It was about four years ago when Andy Frasco & The U.N. happened to be playing a show in the Twin Cities on one of the same nights Billy Strings was also in town.
I wasn’t cool enough to be there.
But I knew there had to be something special about Frasco when one particular legend of the Minneapolis music scene told me he wouldn’t be back for the second night of William Apostol’s high-powered string band.
Now I wish I had seen Frasco perform sooner than last Saturday.
I went into the show blind, not having heard or seen much other than some insane crowd-sourced videos of Frasco dancing wildly out on the floor with his own, highly energized fans.
I’ve also listened to several episodes of his “World Saving Podcast.” He’s done some great interviews including the likes of Stu Mackenzie and the fan that tossed all of those empty “line-holding" camp chairs that had been abandoned at a Billy Strings show last year. He’s definitely our kinda guy. Check out the podcast here.
Maybe I didn’t love every single song he played on first listen, which I bring up because I heard from more than one jam fan leading up to this show that Frasco just wasn’t their cup of tea.
Maybe so. But I doubt a single one of these fans has ever actually caught the spectacle that is Andy Frasco & The U.N. in person.
Frasco is a born entertainer. He’s a wild man with a wild-minded band, supported by a wild and devoted following.
Here’s a few pictures I caught at Fine Line last Saturday (unfortunately I didn’t manage to capture anything usable of Frasco parting the sea):
