Milwaukee indie rockers Band of Dust have returned from several months in the shadows, kicking it off with an energetic Monday night performance at Cactus Club. Their last show had been at Bremen back in October.
Band of Dust consist of two sets of brothers: vocalist/guitarist Dustin Mayer and keyboardist Dan Mayer, plus bassist Jesse Liberty Tapola and drummer Ron Baake. Their sound is described as “evoking rustic afternoons and urban nights where suspenseful storytelling and confessionals intersect.” They hearken back to the noisy indie rock of the 90’s, laced with elements of art rock and heartland rock.
Their most recent EP, “Songs for All Blood Types,” came out last September.
“We had written a ton of songs and were ready to record something,” Dustin said. “We had narrowed it down to about ten songs that we wanted to do a live recording feel but in a live studio setting. We didn’t analyze it too much from a detail standpoint so the recording procedure we took we did a change-up from “Whispers Are Roars.” We got out of our comfort zone to a certain degree but we ended up settling on the first four songs we pumped out.”
Dustin and Dan find the dynamic of a band shifts when it has family members.
“It changes it drastically – I’d like to say all for the better,” Dustin said. “There comes a lot of trust and there’s not a lot of debate. We move on quickly when decision-making comes into play. We know each other so well that we can kind of anticipate a lot of decisions artistically; everyone in the group is a multi-instrumentalist besides myself. We end up bringing the songs to the table and come up with ideas and no one discards anything. You start to know your differences quickly when you play with guys that aren’t your brother.”
“I think it weans out a lot of typical band drama and issues you might have,” Dan added with a chuckle. “We’re family and we’re not gonna quibble over a whole lot. For Dustin and I music has always been a big part of our lives and this has really brought us closer.”
Band of Dust plan to release a series of singles in the next couple months.
Several Milwaukee rockers joined Minneapolis “bedroom pop turned basement pop” band Oftener at the new X-Ray Arcade Sunday night. The Unitaskers, Operations and Flat Teeth all played too, with the smell of fresh popcorn in the air and classic arcade game sounds filling the ambience.
Operations are a relatively new dream-noise pop group consisting of vocalist/guitarist Alisa Rodriguez, vocalist/guitarist Charles Markowiak, bassist Sam Gargulak, and drummer John Schoneman. Their first show was the day after Christmas at High Dive, and they have played Cactus Club and Bremen since as well.
The band speaks favorably about X-Ray Arcade, saying how Milwaukee has been in dire need of an all-ages venue. X-Ray has been open for about two months now.
“It’s been a bummer for kids that wanna go to shows in Milwaukee and they’re all twenty-one and over,” Rodriguez said. “When you get to be a certain age you don’t think so much about younger kids that listen to the same music you do. I was listening to a lot of weird music as a kid so I’d always be like, “aw this band I really like is playing Cactus Club but I can’t go.” So it’s cool.”
“It’s always nice when the performance space is separated from the bar and has professional sound,” Schoneman added.
“It’s also nice to have a spot that’s still Milwaukee County but a little south so you get people from Racine or Kenosha at shows,” Markowiak said.
Operations formed out of the various collaborations the band’s members have had previously. Rodriguez explains.
“Charlie and I were playing in the band Sundial Mottos, and our guitarist sorta out of nowhere moved to Chicago. So I was worried about what we were gonna do now. It’s tough having members that live out of state. So I decided Charlie and I should start something together cuz he’s always been a guitarist and he’s got some really cool interesting ways of playing that I’d never really seen much from people my age.”
“Alisa and I have been playing music together for like four or five years now,” Markowiak said.
Gargulak and Schoneman had also played music together with Markowiak in the past and got brought on board as well. The band’s name comes from a song from both Duster and Deerhunter, titled “Operations.”
While the band does not currently have music out yet, they have about nine songs finished recorded. They play Milwaukee Psych Fest April 12th and Nausicaa May 16th.
Flat Teeth are noisy, melodic emo rockers consisting of vocalist/guitarist Nik Stoehr, lead guitarist/vocalist Andy Kosanke, bassist Ken Siegel, keyboardist Andy Orlowski, and drummer Brian Szymanski. Sunday night marked their first show in six months; they have been cooking in the studio in that time.
Similar to Operations, Flat Teeth also love having an all-ages venue.
“I wish they had this when I was younger,” Stoehr said.
“It’s been a very long time since I can remember an active all-ages venue that wasn’t a house show,” Kosanke said.
The band’s debut EP “Winter House” dropped last September. They are working on a debut full-length album and played plenty of new songs Sunday night. They do not have a title for it yet.
“Everything in this band is a democracy and titles keep getting voted out,” Stoehr joked.
Flat Teeth play Anodyne this Friday, No Studios April 20th, and Linneman’s May 11th.
Saturday night saw yet another edition from East Side DIY favorite The Murray Attic, which has become a staple for Milwaukee indie bands to play. Entertainment this time came from Oshkosh rockers Horace Greene, Chicago soul band Violet Crime, power pop band Versio Curs, grunge punk outfit Clem, and pop rockers Will Pfrang and the Good Land Gang.
Although only an attic space, the Murray Attic has succeeded with monthly gigs, generating a mixture of neighborhood music fanatics and greater Milwaukee scene aficionados to come out and pack the show heavy. Anthony Masanz is the proprietor, planner, and host. Set design and band photography is handled by Breaking and Entering’s very own Mckayla Heuer.
Horace Greene play a blend of soul, synth-pop, and groovy indie rock. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Tony Oakley, bassist Sam Swetlik, and drummer Logan Lamers. The band’s name is certainly a School of Rock reference, but they also wanted to play under “an old man’s name.” Although regular contenders in the Fox Valley area, the band are no strangers to Milwaukee’s musical sphere.
“The attic is very apocalyptic,” Oakley said. “I feel like I’m in a Fallout game.”
Horace Greene’s latest album, “The Diamond Engine,” came out in 2018. They describe it as having more stylistic diversity and background vocals than their 2016 album “Early American Ice Cream.”
The band is supposedly “one of like three indie rock bands” from Oshkosh.
“There’s more of an underground scene up there,” Swetlik said. “It’s a lot more house shows. We’re kind of seeing a resurgence right now with new venues and stuff. But there was a lull for awhile where we were one of the only bands playing around.”
