Toad the Wet Sprocket and The Verve Pipe – Fillmore – Minneapolis MN – Sept 9th 2023

Toad the Wet Sprocket and The Verve Pipe – Fillmore, Minneapolis MN – Sept 9^th 2023

Review Amie Bresnahan photos by Ryan Bresnahan

Toad the Wet Sprocket and The Verve Pipe brought some serious musical joy to The Fillmore in Minneapolis, MN.

The Verve Pipe opened the evening of music with their own brand of rock and roll. Described early in the evening by front man Brian Vander Ark as a band “you have not heard from much in the past few decades” he claims they write and play the music for themselves but appreciate the fans who love it! The band dished out a mix of rock anthems and heartstring-tugging ballads that hit you right in the feels. Vander Ark’s vocals were as soul-stirring as ever. Tunes like “The Freshmen” and “Photograph” had everyone emotional, reminding us why we fell in love with their music in the first place.

Headliners Toad the Wet Sprocket, those ’90s legends with their chill alternative rock vibes, gave us a dose of nostalgia mixed with fresh tunes from their latest album. Glen Phillips, their frontman, still belts it out like a pro, and the band’s onstage camaraderie was infectious. They had the crowd belting out classics like “All I Want” and “Walk on the Ocean”. Unique to a typical show at The Fillmore, there were seats on the main floor which created a chiller vibe than normal. Halfway through Phillips told the crowd to get on their feet, which really helped amp up the energy in the venue. Fans then began to dance and sing more vibrantly than when seated and you could tell the band loved to higher vibe. Toad the Wet Sprocket proved they’ve still got it, and their fans couldn’t have been happier.

Together, Toad the Wet Sprocket and The Verve Pipe made it a night to remember in Minneapolis, proving that these ’90s rock gems can still rock our world and create memories we’ll cherish forever. And once again the 90’s fans were enjoying the music and the scene without feeling the need to pull their phones out to record it all. Such a delight to take in music like we used to and create stories we will tell instead of videos we will play.