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FRIDAY AUGUST 12th
Long Lake Regional Park
BRAT PACK RADIO
7 pm - 11 pm
For six
years and running now, Minnesota-based Brat Pack Radio has been performing far and wide across the globe. From Midwestern
venues & festivals near home, to the Russian coast, European riverboats and 1,001 points in between, they continue to
turn heads with a polished, high-energy, non-stop Supershow that can only be described as seriously fun.
Mixing top-shelf musical performances with spoof and carnival theatrics, this is anything but typical cover band fare,
and it shows first and foremost in the personnel. Co-frontman Ryan Lance
is a 4-time Emmy® Award-winning songwriter, and also a founding member
of a cappella darlings The Blenders, who’ve produced 14 albums
over the last 20 years, toured extensively throughout the U.S., and scored a number one European hit with the 1998 Universal
Records release “I’m in Love with the McDonald’s Girl.” Co-fronting on vocals is Season 8 American Idol Top 15 finalist Jesse Langseth, who also gigged nationally for six years as
the Jesse Lang Band, and in 2004
nabbed a Minnesota Music Award for Best Rock Band.
With the remainder of the band rounded out
by top Twin Cities musicians, Brat Pack Radio’s airtight performances readily live up to the “radio-” and
‘80s-centric aura in the name. While things center around poking excessive fun at excesses of the decade, this Supershow
is also infused with a healthy dose of 21st century sensibility, including sharply executed “time warp” forays
into present day homage (Beyonce, Timberlake, Gaga, to name a few). Lance is an expert comic improviser who volunteers tongue-in-cheek
one-liners and off-the-wall antics with remarkable ease, while Langseth’s gritty smarts, soulful pipes and diva-esque
send-ups make her a perfect foil to Lance’s deliberate parody.
Rather than focusing on much of the arena metal
and new wave that tend to characterize the era (and, seemingly, many tribute bands), Brat Pack Radio slant strongly toward
dance-pop favorites and R&B hits. Add to that the visual spectacle – everything from knife-juggling and spinning
keyboards to stylish choreography and an impressive LED light show – and it’s evident Lance, Langseth and company
have created a winning formula that continues to draw flocks of Gen X-ers and non-‘80s fans alike out to shows and onto
the dance floor!
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