“There’s a lot of great bands in Oshkosh,” Oakley added. “I wish there were more opportunities for them to play.”
Horace Greene plan to release a couple new singles this year. They play MKE Ale House on April 12th and MKE Music Night at Club Garibaldi’s on May 24th.
Clem is a grunge punk band originally from Rockford, IL, now relocated to Milwaukee. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Joe Altamore, lead guitarist Bennett Gillies, and drummer Corey Garcia. They are currently in search of a new permanent bassist.
Probably the most energetic band of the evening, a mosh pit began up front during Clem’s set, making the floor wobble. No one was safe.
“Some dude kicked my pedal board, but it stayed on so that was pretty tight,” Gillies chuckled.
Clem have been a band since the late 2000’s, originally just Altamore and Gillies. Garcia has been in the band for about three years. They moved to Milwaukee for college, and prefer Milwaukee’s music scene for its opportunities and voluntary support from the scene. Their first show here was JJ Kaiser’s basement.
“Right now Milwaukee is really up and coming in terms of DIY, especially with houses like these,” Garcia said. “we knew some of the guys in Milwaukee that had house shows we played at, so we really came up to Milwaukee at a really good time.”
“In Rockford you would never have a show this packed,” Altamore added. “Kids used to pack house venues like this but they don’t do that anymore.”
Clem’s sound is much heavier than it used to be; having been poppier in the band’s earlier years. They attribute this to their natural evolution as a group, as well as the addition of Garcia as drummer.
“I felt like when they sent me those songs and I started writing with them, what I was able to bring to the table helped us get along so well and we wrote like five songs in two weeks,” Garcia recalled from his inception into Clem.
Clem’s most recent effort is their 2017 EP “This Will Hurt.” The band is currently working on a new full-length.
“It’s been kind of a problem because we don’t really have the audience yet that we need for this record.” Altamore said. “A full-length is a difficult undertaking for any band and we spent two years writing it. At least the singles are gonna be coming out this year.”
The beloved Riverwest creative hub Hi-Five Studios sponsored their first-ever “Hi-Five Top Five” artist showcase at Turner Hall Friday evening, having selected artists that record at its space perform on their largest scale yet. The bill consisted of Dev Diamond, Mo’ City, Peez, Will Pfrang and the Good Land Gang, and Ammorelle.
Madison startup LUM (Live Undiscovered Music) also sponsored Friday’s showcase; their development is a free app that allows emerging artists to share and promote their music to music lovers and fellow artists alike, but without the financial disadvantages of conventional streaming services. Hi-Five Studio and LUM have business partnership.
Studio owner and event host Ryan Rosmann says the success of creative-run events such as this is a product of everyone showing up for one another.
“There was so much love and excitement,” Rosmann said. “The artists really brought it. From the moment we started loading in there was just that feeling it was going to be a great show.”
Hopefully this marks a new chapter for Milwaukee’s musical renaissance; routine showcases at higher-tier venues are imperative to solidifying Milwaukee’s placement on the creative map. If a local fixture is capable of filling Turner Hall to the extent that big-name touring acts do, it says much about the magnitude to come.
“We’re gonna keep doing these. But we’re also getting back into the studio to work even harder,” Rosmann added.
Hi-Five hip hop artist and resident producer Dev Diamond has been an instrumental figure in the studio’s direction. He explains how the diversity of the show’s bill reflects Hi-Five’s compatibility with a vast array of sounds, styles, and ideas.
“Bringing multiple genres of music together can be a challenge when creating a lineup for a show,” Diamond said. “We had to take care of a last minute lineup change, but other than that everything ran very smoothly. Working with my brother and business partner, Ryan Rosmann, we were under a time constraint to not only locate the venue and plan a show, but make sure Eric McCambridge and the film crew at Digitus Media captured every step of the way.”
Dev Diamond has had his hands full this year recording both his own EP “VII” and Mwgli’s new EP “Fool’s Gold,” in addition to spearheading Hi-Five’s marketing and event coordination.
“My project is conceptual, revolving around the motif of the number seven,” Diamond said. “Seven contains the number three of the heavens and soul with the number four of the earth and body. The opposite sides of dice always equal the number seven when added. Without going into too much detail, every track on this project captures a moment in my life.”
Alex Keys of Rose Gold Events brought the full Infinity Light System to bring the visual vibrancy.
“It’s beautiful to see how many people came together and built something no one could have done on their own,” Diamond remarked on the collaborative nature of Friday’s event. “It’s nights like these that remind me why I do what I do.”
What happens next? Dev Diamond says “I think that’s the question everyone has, eh?”
Experimental band Social Caterpillar kicked off Company’s show Friday evening, playing along with Baton Rouge group Thou and LA singer-songwriter Emma Ruth Rundle. The Riverwest eatery got packed from the stage to the door with a crowd receptive to the eccentrically artful music of the night.
Social Caterpillar is a four-piece outfit made up of vocalist/guitarist Kyle Smith, violinist Eric David, drummer “Whisper Crystal” (Derek), and bassist/sampler “Lazer” (Eli Smith). Their debut 2017 album “Welcome to the Petting Zoo” featured lo-fi somberness, some electronic sampling, and lush violin movements. 2018 saw the release of their EP with Utajahs titled “Motorcycle in Three Movements.”
Much of the material played in their set is off their upcoming new album. Kyle Smith describes their new album as far more collaborative than their previous work, adding that every band member contributed to the songwriting.
“A lot of the material is about the past five years in life and everything that’s happened.”
A screen featuring tape loops of driving through various landscapes in black and white accompanied the band’s set. Visual artist and friend of the band Michael Lagerman developed the concept.
Kyle Smith weighs on the band’s instrumentation and formation.
“Eric and I always played together when I first moved here. He’s always played violin to songs that I wrote. And then we slowly began adding more people. Derek and I lived together and I asked him if he wanted to play drums, and then we asked Eli if he wanted to play bass, and then it evolved into each of us doing our own thing. Like Eli does more sample stuff and Eric and I would play more acoustic. It’s different but kind of the same.”
