BoDeans w/The Original Wailers

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BoDeans

After years of building buzz in roots-rock circles and on alternative rock playlists in the late ’80s and early ’90s, The BoDeans scored the biggest hit of their career with “Closer to Free,” best remembered as the theme song to the Fox drama “Party of Five.” Even at the peak of their success, though, the Waukesha-born group always retained close ties to their home state. They’ve been staples of Wisconsin festivals for decades, so it was only fitting that when the headliners originally scheduled for this show, Huey Lewis and the News, had to cancel because of Lewis’ hearing loss, the State Fair turned to these reliable local favorites to fill in.

The band’s co-founder Sam Llanas split from the group is 2011, but frontman Kurt Neumann hasn’t let his absence or the resulting drama slow him down much. He’s since released four new BoDeans albums, all of which find a balance between power-pop and Americana. His most recent is 2017’s Thirteen, an unusually intimate album performed almost entirely by Neumann that features music he wrote for the Netflix program “The Ranch.” It features a song that should resonate particular for the band’s local fanbase: “My Hometown,” a heartfelt tribute to the city that’s always supported him.

Reggae legends The Original Wailers, of Bob Marley fame, will open this show. (Evan Rytlewski)

All seating for this show is reserved and tickets are $35 and $25.