Like Fire and Ice? Marcus Amphitheater and Festa

It's that time of year where an ethnic festival will occupy the Summerfest grounds at the same time that a band plays at the Marcus Amphitheater. Poison, Cheap Trick, and Def Leppard will perform on Saturday at the Marcus. At the same time, Festa Italiana will be in full swing. You need separate tickets to attend either event.


Marcus Amphitheater tickets are in large supply for this weekend's show. I suppose that people are taking a moment to regroup before the second half of summer begins. That, or fans of Poison have had their fill. I'm sure that there will be a few dedicated fans that will attend both events. They will grab a meal at Festa, then roll over to the Marcus.

Recap of Summerfest 2009

It was a blurry night for me, once the sun set. I forgot to bring my glasses to Summerfest. I had my prescription shades on when I entered the gates, completely forgetting that I would be at the fest well after the sun would set.

Decapitado was tight, and the sound was dialed in by song number two. It gave me a feeling of pride knowing that these guys are from my home town. When the show was over, I bought a copy of Lean Into It, a tribute to Die Kreuzen. Bionic's version of All White gave me freaking goose bumps.

I didn't want to head over to the M&I stage until Crumpler finished their set. Their sound was even better. Steve Thode is not only a bass master, but joke teller extraordinaire. The fans found him funny, and tight on the bass. Craig Radke is so smooth on the drums, he makes me feel like a novice behind the kit. He forgave me for the cargo shorts comment on my last post. It was all in fun. If anyone can take a ribbing, it's Craig.

The Pabst was flowing, but I chose water. In fact, that was the only thing I bought during my two nights at Summerfest. The parking lot attendant got the most money. I just didn't have a craving for fried food, or meat.

The who's who at Cascio last night included "Bill The Fan," Binky and Marsh of Binky Tunny, and more. Decapitado brings out the local celebs.

My night turned sour when the sun set. I had to take my shades off. In the dark of night, I had to figure out a way to walk blindly to the M&I stage. Elvis Costello was performing there, this way my chance to "see" the legend. I worked the perimeter of the grounds, and got to the stage just one song into his set. Some people say that when one of your senses goes down, the others become more acute. Perhaps that's why I felt that the sound coming off the M&I stage was so horrid. The Elvis Costello mix was the worst I had ever heard in all my years of seeing shows. That includes the 1983 DEVO show at the Oriental theater, when one half of the sound system had completely broken down.

I was standing in front of the sound board. This wasn't a matter of positioning. I was hearing what the engineers were hearing, and that made me angry. The sound coming off that stage was a mushy mixture of vocals, and one guitar. By the fourth song, I gave up on the chance of the sound changing. I squinted my way out of the festival.

Last Thursday, I headed down to the fest for a couple of hours. While there, I spent ten minutes watching Cherry Pie. They captured, and held an enormous crowd. I was amazed. This was the largest crowd I have ever seen for a local cover band. They are great guys, and quite talented, don't get me wrong. I met them at the short lived Milwaukee Oktoberfest. When a cover band can attract thousands of people, you have to wonder about the tastes of Milwaukeeans.

Jazz In The Park, Booze in the Back

Jazz in the park starts this weekend. I envision blankets, baskets, cheese. If you want to drink booze this year, you need to buy it from the vendors nearby. No carry ins allowed this year.
Many of the country's most talented jazz performers will be on stage this summer.

The season opens with The Bonifas Quintet. Bonerama from New Orleans plays on June 11th. If you like harmonica, try Sugar Blue. They perform on June 18th. Pete Carney and Orange Alert play on June 25th. For more dates, feel free to check out the Jazz in The Park link.

Summerfest Bands That I Want to See

I guess that the final Marcus Amphitheater booking has prompted me to look at all the side stage bookings for 2009. What shows do I want to see? I am fired up to see Elvis Costello. He writes such great lyrics. I would enjoy going to Willie Nelson, but probably wouldn't stay for Bob Dylan.

As usual, the Cascio tent has some top-notch local talent on tap. This year, they made it easy for me. (not that they even know I exist) Decapitado, and Crumpler play back to back on July 5th. Yes, those two bands couldn't be more opposite, but a beer break between sets will easily cleanse the pallet.

Summerfest tickets are available online already. I'm waiting it out, to see who wants to go with me. Last year's Cheap Trick show was so packed, that my wife had a panic attack. She may not go with me this year. I have to find a Costello fan that I can drag down to the Summerfest grounds if she won't go with me.

Mixing is Lonely Work

I don't know which is more tedious, rehearsing for an upcoming recording, or mixing the project with the engineer. There are variables to think about when you make that recording. If you lay some live tracks along with the drums, you could have an easier time mixing. You have to be spot on when you play, but you have a better shot of capturing the soul of the band.

We feed off of each other when we play. If you are in a booth, headphones on, tired from doing twenty takes, and you are the only person at the studio aside from the engineer, it's hard to capture the feel of the song. If you and your band mates are all trying their level best to play along together, and the room sounds good, you might capture lighting in a bottle. Just remember that what you record, you have to mix, edit, fix. The more tracks and takes you keep, the more work you will have to do on the back end.

We are feeling that now. Our engineer had the guitar players lay double, and sometimes triple tracks to every song. He had them lay a single acoustic guitar track too. It all has to be mixed, and I'm the guy sitting in the chair behind the sound board right next to the engineer. My mates are off doing whatever. I'm missing out on the spring weather. I'm in the sound hole, making the tracks sound good. I would rather grab some Brewers tickets and head to Miller Park for the game.

