"35W South by Southwest Festival"

With confederate flags as common in Minnesota as in Texas, it's high time non-idiots in both states bonded over beers and a good battle of the bands. Ergo the North Vs. South music festival, now in its second year, and hosted in Lawrence, Kansas (the geographical middle, though only seven hours from us) and spread across three days in three clubs, August 18-20. As Minneapolis warm-up, First Avenue hosts a rallying of the troops on Friday that would make a great show in any event, featuring reunited pop punk legends the Magnolias, the Gleam, Ol' Yeller, New Vintage, John Ewing, Kruddler, Mike Nicoli, Mammy Nuns, Martin Devaney, Ben Hayter and the X-Rays, and the Rank Strangers (not necessarily in that order), on Friday, August 12, 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. $5. First Avenue, 701 First Avenue North, Minneapolis. Then stick around for the club's revived hip-hop night, the Energy Lab.