Widespread Panic
Riverside Theater 116 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53203
Ranking right behind the Grateful Dead and Phish is the pantheon of influential jam bands, Athens, Ga., rockers Widespread Panic have been playing together since the mid-’80s, back when fans didn’t even have the internet to help them trade tapes. The band built their audience the same way that today’s younger jam bands do: through relentless touring. After decades on the road—including some epic annual stops in Milwaukee—the band announced in 2016 that they intended to tour less, shocking fans who’d grown accustomed to seeing them regularly. That announcement hasn’t stopped them from returning to Milwaukee for their customary run of October shows at the Riverside, though. (Through Sunday, Oct. 21.)