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.
Another week, another genre-hopping collection of live shows happening throughout the Milwaukee area. Let’s get to it.
It seems not long ago that we were enjoying the soul/alt-R&B of Moonchild at Summer of Soul when in fact it was back in August of 2024. The trio was riding the long tail of Grammy-nominated album Starfruit when they played outside the Marcus Performing Arts Center, and they’re back this Thursday at the Vivarium — with a freshly released album in tow.
Waves is a notable shift for Moonchild (they themselves dubbed it “a bold new chapter” in press materials). A discography that primarily wrestled with topics in and around love now has a collection of songs that get heavy in a different way by exploring grief, healing, resilience and self-worth.
As lead vocalist Amber Navran put it, “This album is about processing loss and stepping into your power. It’s a lyrical departure, but it reflects what I’ve been going through these past few years.”
While the subject matter carries a harder edge, Moonchild’s sound is as welcoming as ever. Actually, so is their recording booth. The band integrated featured artists for the first time on Starfruit, and the special guests keep coming on Waves: Jill Scott, Robert Glasper and Brittney Carter, just to name a few. Carter is on the road with Moonchild for this tour, and you can catch both of them at the Vivarium at 8 p.m. this Thursday.
Finishing off with a few quick picks, we’ve got a couple local artists celebrating recent (in one case, VERY recent) releases, one of which continues in the therapeutic vein of Moonchild’s new album. That would be Ila Rose, whose Miss Young Paranoia is the culmination of a launch into music that started when she needed a mental-health release valve. Her debut album has been in the world for just about two months, and she’ll bring that material to Anodyne in Walker’s Point at 7:30 p.m. this Friday.
We’re also pointing you toward a band counting the age of its new music in minutes rather than months. We helped The Panoptics premiere “The Shore” last week, and the EP it’ll call home — Lines Converge — comes out this Saturday. The guys opened the Milwaukee Public Market’s Unplugged series in the perfect way back in January, and they’ll be just as on point when they celebrate their new project with an 8:30 p.m. show at Ope! Brewing Company this Saturday.
Finally, this one came to our attention a little late, but we gotta give a big shoutout to Julio Murguia from Escuela Verde, who — as part of his senior thesis — organized a benefit concert at Cactus Club to support MKE FreshAir Collective. The Sunday night show creatively titled Breathe Easy MKE features the psych-punk-screamo lineup of Zang!, Sex Scenes and Snag while bringing attention to how all of us can take better care of our air and raising funds for the collective.
Best concerts in Milwaukee this week
- March 12: Moonchild w/Brittney Carter @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
- March 12: Wire & Nail (acoustic) @ The Argo, 6:30 p.m.
- March 13: Mariah the Scientist @ Landmark Credit Union Live, 8 p.m.
- March 13: Hieroglyphics w/Emmitt James @ Turner Hall, 8 p.m.
- March 13: Ila Rose, Gabriel Harris, Cosmic LoveChild @ Anodyne, 7:30 p.m.
- March 13: The Thing, Chapped Lips @ Cactus Club, 6:30 p.m.
- March 13: The Dollyrots, Keep Flying, Something to Do, Socially Suspect @ X-Ray Arcade, 7 p.m.
- March 14: Ratboys w/Florry (sold out) @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
- March 14: Horseshoes & Hand Grenades w/Dig Deep @ Turner Hall, 8 p.m.
- March 14: The Panoptics @ Ope! Brewing, 8:30 p.m.
