Photo Credit: Rick Diamond
Russian Swings
Thursday, Dec. 18
Cirque Du Soleil: ‘Varekai’ @ BMO Harris Bradley Center, 7:30 p.m.
Early Cirque Du Soleil productions prioritized spectacle above all else, filling the stage with dozens of aerialists, acrobats, props, set pieces and remarkable feats of human strength and dexterity. The results were shows that were half circus, half fever dream. For its more recent productions, however, Cirque Du Soleil has added a story element. The company’s touring production of Varekai introduces a forest wonderland populated by impossible creatures and follows a young hero as he sets out to discover the secrets of a strange world perched at the summit of a volcano. (Multiple productions through Sunday, Dec. 21.)
Owls w/ Absolutely and Storm Clouds @ Cactus Club, 9 p.m.
These days no band stays broken up forever. Even groups that are remembered largely as footnotes receive a second shot. Case in point: Owls, the short-lived Chicago indie-rock band that formed from members of the pioneering emo band Cap’n Jazz shortly after that group’s breakup (minus, of course, key Cap’n Jazz member Davey von Bohlen). Owls released a lone self-titled album in 2001 before splintering so members could focus on other projects, most notably Joan of Arc, but they regrouped in 2012 for a series of reunion shows. Two years later, they released a reunion album, Two, which picks up more or less where the first one left off, with intricate song compositions and cerebral chord progressions.
Bye Bye Liver: The Milwaukee Drinking Play’s ‘Alcoholiday Drinktacular 2014’ @ BBC, 8 p.m.
A good comedy troupe works around themes that its audience can relate to. The Bye Bye Liver troupe has selected a subject that’s particularly near and dear to many Milwaukeeans’ hearts: drinking. For their holiday show the Alcoholiday Drinktacular, they’ll deliver a variety of sketch comedy and songs (including “A Christmas Barrel” and “Frosty The Bro-man”) while involving the crowd in some interactive drinking games. Tickets are $10.
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Friday, Dec. 19
The Bad Plus @ The Jazz Estate, 8 and 10 p.m.
The acoustic New York jazz trio The Bad Plus earned crossover attention for their deconstructed covers of unlikely rock songs, most famously Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” but that attention has too often overshadowed their reputation as genuine jazz virtuosos, players with a knack for blurring the line between composition and improvisation. It’s probably for the best, then, that The Bad Plus has eschewed covers altogether on recent albums like this year’s Inevitable Western, opting instead for clever piano-based originals. The band typically performs at large theaters and big jazz festivals, but this weekend they’ll do four performances at Milwaukee’s intimate Jazz Estate. (Also Saturday, Dec. 20.)
Saturday, Dec. 20
Ugly Holiday Sweater Party w/ Fresh Cut Collective, Sat. Nite Duets, The Living Statues and WC Tank @ Mad Planet, 9 p.m.
Guests are encouraged to wear their hoariest Christmas sweater to Mad Planet’s Third annual Ugly Holiday Sweater party, and they’ll receive two bucks off of the $7 cover if they do. There will also be a $25 bar tab awarded to the night’s best ugly sweater, but the event’s real draw isn’t the novelty sweaters—it’s the music. The lineup includes Milwaukee’s preeminent live hip-hop band Fresh Cut Collective, goofball rockers Sat. Nite Duets, garage-rock revivalists The Living Statues and alternative rapper WC Tank.
Buffalo Gospel w/ Heidi Spencer and the Rare Birds and Simon Balto @ Anodyne Coffee, 8 p.m.
Songwriter Ryan Necci surrounds himself with a whole lot of seasoned talent in his Americana band Buffalo Gospel, including singer Heidi Spencer and her Rare Birds guitarist Allen Coté, as well as mandolinist Ryan Ogburn (of Chicken Wire Empire), bassist Brian Wells and drummer Kyle Keegan. Together, they released an album of emotionally heavy country music in 2013, We Can Be Horses. For this show, they’ll share the bill with Spencer’s band and alternative folk singer Simon Balto. Musician Jon Mueller will spin some rare old country and bluegrass records between sets.
Pat McCurdy w/ Chris Hanson @ Shank Hall, 9 p.m.
If you’ve been to nearly any Wisconsin summer festival, chances are you’re somewhat familiar with Pat McCurdy, the singer-songwriter known for his offbeat sense of humor. McCurdy’s jokey songs have made him a staple of festivals around the state, but the singer does have a serious side, which he explores on his latest album Pat McCurdy Now!, a record that, between wisecracks, examines what it means to be in love. At this show, McCurdy will play that album in its entirety, along with musician Chris Hanson, who is featured on the record.
Monday, Dec. 22
The Sleighriders @ Shank Hall, 7 p.m.
Each holiday season Shank Hall hosts one of Wisconsin’s most epic jam sessions, opening its stage to an ensemble of dozens of Milwaukee-area musicians who go by the name The Sleighriders. Exactly who will show up on any given year isn’t clear, but the group is made up mostly of veteran players from the local rock and blues scene, and has in recent years included acts like Greg Koch, Steve Cohen, Eddie Butts, Joe Hite, Sigmund Snopek and members of bands like The Boogiemen, Bad Boy, Blue Hand and Street Life. All proceeds from this year’s show will go to the disabled children’s charity Variety of Wisconsin.
