Thursday, July 7
The Decemberists @ Miller Lite Oasis, Summerfest, 10 p.m.
The Decemberists have never been afraid to go big, releasing sprawling, elaborate concept records filled with ornate chamber-pop arrangements and hyper-literary lyrics. But on their last couple of releases, the group has scaled things back a bit. 2011’s The King is Dead was their breeziest, most easy-going album in years—all good cheer and early R.E.M. jangle—and their latest record, 2015’s What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World, picks up from there, with some of the band’s poppiest tunes yet. Behind those lovely sounds there are some seriously conflicted feelings, though. Lead singer Colin Meloy wrote these songs in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook massacre, and many tracks find him writing from an unusually personal, solemn place.
Violent Femmes @ Harley-Davidson Roadhouse, Summerfest, 9:45 p.m.
The term “Milwaukee’s own” has been affixed to countless local bands, but rarely is it used with more pride than when in reference to the Violent Femmes, the most successful, important rock band the city has ever spawned. Few albums have managed to evoke feelings of teenage angst and sexual frustration better than the group’s near-perfect 1983 self-titled debut, a classic that only grows more iconic with each decade. The band nodded to that album’s simple, perky sound on their latest release, this year’s We Can Do Anything, a fun if low-stakes exercise in their signature folk-punk that original members Gordon Gano and Brian Ritchie recorded with Dresden Dolls drummer Brian Viglione. For this tour, John Sparrow has taken over on drum duties.
Cheap Trick @ BMO Harris Pavilion, Summerfest, 9:45 p.m.
Cheap Trick came out of Rockford, Ill., in the mid ’70s but played so often in Milwaukee clubs that they felt like a local band. They were hometown heroes here and throughout the Upper Midwest from Champaign-Urbana through LaCrosse. Their 1977 self-titled debut LP was greeted with jubilation in these parts (even if it sold few copies outside the region) and vindicated a Midwest work ethic of hard-touring, play-every-bar rock ’n’ roll. Though their late-career sales haven’t matched those of some of the other goliaths of their era, Cheap Trick has stood the test of time better than most bands spawned by the ’70s hard-rock movement. Hits kept them popular through the ’80s, and Steve Albini, Nirvana and Weezer kept them relevant well into the ’90s. This spring the band released their 17th and latest album, Bang, Zoom, Crazy… Hello.
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Friday, July 8
Paul McCartney @ Marcus Amphitheater, 8 p.m.
How do you follow a phenomenon like The Beatles? By distancing yourself from them? By trying to top them? For Paul McCartney, the answer was by merely carrying on. In the 40-plus years since separating from the most important band of all time, McCartney has released solo albums in the truest sense of the word (including 1970’s McCartney, recorded entirely alone save for some vocals from his then-wife Linda), started a new band (Wings, which scored a dozen top 10 singles), tried to make the world a better place, and generally carried on like one of the happiest people on the planet. For what might be his final act, the now 74-year-old legend has set out to prove himself on the road, launching a string of high-profile tours. Anybody who saw him at Miller Park three years ago can confirm he’s still got the goods.
Common @ Miller Lite Oasis, Summerfest, 10:15 p.m.
It’s hard to believe it’s been more than a decade since Common released his Kanye West-produced 2005 comeback album Be, a soulful, down-to-Earth record that resuscitated his career following a slump. Since then, life has been good for Common, who became the face of the Gap, a famous guest at the White House and an increasingly visible actor, co-starring in the AMC Western “Hell on Wheels.” His recent albums have focused on low-key pleasures. 2011’s The Dreamer/The Believer and 2014’s Nobody’s Smiling were both strong returns to the smart, socially conscious rap he’s best known for.
Young The Giant @ Uline Warehouse, Summerfest, 10 p.m.