Social Caterpillar plans to mix and master their new songs within the next few weeks and have a release show at some point. The title of their project is yet to be announced. In the meantime, they play Quarters on May 8th and Bremen on May 18th.
The famous Brady Street blues club hosts their open mic welcome to all music types every Monday night. It has been gaining more traction in the last few months, as regulars have become established acts and more space has gotten occupied by eager music lovers.
Tyler Stefanski, who plays bass in Up & Under’s house band Honey on the Biscuit, hosts it weekly.
“We got people as young as twenty-one, and guys that just came up to me saying they’re gonna play are Vietnam veterans,” Stefanski said. “We get everybody out here. The energy is great.”
Stefanski got involved in the open mic from being a regular performer himself. He took it over recently and plays improv funk rock in his band; he met his bandmates at the open mic the first day he moved back to Milwaukee from Nashville.
“We have a great rapport with each other where we just look at each other and know what we’re gonna do,” Stefanski said.
Each open mic begins at 9pm with a fifteen-minute set by Honey on the Biscuit, and there are typically fourteen to fifteen spots for performers. It operates on a first-come first-serve basis.
“I used to think of this as a fun part-time thing, but I’ve made so many more worthwhile connections with new musicians through this than I’ve ever made money at it. I meet new people every week and it has gone so far to where I’ve gotten people gigs at other bars. It’s a great networking place.”
The current owners have owned Up & Under for over twelve years and have never a had a weekend where there was not a band playing. Additionally, it has been the longest running open mic in Milwaukee.
“There’s pictures of all the past hosts all over the walls,” Stefanski added. “You’ll see famous people that have hosted this jam. My goal is to eventually retire a bass up there.”
Honey on the Biscuit is gearing up to start playing different venues. They play Up & Under at least twice a week.
“I want to see the open jam grow so much that we can’t fit all the people in the bar.”
Genres bended at Cactus Club Saturday night as Bootleg Bessie and Faux Fiction played a full house. The Cincinnati “Americana-punk” outfit 500 Miles to Memphis, as well as a solo set from Mike Maimone of Chicago rock band Mutts, contributed to the evening’s energy as well. Although everyone played something a little different, couples enthusiastically danced all night long.
Defined as “Delta soul rock,” Bootleg Bessie consists of vocalist/guitarist Josh Rauen, bassist Mark Becker, and drummer Dicky Paul, formed in 2015 from revitalized high school friendships. The trio is a favorite of bars such as Thurman’s and Tonic Tavern, and have played Milwaukee fest staples that include Locust Street Festival, Brady Street Days, and Waukesha Rotary Bluesfest. Their EP “Here Ya Go” is available on their website.
“(Thurman’s) was our first gig,” Josh said. “We still do it periodically. Two gigs ago we did a three and a half hour set without a break. We brought on a homeless guy that happened to have an alto sax with him, and he played with us for like thirty minutes. He was pretty good too. That place is so random and anything can happen.”
The band had never played Cactus Club before. They enjoyed having more room to breathe on stage.
“We’re used to playing on a postage stamp for the most part,” Mark joked.
Bootleg Bessie hopes to have a debut record out around August-September, which contains guest contributions from Lil Rev and Susan Nicholson of Frogwater. They return to Cactus alongside Wonky Tonk and Valerie Lighthart April 8th and have an open jam at Paulie’s Pub in West Allis April 22nd.
Faux Fiction is the garage rock-power pop trio of vocalist/guitarist Gabby Papale, bassist Peter Hair, and drummer Paul Tyree. Since 2014 the band has probed nearly every venue there is in Milwaukee and have toured throughout the Midwest and East Coast. Their latest EP “Dark Matter” came out January 2018, following up their 2016 debut LP “Staring at the Sun.”
Papale weighs on in on Faux Fiction’s evolution from then to now.
“When we first starting writing music it was like, “let’s write everything that comes to mind and we’re just gonna record it all and put it onto an album.” Our first album is a mix of a lot different styles, and so after that we really honed in on our sound and we’re good at putting things out that not necessarily fit into a box but are cohesive and explorative.”
“You also get used to each other as musicians,” Tyree added. “Like, I’ve been playing with Peter for a very long time and I kinda know what he’s going to do next, especially when it comes to writing sessions and syncopating parts. I think playing with each other for as long as we have has helped with that cohesion Gabby was talking about.”
Tyree and Hair also play together in indie prog outfit NeoCaveman. Papale comes from a singer-songwriter background, and Faux Fiction is her first serious “band” fixture.
“I’ll have an idea and a lot of times not fully know to go with a chorus or a verse. Peter and Paul and both really good at helping me figure out where to take it and make it a Faux Fiction song,” Papale said.
The band finds touring to be a humbling experience, since an artist’s reception truly gets put to the test when playing to complete strangers.
“When you play a city for the very first time, you really don’t set many expectations because you have no idea who’s gonna show up or what their musical preferences are, or what they get from their normal local scene,” Papale said. “I think it’s important to go in with an open mind, and I was really surprised by the tour we did in January 2018. One of the things that really stuck with me through tour is that there’s still really good people in the world. We get caught up in the negativity the media throws at you and you get so inundated with that.”
“One of our favorites was Chattanooga, Tennessee,” Hair said. “It’s smaller than Milwaukee; it’s probably the size of Waukesha. That was probably our best show…people were so nice and receptive, especially the musicians we played with. In a nutshell it’s really good to get out of where you are and play with different people, and you realize a lot of us are really the same.”
“When you only play in Milwaukee, most of the people coming to your shows are either your friends or people you get to know because you see them a lot,” Papale added. “When you play to people that have never seen you before, it’s a really good gauge on whether what you’re doing is exciting to people. Getting positive feedback from people on the road is really good affirmation.”
Faux Fiction is deciding whether or not their next project will be an EP or a full-length, and they hope to challenge the genre they are perceived as. They play Milwaukee SunDay FunDay April 14th, X-Ray Arcade April 27th, and Bremen May 11th.
The popular comedy club did something new Thursday night. Late Night Milwaukee hosted a few of the 414’s most esteemed musical figures, namely Shle Berry, Lex Allen, and Amanda Huff. A two-song performance from each followed their respective interviews.
