April 13
The Pines w/ Brad Hoshaw
The Slowdown, 729 North 14th St.
9 p.m., $8 in advance/$10 at the door, theslowdown.com
The Pines evolved dramatically on their 2012 album Dark So Gold, emerging as a moodier, subtler, bleaker and groovier version of a gothic Americana act. The contemplative folk that joined together songwriters David Huckfelt and Benson Ramsey led them from Arizona, where they first joined forces, back to the Midwest and finally to Minneapolis. Since then, the band has taken on the look and feel of a rock band. The heart of the sound is the band’s elegantly slow-moving acoustic folk, but it’s when the band adds a dose of midnight-in-the-city lurk that they show a real power and promise. For that purpose, songs like “Rise Up & Be Lonely” and “Cry, Cry, Crow” stand out so heavily for the Pines.