Icon For Hire with Amy Guess and City Of The Weak LIVE Photos & Review

Studio B, in the Skyway Theatre, had music fans in Minneapolis, Minnesota excited for a
great night of music. Icon For Hire, Amy Guess, and City Of The Weak all hit the stage to
showcase themselves and all three gave strong performances. This was one of those gigs
where I walked into the venue not having heard much from any of these artists so this show
would be more about first impressions than digging deep into the song catalog and history
of the bands.

City Of The Weak took to the stage first. The stage was compacted but it didn’t detour from
the energy they instantly gave off. Led by vocalist Stef Huschka, the band ripped through a
rocking set that was fun and kept the crowd engaged. They are a blend a mix of rock, pop
and alternative with a good sense of melody and hooks. They clearly were having a great
time as they worked hard to show people not familiar with them that they were there to
rock. The band released ‘Pulling Teeth’ in 2018 and has an infectious attack that people
should check out if they play near you.
Amy Guess was next. Flanked by her drummer and guitarist, she delivered a set of synth-
pop with passion. She made every second count as she had a short set but was still able win
over quite a few fans throughout her performance. She wore her emotions on her sleeve as
she brought you into her songs and you could feel her personal connection within her
music. The song that stood out for me was the closer “Holy Hell” and for fans of pop rock I
would think her musical style would appeal to a mass audience.

Icon For Hire would close the night. Vocalist Ariel Bloomer along with guitarist Shawn Jump
ignited the crowd from the opening note. The drummer was nestled between an impressive
set of lights that kept the duo up front swimming in an array of colors. They opened with
“Make A Move” and their legion of fans were more than ready to join into the show. The
energy was addicting and their enthusiasm spilled into the crowd. Ariel spent every second
engaging the crowd and connecting with every single person. Her personality is impossible
not to like and it’s hard to take your eyes off her. Hitting with “Pulse” and then into “Cynics
and Critics” had Shawn moving across the stage and utilized the ramps on the front of the
stage to give fans a up close and personal view of his guitar playing. He leaned into the
crowd multiple times to interact and bring fans as close as possible into show. A couple cool
moments during show. The first was Amy Guess coming back to the stage to help sing “Too
Loud” acoustically. The duet with Ariel sounded beautiful as their voices fit together
perfectly. The other was when they brought three people from the crowd onto the stage to
help sing “Now You Know.” It was just another example of how Icon For Hire connects with
their fans and appreciates every ounce of support their fans give them. The band released
the independent album “You Can’t Kill Us” back in 2016 and promised the crowd new music
is on the way, which got a tremendous response from the crowd. Their overall sound
utilizes a lot of different musical textures like rock, pop, electronic, and rap to create their
identity. With that wide encompassing sound it’s easy to see why they are so accessible to
so many people. Icon For Hire was a really fun band to see live and hear what they are all
about.

Fans that made their way to Studio B at the Skyway Theatre got exactly what they wanted
from Icon For Hire and I’m sure everybody went home satisfied and probably excited to
check out a couple newly discovered gems with Amy Guess and City Of The Weak. I think
the night was a complete success.

Amy Guess