Young The Giant emerged with the right sound at the right time, dropping a self-titled 2010 album filled with giddy, spit-shined alternative rock just as bands like Phoenix and Foster The People were finding success with similar sounds. The group’s 2014 follow-up Mind Over Matter, their first record for the pop-punk label Fueled By Ramen, proved that they were no one-album wonder, though, and next month they’ll release their third record, Home of the Strange. If the lead single "Something to Believe In" is any indication, the group hasn’t lost its ear for hooks.
Saturday, July 9
Weezer and Panic! At The Disco w/ Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness @ Marcus Amphitheater, 7 p.m.
There was a period when many fans shivered at even the thought of a new Weezer album. It seemed that all Rivers Cuomo could do was disappoint fans who were hoping for a return to the confessional songwriting of the group’s Pinkerton-era heyday. After a few years of unfortunate flirtations with pop music, though, Weezer has returned to the simple power-pop formula that worked so well for them on their recent albums, 2014’s anthemic Everything Will Be Alright in The End, and this year’s easygoing self-titled white album. It’s been a rocky ride, but these albums were worth the wait. The band co-headlines this show with Panic! At The Disco, a one-time emo group that has grown ever more pop-minded and experimental under the leadership of Brendon Urie.
Ben Folds @ Briggs & Stratton Big Backyard, Summerfest, 10 p.m.
With the Ben Folds Five abortion ballad “Brick,” Ben Folds scored his first major hit, a baleful departure from his usual goofball piano romps. Ever since, Ben Folds has swung back and forth between “Brick”-like confessionals and uptempo, irreverent silliness. For 2005’s Songs for Silverman, for instance, Folds channeled his inner Elliott Smith, but his 2008 album, Way to Normal, struck a far lighter, sillier tone. Like Elton John, Billie Joel and the other great piano men before him, Folds wants to have it both ways, balladeering while bringing the crowd to its feet. For this show, folds will be joined by the chamber-pop ensemble yMusic to play compositions from their 2015 album So There.
Julien Baker @ Miller Lite Oasis, Summerfest, 8:30 p.m.
The end-of-the-night headliners get most of the attention, but there are a lot of gems hidden in the earlier slots on Summerfest’s schedule. Case in point: Julien Baker, the 20-year-old Memphis singer-songwriter behind one of last year’s most unforgettable albums, Sprained Ankle, a collection of pointed, harrowing folk songs in the naked spirit of Elliott Smith’s first albums. For this one-off show Baker will be opening for one of her idols, Death Cab For Cutie (she offered a beautiful rendition of the band’s “Photobooth” this spring for the A.V. Club’s “Undercover” project).
Sunday, July 10
Ryan Adams and The Shining @ Harley-Davidson Roadhouse, Summerfest, 10 p.m.
Alt-country pioneer Ryan Adams has been typically busy lately. In addition to producing albums by Jenny Lewis and Ethan Johns, he released the latest installment of his 7-inch series, “1984,” a punk affair indebted to the spirit of ’80s independent labels like Dischord and SST, and a sparkling 2014 self-titled that returned him to electric guitars after its sober, primarily acoustic 2011 predecessor Ashes & Fire. But it was his 2015 album 1989 that earned him this most attention. It was a sincere, song-for-song cover of the most recent Taylor swift album, featuring room-silencing renditions of pop-radio hits like “Shake It Off” and “Bad Blood.”
Wednesday, July 13
Swans w/ Okkyung Lee @ Shank Hall, 8 p.m.
Michael Gira led many iterations of his experimental/industrial group Swans throughout its initial 15-year run, so it was only fitting that when he “reunited” the band after a 14-year hiatus for a new album, he did so with a smattering of players who had performed with the band at various points, as well as members of his post-Swans project Angels of Light. The result, 2010’s My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky, was as invigorating, beautiful and frightening as anything Gira had created, and its double-album follow-up The Seer was even better—quite possibly Gira’s most powerful statement yet. Gira followed it up with a similarly towering new double-album, The Glowing Man, which sustains the band’s trademark tension for a remarkable two hours.
