Our fat-free, dolphin-safe Milwaukee events calendar is chock-full of things to do, but only a handful of events are worthy of the lofty honor of “Record Recommended” (patent pending). Here are our recommendations for August 12-18, 2019.
MONDAY, AUGUST 12
Shot For Shot With Chefs Episode 3 Premiere @ The Cooperage
Join us for the premiere of the THIRD Shot For Shot With Chefs episode, featuring The Tandem owner/chef Caitlin Cullen! We’ll screen the new video at sundown, then talk about the parts we can remember from that drunken night of fast friendship, trick bottle opening, and crazy consumption of beer and rye whiskey. Bofferding USA—the official beer of Shot For Shot With Chefs—will have its delicious Brune on special all night long, and you can expect some specialty cocktails from spirit sponsor Great Northern Distilling as well. This 21+ event is FREE.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 13
Chill On The Hill: NO/NO + Immortal Girlfriend, Kinsella Academy Of Irish Dance @ Humboldt Park
Search the stratosphere for stellar Milwaukee music and you’ll find NO/NO. In the past five years, the new wave-y synth-rock outfit has dished up a number of defining moments: a pair of cool and sexy EPs in 2014, a Best Milwaukee Album of the Year in 2016’s Sound And Light (home to the towering “Whatever”), and a delectable Dashcam-produced EP in 2017’s Twentysomethings. To listen to NO/NO’s records was a treat; to see them live was a blast. They were the best. (You’ll notice we keep using the past tense. That’s because, sadly, NO/NO, will soon call it quits. But, happily, not before releasing a second full-length album, Diagnostic, due August 30 on Gloss Records.)
Sinbad @ Potawatomi Northern Lights Theater (Through August 17)
Skyline Music Series: Paul Cebar @ Kadish Park
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14
NEWaukee Night Market @ The Avenue
The NEWaukee Night Market is great. Wanna check out tons of vendors, tons of entertainers, and tons of fellow Milwaukeeans? Wanna activate the hell out of downtown Milwaukee? Wanna gaze upon the demolished entrance to the old Grand Avenue mall? Here’s your chance. Pray for nice weather.
Horace Greene + Arclight, Modern Joey, Fuzzysurf @ Cactus Club
THURSDAY, AUGUST 15
Milwaukee Irish Fest @ Henry Maier Festival Park
If the blur of whisky, corned beef, and green beer every mid-March isn’t enough Irish heritage for you, Irish Fest strives to extend the celebration into August. Attendees milling about the Summerfest grounds can imbibe in popular Irish fare and enjoy a heft of Irish and Celtic music from dozens upon dozens of acts (both North American and European), including Gaelic Storm and the trusty Red Hot Chilli Pipers. (Through August 18.)
Wilson Center Guitar Festival @ Sharon Lynne Wilson Center
Since 2013, Sharon Lynn Wilson Center has hosted and organized a celebration of all things guitar. Wilson Center Guitar Festival features live competitions (with $40,000 in prizes) and headliner concerts with performances from international talent. New this year, the competitions have expanded to five genres: blues, classical, fingerstyle, jazz, and rock. (Through August 17.)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel A La Carte @ Milwaukee County Zoo
What do you get when you combine the Milwaukee County Zoo, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, food from around the city, and live music? The annual and ever-popular “Feast with the Beasts,” that’s what. Finally, a chance to chow down on some local food, take in some local music, and watch monkeys quietly groom themselves all at the same time. (Through August 18.)
Sex Scenes + Fire Heads (split record release) @ High Dive
The Alarm + Modern English, Gene Loves Jezebel @ Turner Hall Ballroom
Blind Fiction (record release) @ Anodyne Walker’s Point
People In Trouble + Jab Jugular, Nuclear Family! @ X-Ray Arcade
FRIDAY, AUGUST 16
Friday Nite Music: Mark Waldoch @ Colectivo Lakefront Cafe
After a successful first summer installment in 2018, Colectivo has once again called on Milwaukee Record to put together the 2019 edition of Friday Nite Music. Every Friday night in June, July, and August, we’re bringing you a different Wisconsin singer-songwriter or band outside Colectivo’s Lakefront Cafe from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. This week, the free, all-ages concert series features the incomparable Mark Waldoch. Chances of hearing Waldoch’s voice all the way over at Irish Fest? High. BE THERE.
Ravi/Lola (record release) + Wavy V, The Old Northwest @ Linneman’s Riverwest Inn
Let’s just get this out of the way: Milwaukee psychedelic band Ravi/Lola has a new album called Neighborhood Daydream. The album contains a song about Milwaukee historian John Gurda. We’ve heard it, and it’s amazing. Seriously. There’s a line that goes “He was probably taking notes in his mother’s womb.” And there’s a whistling breakdown. Incredible. Go to this show.
The Great American Lobster Fest @ Fiserv Forum
The largest lobster and seafood festival in the Midwest finally makes its way to Milwaukee. Finally! Buckle up for food, drinks, live music, family-friendly activities, and, of course, “live lobster flown in fresh from the cold waters of the East Coast.” (Through August 18.)
James Nares’ Street + Thurston Moore @ Oriental Theatre
SistaStrings + Flora, Ammorelle @ Company Brewing
Nineteen Thirteen @ The Jazz Estate
SATURDAY, AUGUST 17
IndiaFest @ Humboldt Park
Authentic (and delicious) Indian food, authentic (and colorful) Indian outfits, and authentic (and terrific) Indian music dominate this summer celebration in Bay View’s Humboldt Park. Launched in 2013, IndiaFest is one of the newer cultural fests on the block, but its low-key vibe and inclusive spirit has already made it a favorite. Will there be some Bollywood-inspired dancing? You better believe it.
Fat Fest @ Crafty Cow
Bay View’s Crafty Cow once again takes over a block of Lenox Street just off Kinnickinnic Avenue for the delightful Fat Fest. Formerly a June event, the fest is now a mid-August affair. Expect plenty of beer, plenty of Crafty Cow food, plenty of other food, and plenty of top-shelf Milwaukee music.
Gauche + L’Resorts, Dogs In Ecstasy @ Cactus Club
Flatfoot 56 + Whiskey Of The Damned, Criminal Kids @ Walker’s Point Music Hall
Lady Cannon + Band Of Dust, Fuzzysurf @ Shank Hall
SUNDAY, AUGUST 18
King Myles + Yogie B & Keez, Eddie Jame$, Trashman Shunny, Mo’City, Mayyh3m, Jaecar, Max Traffic @ Cactus Club
Remember when King Myles and Trashman Shunny did that “Christian Yelich” song? Hell yeah.