Pop Rocks midwest’s party band.

Pop Rocks is one of the midwest’s most popular party bands.

Review and photos by Todd Johnson.

Right now is an amazing time to be a concert goer. It feels like a Renaissance of a lot of things that we used to take for granted. Seeing a band is definitely one of those things right now. Before COVID you really didn’t think anything of seeing a band in a small bar or a club, but right now it is an amazing time cause we have all these possibilities of music acts to see and we want to see them all! As far as more money for your concert going dollar, PopROCKS! is an amazingly fun filled bargain! The concert I went to at Babe’s Music Bar in Lakeville during the Pan-O-Prog festival (which stands for ‘Panorama of Progress’ which, according the website, is a celebration of the success of the development of Lakeville’s Airlake Industrial Park since 1967.) Over the years Lakeville would have a carnival during PAN-O-PROG and would also have an amazing fireworks display that seemed so low and close it felt like you could reach out and touch the fireworks. 

PopROCKS! Is a a non-stop party people ride through the musical history of pop music and you can definitely dance to it. I couldn’t keep up with figuring out how many songs they played, but it was at the very least 25 songs (whether it be full songs or partial songs.) They use different costumes and make-up effects to look like the artist they are singing. For instance, the amazing female lead singer Krystin who with her chameleon-like ability to inhabit the personas of the different  singers sonically and physically. She went from Katy Perry & Brittany Spears to Amy Winehouse, Joan Jett & Pat Benatar. For awhile I mistakenly thought that it was two different female singers alternating then I realized eventually they were all just one female lead singer..that is how good she is! And the costumes were amazing too….

The male lead singer changed depending on the songs. Lead singer Chad sang all the hits & changed between the personas of Pitbull, Bryan Adams and John Travolta amongst others. Additional singer Ryan does Macklemore, Garth Brooks and a few other well known personalities. The Lead guitar player

is very talented and can seem to play pretty much any song there is and David, the bass player, worked the crowd really well while drummer, Blake, kept the backbeat going.  

What a great way to spend a hot summer night in Minnesota.