Milwaukee is chock full of things to do, but only a handful of Milwaukee events are worthy of the lofty honor of “Record Recommended” (patent pending). Here are our recommendations—brought to you by Lilliput Records—for July 1-7, 2024.
MONDAY, JULY 1
MC Chris + Crunk Witch @ X-Ray Arcade
“MC Chris is running it back with the ‘I Thought The Last Tour Was The Last Tour’ Tour…catch him one last time, until next time (???).”
Frail Body + MooseCreek Park, Tiny Voices, Bug Moment @ Cactus Club
TUESDAY, JULY 2
Delicious Monsters + Autogramm, Lavish Waste, DJ Ken Dirtnap @ Cactus Club
“Delicious Monsters is the freshly christened band in town drawing energy from punk and dosed with the musicality of New Wave. DeMo is a straight shot of energy for fans of The B52’s mixed with a wiry interjection of art punk. Featuring members of Fuck of Seagulls, Uh-Oh, YKK, Resurrectionists, Peroxide, and Gorilla Knifefight, this is a band that has tried and true musicians ready to make you bounce around with no questions asked. If abstract stories and equality of people strike a chord with you, then you will be additionally enthralled.”
Chill On The Hill @ Humboldt Park
Adjy + Jagalchi, Okay Omen, Royal Mill (solo) @ X-Ray Arcade
WEDNESDAY, JULY 3
Snag + Satón, Greed Worm, Courtesy @ Cactus Club
“Milwaukee’s Snag came from crisis and anxiety. Environmental, economic, existential—their music represents the full-throated terror of living in a world that seems to have no regard for its own future.”
THURSDAY, JULY 4
Summerfest Weekend 3 @ Henry Maier Festival Park (through July 6)
This is it! The final weekend of Summerfest 2024! Big amphitheater headliners include AJR (with Carly Rae Jepsen!), Maroon 5, and Lil Uzi Vert. Out on the grounds, look for groups like The Wallflowers, Cold War Kids, Extreme, BoDeans (natch), and many more.
FRIDAY, JULY 5
Waco Brothers + Jon Langford and Alice Spencer of the Bright Shiners @ Vivarium
“Shaking off the plague days like a snake sheds its skin the Waco Brothers stumble out of the empty, burning desert with a fierce thirst and an epic new album: The Men That God Forgot. It’s the first collection of original Waco tunes since 2016’s Going Down In History, and comes to you via their own label Plenty Tuff Records.”
Haunter + Rain Recordings, Hill View #73, So Zuppy @ Cactus Club
Black Cat Rising: Motherwind @ Black Cat Alley
Friday Night Retro Dance Party: DJ Paul H @ Mad Planet
SATURDAY, JULY 6
Bristol Renaissance Faire @ off I-94 at the IL/WI border (weekends, through September 2)
The Bristol Renaissance Faire, founded in 1973 and located in the village of Bristol in Kenosha County, just shy of the Wisconsin-Illinois border, seeks to recreate a summer day in 1574 when Queen Elizabeth paid a visit to the port city of Bristol, England. There’s jousting and fire juggling. There’s a “mud show” and a “vegetable justice” guy you can pelt with tomatoes as he insults you. There’s outdoor mass. There’s axe throwing and a rope ladder game that’s absolutely impossible. There’s a rat and cat show! There’s beer! There are turkey legs and costumes and cosplay and music and rides and, yes, bosoms.
Tea Eater + Large Print @ Cactus Club
The Kid LAROI, glaive, Chase Shakur @ The Rave/Eagles Club
The Great American Punchline @ Diercks Hall, MSOE
Y2K! All 2000s Dance Party!!! @ Mad Planet
SUNDAY, JULY 7
Fiddlehead + Graham Hunt, Bad Beat @ X-Ray Arcade
“Formed with the most modest of expectations, Fiddlehead has unexpectedly become one of the most vital groups in rock music. Their fervent audience responds to the urgency of their music, but also the intensely human exploration of loss that’s colored so much of the band’s output. Fiddlehead’s previous albums, 2018’s Springtime And Blind and 2021’s Between The Richness, dealt heavily with grief from different perspectives, and now their latest album, Death Is Nothing To Us, feels like a de facto culmination, drawing together many of the catalog’s through-lines sonically and lyrically.”
Café Sopra Mare: Heinzel Kunzman @ Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum
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