Friday, June 24
Pete Davidson @ Turner Hall Ballroom, 7 p.m.
Every generation of “Saturday Night Live” has a boyish cast member in the Adam Sandler mold. There was Andy Samberg, then before him Jimmy Fallon and before him, well, Adam Sandler. The current cast’s go-to young guy is Pete Davidson, who joined the cast in the show’s 40th season at age 20, making him the fourth youngest cast member in the show’s history. Despite his puppy-dog demeanor, Davidson is a good deal edgier than his predecessors, relying on frequently explicit descriptions of sex and drugs in his standup act. He plays Turner Hall Ballroom as part of his “Prehab” tour.
Steven Hyden @ Cactus Club, 7 p.m.
At a time when many contemporary music critics could barely feign interest in rock ‘n’ roll music, former A.V. Club Milwaukee editor Steven Hyden staked his reputation on smart, fan-centric takes on genre—previously as a Grantland columnist and Pitchfork contributor and currently as the host of the podcast Celebration Rock. This spring, Hyden released his debut book, Your Favorite Band is Killing Me, a collection of personable, highly digressive essays about music rivalries, and he’ll discuss the book at this free live event hosted by Milwaukee Record. The event will double as a live recording of the site’s “Off The Record” podcast and will feature free samples of Vander Mill hard cider. (Consider the evening a two-fer for rock fans: Hyden’s appearance will be followed by a 9 p.m. concert from New Jersey rock heroes Screaming Females. Tickets for that show are $10 in advance or $12 at the door.)
Saturday, June 25
Summer Soulstice @ North Avenue, 10 a.m.
Now in its 16th year, the East Side’s Summer Soulstice festival has expanded from the usual music-centric street party to include a greater emphasis on local arts and crafts. Other unique attractions include a dodgeball tournament, a BMX stunt show, a climbing wall, a 10 a.m. yoga session and an egg roll eating contest. This year’s music lineup is typically great, too, with headliners including Space Raft, Soul Low, Brothers By Choice, Cavewives, Foreign Goods, Lex Allen and No No Yeah Okay, among many others.
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David Bazan @ The Back Room at Colectivo, 8:30 p.m.
Singer-songwriter David Bazan is best known for his work with the indie-rock project Pedro The Lion, where he offered nervy confessions about sins of the flesh and his conflicted relationship with God that made him a controversial but undeniable force in Christian songwriting circles. On his 2009 solo debut Curse Your Branches, Bazan’s faith was more battered than ever before, as the singer embraced his new role as a fallen evangelical. Bazan’s 2011 record, Strange Negotiations, explored the aftermath of his fall from the church while touching on more secular issues like government and corporate greed—themes that dovetailed with the current Occupy Wall Street movement. It was followed this spring by his latest album, Blanco, a typically confessional work that returns him to the electronic textures of his one-off side project, Headphones.
Cedarburg Strawberry Festival @ Downtown Cedarburg
Strawberry season is here, and few towns make better use of the peak-berry window than Cedarburg, which each summer hosts its Strawberry Festival. The festival’s signature item is the strawberry brat, which hundreds of people line up for each year. For those who prefer their fruit meatless, there are also chocolate-covered strawberries, strawberry ice cream, strawberry shortcake and strawberry wine from Cedar Creek Winery. Enjoy the sugar rush while strolling through an art fair featuring more than 250 artists, or while taking your kid to the festival’s petting zoo. There will also be live music, pony rides, a rubber duck race, a 5K run-walk and a Sunday morning pancake breakfast. (Through Sunday, June 26.)
Sunday, June 26
Garlic Fest @ Second Street in Walker’s Point, noon
Does any local street festival live up to its name more than Walker’s Point’s Garlic Fest? The event truly plays up its namesake seasoning, so much so that you can smell it from a block away. Each year more than a dozen restaurants from around Walker’s Point contribute their most unique garlicky dishes to this festival held outside of Braise. The event also features a variety of garlic-themed games, kids’ activities, reggae music from The Tritonics and Radio Milwaukee’s Dori Zori, specialty drinks from Wisconsin distillers and, as the ultimate refreshment, green garlic Bloody Marys.
Kathy Griffin @ Potawatomi Hotel and Casino, 7 and 9:30 p.m.
After more than a decade of bit parts in movies and sitcoms, Kathy Griffin ironically became a household name by mocking her lack of celebrity on her TV show, “Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List,” which ran for six seasons on Bravo. She has since surpassed Joan Rivers as the go-to celebrity insult comedian, sharing in her stand-up routines hilariously scathing tell-all accounts of her encounters with stars. She’s also been incredibly prolific, recording countless specials, six of which have been nominated for Grammys—including one that took home the award: 2013’s Calm Down Gurrl, which includes a hilarious Justin Bieber takedown and a wild account of meeting Barbra Streisand at Jane Fonda’s birthday party.
Monday, June 27
King’s X w/ King of Spade @ Shank Hall, 8 p.m.
Maybe it’s for the best that King’s X never found the mammoth success that many of their metal peers did in the late-’80s since, unlike many hair-metal acts they were passed over in favor of on MTV, they’ve gone on to become an enduring cult act. A could-have-been breakthrough single in 1989, “Over My Head,” wasn’t enough to turn the band into a top-tier headliner, and their even catchier 1990 follow-up single, “It’s Love,” arrived during a time when the band was sidelined with management issues. That didn’t stop them from releasing a run of excellent, increasingly proggy records, however. It’s been a while since the band released a new studio album, but in 2012 they delivered the solid live set Burning Down Boston.
Wednesday, June 29
Selena Gomez w/ DNCE and Bahari @ Marcus Amphitheater, 7 p.m.
Selena Gomez joins the ranks of acts like Prince, Stevie Wonder, Britney Spears and Pearl Jam as she becomes Summerfest’s latest opening-night Marcus Amphitheater headliner. Since transitioning away from Disney-friendly music a few years ago, Gomez has been carrying her own as an adult pop star. Her latest album, Revival, features a pair of her slinkiest, catchiest singles yet: “Hands to Myself” and “Same Old Love.”
Morris Day and the Time @ Johnson Controls World Sound Stage, Summerfest, 10 p.m.
When your high school buddy is Prince, you’ve got no choice but to carry yourself with style and flair. Fortunately for Morris Day, who reminded the world that “Gigolos Get Lonely Too,” he’s got groove to spare. As part of the rock-infused funk band The Time, Day has been sharing his talents with the masses for more than three decades. After their 1981 debut album The Time produced three singles, “Cool,” “Girl” and “Get It Up,” the band cemented themselves in the public consciousness with a role in the 1984 cult classic, Purple Rain. Prince’s passing will undoubtedly lend this show a solemn air, but there’s some comfort in knowing that Day continues to tour, delivering a mix of old-school sounds and slick dance moves.
Fitz and the Tantrums @ Harley-Davidson Roadhouse, Summerfest, 10 p.m.
Fitz and the Tantrums update the spirit of Motown-era soul with thunderous organ lines, booming drums and big, echoing synths. Those huge sounds offer a dramatic backdrop for the interplay between lead singers Michael Fitzpatrick and Noelle Scaggs, whose back and forth takes center stage at the group’s live shows. The band’s 2013 album, More Than Just a Dream, added some humongous guitars to the mix, but their latest, self-titled album opts for a slicker dance-pop sound and even borrows a few tricks from the EDM playbook. This is a band that looks as much to the present as to the past.
