What it is: Each month a Minnesota band takes up a Thursday night residency at the Nomad World Pub in Minneapolis with different hand-picked openers each week.
Their back story: The Minneapolis hip-hop trio Glow Mechanics's two MCs, Ghostmeat (Josh Brundige) and Bev (Trevor Born), met in their teens while playing a whole other kind of music. "We were both in totally inconsequential teen pop/punk bands, the only good thing of which came strong personal bonds," recalled Bev. They stood out from the others in their pack with a shared love of revered left-of-center '90s hip-hop acts such as A Tribe Called Quest and the Roots, and fell in with a producer/beatmaker with similar tastes, Es El (Dustin Howard). Last year, the trio showed off its ability to craft short but hook-filled songs and utilize classic, samples-based beats on its "Factored In" EP. This year, Glow Mechanics earned an artist-to-watch nod from the Current (89.3 FM) bloggers and an honorable mention in Vita.mn's Are You Local? contest.
Their current goings-on: The group just started working on its second full-length album last month and is testing out the songs live at the Nomad this month — including one tune that clocks in as its longest yet at a mere 4½ minutes. "I think our songs really stay focused when we keep them short," Bev explained. "There's none of this, 'Oh, no, here comes the chorus for the fifth time.' " Glow Mechanics takes a similar approach to its live shows, wham-bamming the crowd with songs and keeping the stage banter and antics minimal. Bev even promised, "You'll never catch us yelling, 'Throw your hands in the air!' "
What we think of them: The MC names and sometimes goofy promotional photos suggest Glow Mechanics might be another coy, semisatirical hipster version of a hip-hop group, but there's thankfully nothing ironic about the music. On the other hand, there's also nothing too serious or pretentious. Songs on "Factored In" touch on everyday goings-on with clever wordplay and fun, jazzy or rocky beats, such as the ode to favorite breakfast spots in "I Know People." Fans of early Atmosphere, old De La Soul or Chance the Rapper might dig Glow Mechanics.
More info: The group's Minneseries continues Thursday at the Nomad World Pub (9 p.m., no cover, 501 Cedar Av. S., Mpls.) with a crop of promising young openers picked by the band, EJ, Doks Robotics and DJ Keezy. Next week (Oct. 15) is more of a rock-centric lineup with Crash Bandits and Blue Green. The finale (Oct. 22) boasts the more experimental picks Perfume Monster and Cool Pollution.
