Norm MacDonald w/ Kevin Nealon @ Potawatomi Hotel & Casino, Aug. 22
Thursday, Aug. 20
‘Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’ a la Carte @ Milwaukee County Zoo
The Gin Blossoms, Cassadee Pope, Sam Llanas, Don Felder of the Eagles and a Billy Joel cover band are among the big musical acts at this week’s Milwaukee Journal Sentinel a la Carte event at the Milwaukee County Zoo. While listening to these and other local and national bands at six stages, attendees can enjoy food from more than 25 restaurants, including Saz’s, Lake Park Bistro, Café el Sol, Alioto’s, Jake’s Deli and, uh, Applebee’s. New additions this year include Burke’s Irish Castle, Vagabond, Milwaukee Brat House, Miss Beverly’s Deluxe Barbeque and Peter Sciortino Bakery. Adult attendees can also sample wine at the Giraffe Village Wine Tent while the kids paint, make hats and participate in other arts and crafts at a children’s activity area. (Through Sunday, Aug. 23.)
Friday, Aug. 21
Mexican Fiesta @ Summerfest Grounds
One of Milwaukee’s home-grown ethnic traditions, Mexican Fiesta began in the early ’70s as a South Side street party celebrating Mexican Independence Day. Within five years it had moved to the Summerfest Grounds at Henry Maier Park, expanding into the three-day blowout it remains today. This year’s event will feature regional cuisine from a variety of local sources; vendors; exhibits involving music, history and heritage; a full lineup of Mexican music in all of its forms; and dance performances. Other attractions include an art walk, a genealogy exhibit, midway rides and a soccer tournament. Sunday’s festivities kick off with a lakefront procession and mass at 10:15 a.m. (Through Sunday, Aug. 23.)
Lebowski Fest @ Cathedral Square Park, 5 p.m.
Of course Joel and Ethan Coen’s one marijuana-themed film is also their most cultishly beloved. The brothers’ 1998 comedy The Big Lebowski stars a never-better Jeff Bridges as a laid-back dude who gets caught up in a kidnapping scheme that involves, among many other things, a defiled carpet, bowling and German nihilists who “believe in nothing,” but the plot takes a backseat to bizarre characters and gorgeously absurd fantasy sequences. Milwaukee celebrates the movie each year with Lebowski Fest, which this year will include a screening of the film Friday night at Cathedral Square, complete with refreshing White Russians and music from Here Come The Mummies. A tie-in event on Saturday at JB’s on 41 Bowling Center will feature bowling, costume and trivia contests and more White Russians.
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MAM After Dark: MKE Rebels @ Milwaukee Art Museum, 7 p.m.-11 p.m.
Milwaukee Art Museum’s latest feature exhibit, Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels, spotlights some artists who broke some well-established rules. The museum will celebrate that mindset with the latest edition of its monthly after-hours event, which in addition to tours of the exhibit will feature live graffiti painting on a car from artist Jonah Spaay, music from Milwaukee’s Something To Do, and tastings from Door Peninsula Winery, Door County Distillery, Engine Company No. 3 and Smyth Restaurant. The event will take advantage of the summer weather with lawn games and a cookout near the lake, and will be followed by an after party at The Yard of the Iron Horse Hotel.
Josh Turner w/ Raquel Cole @ Milwaukee Theatre, 8 p.m.
Deep-voiced singer Josh Turner is the typical Southern boy, sprouted from South Carolina and meshed into country music. With a certain happy-go-lucky, romantic vibe that sets his music apart from more macho country musicians, Turner enhances his tunes with his silky and matured voice, creating a near-flawless down-home country feel. Early in his singing career Turner faced medical problems with his vocal cords, but after taking time to heal, went back into vocal training and performing. He’s currently working on a follow-up to his 2012 album Punching Bag, which contained one of the biggest hits of his career, “Time Is Love.”
Saturday, Aug. 22
Norm MacDonald w/ Kevin Nealon @ Potawatomi Hotel & Casino, 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m.
Defying the timeworn archetype of the cigar-chomping, loud-mouthed insult comedian, Norm MacDonald delivers his pointed barbs from behind a veneer of amiable aloofness, allowing him to feign innocence even after the most incendiary barbs. As the best of the fake news anchors on “Saturday Night Live,” he eschewed innuendo and went for the throat. Where other comedians spoke of Michael Jackson in double entendres, for instance, MacDonald simply called him “a homosexual pedophile.” His frequent late-night guest show appearances over the last decade have cemented his reputation as one of the greatest comedians of his time. MacDonald co-headlines this show will fellow “SNL” alum Kevin Nealon.
International Jet Set w/ The Sophisticates @ Miramar Theatre, 7 p.m.
For a time, International Jet Set were one of Milwaukee’s most exciting ska bands, and their fast, punchy, horn-laden sound paved the way for the city’s ’90s ska scene. So it’s about time they returned for a second bow. The band’s original lineup, which includes Daniel Fernandez of Kings Go Forth on vocals and Jeff Carpenter of The Invaders and Highball Holiday on drums, will revisit songs from the past when it plays its first show in 25 years.
Sunday, Aug. 23
Sunday Summer Hurrah Benefit for Gypsy Taco @ Boone & Crockett, 5 p.m.
There’s a special place in hell for anybody who deprives the world of tacos. Chef Mitchell Ciohon’s plans to open a taco truck on the back patio of Bay View’s Boone & Crockett this summer were postponed after he was allegedly defrauded by a shady Georgia company that never delivered the trailer he paid for. He still hopes to open his Gypsy Taco food truck, but in the meantime Boone & Crockett is helping him offset some of his losses with this benefit, featuring music from Panalure, Mark Waldoch and Mary Oglesby, Joe Crockett and others. Gypsy Taco will be selling food, so this is your chance to sample one of those Dr. Pepper-braised pork shoulder tacos that, in a more just world, you would’ve been eating all summer.
Tuesday, Aug. 25
One Direction w/ Icona Pop @ Miller Park, 7 p.m.
The sort of phenomenon the American import of “The X Factor” was never able to create, Britain’s One Direction are the biggest boy band of their time, having broken one chart record after another. The band’s current On The Road Again stadium tour promises to be a bittersweet one for fans, though, since it’s the band’s first without their most popular member, Zayn Malik, who split from this group this spring to go solo, leaving young fans around the world to weep into their social media feeds. It remains to be seen whether the band can maintain its momentum without Malik, but they must’ve been encouraged this month when their first single without him, “Drag Me Down,” debuted at the top of the charts around the world. Maybe they only needed four guys singing after all.
Wednesday, Aug. 26
The Church @ Turner Hall Ballroom, 8:30 p.m.
If The Church were coasting on past accomplishments nobody would blame them. The Australian group was one of the great guitar-pop bands of the ’80s, making good on the promise of their catchy early singles on albums like 1988’s lavishly psychedelic Starfish, which included their biggest hit, “Under the Milky Way.” More than 25 years later, they still haven’t run out of ideas. Their proggy, deliciously mysterious 2009 album Untitled #23 is as good as any album from their heyday, and their latest record, last year’s Further/Deeper, is a fine follow-up, the work of a band that never seems to age. At this show, the band will play two sets, the first of which will include their 1982 album The Blurred Crusade in its entirety.
