Photo by Bennett Young via The Thing - Instagram
The Thing
The Thing
The Thing, Hindole Majumdar, Louie & The Flash Bombs, Trailblazing Women of Country, Rosalie Robison and Emily Beisel/Bill Harris, Dave Rempis, Ernest Dawkins, James McMurtry, Marc Ribot and more—This Week in Milwaukee Music!
Thursday, April 4
The Thing w/Diet Lite @ The Cooperage, 7 p.m.
“You’re the One” by The Thing
Taking inspiration from the likes of The Kinks, Grand Funk Railroad and Nuggets-era bands, NYC’s The Thing deliver high energy live shows. How could they not? Milwaukee’s Diet Lite knows a thing or two about energy. Rebounding from the theft of their gear last year, the young band can boast a letter from Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson on its resume.
Friday, April 5
Music of India @ Plymouth Church, 7 p.m.
Music of India banner
Hindole Majumdar School of Music and Dance promotes appreciation of traditional Indian classical music and dance, bringing renowned musicians from India to Milwaukee. Enjoy this Indian classical music concert featuring flute by Pandit Rupak Kulkarni (flute) and Hindole Majumdar (tabla).
Louie & The Flash Bombs - Album Release @ Ope! Brewing Co., 7:30 p.m.
“Ruling the World” by Louie & The Flashbombs
Louie & the Flash Bombs are on a roll. This show celebrates the release of the album Bang, hot on the heels of the Shiny New SkinEP, released almost exactly a year ago. These local veterans of sonic skirmishes have been around, as in Crime Family, Klaus Nomi’s Homies, Umbrella Man, Arms & Legs & Feet, Blue in the Face, BoDeans and SUGO.
Songwriters Louie Lucchesi and Mike Benign began collaborating and armed with over two dozen songs they assembled a band that would perform live in May 2022. But along the way Lucchesi was diagnosed with Stage 4 kidney cancer, and it was spreading rapidly https://shepherdexpress.com/music/local-music/louie-the-flashbombs-shiny-new-skin/
A few days ago, when he dropped off the new CD, Lucchesi looked healthy, fit and ready to rock.
Saturday, April 6
Early Music Now: Constantinople & Accademia del Piacere, “Seville to Isfahan,” Helene Zelazo Center for the Performing Arts – UWM, 5 p.m.
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This musical journey brings into dialogue the music of the Spanish Renaissance with Persian/Ottoman masterpieces taken from recently discovered manuscripts unearthed in monasteries and palace libraries.
Truth in the Mix: Performance featuring the music of Rosalie Robison and Emily Beisel/Bill Harris Duo @ Jazz Gallery Center for the Arts, 7 p.m.
On the Celestial Tryst EP, Rosalie Robison conjured music fit for David Lynch https://shepherdexpress.com/music/album-reviews/celestial-tryst-by-wendy-kheiry-and-rosalie-robison/Chicago-based improviser, composer, educator, curator and woodwind specialist Emily Rach Beisel is known for visceral performances combining extended instrumental techniques with heavy amplification and timbral effects. Fellow Chicagoan Bill Harris, a percussionist, improviser and audio engineer whose solo work incorporates acoustic and electronic material, using feedback and timbral manipulation.
Trailblazing Women of Country: From Patsy to Loretta to Dolly @ South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center, 7:30 p.m.
Trailblazing Women of Country: From Patsy to Loretta to Dolly
Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton revolutionized country music and blazed a trail for future generations of female artists. They wove threads of contemporary womanhood throughout the tapestry of country music, resulting in unprecedented commercial success and earning each a place in the Country Music Hall of Fame.
These legendary musicians defied restrictive gender norms, proving that women can be at once beautiful and strong, vulnerable and powerful. Featuring soloists Miko Marks, CMT’s 2022 Next Woman of Country and Nashville-based singer Kristina Train, the vocalists are supported by a five member all-female band.
The Marked Men w/Chinese Telephones and Constant Insult @ Cactus Club, 8 p.m.
