Created: Friday, 17 August 2007  -  Written by Mike Walczak   -  

   For the second year in a row, Summerfest was lucky enough to escort Guster to the grounds. Playing to one of the largest audiences I had ever seen at Summerfest, the band entered the stage [welcomed by a thousand adoring fans] one minute before the scheduled ten o’clock start. With Ryan’s opening words of “Good Evening Milwaukee, Wisconsin,” Guster immediately engulfed the audience with their first song.      The hilarious Ryan kept the crowd entertained with constant inside joke references, to name a few: Major Goolsby’s, Toby Keith and Mr. Restrained Cowbell boy. This band definitely aims to please an ...

Created: Monday, 13 August 2007  -  Written by Mike Walczak   -  

   "A Night with Jacks Mannequin"Reviewed by Mike WalczakShow on 06/28/07 OFFICIAL RATING: 3.5/4     When preparing for a show performed by a band I knew little about, I was uncertain of where I should begin. I could try to download as many songs as possible and play them over again until I find myself eating, drinking and sleeping to the beat of their tunes, or I could simply ask friends what they knew about the band. When it came down to it, I chose the route of listening to their music. For two days straight I listened to nothing ...

Created: Monday, 13 August 2007  -  Written by Ryan Eberson   -  

I would have to say that thus far in my concert reviewing “career”, this concert was the most interesting in so much as the dichotomy I felt was struck between hearing the band perform live and their studio work. On the one hand, I have always enjoyed the All-American Rejects ever since I was first captivated by the “Move Along” music video I saw on MTV oh so long ago. You know the one – with the camera moving quickly through dozens of different frame shots of Tyson Ritter in different clothes and situations as his mouth seemed to sing ...

Created: Sunday, 29 June 2008  -  Written by Mike Walczak   -  

An Evening with Stevie WonderBy Mike Walczak    Although its has been well over a decade since Stevie Wonder last paid Milwaukee a visit, his passion for his music certainly has not dampened.     Coming onto the stage on June 26th, escorted by his daughter Aisha, Wonder first addressed the crowd, “I feel honored that your state would give me the honor of being in our Summerfest. It’s been a long time since I’ve been here. Too long.” Responding in a roar of cheer, it was quite clear that no one in attendance would dispute that statement.    Without wasting any time, ...

Created: Monday, 13 August 2007  -  Written by Mike Walczak   -  

Augustana Review“I think I’ll go to Milwaukee”  Reviewed by Mike WalczakShow Date: 07/06/07OFFICIAL RATING: 2.9/4Although I had heard of the band Augustana prior to seeing their show, I really only knew one song; “Boston.”  As the band entered the stage twelve minutes late (a ten o’clock scheduled time), they began their first song.  Following a suit of many bands before them, lyrics were adjusted to include “Milwaukee;’ a simple, yet effective way to get a response from the crowd. The crowd itself was rather small for a headliner band. Of all the concerts I have attended thus far at Summerfest, ...

Created: Monday, 27 July 2009  -  Written by Mike Hallberg   -  

The Barenaked Ladies came out strong during their concert on Saturday at the Briggs. Full of energy, they played quite a plethora of songs ranging from some of their first ones to their newest songs that are currently being recorded for their new CD. Within minutes they had the crowd dancing and singing along. The band was clearly having a fun time and everybody there could tell. The place went wild as they played “One Week,” one of their most popularized songs. All in all it was a great performance.

Created: Monday, 13 August 2007  -  Written by Matt Mathias   -  

You would think an accredited media credential would be enough to get anyone backstage at Summerfest, but no. Apparently, only skanky groupies are given that honour. After being turned away by the power-tripping head of security, my partner-in-crime, Kevin Hogan, and myself positioned ourselves amidst the growing crowd filled with a mixture of the older Blue Öyster Cult fan base and the younger generation, so starved for good, quality music in this era of MTV boy bands and corporate sell-out money makers that they look back to the golden age of rock n’ roll for inspiration and genuine musical talent. ...

Created: Monday, 13 August 2007  -  Written by Tyler Anderson   -  

As Kevin and I roamed the Summerfest grounds for our final day of concert reviewing, I couldn’t help but realize that I didn’t feel as excited for this concert as I did for any of the others. We meandered about, wandering from stage to stage until ending up at the US Cellular rock stage to listen to Matchbox Romance, a band Kevin recognized (though beyond that knew nothing). The band was decent, but the real amusement came from the giant video screen people could send text messages to (although mostly mindless gibber-jabber, I did get a kick out of one ...

Created: Monday, 13 August 2007  -  Written by Corey Lee   -  

Earlier during Summfest 2006, hip-hop artist Common tore down the Harley Roadhouse stage with a hot performance. R&B sensation, Chris Brown, definitely topped Common’s performance.   On the evening of Friday July 7, 2006, R&B’s hottest new artist gave Milwaukee their money’s worth and showed everyone how he was ‘running it’ in the R&B music industry. All around the stage was jammed pack; it was hard to see exactly how huge the crowd was because I was in the middle of it, but I know for a fact that it enormous because it took forever to leave the stage after ...

Created: Monday, 13 August 2007  -  Written by Tyler Anderson   -  

The Harley Davidson Roadhouse stage was definitely live on the evening of June 29, 2006.   Hip-hop star Common graced the city of Milwaukee with his presence last Thursday night. Bringing in a very diverse crowd, a crowd that is the most diverse that I’ve ever seen at one stage, Common performed one of the most entertaining shows that I’ve seen at Summerfest. Although there were many big name headliners competing with the Summerfest crowd Thursday night, Common brought in an immeasurable number of spectators that had been saving their seats for numerous hours.  Common, born in Chicago, ...