Late Night Milwaukee is an improv, sketch-based talk show hosted by duo Karah Minelli and Michael Kittelson. The two perform humorous original songs together and bring on prominent Milwaukee personalities to showcase happenings around town. They debuted this past November.
Bay View vintage shop Plume had a pop-up shop before and after the show; Minelli showed off one of their dresses.
“I don’t think I ever would have thought to have someone style our show,” Kittelson said. “That’s just such a cool idea to have a local boutique.”
“I like to hear people talk about what they love to do,” Minelli said about interviewing guests. “I may not be having people come on talking about bagging groceries at the store, but if someone is passionate about that and that was really what their life is about, then I would love to hear their story!”
Shle Berry announced a new EP coming out in May, “Tampons.” It touches on confidence as a woman in a male-dominated creative scene.
“It deals a lot with hyper-masculinity,” Berry said. “In a lot of ways it’s not men’s fault. They’re taught these things; media doesn’t help. I was very lucky to meet a lot of men who are part of my team that aren’t that. There’s a lot of room for opportunity not only in normal society but especially the music industry of where women stand. Men say they respect women in interviews and preach about equal rights but their music doesn’t portray it…but I get it. Rap has taught us to say those things, that women are objects to obtain…but insert Shle Berry, this bi-racial gay woman. At first I was timid and didn’t want to offend anyone, but now that I’ve gained some confidence and people tell me my music motivates them, I said “fuck it.” I’m gonna say everything that’s on my mind, even if it makes people uncomfortable. And that’s why I named it Tampons.”
Shle Berry is performing at FemFest this year, which is happening May 26th-June 2nd.
Lex Allen, who was one of four artists selected for Backline in 2018, just came back from SXSW in Austin, TX.
“My takeaway from it was to keep pushing,” Allen said. “Everybody’s still fighting and working towards their bigger goals. It was inspiring seeing everyone hustling.”
Lex Allen is dropping a new EP on Earth Day (April 27th) called “Identity,” accompanied with a performance at his favorite Milwaukee venue, The Cooperage. He performs at First Avenue during Twin Cities Pride, which takes place June 22-23rd.
Amanda Huff turned heads with her 2018 album “Hemipetra,” which brings an eccentric electronic avant-pop sound coupled with Huff’s powerful, haunting voice. She is the recipient of three 2018 Radio Milwaukee awards – Solo Artist of the Year, Music Video of the Year, and Best Album Artwork.
“I felt less nervous,” Huff said about being a guest on Late Night Milwaukee. “Usually I just hang out in the bathroom till I have to go up but I went up and answered more confidently. (Karah) doesn’t try to be intimidating – I still clam up with that, but she’s so kind.
Amanda Huff opens for Oh Pep! at the Back Room at Colectivo tonight.
A variety pack of experimental artists took Bremen’s stage Sunday night including noisy alt rock band Tacoma Washington Weekday Club and Milwaukee chiptune pioneers Awkward Terrible. Kenosha post-hardcore band After the Message and Chicago indie pop fixture The Weekend Run Club also came up the shore to join the bill.
TWWC is trio of vocalist/guitarist Logan Pravett, bassist Noah Turks, and drummer Josh Hill. Their 2018 EP “The Torrent//The Fountain” is described as metaphoric for Pravett’s childhood experience in having home as a safety net when danger is sensed from the outside world.
“It’s centered around this one moment I had as a kid at my grandma’s house where I was looking out her porch window and could see this big storm coming in, but I felt safe being in the house,” Pravett recalled.
People-watching, unwillingly growing up into an adult, and observing how the world shifts around oneself are additional recurring themes on the EP. Radio static and Emergency Alert System tests are among samples used to create an anxiety-inducing, agoraphobic demeanor.
Turks adds that many of the lyrics were written while he was working a day job at Menards.
“These little notecards you were supposed to write work stuff on were just filled with lyrics,” Turks laughed.
TWWC’s upcoming fifteen-track May album “THISISHOWITFEELSTOALMOSTDIE” they define as an invented genre known as “tranquil stadium,” and incorporates ambient synths and large strings sections. Prevatt credits Hill, whose background is in jazz, with pushing them to their utmost creative potential and creating a more intentional work ethic. Influences the band have looked to include Brand New, Mac DeMarco, and Mitski.
“It’s a lot more gaudy. There’s gonna be more screaming,” Pravett remarked. “It’s a lot about learning who you are within yourself and going through a hard period in your life and trying to understand why you had to.”
TWWC have plans for a summer tour in their namesake state, Washington.
Awkward Terrible are Chris Kowall (“Chris Crimson”) and Sam Sieger (“Sam Decimus”). They are a “chiptune-punk” duo, meaning their sound is produced through 8-bit sound chips typically used in vintage arcade machines and video game consoles. The chips are programmed with assigned notes and used as a sequencer. Awkward Terrible combine that with guitar, drums and vigor to achieve punk-ness in a unique and synergistic way.
“It’s almost like guitar playing where as you play you get more technical and recognize when something is above your level and when something is below,” Kowall said.
“The GameBoy is one of the more accessible ways to write chiptune if you’re using hardware,” Sieger added. “A lot of people write chiptune music using simulators on a laptop.”
Originally formed as a conventional punk band, the boys dropped their debut album “I Feel Asleep” in 2011 and an EP “Badlands” four years later.
“To be experimental you don’t have to use a GameBoy like we do,” Kowall said. “It can be something as simple as being more melodic or playing harmonies with two guitars, and I feel a lot of bands in Milwaukee are doing that kind of stuff.”
Awkward Terrible played new songs Sunday evening, which they hope to get into the studio to record soon.
Riverwest Public House hosted an array of rock-solid indie bands to entertain an enthusiastic Riverwest crowd Friday night. Limber Brain, Tomatillo, Yum Yum Cult, and The Unitaskers consisted the bill.
Limber Brain is the alt-rock project of Riley Campos, a multi-instrumentalist who spent time backpacking around the country the last couple years, doing soul-searching while obtaining ideas for his compositions along the way. He wrote songs frequently while on Amtrak trains and buses. His most recent album, “Seizures,” is a more upbeat, less symphonic departure from his 2017 album “Mostly Lucid.”
