Here's a preview of what's to come at Summerfest on June 28, 2017. Scroll down for the full lineup.
Red Hot Chili Peppers w/ Deerhoof and Jack Irons
American Family Insurance Amphitheater
7:30 p.m.
Red Hot Chili Peppers’ wild, heavy, air-kicking funk-rock sounded like little else when the group debuted it in the early ’80s, and in the three decades since they’ve done their part to make sure it stayed that way. Without ever completely reinventing themselves, they’ve evolved consistently since their earliest albums, refining the nihilistic funk-metal of their George Clinton-produced 1985 album, Freaky Styley , into tighter, more radio-friendly tunes on their commercial breakthrough albums Mother’s Milk and Blood Sugar Sex Magik —albums that established their long working relationship with producer Rick Rubin.
From there they continued to try on new sounds, embracing the spirit of ’90s modern rock on their 1995 oddity One Hot Minute (their only album with guitarist Dave Navarro) and then scoring a string of hit ballads with the breezier records that followed, including their 1999 commercial apex, Californication . Like any long-running band, they’ve seen their slumps—the group followed their massive 2006 double album Stadium Arcadium with 2011’s completely forgettable I’m With You . But their latest album, The Getaway , does what all of the band’s best albums have done: It makes the group sound fresh again. With producer Danger Mouse behind the boards, replacing Rubin after seven albums, the band pays homage to the lush, grandiose rock records of the late ’60s and early ’70s. (Evan Rytlewski)
The Moody Blues
BMO Harris Pavilion
10 p.m.
Rolling Stone called them ”the Sistine Chapel of popular music,“ a group that almost singlehandedly invented the term ”progressive rock.“ In both cases it’s clear The Moody Blues have made their mark on the music scene and continue to do so decades after the band’s 1964 formation in Birmingham, England.
Founders Graeme Edge, Justin Hayward and John Lodge still carry on the Moodies’ name and musical mission. Bringing the 50th anniversary tour of their landmark album Days of Future Passed to Summerfest this year, the performance will mark a milestone in modern music.
Recorded in 1967, the album evolved from a request by executives at Decca Records that the Moodies record a rock version of AntonÃn Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 ( From the New World ) to test the label’s new stereo recording facilities. Liking the idea of a rock-classical blend, the band instead followed its own muse, resulting in a ”song cycle“ concept album that changed the sound of rock music forever.
Expect the lush, dreamy sounds of ”Nights in White Satin,“ ”Tuesday Afternoon“ and other hits both from the disc and from throughout their career. The songs and the sound have become The Moody Blues’ timeless musical legacy. (Michael Muckian)
The Marcus King Band
Uline Warehouse Stage
8 p.m.
The blues will never die as long as groups like The Marcus King Band are here to keep it alive. The 21-year-old South Carolinian and his namesake sextet pick up where Johnny Lang, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and the late, great Stevie Ray Vaughan leave off, producing a smooth, bluesy, guitar-driven sound. Government Mule’s Warren Haynes, who produced and appears on the band’s latest album, is a longtime champion of the group.
