The Softrocks - Saturnalia.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: there are a lot of good bands in Minneapolis. And look, I know you’re thinking “So does where I live, what’s your point?” To which I reply: no, really. The scene here is ridiculously fertile and cooperative; though there’s some healthy competition, bands share bills and befriend each other. These bands emerge from apartments on Garfield, Hennepin and Lyndale, get opening spots at the Triple Rock and the 400 Bar, sell a few records, get played on The Current.

For the most part, however, these Twin Cities bands don’t make any impact nationally (there are, of course, a exceptions). This is both good and bad news; as much as I’d love for bands like Mouthful of Bees and Action Versus Action to be the subject of Pitchfork columns, they remain local secrets that never outgrow the tiny clubs.

So it goes with The Softrocks. How does a band like this go largely unnoticed? Their awesome record Summer Apocalypse has one of the most apt titles I’ve heard. With the menacing guitar lines and handclaps, this is sunny music for the endtimes. I didn’t know what the “feast of Saturnalia” was, so I consulted Wikipedia: It was a feast “marked by tomfoolery and reversal of social roles, in which slaves and masters ostensibly switched places.” Tomfoolery. Excellent.

You can buy Summer Apocalypse from CDBaby.