Sleeping in the Aviary

Though the Boston Phoenix isn’t by any means the final word on the Midwest music scene, the publication rated Madison’s Sleeping in the Aviary as the best new band in Wisconsin. Sleeping in the Aviary is an inspired choice for the honor, a group that plays some of the catchiest guitar-pop in the region, drawing from the tuneful, garage-punk of The Clean and The Buzzcocks. “If Conor Oberst knew how to throw a party,” the Phoenix wrote, “this is the type of music that might break out before the sheriff shows up.” The group is playing behind their 2008 album Expensive Vomit in a Cheap Hotel and their recent 7-inch split with another Madison ensemble, The Hussy.