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, sponsored by Urban Ecology Center.
A few weeks ago, we posited that Milwaukee’s concert spigot had closed just a bit to reflect the changing seasons. Based on the live-music lineup we waded through for this installment, we’ll give our previous statement a big old “never mind.”
A whopping 20 different events made the cut this week, with artists both national (Hotline TNT! Mt. Joy! Bright Eyes!) and local (Allison Mahal! Long Mama! Chapped Lips!) deserving your interest. We always encourage you to sift through the full list at the bottom of the page, but this one is a must-scan situation.
That won’t prevent us for shining a big spotlight on a couple items, through, starting with the shiniest event of the week: Beet Street at Cactus Club this Saturday from 1-7 p.m. but also 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. and also kind of Friday at 7 p.m. Allow us to explain …
Everything starts Friday night with the Beet Street Preparty featuring an all-Milwaukee lineup of Sex Scenes, Holly & The Nice Lions, Hair & Skin, Doubletruck and Plowshares. Jumping to the other end of the sandwich, you’ve got the afterparty that includes everything from electronic (CFCF) to glitch pop (han.irl<3).
Then there’s the meat of this year’s event, which is a meal unto itself:
- 1 p.m. — DJ Cozmiika
- 1:30 p.m. — Tyler Band
- 2:45 p.m. — Line Dancing with Ramona The Drag Queen
- 3:30 p.m. — Zed Kenzo
- 4:30 p.m. — Automatic
- 6 p.m. — W.I.T.C.H.
The entire lineup is fantastic — one of the event’s best ever — but those last two bands in particular are worth the price of admission, which is zero by the way. Automatic is only three albums into their career, the last of which (Is It Now?) was among the best of 2025. On the other end of the longevity spectrum are W.I.T.C.H., the legendary Zamrock band who are more than a half-century into their run and released their own 2025 album titled Sogolo.
Keep everything crossed for an agreeable weather situation Saturday, because this lineup deserves it.
After giving yourself a couple days to regroup, point yourself toward Landmark Credit Union Live for a Tuesday night performance by Beck — because you might not get another chance. He’s only visited Milwaukee twice during his illustrious career (the defunct New Rock Fest in 1997 and the Riverside Theater in 2017), and number three comes just a few weeks after releasing Ride Lonesome, the final installment of his “heartache trilogy.”
The icon of alternative rock has leaned into that material during his initial tour stops, with plenty of classics and deep cuts in the mix as well. The ethereal Ioanna Gika will open the show, which has a scheduled start time of 8 p.m.
Best concerts in Milwaukee this week
- Oct. 1: Citizen w/Hotline TNT, Anxious, Cryogeyser @ The Rave, 7 p.m.
- Oct. 1: Sorry Ghost, Kevin Walkman, Alley Eyes @ X-Ray Arcade, 7:30 p.m.
- Oct. 1: Jake Williams @ The Argo, 6:30 p.m.
- Oct. 1: Allison Mahal @ Jackalope Lounj, 7 p.m.
- Oct. 2: Mt. Joy @ Landmark Credit Union Live, 8 p.m.
- Oct. 2: Bright Eyes w/Lullaby For The Working Class @ Turner Hall, 7:30 p.m.
- Oct. 2: Them Coulee Boys w/Long Mama @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
- Oct. 2: Taking Back Sunday w/Thrice, Saves The Day @ The Rave, 7 p.m.
- Oct. 2: KiNG MALA w/Jayden Hammer @ The Argo, 8 p.m.
- Oct. 2: Charming Disaster, Duo Mercury @ Anodyne, 7:30 p.m.
- Oct. 2: Girl in a Coma, Lunar Moth, Home Going @ MKE Ultra, 7:30 p.m.
- Oct. 2: Jesse Garwood Club w/Becca Murray & The Wildflowers, Matty Timmons, Jackson Jaymes @ Linneman’s, 7 p.m.
- Oct. 3: Beet Street @ Cactus Club, 1 p.m.
- Oct. 3: Cracker @ Shank Hall, noon
- Oct. 3: Militarie Gun w/Softcult, Shady Nasty, Dazy @ Vivarium, 7 p.m.
- Oct. 3: AJJ w/The Gunshy @ The Rave, 8 p.m.
- Oct. 4: Chance the Rapper w/La Reezy @ Landmark Credit Union Live, 8 p.m.
- Oct. 4: Radkey, Four Degrees Colder, Chapped Lips @ Cactus Club, 7 p.m.
- Oct. 6: Beck w/Ioanna Gika @ Landmark Credit Union Live, 8 p.m.
- Oct. 6: Sowing, Autoignition, Origami Summer, Okay Omen, Superglue @ Sugar Maple, 6:30 p.m.
