Kudos to bands that stay true to their musical roots. Take new Milwaukee group Participants, for instance. When it came time for the band to record a seven-song debut of lean and impossibly catchy post-punk/indie-rock earlier this year, did they decamp to a state-of-the-art studio and harness the power of digital editing to craft a flawless and glistening product? They did not. Instead, they recorded live, with minimal overdubs, to two-inch tape, and ended up with the raw and ridiculously great Heavy. If you’re in the mood for local music that salutes groups bold old (Fugazi, Sonic Youth) and slightly less old (The Strokes), listen to Heavy NOW:
Participants includes East Seawright on guitar, Mason Mattner on bass, and Tea Clarke on drums. Seawright and Mattner are no strangers to Heavy‘s vibe—the two were members of the band Retoro, which released the excellent Hairlush Boutique in 2022.
Want to see Participants live? You’re in luck! They’ll be performing at the 9th annual Beet Street Harvest Festival, located outside Goodkind and Cactus Club, on Saturday, October 5. After that, the group will play a show in Gary, Indiana on October 17 before heading out on a south/east coast tour.
Also: “These Days” is our favorite track and it’s a perfect late-summer/early-fall song.
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