Remembering the Past with Lest We Forget

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Image: Lest We Forget - Facebook

Lest We Forget 2022 poster

A decade ago, the Lest We Forget concert at Turner Hall offered a punk rock class reunion of sorts. The event grew out of the Facebook page facebook.com/groups/363672190314606 that was Sacred Order front man Mike Podolak’s ongoing memorial for those who were part of Milwaukee’s music scene. That event’s seismic energy spiraled into Brick Through the Window, the book that tells the oral history of Milwaukee’s underground music; a live compilation cd of the night’s music; another scaled-down concert at The Miramar Theatre and a slew of archival recordings from the likes of The Prosecutors, The Haskels, The Lubricants, The Shivvers, Ama Dots and The Ones.

Podolak, Ron Faiola (Couch Flambeau, f/I) and Clancy Carroll (The Ones, Dominoes, 3 on Fire) have organized the follow up concert set for Saturday, May 28 at Turner Hall pabsttheatergroup.com/events/detail/lest-we-forget-2022 According to Faiola, the first event raised $9000 for the American Liver Foundation. He said this year’s show will benefit MusiCares, the non-profit that provides a safety net of critical assistance for music people in times of need.

The evening’s talent

With a 6 p.m. start time, the night promises to be an indoor music festival. Telethon opens the night; the young band’s energetic sound would not have been out of place in legendary Milwaukee clubs The Starship and Zak’s Rock and Roll Palace. One-of-a-kind songwriter Liv Mueller returns from the first show, along with the Rock-A-Dials who will re-channel their Rockabilly sound.

Likewise, Carroll’s quartet 3 on Fire perform again, as do The Lubricants, 3XCleavers and The Crosses (almost English for Die Kreuzen), fronted by Dan Kubinski—the group formed to play early DK material. Die Kreuzen were the de facto headliners for the first LWF concert.

Xposed 4heads roots go back to front-man Mark G.E.’s visionary mid-‘80s cable access program “Joy Farm.” Since the 2012 LWF show the seven-piece New Wave band-that-time-forgot reformed and has been quite active. The group blends the quirk of DEVO with the fun of the B-52s.

Debuting this year will be Starship Jukebox, a refence to the legendary downtown alternative Milwaukee club run by the late Kenny Baldwin. An all-star backing group will serve as house band for Eric Blowtorch, Voot Warnings, The Ones (featuring Carroll and Kevn Kinney of Drivin N Cryin), Six Wives of Richard (featuring Molli Putz, Vicki Vex and Connie Cummings), Sacred Experts featuring Michael and Tommy Ciaccio (Tense Experts) and Mike Podolak (Sacred Order), and Von Trash, featuring Faiola, Podolak and Carroll covering the Haskels and Sacred Order.

The prize in the crackerjacks though, just might be the return of a pair of trios that have been long dormant. Johnny and the Losers played high energy music at clubs like The Unicorn. They brought the rock with vocalist Chris Tishler’s bass swagger, Jason Hendrickson’s steady groove on drums and Tim Detzer’s off-the-wall guitar sounds.

Wanda Chrome and the Leather Pharaohs just might have played more shows overseas than at home. A living rock and roll history lesson, they took the best parts of Bo Diddley, The Flamin’ Groovies and the MC5 in scorched-earth fashion. They should be the perfect group to top off the evening.

In memoriam

Preceding the Starship Jukebox segment, a Lest We Forget roll call will scroll onscreen accompanied by Johnny Cash’s “Ain’t No Grave.” In addition, Rock-A-Dials will perform a tribute to the late Mike Hoffmann during their set shepherdexpress.com/music/local-music/milwaukee-musician-and-producer-mike-hoffmann-passes

The documentation of Milwaukee’s music history continues. As an MATC student in the ‘80s Kevin Hutchison took it upon himself to document the local punk scene. The photographer, who now lives in Texas, began sharing his shots on Facebook and will have a book of his photographs available at the LWF show shepherdexpress.com/culture/books/kevin-hutchison-prepares-book-of-80s-mke-punk-scene

Also, the long-anticipated documentary Taking the City By Storm: The Birth of Milwaukee's Punk Scene, youtube.com/watch?v=SwE0D9pqrhg, is set to premier on July 30 at Shank Hall, the club that was known as Teddy’s in a former incarnation familiar to the LWF crowd. Produced by Judy Simonds and Clancy Carroll, the film is directed by Doug LaValliere (The Prosecutors) who later had a career behind the camera at Austin City Limits.

Tune in to WMSE, 91.7 on Monday, May 23 at 3 p.m. for LWF interviews with Chris Tischler, Cliff and Marie Ulsberger, Dan Kubinski and Mark G.E. Eberhage.