ritual of ignorance" // impuritize
REAPING ASMODEIA - "irreversible evolution" // impuritize
AFTER THE BURIAL - "mire" // dig deep
TESTAMENT - "stronghold" // brotherhood of the snake
HATEBREED - "looking down the barrel of today" // the concrete confessional

**SPECIAL THANKS to DOROTHY for sitting down with the Midwest Beatown at their sold out show at 7th St Entry in Minneapolis! DOROTHY returns to the area for NORTHERN INVASION on May 13-14 at Somerset Amphitheater in Somerset, WI!

Also, SPECIAL THANKS to DANIEL and ROMAN from REAPING ASMODEIA for calling in to talk about their brand new album "Impurtize" out now on Prothestic Records! REAPING ASMODEIA will be at The Warehouse in LaCrosse, WI on March 3 and Lee's Liquor Lounge in Minneapolis on March 4! Both shows are ALL AGES!