Fiery funny punks to nostalgic synth art-pop: Duluth’s Homegrown is eight days of local music on dozens of stages

DULUTH – Homegrown Music Festival gets its official kickoff at Hoops Brewing on Sunday where the event’s founder Scott “Starfire” Lunt will greet revelers packed body-to-body into a crowded space that, on a regular day, would be considered a large room.

This year’s annual eight-day festival includes more than 170 bands with regional ties playing at dozens of venues (and unlikely venues) here and in Superior, Wis. Homegrown started decades ago as Lunt’s birthday party, then it expanded in every possible way. He’s no longer an organizer, but the band he formed for the original party, Father Hennepin, plays Tuesday.

Past festivals have included acts like Trampled By Turtles, Black-Eyed Snakes, Low, Charlie Parr and Gaelynn Lea, though none are in the lineup this year. At the height of Covid-19, it was first canceled, then an online-only event.

Admission: A weeklong wristband is $40 and a single night is $15, payable at any venue.

Sunday starts with kid-friendly music at the Lake Superior Zoo, including interactive tunes with Dan the Monkey Man, a rock ‘n’ roller by night who dons monkey-wear and brings baskets full of instruments for his audience to play and sing along.

The action shifts adult-ish in the late afternoon. Rick McLean follows Lunt’s opening words. The fiery and funny punk musician can be expected to quickly rip into something loud, fast and funny. Mind your limbs.

Not to be missed: Hot Tamale Cosmos is a collection of some of the city’s best musicians to ever touch Superior Street. The supergroup includes Sonja Martin of Feeding Leroy, Colleen Myhre whose stage name Boss Mama is no joke, Jess Krussow of Field Birds and Sugar on the Roof, and Erin Aldridge of the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra and more. 8:30 p.m. Zeitgeist Teatro.

The festival travels to the Lincoln Park Craft District where venues range from the retail space of Legacy Cannabis to Dovetail Cafe & Marketplace to the public social clubhouse the All American Club. (Not to mention breweries, cideries and an actual bar.)

At times, this city has been defined by its folk sounds. Ashe Berton is a strong, modern addition with her spare sound: dreamy vocals, harmonies and an acoustic guitar. She plays at 6:30 p.m. at Dovetail.

Not to be missed: Father Hennepin is the alt-country band featuring guitar player, sometimes-singer, always well-dressed Lunt. The band’s light twang and occasional quirky covers exude the kind of warmth you want to curl up next to.

In recent years, the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center has offered local musicians the kind of bragging rights typically reserved for Elton John, Styx and the University of Minnesota Duluth men’s hockey team: the chance to play at Amsoil Arena. The city’s largest venue is at the heart of the festival’s Day 3 — alongside other spaces downtown and in Canal Park.

Not to be missed: NVR TGTHR is a sinister retro-pop band featuring some of this city’s most storied musicians, including Nikki Moeller of The Keep Aways on bass. The band released the EP “Easy to Please” about a year ago, and it’s a moody mix that feels nostalgic.

The beauty of West Duluth is its walkability. A music fan can catch the early-aughts pop sound of Life Parade at 7:45 p.m. at the Gopher and barely miss a lick of the country stylings of Emily Haavik & The 35s at 8:15 p.m. at the West Theatre. The action is all contained with several blocks — a coziness that makes bumping into friends in between a part of the night’s journey.

Not to be missed: Winzige Hosen is a punk-polka band that will undoubtedly spill beer all over its lederhosen by the end of its set. This band feels rowdy, maybe because they stuff so many musicians on to the stage, and is one of few with horns and an accordion. Winzige Hosen is the night’s closing act, a fitting and festive finale, at 11 p.m. Mr. D’s Bar & Grill.

The festival leaves Duluth city limits for a Superior-centric night that starts with a proclamation from the neighboring Wisconsin town’s Mayor Jim Paine. From there, it’s a mix of newbies and longtime favorites: Sonofmel with his Johnny Cash vocals, Ian Alexy of Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank and singer-songwriter-social media fan favorite Kaylee Matuszak.

Not to be missed: Cars & Trucks is a longtime trio of rock ‘n’ rollers who have crafted some of this city’s most memorable songs. They’ve been around 20 years but don’t show up often anymore. Tony Bennett and Mat Milinkovich were in the metal band The Dames. In 2005, they came together with Matt Osterlund on bass. 10:45 p.m. Main Club.

The weekend gets tricky: so many bands at so many venues filled with so many people. But pick a sound and you can probably find it, whether its glam-punk (Venus Demars & All the Pretty Horses), nostalgic synth art-pop (Sadkin), or folk music that rolls up from the depths of the Greatest of Great Lakes (Superior Siren).

Not to be missed: Willem Dafoe Fan Club is a mellow experimental trio that includes Hollis Sparhawk’s (daughter of Low’s Alan Sparhawk and the late Mimi Parker) gorgeous, spare vocals occasionally alongside an Omnichord. Noah Ruona plays guitar and harmonizes and Jon Marshall plays bass. 9 p.m. Sacred Heart Music Center.

The final big night of Homegrown Music Festival looks like the one before it. Except it starts with kickball. Rock ‘n’ rollers gather at noon at Chester Bowl for a match that pits Friday’s musicians against Saturday’s — and some of the least athletic footwear to ever be worn for sporting purposes.

Saturday leans more heavily on performance art with Robot Rickshaw’s band of electronic bleepy things, The Body Electric Cabaret, with aerialists, drag artists and pole dancing, and Duluth Dolls, a burlesque troupe.

Not to be missed: Bratwurst is among Duluth’s finest performance artists, led by Tyler Scouton’s repetitious screams and raw meat play set to a backdrop of retro commercials and grim horror scenes and industrial beats. There will be sparks shooting from saws, inexplicable stage props, and bloodied lab coats. It can be both deliciously disorienting and, well, gross. 11:15 p.m. R.T. Quinlan’s.

Homegrown Music Festival drifts away quietly with just three bands all playing during bloody Mary hours at 1:30 p.m. at Canal Park Brewing Company. Get there early enough for Zeb or Zeke and the Run Away Screamings, a one-man band that handles all the drums, guitars and keyboards. His work is informed by episodes of “Scooby Doo.”