“I abandoned the stoner-rock aspects and the instrumentation was a lot less ostentatious.” Campos said. “With Mostly Lucid you had a fanfare of guitars and for Seizures it’s a lot more paired-down. This next album I’m working on, called “Pathways,” is even more paired-down from that. It’s like a Russian nesting doll for my albums that just keeps getting smaller and smaller.”
Out of everywhere he traveled, Campos felt most connected to Santa Cruz, CA.
“The people there are so laid back and everyone you meet it’s almost like you’ve known them for your whole life,” Campos said.
Limber Brain plays Milwaukee Psych Fest April 13th and The Back Room at Colectivo May 16th.
Tomatillo describes themselves as jazz-rock. They are vocalist Nolan Benson, guitarist Addie Lipson, bassist Ben Bakunovich, and drummer Cameron Overton. Formed out of a friendship-turned-musicianship between Benson and Lipson, the band has phased through a myriad of influences that range from Radiohead to John Mayer to Tom Misch to Vulfpeck.
As a matter of fact, Tomatillo did a rendition of Radiohead’s “High and Dry.” It was wholesome.
“I like to think of myself as a recovering music major,” Lipson said. “I was a jazz guitar major at (Western Connecticut) for a brief stint and didn’t like that, so I started playing for self-care to take up as much space as possible. When it comes to Tomatillo, a lot of the compositions have very complex chord structures and voice leading that exist to take up space.”
Benson explains the band’s name originates from an inside joke.
“My fiance works at Colectivo and there’s a sandwich they used to serve called the tomatillo chicken sandwich, but they took it off the menu and now they only bring it back as a weekly special, so my fiance made a cardboard sign that said “Bring Back Tomatillo.” When we were searching for band names she said “How about Tomatillo?” and she said it as a joke but I took her seriously and texted Addie immediately.”
“A lot of times I come home from work and I’m sad and pissed off,” Lipson said. “I kinda just sit there and play riffs in a similar key and then put them in different keys, and then I bring it to the band and tell them what to do. Ben and Cameron bring a very lively energy to the band and I would not want to do work with any other dudes.”
“I went to Marquette for writing, and I like to put a lot of meaning behind words. Addie will often present a guitar part to me before it goes to the band, and we’ll work out a vocal melody and write the words.” Benson added.
While Tomatillo’s music is currently shared on their Facebook and Instagram, they have plans to release a few singles and have a few May shows coming up.
Yum Yum Cult plays psych-rock hailed as “Radiohead by the way of Twin Peaks.” Indeed, they played the Twin Peaks theme as an interlude.
The band is vocalist/guitarist Palmer Shah, bassist Sean Anderson, drummer Charlie Celenza, and keyboardist Myles Coyne. Their name comes from a Tobacco song; Shah is a devoted fan of Black Moth Super Rainbow, which Tobacco is frontman of.
“A lot of us knew each other for a really long time from playing in different bands together; I was working with Myles at the time and needed a creative outlet since I’d been sitting on these songs for years. We started jamming and it worked out,” Shah said. “Charlie joined when Myles was drummer and broke his collarbone…and then he kinda respawned as keyboardist while we kept Charlie.”
Celenza also plays in Conundrum, Animals in Human Attire, and Soul Low.
“Palmer asked me to be on the drums, and gosh darn it, I like his songs. They grew on me, they really did,” Celenza said. “It’s enough eclectic, different-sounding songs to keep me interested and challenged as a drummer.”
Yum Yum Cult enters the studio next month to work on singles they plan to release over the next year, and then hope to compile them into a “bizarre mixtape” as Shah puts it. They play the Public House again April 12th and Cactus Club May 1st.
The Unitaskers are a meme-enthusiast, Food Network-loving indie rock band consisting of vocalist/guitarist Dylan Thomas, bassist Ian Bjork, drummer Darrell Andrew, and synth man Joey Betlej. Thomas and Betlej would watch Mr. Robot and chop-and-screw Good Eats episodes into witch-house songs before they began writing formidable indie rock tunes and brought on Andrew and Bjork to form a full band.
Their first single, “Tide Pods/Chicken Sashimi,” dropped last April.
“We put those out back when we were more rudimentary, like when we were doing more electronic stuff and that was right when Darrell moved back to Wisconsin,” Thomas said. “When we started to play live, those were the first two songs we re-worked into what you heard tonight.”
The Unitaskers take influence from many indie rock musicians such as Car Seat Headrest, The Flaming Lips, and Hop Along in addition to 80’s post-punk such as Bauhaus and The Fall.
“We talk a lot about how we can leave synths in the typical indie rock and punk bands but not make it into a synthpop band,” Thomas said.
On the material they band is working on, Thomas describes their subject matter as dealing with anxiety about living in the current world while thriving on the novelty that is Internet culture.
“There’s something really bizarre and jarring about the time we live in where serious horrible stuff is happening all the time but then it’s like no matter what you’re looking at that’s horrible there’s also cute dog pictures, food blogs and memes…and that’s a huge theme of everything we do.”
The Unitaskers are planning a song-a-month project for the summer and have plans to record an LP. They play at X-Ray Arcade March 31st.
Addie Lipson put it best, saying “We want our audience to have as much fun as we do, because this is our self-care.”
HIGH DIVE hosted Cream Vellum’s EP release party Sunday evening, which brought out a crowd that packed the Riverwest favorite like a can of sardines. Duzt and Bum Alum gave additional performances as well.
The post-dream shoegaze quartet consists of vocalist/keyboardist Elise McArdle, guitarist/vocalist Hans Jaeger, bassist Ryan Sablay, and drummer Tyler Salzbrun. Their much anticipated EP Venus Rx Rx dropped earlier in the day at 4:20PM. Good timing.
“We love Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine, Grouper, Pink Floyd, and the Twin Peaks soundtrack…all big influences,” McArdle said.
They embark on their first tour this week, which takes them to Chicago, Madison, the Twin Cities, and Fargo, ND. McArdle lives nearby Fargo in Grand Forks, ND, where she attends grad school.
“I orchestrate the practices and Ryan, Tyler and I get together while Elise and I send each other recordings,” Jaeger added.
McArdle is the primary songwriter of the group.
