Success for Sigrid

On this cooler autumn night at Madison Majestic Theatre things are about to heat up with the introduction of international star, “Sigrid”.

For any act it is key to make a name for yourself in your country before perusing further afield.  However, Norwegian native, “Sigrid” is one of them few rare acts that has exploded up around the world after her debut album, “Sucker Punch” went viral on the market receiving a warm reception from fans and critics across the board as a well produced feel good record. Although it might feel rushed it was only natural to tour the record to as many countries as possible, for example tonight’s show in the Midwest of America was sold out a week in advance.

The support for the tour and tonight’s show is a New York based musician called, “Raffaella”. An impressive and enjoyable but short set from the new comer seen her win over the entire crowd, from the first track “Bruce Willis” to last track, “Sororicide”.  It will be really exciting to see her develop as an artist beyond her current debut EP.

As the venue was full and backing band in place it was time for the hits to fly as “Sigrid” came out fighting into song one, “Sucker Punch”. From that moment the crowd were hooked and even singing along to most songs, some were even word for word. The power that this artist has had on the local crowd at this show alone is impressive and resonates a lot to the future career. The show included most of her debut album performed perfectly with a cheeky smile never leaving her face. This was a show to remember from a legend that has begun. Next stop in Madison will be The Slyvee, guaranteed.

Weathering Well

The electronic atmospheric music wizard ‘Tycho’, aka Scott Hanson has launched himself into unknown territory with his fifth album, “Weather”. The new album is a dramatic step forward as it features vocals from ‘Saint Sinner’; this is uncharted waters for Scott as he has only previously released instrumental bodies of work. However, it seems that the change of direction has proven a big step forward for the artist; both fans and critics have fully supported the artist as the sound has grown along with the venue sizes.  I believe this could be the tipping point for Scott to become the next global phenomenon DJ if he would so choose to continue this trajectory. 

Naturally, the show must travel just like the “Weather”. Luckily for me one of the shows of the world tour landed in my city, Madison, Wi. The support act ‘Poolside’ excited the crowd enough before ‘Tycho’ and his live band step forward from the shadows. Starting off with a classic song of “Awake” energized the crowd into ‘Tycho’s’ mantra. Although there was little communication from the artist to fans they were rolling through the ‘Tycho’ discography with ease. It truly was an visual and audio pleasures to witness the music come alive in this perfect atmosphere.

 

Felicidades Los Dells

 Congratulations Los Dells for another fantastic and ever expanding festival.

Now into its third year this ever expanding festival features music from across the Latin music spectrum and beyond. This year’s headline acts, playing across Saturday and Sunday were global touring musicians, ‘Logic’ and ‘Ozuna’.  Both acts delivered on their headlining position, closing out the festival with a bang.

Elsewhere across the festival the fiesta continued across four stages with giveaways, art displays and food all promoting Latino and South American culture. Hidden away in an idyllic little town of Mauston did not stop guests travelling from across the Midwest and beyond to taken in ‘Los Dells’. Many of the other artists played to their hearts delight receiving with all artists receiving a warm welcome on stage. Highlights for me came from ‘Fuego’ who rapped his way through a great set and ‘Ximena Sarinana’ who lead the party with her hits. It was also a pleasure to be invited to two bonus sets on Friday night pre festival to see a neat warm up show.

Overall, the festival is very much still in its infancy with a light attendance record and few art/food places to actually check out it left some people feeling empty, especially when the charge for a two day ticket is roughly $159. With that being said it is a relaxed and holistic festival that showcases the best Latino acts worldwide, festivals are very costly to set up these days so the cost reflects that. Personally I would absolutely recommend this festival as one to experience; hopefully as it grows it will be the staple to end the summer time fun in the Wisconsin Dells. 

Now enjoy a short picture gallery of the weekend...

 

Enter through the Lotus Gate

Welcome to the growing world of 'Kainalu' as we step through the 'Lotus Gate' into his lost world. After following the artist 'Kainalu' aka Trent for a couple of years now, I have seen his impact and music grow organically in the local scene. It has been a joy to soak in his soft hypnotic rhythms at every live show and to finally see him release his first body of work, the album 'Lotus Gate'. This eight track album/EP showcases his best work to date and has already been getting national attention, being compared to 'Tame Impala' & 'Tycho' to name a few. It was amazing to see him pull in a great crowd to watch him release this audio baby into the world at the High Noon Saloon on the 20th of June. 

Starting the night off was a funky foursome from Minnesota that went down a storm on the unsuspecting crowd. They fired through songs of their debut album and new EP, 'Glow' including the very catchy 'SMS' making sure everyone was involved with their grove. As the crowd grew so did their energy as they made a great impression for this first ever successful Madison show.

With that said most people were here to watch the rise of 'Kainalu' putting out all the stops to make this not just a show but an experience everyone can feel from start to finish. From older songs 'Folds Like  Origami' to newer ones, 'Lotus Gate' you are drawn through the 'Louts Gate' into the open yet peaceful world of 'Kainalu'. Trent and his amazing live band delivered a mesmerizing set full of highs, my personal favorite from the night was, 'How Do I Let Go Of You' receiving rapturous applause from everyone present. To me the set and his album are not just a bunch of songs they are full pieces of art flowing with passion and charged energy. It will be exciting to see where his path goes next, now I invite you to step through the Louts Gate and get lost in this secret world.

