Consolation Champ @ Bloomington Civic Plaza

Consolation Champ is a Minnesota-based rock group. The band consists of John Richards on guitar and vocals, Matt Mitchell on bass and vocals, and Rick Nordquist on drums and vocals. As of late 2007, Chris Mitchell is also playing with the band, adding lead guitar parts. Singer-songwriter John Richards released a self-titled album ('John Richards') of acoustic songs before deciding to expand to the sound of a full band, recruitng Matt and Rick. While Matt had played with John on the self-titled album, the role of the band became bigger in Consolation Champ. Their 2006 debut 'The Invitational'features 8 original songs. John tours the country as both a solo artist and with the support of Consolation Champ. One such tour in the early fall of 2007 consisted of an acoustic lineup of John and Chris Mitchell. The tour proved to be an inspirational venture, and in late 2007, John and Chris went into the studio to record some new material in a more acoustic-sounding version of Consolation Champ.