“I have a background in writing poetry, and a lot of the lyrics I write are abstract and based in dream imagery,” McArdle explained.
Sunday’s show celebrated Bum Alum as well, who dropped his debut single “All Things Said” on February 28th. Bum Alum is the “alt psych pop” project of John Griffin Jr, who creates his unique sound by manipulating loops. He currently plays with bassist Jeff Krause, whom he played with in psych rock band Tapebenders.
“I’ve had a lot of different iterations of my project and I’ve been wanting to release something for a really long time,” Griffin said.
Griffin says he has influences but tries not to actively listen to music for inspiration – only passively.
“I taught myself how to play music and I would choose singers that are harder to sing to,” Griffin said. “I’ve always been one to enjoy trying to mimic something, but the trick is not trying to directly mimic it and not being aware of who your influences are while knowing that you have them.”
Griffin says the name “Bum Alum” originates from the concept of attending school and owing loans for it.
“We’re being controlled by the amount of money that we paid for an education. My whole brand is about that. I try to send the message that it’s not okay.”
Bum Alum hopes to release his full-length album by the end of summer. He plays Bremen April 19th and Cactus Club May 1st.
Duzt is an eclectic “folk-pop hip-hop dreamscape” fronted by vocalist/guitarist Rae Bu. Also in the band are violinist Trina Anirtak, guitarist/keyboardist Aytan Luck, tuba player Tommy Tucker, and drummer Jake Schubert. Bu formed Duzt in April 2014 and began as a duo of her and Anirtak. The tuba serves as the bass of the group.
“Synchronicity brought us all together, it just kind of all meshed,” Bu said. “We decided we didn’t want to be a genre-based band; we wanted to be a storytelling band.”
While Duzt does not have any officially recorded music yet, they are currently working on an EP.
Club Garibaldi hosted a plethora of Milwaukee bands Friday night in the latest installment of MKE Music Night, which has become a monthly event aiming to bring young local bands to more prevalent venues across town. Artists playing included singer-songwriter Christian Porter, NeoCaveman, Hoppers Luck, and bilingual Chicago Latin rock group The Braided Janes.
Porter plays original songs with his distinct magazine-collage guitar, which he made for a school project.
“I’m used to playing out at the Union Plaza at UWM,” Porter said. “Making friends, bumming cigarettes…that’s how it usually goes.”
NeoCaveman is an indie progressive rock band blending math-rock elements, emo-friendly vocal delivery, and sociological lyricism. The band consists of guitarist/vocalist Peter Hair, guitarist/vocalist Samuel Balistreri, bassist Jeremy Moroder, drummer Paul Tyree, and keyboardist Simon Beno.
Their debut full length LP “Baccanalia” came out on Halloween 2018; the album’s title refers to the ancient Roman festivals of Bacchus, which celebrated drinking, song, and revelry.
NeoCaveman’s songwriting is highly collaborative in nature, as its members are influenced by different denominations of rock music from one another. This makes it difficult for them to take individual ownership of songs, since every song is crafted meticulously where each contributes their piece.
Speaking on the album’s lyrical content, Hair says relationships to people and places are heavy-present.
The song “The Water” is about Milwaukee,” Hair said. “It’s about living in Riverwest and going out and living that lifestyle, but then it gets more intense in subject matter. The bridge is about how you see many different types of people in the city that are struggling, whether it be with addiction, homelessness, mental illness…but it’s also kind of uplifting because it’s written in A Major. There’s a lot of dichotomies in our songwriting.”
The song “Springs of Rad-Urn” is about people coming together and recreating the world, making it a better place to live, recognizing peoples’ differences…simple themes,” Balistreri said.
NeoCaveman practices once a week for two hours, given their busy schedules. They aim to record and release another EP later this year.
Hoppers Luck is a young funk band hailing from the East Side. Fronted by John Lenz, the band also contains bassist Milton Tlalok, drummer Sam Catral, and keyboardist Max Crouch.
“The best compliment we received was that we sound like tropical Wisconsinites,” Lenz said while remarking on the Hawaiian shirt he wore. “Ever since then it’s been a motif that’s carried the band.”
“We’re used to more intimate settings, but it still felt intimate since the sound was so overbearing,” Tlalok said.
“I could hear myself playing for the first time,” Crouch remarked. “I took a music hiatus for a bit and came back into the band recently, and just being surrounded by so many great musicians feels so motivating. At first when I joined back I didn’t really feel confident but then playing with these guys it felt right after the first time.”
The next MKE Music Night is April 28th at the Miramar and features Hoppers Luck, Dogbad, Wonderful Bluffer, The Sunkin Suns, Pineapple Migraine, and Ace Parker.
Hoppers Luck plays a Downer House Show on April 20th and is at the Pabst Brewery May 3rd. NeoCaveman plays Company Brewing with Vinz Clortho and Ravi Lola March 22nd.
The bitter cold of the outside world did not stop rambunctious moshes from occurring throughout Bremen Cafe’s bill Sunday evening as Nobody’s Fault and Mud Dog played ferocious sets alongside Madison psychedelic punk outfit No Love Dog and Detroit emo grunge band Antighost.
Nobody’s Fault plays a hybrid of alternative metal and hard rock, fronted by vocalist and guitarist Eddie Ahrenhoerster, as well as bassist Stephen Jensen and drummer John Pankow right behind him. Ahrenhoerster was taken aback as Christmas lights illuminated the stage right as their set began.
“I did not know that was a thing,” Ahrenhoerster said.
Nobody’s Fault dropped their debut EP “Help Yourself” in December, consisting of three tracks. While they ready a new single to be released within the next month, they play Walker’s Point Music Hall on the 10th and Roscoe’s in West Allis on the 17th in the meantime.
“What the hardcore scene needs is an all-ages venue,” Ahrenhoerster said. “We have many house shows here and those are all ages; most of the time no alcohol is allowed. I think Milwaukee needs (an all-ages venue) more than ever with all the talent coming out from all sorts of genres.”
Milwaukee is in luck, as the city’s musical renaissance has put in motion the development of The New State, an all-ages sober music venue being constructed in the old State Theater building.
