Milwaukee’s concert scene has a lot going on, so we look at the shows coming up to find the ones you’ll look back on and be glad you went. Then we add them to our weekly Milwaukee Concert Picks.
In this batch of live-show reco’s, we’ve got a double whammy to take you into the weekend, provided you can deal with a bit of sonic whiplash.
It starts Friday with what can safely be called the more decibel-intensive end of the spectrum, as Milwaukee’s Diet Lite test the structural integrity of the Vivarium for a special album-release celebration.
The power-rock trio of Max Niemann, Kelson Kuzdas and Evan Marsalli have a well-earned reputation for emphatic, energetic shows that are good for what ails you. Feeling sluggish after a long work week? Their hook-laden pop side will snap you out of it. Anxieties of the world got you looking for a release? There’s punk-ier stuff in the set so you can cut loose in a productive manner.
Friday’s show will bring a whole bunch of new options to the set, with the band releasing Double Wide Yukon last week in advance of its proper party at the East Side venue. The boys said they were shooting to capture the essence of “an archetypal DL set” in album form, and they should feel pretty good about hitting the mark. See for yourself by checking out the record now and showing up at the Vivarium in a couple days to compare the two.
The following night will give you a chance to move in a very different way, as the Cooperage hosts New Wave Fest.
You may have gathered from the name that you’re looking at more of a flashback situation compared with Diet Lite’s new-music shindig. Fans of The Cure, New Order, Depeche Mode and the like will feel right at home among the retro-future sounds emanating from a trio of local bands: The First Wave, Xposed 4Heads and Weird Science. The fest sponsored by our community-radio counterparts at WMSE gets going at 7 p.m.
Best concerts in Milwaukee this week
- Nov. 20: Hayes Carll w/Aaron Raitiere @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
- Nov. 20: Long Mama w/Resurrectionists, Allen Cote @ Linneman’s, 7:30 p.m.
- Nov. 21: Diet Lite (album release) w/ Pat & The Pissers, Fellow Kinsman @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
- Nov. 21: The Moth @ Anodyne, 8 p.m.
- Nov. 21: Venturer, Superglue, Sushi Cowboy, Socially Suspect @ X-Ray Arcade, 7 p.m.
- Nov. 22: New Wave Fest @ The Cooperage, 7 p.m.
- Nov. 22: Rat Bath, Sunday Cruise, Barely Civil, Tiny Vamp @ Cactus Club, 6:30 p.m.
- Nov. 23: Mystical Zenith, Culture Garden, Son Reis Project @ Anodyne, 6 p.m.
- Nov. 23: El Sebas (Milwaukee Record Halftime Show) @ Cactus Club, noon
- Nov. 24: Yung Gravy w/Pertinence @ The Rave, 8 p.m.
- Nov. 25: Ike Reilly @ Shank Hall, 8 p.m.
