Minnesota’s own, Hippo Campus, finished their Wasteland tour on June 24 at the beautiful Bayfront Festival Park on Lake Superior in downtown Duluth. The massive North American run followed the release of their EP, Wasteland, back in April and stopped in some bucket list venues like Red Rocks in Morrison, Colorado along the way. The ever-growing band has become somewhat of a local legend in the Twin Cities, so it was great to see them back home. The bill featured a fully Minnesota line up with Hippo Campus enlisting Minneapolis artists Miloe and Why Not to open the evening. The crowd showed nothing but love and hype for each artist and I adored experiencing Minnesota’s adoration for its incredible indie music scene firsthand.
First up was Why Not, an incredibly talented and young indie rock band that has been releasing music since their early highschool days in 2017. They commanded the stage despite the somewhat dreary weather and warmed up the crowd with their bright, upbeat sound. They recently co-released two singles with Nashville based indie rocker, Annie DiRusso. If you’re a fan of the genre you should definitely check them out!
Next to take the stage was Miloe. Another member of the indie genre, Miloe has grown significantly in the last year after touring with big names like Adam Melchor and the 1975. This was my second time seeing him and he brought all the energy with a full band accompanying him through his golden-hour set.
Finally, it was time for Hippo Campus. Looking down the barricade you could see the anticipation as their walk-on song sounded through the air. Finally, all six members ran on stage and cheers ensued from the entire park. They opened with their classic, “South”, before transitioning to “Yippie Ki Yay” off the Wasteland EP. The rest of the setlist carried a similar theme with a perfect mix of songs old and new. Fans held up signs, sang their hearts out, and moshed under the moon that managed to peek through the previously cloudy sky that seemed to clear just for them.
Hippo Campus never fails to put on a wonderful show. Though the Wasteland tour is over, the band never seems to let up and recently released a new single, “Maps”, that I am sure will be followed by more music and another tour soon. Definitely catch them the next time they’re in your city, you won’t regret it!
Why Not
Miloe
Hippo Campus