Mud Dog is a hardcore punk outfit consisting of vocalist Matt Klein, guitarist Jake Hardy, bassist Alex Hardy, and drummer Aaron Kurowski. The band has been active throughout Milwaukee’s hardcore scene since early 2017 and is enjoying success from their debut record “Survive” that dropped in March of last year.
Klein speaks highly of JJ Kaiser, whom he believes currently has the best venue to host hardcore shows.
“(JJ) has been going to shows probably for the last ten years; he goes to just about every show he can. He started putting on shows in his basement and took on the risk of having hundreds of people there just to get bands to come here. He doesn’t do it for money, he just loves hardcore and alternative music.”
Mud Dog plans to release a 7″ EP and do more more out-of-state touring in 2019. They play the Halloween House in Bay View on the 12th.
Different flavors of punk appeared in Cactus Club Friday evening as Milwaukee bands Beach Static and Telethon shared the stage with Madison punk band The Moguls and Chicago punk band Typesetter.
Beach Static consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Ben Hogan, bassist and vocalist Amy Upthagrove, and drummer Jake Heffner. Described as “sun-baked surf punk,” their most recent EP “Games” dropped in December, with lead singles “Drowing In You” and “Kids & Career.” The band lists stylistically similar bands FIDLAR and Wavves as influences.
“It’s weird; when you write the album you always think “this song’s gonna resonate” or “this song is personal to me but I don’t know if it’s gonna connect” and it’s been cool to see what’s been getting played,” Hogan said. “It’s a little different than what I expected.”
“Milwaukee has such an incredible punk scene, and a really strong alternative pop scene,” Upthagrove said. “I feel being a more poppy but guitar-driven band, it’s fun to play the more punky HIGH DIVE shows.”
Beach Static is currently working on new material set to be released this summer.
Telethon is a five-piece alternative rock band described as “solid gold rock n’ roll” and “hard pop.” The band is vocalist and guitarist Kevin Tully, lead guitarist Jack Sibilski, bassist Alex Meylink, drummer Erik Atwell, and keyboardist Nate “Gene Jacket” Johnson. Most recently the group released their EP “Modern Abrasive” in November, which was tracked at their house in Bay View.
Sibilski weighs in on how Modern Abrasive departs from their previous work.
“Going into it we wanted to do a power pop aesthetic where it wasn’t as big and theatrical but more tight like a Fountains of Wayne record,” Sibilski said. “We made it ourselves as opposed to making it with Jack Shirley, who produced our full-length records, and we also learned the songs one at a time.”
Jack Shirley is a record producer based in Palo Alto, CA, who is known for his work with Deafheaven, Jeff Rosenstock, and Joyce Manor among others. Although he did not record “Modern Abrasive” with Telethon, he mixed and mastered it.
Telethon embarked on their first out-of-state tour as a band in September, which saw them appearing along the East Coast in cities such as Philadelphia, NYC, and Burlington, VT.
“It was a real tour in the sense that you didn’t know what was gonna happen,” Sibilski said, “but a lot of people came out and knew our songs, which was a really cool thing.”
Tully cites Cactus Club as his favorite venue to play in Milwaukee.
“The sound guy Alex is really good at what he does,” Tully said. “The transitions are smooth too. They’re professional but not pretentious.”
Like Beach Static, Telethon is also working on new material. They played a little of it in their set.
Riverwest recording studio Hi-Five hosted their monthly “networking jam” Wednesday evening, bringing dozens of Milwaukee creatives together for drinks, exchanges of business cards, social media plugs, and musicians of all backgrounds to jam out.
“Everybody is coming together to create these moments,” studio owner Ryan Rosmann said. “These are talented people from every walk of life. People always come up and thank me for doing this, but I’m not doing anything. We’re all doing this!”
According to Rosmann, the greatest success of these networking sessions is watching artists he records bring on artists they met while at Hi-Five to collaborate.
“That’s why we’re doing it. A super talented artist met another talented artist and made their record better. How incredible is that?” Rosmann said with pride.
Each networking jam is free of charge and open for anyone interested in checking out Hi-Five and its space.
“These events aren’t about making money. That’s not what we’re doing here,” Hi-Five Director of Marketing Daniel Zambrano said. “People that don’t know each other pick up instruments and jam. People go into the control room and play beats or rap. It’s seeing all of that happen in the moment, but also seeing it taken outside this event.”
The popular artist hub also had some groundbreaking news to share. Save the date – Friday, March 29th. Hi-Five is sponsoring a “Top 5 Live” Turner Hall concert.
“We’re taking a risk, and we’re doing it right,” Rosmann said. “We’re gonna sell eight-hundred tickets. They’ll have no choice but to pay attention to what we’re doing.”
Headlining the show is none other than R&B artist Ammorelle, whose birthday was also Wednesday. She was not aware of this news until the announcement. What a terrific birthday surprise indeed.
Additional artists on the bill include Will Pfrang and the Good Land Gang, Mo City, Bando, and more.
Ammorelle is also the protagonist of a documentary about Milwaukee’s growing music community titled “Zero Undiscovered,” which is still in production. The trailer dropped this past December on Hi-Five’s Facebook page.
Filmmaker and Digitus Media co-founder Eric McCambridge is directing Zero Undiscovered. The idea came about when himself and Zambrano were shooting the web series “Hi-Five Fridays” and decided they’d make a film about Milwaukee’s creative scene that would double as McCambridge’s senior film project. In the film, Ammorelle is taken under Hi-Five’s wing and is mentored into bringing her music career to the next level.
“I wanted to tell a story about everyone here, but it’s impossible to have an interesting movie when you’re constantly getting to know the characters,” McCambridge said, “so I decided I wanted to tell the story through one artist’s journey, and we ended up picking Ashley “Ammorelle” Smith. Daniel showed me a song of hers, and I just felt I was meant to hear it.”
McCambridge brought fellow film producer Marissa J. Williams onto the project, and has a crew of about eight additional individuals. For McCambridge, it has become a creative family, and so much more than a school project.
The doc’s crew filmed Wednesday’s event specifically for the production, which Zambrano emphasized made it important for the energy to be there.
“Up to six cameras were going around all night,” Zambrano said. “Two of them were very expensive.”
“I can see this movie coming together before my eyes and it’s a magical feeling,” McCambridge said.