Always A Day To Remember

I could be biased but 'A Day To Remember' are one of the coolest band on the planet. They have become one of them rare bands to rise from their own scene, "metal" and create a unique sound which appeals to everyone. From the heavy breakdowns to soothing ballads, singalongs to all round fun guys. This was the third time seeing the band but first time headlining their own show and it seriously was headline worthy.

The day for us started with some drinks in the sun and food at 'The Old Distillery' which could do with some improvement when it comes to food, it was either bland or overpowered garlic, but $3 beer is always helpful. Once we finished up all fresco we took the small walk to The Slyvee, still in its infancy as a venue but certainly not from the acts that have come through the doors, selling out shows every week it seems! Tonight was no different with the 'Raising Hell In The Heartland' tour. 

The first band to start the show was a UK band, 'Boston Manor', who I have interviewed many moons ago on a street in my home town, it is good to see how far they have come. There show reflected that ethos as well, working as a tight knit group of brothers playing passionate radio friendly rock. Second support tonight was, 'Knocked Loose' a raw energetic bunch of guys looking to cause trouble. Their sound is heavy and rough around the edges, not something i can get into live but okay to have briefly on a playlist.

Then it was time for the show to get kicked up a notch! From the get go, 'ADTR' were not going to take this tour/set lightly, they went all out playing hit after hit from their full discography. What excited me most was the amount of tracks they played off their official debut album, 'Homesick' an amazing and ever playable album to play on full. The band had everyone in the small venue captivated and on board with letting loose, giving out t-shirts, getting a fan on stage for their birthday and an emotional acoustic sing along for good measure. The show was one of the most memorable I have ever been to and I was drunk! Thanks to 'ADTR' for giving us a night to remember. 

 

Famous Last Words from The Annex

The mid west is hotting up this summer season, there are lots of huge shows for 2019 coming through the Madison area, especially at The Annex/Red Zone which recently saw, 'Famous Last Words' grace the doors. 

Celebrating the 10th anniversary as a band, 'Famous Last Word' lead vocalist (JT) feels "like [it has been] a long road, that has tested" him but still would not give up the feeling of writing music, being on the road and playing to crowds of fans. JT's passion for music started with the discovery of musicals and continues to adore them to this day, "my favorite musical would be a hard one to pick but one that inspired one of our albums was Phantom of the Opera". Just like the dramatic production of musicals, JT likes to ramp up the adrenaline when putting on their own show.

The show at The Annex was no small show, housing six bands on one stage. The local openers were 'Waiting For Reason' & 'Of Brighter Skies' two strong acts that I will be checking out in the near future as they made their presence known. The start of the travelling acts was, 'At My Mercy' a very young band both physically and on the scene they sound like they are still finding their sound and stride but a valiant effort. 

The next support was looking to steal the show, 'Awake At Last' arrived with their huge hooks and chorus, similar to the likes of early 'Set It Off' and later 'Slaves'. We spoke to the front man (Vincent) about what makes the band tick. "The music [we play] comes from us as a band wanting change, we want people to do the same as us, to follow their dreams, to keep pushing themselves froward, to hopefully make the world a better place." Like the last few words dictated, they are not about changing little things they want to make a big difference to a lot of people, not just from the music but though their live shows as well, "the real connection with our music is through the live shows, where we can hopefully build a movement". They more than proved that with their set tonight, although it was short they delivered on every level connecting with a lot of fans.

The final support act to play was the veterans called, 'Dayshell' a well rehearsed show drawing in a large crowd, as per usual they delivered a great set. Then it was time for the headliners, 'Famous Last Words' to wrap the show up with a career spanning montage of scream along tracks. It will not be long again before they are ready to rock the stage as they will be back here in August for another hot show with Oh, Sleeper. 

There is only one thing i can say, with these famous last words... it would be, pre-order Awake At Last debut album, out June 25th!

A Believer of Brat Fest.

The World Famous Brat Fest returns to the sacred grounds of Alliant energy center for a fun weekend for all the family. Thankfully, the weekend remained dry and warm for the thousands that came to eat up their brats with all profits going to local charities, they managed to sell upwards of 200,000. Awesome figures, as always there was also a large number of attendees at the site as well as Brats at work day, again raising so much money for amazing causes.

As well as the great brats there is the great music of local and national talent. Due to working I was only able to soak in the Friday highlights. A band that I have wanted to see for a while, Smashmouth headlined the main stage of the night bringing everyone together in a mass singalong. Although the band has gotten older since their nineties and naughtiest fame, they did not bring out an old act. They played an exciting show full of energy, delivering tracks from their whole back catalog, as well as some fresh new sounds. The highlight from the night was the double singalong whammy from, 'I'm A Believer' & 'Allstar'. With the famous Shrek song of believer bringing in a flash mob of people dressed up as Shrek characters. This will be a night families will remember together until next year.