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.
We go to live shows because they’re fun. But fun comes in different flavors, and the two concerts at the top of this week’s list are prime examples — one frothy and poppy, the other transfixingly spine-tingling.
Doing the honors on the former are Bad Bad Hats, which drop into the Vivarium for a Thursday night show. The Minneapolis duo of Kerry Alexander and Chris Hoge have been the core of the group since they first grabbed attention with 2015’s Psychic Reader and have consistently rolled out bright-yet-grounded indie pop in the years since.
The self-titled album they released in 2024 maintained that high level and added to it when the pair decided to produce the record themselves. The resulting project comes across as more willing to take strategic risks by including loops and other sonic accessories while still being the absolute blast that Bad Bad Hats has always been. Expect more of the same at Thursday night’s performance, with Chicago dream-poppers Smut opening.
To activate a different part of your “fun” palette, point yourself back toward the Vivarium on Friday for Cate Le Bon, who visits Milwaukee’s East Side in support of her latest album, Michelangelo Dying.
The Welsh artist is as intricate with her songwriting as ever on her seventh studio release and plumbed some pretty painful depths for the project: the end of a long-standing romantic relationship. As noted in the album’s announcement, Le Bon had a whole other batch of songs in mind when she started working on what became Michelangelo Dying. But her body literally wouldn’t let the recent heartache go unacknowledged.
Le Bon told The Guardian that back pain and full-body hives were physical manifestations of denial that subsided after she set a new direction. On stage, her decision has resulted in live performances that are typically mesmerizing and perhaps carry a little extra intimacy because of the subject matter her setlist carries. It’s something you can experience when Cate Le Bon plays the Vivarium for a Friday night show opened by Frances Chang.
Best concerts in Milwaukee this week
- Jan. 22: Bad Bad Hats w/Smut @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
- Jan. 22: Fake My Death, Casual Sex, Hypersleep, Frantic Repair @ Cactus Club, 6:30 p.m.
- Jan. 22: Azthma, DJ Abilities, Kia Rap Princess, Guerrilla Ghost, Getmoses @ X-Ray Arcade, 7 p.m.
- Jan. 23: The Midnight Purchase w/Ben Mulwana @ The Argo, 8 p.m.
- Jan. 23: Cate Le Bon w/Frances Chang @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
- Jan. 23: Lunde (album-release show), Chapped Lips, Zach Pietrini @ Cactus Club, 6:30 p.m.
- Jan. 24: Bluegrass Winter Heater feat. The Milbillies @ The Cooperage, 7 p.m.
- Jan. 24: Jonah Kagen w/Vincent Lima @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
- Jan. 24: HOLLYY, Bear In The Forest, Maximiano @ Cactus Club, 7 p.m.
- Jan. 24: Social Cig w/Sheebie & The Lovemakers, Deep Dive @ Linneman’s, 8 p.m.
- Jan. 26: Anastasia Coope, Autobahn, Apollo Vermouth, Cut @ X-Ray Arcade, 7 p.m.
- Jan. 27: Chloe Kimes, Living Room @ Cactus Club, 7 p.m.