McCambridge has planned to launch a crowdfunding campaign to help bring the documentary come to life. A release date is yet to be announced.
Tickets for the Turner Hall show go on sale Friday, March 1st.
“Let’s make it so there’s zero undiscovered, starting in Milwaukee,” McCambridge said.
Twisted Path Distillery filled up both their liquor and beer bars Friday evening as Endless Era and Versio Curs each played an energetic set. The show served as Endless Era’s live debut following the release of their first single, “Mine.”
“We had a couple ideas about what should be our first single, and it was really about what was ready,” singer Caleb Rogers said. “We realized Valentine’s Day was coming up and wanted to launch something kinda memorable and thought tying it to a holiday would be fun. So we themed it {“Mine”} with a heart.”
Endless Era is an indie pop band recently on the map in town. Their sound is described as “new wave 80’s nostalgia” influenced by the likes of The 1975, Walk the Moon and LANY.
“We’re all good friends,” Rogers said regarding his bandmates. “We were just casually writing songs together and it kinda happened organically.”
Endless Era has a Miramar show with fellow Milwaukee pop bands newvices, Yam Haus, and Clear Pioneer coming up March 29th.
“We might do one or two more singles and then an EP by the summer,” guitarist Jon Eleyet said.
Versio Curs is a five-piece indie rock band bridging the realms of power pop and emo, signed to Moth Man Records. Their debut record “How Are You” turned a year old on February 6th. Friday’s set consisted of songs off their album as well as fresh tracks being tailored into their next record, which they say is about halfway written.
“I actually listened to our album today for the first time in a couple months,” bassist Alex Hardy said. “I think it’s aged pretty well.”
Versio Curs embarks on their first out-of-state string of shows in late March. Their stops include the Twin Cities, Cedar Rapids, IA, and Elgin, IL.
“Tonight people were singing along…that scares me,” drummer Josh Ehlke joked.
Fire on Water had a full house Saturday evening as Milwaukee pop rock trio Will Pfrang and the Good Land Gang played a three-hour set chock-full of everything from originals to jangle-pop flavored covers of Tom Petty, Looking Glass, Prince, and more.
The Good Lang Gang is fronted by Port Washington singer-songwriter and guitarist Will Pfrang, while Green Bay bassist Jack Fricke and Lodi drummer Garit Schmidt consist “the gang.” The boys first began jamming together in early 2018 when Pfrang and Schmidt became roommates.
“The energy tonight was absurd,” Pfrang said post-show. “We got started around nine o’clock and there were very few people here right at the beginning, and just like a wave right around 9:20 we had about a hundred people rush the bar.”
The group dropped their debut extended play “The Good Land, Pt. 1” last summer and has received airplay from over eighty college radio stations across the country with their lead single “Champagne Happiness.”
Although three hours may seem like an excruciatingly long time, the band is used to being the prolonged entertainment.
“Playing such a long set is like a marathon,” Pfrang chuckled. “It allows you to get into a flow that a forty-five minute set wouldn’t necessarily allow you to.”
The boys’ sound has been described as blue-eyed soul and indie rock, embellished by Pfrang’s ubiquitously rich and buttery voice. While in an era of pop where many people the boys’ age listen to primarily hip hop and electronic dance music, Fricke weighs in on the how the band plays a stylistically broad array of pop covers in order to be most personable.
“The challenge we’ve decided to take on as a band is to take more unorthodox covers and perform them in our own style,” Fricke said. “We cover songs you wouldn’t expect from a pop rock band, such as Kid Cudi, Calvin Harris, and Alicia Keys.”
“We talk about it in our first single, Luckiest Man, with the line “Can you still make hits with an electric guitar?” Pfrang said. “What people need more than anything in music is some honesty, and coming out with quality rock that blows peoples’ minds is what we’re about.”
Will Pfrang and the Good Land Gang plan for 2019 to be full of new music and plenty of opportunities to perform for audiences old and new.
“Right now we’re focused on releasing the second part of the Good Land,” Pfrang explained. “Hopefully by the end of the summer we’ll be ready to release the third part. It will be a modern Bruce Springsteen kind of thing.”
The band is opening for Nashville alt-rock band Krantz at Bremen Cafe on March 8th.
“Milwaukee came to party last night, no doubt,” Fricke said.
Riverwest Steins and Colectivo coffees scattered the crowd as Trapper Schoepp delivered his charmingly charismatic set at the Back Room at Colectivo this past Saturday evening.
Schoepp is the frontman of his self-titled band. His renowned brand of Wisconsin-infused Americana combined with folk rock balladry adorned the show with a crowd populated by all ages. Schoepp’s family, of course, dominated the front row.
Chamber rock duo Nineteen Thirteen, consisting of former Violent Femmes’ percussionist Victor DeLorenzo and cellist Janet Schiff, opened for Schoepp. Together they brought an eccentric, yet vibrant and beautiful collection of compositions promoting their most recent EP “Sci-Fi Romance”.
Schoepp’s latest album is “Primetime Illusion”. He began his set with his delightfully robust cover of Sister Double Happiness’ “Freight Train” and he turned heads with the woman-dedicated “What You Do To Her.” Most notable, however, is Primetime’s closing track “On, Wisconsin,” which Bob Dylan had originally written portions of long ago, later completed by Trapper himself.
“In 1961, Bob Dylan started writing this song. In 2017, we
finished it,” Schoepp said prior to performing it.
Songs from previous recordings, including the “Bay Beach Amusement Park” ballad “Ferris Wheel,” the “Rangers & Valentines” numbers “Ogallala” and “Settlin’ or Sleepin’ Around,” and “Run, Engine, Run” also found placement throughout the show.
The band has an international tour coming up next month, which takes them extensively through the UK, while they have another leg hitting the East Coast in May.
“It’s a release. It’s our time to give it the nudge out into
the universe, and what better place to start than in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,”
Schoepp said.
Schoepp first arrived to Milwaukee from Minnesota ten years
ago. He describes Milwaukee’s music scene as having a mini-Renaissance since
then.
“When I moved here ten years ago 88Nine was basically in a
broom closet. It’s evolved and changed for the good. I sing Milwaukee’s praises
everywhere I go.”