“A Little Time” by The Marked Men
The Marked Men’s show an affinity for fast, choppy power chords and manic energy. While a garage-punk sound is this outfit’s main flavor, Marked Men’s bubbling instrumentation varies between candied Buddy Holly harmonies, melancholic ballads, and propulsive ’70s rockers. After an extended hiatus, the Denton, TX band have reunited for a U.S. tour. Milwaukee’s Chinese Telephones and Minneapolis’ Constant Insult finally land after a 10-date tour that launched in mid-March.
Sunday, April 7
Archer @ Sugar Maple, 4 p.m.
Image via the Sugar Maple
Archer
Archer
Archer, the new quartet (Dave Rempis, saxophones; Terrie Ex, guitar’ “Johnny Strum,” bass; and “Dollop Eastfang,” drums) might spark a fire under your ass, or they might tiptoe across the tulips softer than a morning dew. This band fully reserves the right to make it up as they go. The Dutch American international conglomerate made its debut on a tour of Norway in February 2023, and now hits the United States for the first time.
Alternating Currents Live presents Ernest Dawkins’ Boglifier Project @ Woodland Pattern Book Center, 7 p.m.
At this world premiere saxophonist-composer Ernest Dawkins returns with his Boglifier Project (Ernest Dawkins, reeds and electronics; Nova Zaii, drums and electronics; Jonathan Woods, video projection) celebrating the richness of urban rhyme and African American folk melodies alongside live acoustic sound, electronic signal processing, looping, dance, creative improvisation, collective interplay, and exploration of sound.
James McMurtry w/ Betty Soo @ Shank Hall, 8 p.m.
"Levelland" by James McMurtry
A realist, songwriter James McMurtry introduces himself as a beer salesman at his shows. The three records McMurtry cut for Columbia Records, beginning with 1989’s Too Long in the Wasteland, may not have been money makers, but they established McMurtry as one of the best songwriters of his generation https://shepherdexpress.com/music/music-feature/james-mcmurtry-rolls-into-shank-hall/
Like previous occasions expect him to take over Shank Hall with his sheaf of hardscrabble songs that track intimate details and matter of fact realities, fueled by rave-ups from a backing band that simply kicks ass when the tune calls for it.
Monday, April 8
Solar Eclipse Viewing Party: WMSE Live Remote Broadcast @ American Science & Surplus, 12:30 p.m.
Watch the Moon pass between the Sun and Earth, with DJ Faux Eyes and the rest of the cool weirdos while your star-gazing captain takes you on a Polyphonic Spree. Trivia, prizes, and a local food truck onsite. Solar glasses will be available for purchase at the event, while supplies last.
This partial eclipse will begin at 12:52 p.m. and end at 3:21 p.m. Max eclipse will be at 2:08 p.m., when the sun will be 89.6% covered by the moon.
Wednesday, April 10
Marc Ribot: The Jazz-Bins @ Vivarium, 8 p.m.
“Sookie Sookie” by The Jazz-Bins
Here is the pick of the week. An attempt to peg Marc Ribot’s music may be the definition of futility. The guitarist-composer’s long list of collaborators include Tom Waits, John Zorn, Keith Richards, John Lurie, Marianne Faithful and the Black Keys. His singular guitar sound draws from jazz, punk and Cuban music, heavily rooted in the spirit of improvisation. The Jazz-Bins (Ribot, with Greg Lewis, B3 organ and Joe Dyson, drums) recall Ribot’s four months with jazz organ legend Brother Jack McDuff.
Says Ribot: “McDuff's US audiences—the so-called ‘Chitlin Circuit— were just the hippest in the world: sophisticated about the music, definitely … but also demanding the deepest soul while rewarding restraint in its expression. What this brought out in the musicians was every bit as intense as the music taking shape at CBGBs at the time. In fact, I always felt the two scenes had something in common, and I’ve been trying to express exactly what ever since.”