There are times when I play along to scratch tracks. Most of us do that. If the scratch tracks are off time, your recording will be off time too. If the guitar player is just slopping along, thinking that this is not their session, it could come back to bite you. "We are recording the drum tracks, not guitar. What do I care."

I have had to play along to uninspired scratch tracks. They can drag you down. Sometimes they have been so bad that I just tell the engineer to play a click track, and I will play the drums to imaginary guitar. The first time I did that, it worked like a charm.

Yes, you must learn to play to a click track. Whether you record to one or not, it may come in handy. If the session is bogged down because your time is not steady, you may be called upon to play to the click. Be ready. Embrace the click. It is your friend.

For the slow numbers, ask the engineer to double up the time on the click track. It's easier to play a 40 b.p.m. song with a click track that's ringing in your head at 80 beats per minute. I don't recall the guy who said this, but it's heavy. He said "Your beats are like the telephone poles along the side of the road. They have to carry the electricity, they have to be spaced perfectly or the wires will drop."

That's all I have for today. Keep beating on the skins.

Playing The Drums With A Wig On My Head

I had a gig last Saturday night. The musicians had to wear costumes. Three of us had to wear wigs. I remember playing a show about 12 years ago, when I wore a Halloween mask. It was harder than I thought it would be. The mask kept sliding down. I couldn't see.

The wig did similar things. It kept getting in my eyes. What was worse were the long strands of hair that would get stuck in my hands. As I hit the drums, the wig would waggle, almost falling off my head.

Between each song, I had to part my hair. That sucked. I missed all the action on stage, because I was blinded by fake blond hair. It was a good thing that I knew the songs inside and out. I just blazed through the tunes, and didn't worry about anything else. The lights were so bright that there was no way to see the fans. I felt like I was playing drums with a well lit, big pile of fur in my face.

Thankfully, we had a dress rehearsal before the show. That's when I found out that it was going to be a tough night. I tried to keep my head still while I played. That kept the flowing hair from getting stuck in my hands. I pulled back some of the hair and tied it. That was a tip that I got from my wife. The show was fantastic. The crowd loved the costumes, and the night went buy in a flash.

To all you musicians out there that are too cool to wear a costume, too cool to try something crazy, try to look at it from the perspective of a fan. If you think that you are too talented to listen to someone else when they say that there should be a visual aspect to the show, I say try it, wear it, do it. You will love the experience, and it will humble you a bit. If you think that your music is all that your fans need to love you, then why do we have lights, smoke, stage shows, and cool rock and roll clothing? It's all part of the package.

I say leave the cargo shorts at home and put on some cool clothes. (Yes, I know someone who wears cargo shorts and sandals on stage) Try something on that shows off your guns. Wear something that is not labeled extra large. Get out there and entertain, on both the musical and visual level.

Bob Dylan to Play Summerfest

Bob Dylan, with Willie nelson will perform at the Marcus Amphitheater on July 1st. Both men bring with them an enormous catalog of music. How these two guys ended up on the same bill, I don't know. I like the mix though.

Willie Nelson has a voice that you just fall into. It's so easy to find yourself hanging on his every word. I don't call it hypnotic, it's more about his rasp. Who else has that rasp?

As for Bob Dylan, too much has already been written about him. I don't need to add my two cents to that massive mountain of musings. Let's just say that co-workers much younger than I really like this guy. His fan base is old, young, black, white, and they will come from far and wide.

Two headliner spots have yet to be announced. If I could make a suggestion, let it be a band that attracts a younger crowd. The same could be said for the side stages. Will we see some cutting edge musical acts this year, or the same old junk? Take a page from Bumbershoot Mr. Smiley.

Here are just a few bands booked for that Seattle Music festival.
Sheryl Crow, Modest Mouse, The All-American Rejects, Katy Perry, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Franz Ferdinand, Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan, De La Soul, Raphael Saadiq, Brett Dennen, Os Mutantes.

Let's compare this to the headliners booked for Summerfest 2009.
Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, Robin Trower, The Offspring, Barenaked Ladies, Buddy Guy, Jason Aldean, Whitesnake, Kevin Rudolph.

Spoof Fest 2009 Fast Approaching

Liquor Sweets will host Spoof Fest 2009. This year, there will be two stages. The music will alternate between stages, with only five minutes break between acts. So many musicians signed up for the show that the event is now spread over two nights.

The acts range from Motorhead, to Britney Spears to Binky Tunny playing Alice Cooper.
Friday night, I would certainly make it there in time to see Alanis Morrisette. No Doubt, King Crimson, and others will be "Spoofed."

Liquor Sweets is located on 3000 S. 13th in good old Milwaukee. This event used to be held at V'nuks, but they have an old hair band booked for that night.

Kansas and "The Symphony" Play the Pabst Theater

I asked my neighbor if she's going to play her violin for Kansas and the The Symphony. She usually gets to play at those touring shows. When The Moody Blues, or Styx come to Milwaukee, she gets the call to play the violin parts for the band. Usually she plays along with a group of ten, or up to thirty violinists. This time, if she wants to see the band, she will have to buy a Pabst Theater ticket. She did not get the call to play. When I asked her about it, her husband smirked. Apparently, everyone has been asking her about it.

Kansas will be playing with a Symphony Orchestra. The Pabst Theater is a small venue. I would expect to see the symphony at the back of the stage. They will probably put them on risers too.

Kansas should have great acoustics when they play at the Pabst Theater. The venue is almost round in nature, instead of being rectangular. Even when you sit in the balcony, you feel like you are directly above the artists on the stage. The date for that show is April 11th. Just think, you could start your day off at Miller Park, and then head over to the Pabst Theater. It's sad to think that she won't be playing the cool violin part to Dust In The Wind.