Not that there was anything wrong with a post-rock duo at Summerfest’s Briggs stage. It was just odd that the Benevento Russo Duo stage was PACKED. And it wasn’t old Rush fans, or hipsters, or music nerds — it was a lot of bro-ey college and high school kids who seemed to know what they […]
June 9, 2008
Someone asked me how the Indigo Girls concert at Pridefest was last night. “Everyone was wet,” I replied. I’ve always been a huge fan of the Indigo Girls, and the thing that annoys me the most about being a big fan is how dismissive the general public is of their music because of their sexual […]
May 9, 2008
Glen Hansard leapt up on stage with just his guitar; no mic, no band, just him and his powerful voice singing “Say It To Me Now,” the way his busking character did in the movie “Once.” That set the tone for the rest of the night, where it seemed that Hansard and his partner, Markéta […]
May 5, 2008
Friday night’s was pretty busy (Gallery Night, etc.), which probably accounted for the Pabst Theater, three-fourths filled, at the Stars show. For some reason that made me feel bad — not only were many Milwaukeeans missing out on one of the best bands in the world, but I also have this crazy, possessive, protective feeling […]
April 21, 2008
I’m still picking up pieces of my brain off the ground from the Kraftwerk show. Luckily I have photos of the first two minutes: people waiting around got their first vision of Kraftwerk through the curtain. These giant shadows of human beings against a red light, for “Man Machine.” And the wall behind them said […]
April 8, 2008
I was kind of nervous about watching the sold-out Vampire Weekend show at Turner Hall Ballroom on Saturday, mostly because I didn’t want them to let me down. There’s a lot of hype, backlash, and clothing commentary involved in the band’s coverage so far, but the bottom line is their debut is one of the […]
April 1, 2008
The fact that Sunday’s Explosions in the Sky show was sold out surprised me, but it shouldn’t have. The Austin-based band, after all, plays the kind of music that everyone describes as ‘epic’ and ‘mind-blowing.’ Obviously, most Milwaukeeans can get into that, as evidenced by the glowstick wielders in attendance, and the conversation of the […]
March 21, 2008
Three days after seeing Swedish troubadour Jose Gonzales at the Pabst, I’m still marveling at how economically powerful it was. I left the theater in a daze — bewildered by how one man with a guitar, a percussionist with conga drums, and a woman singing back-up could give such a powerful performane. There were no […]
February 25, 2008
This was a tough decision: Juniper Tar played Turner Hall, and XYZ Affair (fronted by ILL Groove Movement) was at Stonefly. In the end it was the bombastic video of Nicole Atkins performing her hit “The Way It Is” on Letterman (watch it on YouTube ) that helped me decide to trek out to Bay […]
February 18, 2008
Before the English Beat came onstage, a roadie set big, full-sized towels down onstage, one for each band member. I thought that was a little odd — why towels? Why not little tissue holders? I love Dave Wakeling’s bands — English Beat and General Public were bands I grew up listening to, but I didn’t […]
July 3, 2008
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