Figuring I haven’t made full use of my Summerfest credentials, I risked making my primary employer’s head explode and busted out Thursday afternoon to Get Giggy Wit It (patent pending!). With a stocked lineup of famous acts from all across the globe, spanning a multitude of genres, my handy Summerfest guide was like a musical choose-your-own-adventure book. I could have spent my beautiful labor-free afternoon indulging in so many possibilities of entertainment. So what did I do?
Spent four hours watching local bands.
As I breezed through the turnstiles at 2:55 p.m. and speed-walked through the delightfully uncrowded paths – stopping only once to gawk at the most brilliant female mullet I’d ever seen – I managed to approach the Cascio Interstate Music Stage just in time to shoot my Music Notes cohort Kevin Kosterman the familiar “Don’t suck!” grin before his band, Scarlet Escape, launched into an hour-long re-re-re-union set. To my wishes, they did not suck. In fact, it was a very solid set, especially after I’d learned the band only practiced twice in the months leading up to the show. Although it may be biased with Kevin being my friend/co-worker, his steadfast energy and eyeglass-ejecting stage mannerisms livened up the under-attended showcase. Lead singer Joe DePaoli struggled with the vocals at times and, yes, some particulate rust needed to be knocked off early on. But the crowd, featuring Kevin’s father, Don (and his wealth of hip accessories), was treated to an enjoyable and rocking bit of nostalgia by the time Escape let the final notes of closing song, “Dr. Fister” echo into the Playstation 3 trailer-adjacent air.
I stayed glued to the Cascio bleachers as I waited for Sunday Flood, a band comprised of my hometown (Appleton) friends, to take the stage. I wasn’t seated long, as they came to bat a few minutes later and launched me out of my sun-scorched perch with a wave of emotive rock ‘n’ roll. Obviously, there’s no way I can go on without sounding totally partial. Sunday Flood is one of my favorite bands; they’re some of my favorite people; I’ve played with them; I’ve booked them; I’ve accompanied them on the road; I’ve seen them no fewer than 50 times. That all said, I’ve never heard the band sound better than they did Thursday. I have to give credit to the folks on the Cascio sound board for exposing many of the hidden audio accouterments that are usually buried in the mix during the band’s almost-exclusively club/bar show sets. In daylight, outside and with jets periodically flying overhead, I was able to see a band I’ve heard so many times before in a way I never have. Kudos and various other type of granola bar all around.
After hydrating and a brief (and ultimately fruitless) search for shade, I slinked back to the Cascio stage to take in the tail half of Milwaukee’s own Revision Text. Half the band wearing Cascio work uniforms wasn’t the only proof that the indie quintet knew a thing or two about music. The group kept a steadily growing crowd interested with a solid showing, chock full of raucous and layered songs. At times, the depth seemed to detract from the show – bringing a triangle and setting it up, only to strike it once doesn’t seem worth it – with sometimes ill-fitting and dominating organ parts. Other times, such as the five-part acapella harmony employed in one of the last songs in the set, the variety worked masterfully.
I concluded my day of exclusively local music gawking by taking in the first few songs of Milwaukee scene vets and FM102.1 “Band To Watch,” The Wildbirds. Admittedly, I hadn’t seen the Birds in about five years, back when they were trying to shed their Christian rock roots established in the band’s Number One Fan days. The better part of a decade and a nearly completely overhaul of members later, this rendition of the Wildbirds seemed a deserving fit for the sea of bleacher bums and cigarillo-smoking teens attentively gazing toward the U.S. Cellular Stage. Sure, this version of the rebuilt band was a tad … OK, a lot less rowdy than I expected (and wanted). But talent transcends taste, and The Wildbirds made the most of its lofty nest in a late evening slot on a main stage. As the florescent wig-wearing army of Katy Perry fans began to flood the grounds, I took my cue and left the Fest a couple songs into The Wildbirds’ set.
All in all, it was an enjoyable partial day of local music. Plus, that lady’s mullet was pretty awesome.
