PHOTO CREDIT: Lars Kvam
On Saturday, Aug 31, the Milwaukee-based punk rock band Size 5’s played the first set of the night during MKE Punk Fest 9 at The Local in Walker’s Point. It was the third night of the festival and the band opened for Voice of Addiction from Chicago and Some Kind of Nightmare from San Diego, Calif. 11 other bands played through the course of the night on the side and main stage. Each band there gave it their all, but Size 5’s started the night with momentum that carried the rest of the fest.
These street punk apostles put on an energetic and engaging set, with guitarist/singer Juan Avalos tossing guitar picks into the crowd and keeping the audience hooked with pointing and encouragement. Lead guitar player Ryan Larsh and bassist Rob Mojica blasted the room with backup vocals when needed. “Show us the violence and chaos!” Avalos roared from behind the microphone, trying to spur the audience into a mosh pit up from.
Their song, “Secrets,” partly about unity and partly about purging, had the audience raving at the front of the stage. One of their songs, “Huelga,” was sung completely in Spanish. The raw energy they delivered provided momentum for the rest of the bands that took turns playing on the main and side stage. Even the miniature beer garden in back was the site of an acoustic stage, which had different artists play throughout the main stage sets.
Naturally, the headliners of Punk Fest were as angry and raw as Size 5’s were. Some Kind of Nightmare brought in high-energy punk rock and some political commentary. El Escapado, from Nashville, Tenn., had the room shaking with the way they moved the crowd. Voice of Addiction, who are from Chicago but have close relations with Milwaukee, played the final set with socially conscious lyrics and some humorous Dead Kennedys references.
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The side stage that Saturday was home to different styles of rock music. Weeper, formerly known as The Women, played noisy, sludgy music that resembled the Melvins and cornered the dark-and-demented department. The Red Flags from Janesville were one half garage rock and the other half nervous energy with the guitar player jolting and twisting erratically during solos. Garbage Man from Sheboygan was the last band to play in the side hall and easily the heaviest. The cover of Black Flag’s Slip It In on the guitar player/singer’s shirt should hint what their influences are.
There was a diverse selection of bands that night and the musicians that played supported each other in different ways. Towards the end of Size 5’s set, Avalos told everyone, “Forget the community we grew up in. This is the community we’re growing up in,” and pointed out the whole room.
