3 Reasons You Should See Like Minded Criminals Live

If you frequent this site, or have ever had a conversation with me about music, you know I love showing up to concerts early enough to catch every act, because I often discover great bands who happen to be opening.

The other week I attended a show at Arlene’s Grocery in the LES, and on the four band bill the opener was a Long Island-based rock trio named Like Minded Criminals. Their set was yet another reminder of why I arrive early to concerts.

What made them so memorable?

1. They want to rock your face off

From the first chord, to the final drumbeat, Like Minded Criminals played a blistering set of hard rock that emulated the ideology of Barney Stinson’s “Get Psyched” mixtape – “People think a good mix should rise and fall. But people are wrong. It should be all rise, baby!”

There may have been one slow song in their entire set, and if you didn’t take the opportunity to breathe then, you blew it!

2. They have some retro hard rock influences

Somewhere around the second, or third, song in their set I felt a slightly familiar vibe. The way the bass was being played, and the drums were sounding, was vaguely reminiscent of The Toadies (if you don’t remember The Toadies, they had a hit in 1994 with the song “Possum Kingdom,” and yes, I know I’m old).

This was very cool to me because, point blank, it’s a great f*cking sound.

3. They have a sense of humor

Like Minded Criminals don’t feel the need to be completely serious on stage. How do I know this? Because I’m the guy who will yell things when there’s a brief lull in the action. For some reason, any sort of momentary silence calls to me to say something stupid, and it occasionally results in some fantastic interactions. One such interaction happened during Like Minded Criminals’ set.

Band: This is a song.
Me: I LOVE songs!
Band: It’s not a love song!

Also, near the end of their set they mentioned their merch table, and noted, “You know how to buy CDs.”

While bands want to be rock gods, you gotta love a band that also has a sense of humor, and likes to have a little fun while rocking out.


To find out when, and where, Like Minded Criminals will be performing next, check out their Facebook page for show dates.