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.
Say the name “Andrew James Shelp” in the Milwaukee music scene, and most show-goers and local music fans will know exactly who you’re talking about: the curator of Milwaukee Psych Fest who got his start in the scene playing guitar in bands like Moss Folk (and now with his outfit “The Rolling Hills”).
Shelp has spent more than a decade bringing droney, krauty, crunchy-minded artists to Milwaukee every spring for the festival. Each year, it gets even more stacked and more adventurous, with acts like Kikagaku Moyo coming all the way from Japan, along with lauded folk artists like Ryley Walker, and indie-adored bands like Six Organs of Admittance, Holy Wave, Cosmonauts and The Blind Shake.
Shelp unveiled the official lineup for Psych Fest VIII recently, making the wait until the first weekend in May feel even longer. Fortunately, you can get a lil’ Psych Fest warmup courtesy of a pre-show at Cactus Club this Sunday, April 9. The lineup features Garcia Peoples, the folky psych-rock group familiar to the festival and its attendees for their killer live performances.
Hailing from New Jersey, the now New York-based band is a six-headed monster wielding guitars, pedals and the ability to improvise like none other (even improvising live on WFMU at one point). And since Garcia Peoples have regularly jammed with Chris Forsyth, who also shares Sunday’s bill, you can bet there will be some live collaborating going on.
More shows worth a go
- April 7: Moonchild w/Austin Antoine @ Shank Hall, 8 p.m.
- April 7: NEWSKI (record release) + Valentiger @ Anodyne on Bruce, 7 p.m.
- April 7: 5PM to Nowhere w/Lake Drive + Sabrina Prochaska @ Linneman’s, 8 p.m.
- April 7: Jukebox The Ghost w/Wildermiss @ Turner Hall Ballroom, 8 p.m.
- April 8: Bouncing Souls w/Anti-Flag, A Wilhelm Scream, The Venomous Pink @ The Rave, 7 p.m.
- April 10: Tennis w/Kate Bollinger @ Turner Hall Ballroom, 8 p.m.
