Wye Oak- Turner Hall Ballroom, 5/14/14

The Baltimore duo of Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack, better known as Wye Oak, proved to be on their A game when they rocked the Turner Hall Ballroom.  The duo's set drew heavily from their latest release, Shriek.  The album finds the duo branching out their sound more using synthesizers, electronic arrangements, and Wasner playing the bass for the majority of the tracks.  This record may be their most accessible to date and translated great live.  In addition, the band rocked out several tunes from their earlier releases, especially 2011's Civillian.  Highlights included the Sonic Youth inspired, "Holy Holy," as well as newer tracks, "Shriek," and their finale, "Logic of Color."

photo courtesy of Turner Hall

photo courtesy of Turner Hall

James Vincent McMorrow- Turner Hall, 3/28/14

In many ways, Milwaukee seems like a second home town for James Vincent McMorrow. Thanks in large part to 88.9 Radio Milwaukee, McMorrow has become somewhat of a household name among Milwaukee music fans and his two records, Early in the Morning, and this year's  Post Tropical have received much local acclaim.  Playing to a capacity crowd at Turner Hall, McMorrow delivered a solid set, showcasing his signature falsetto and sweeping sonic arrangements.  However, the show seemed a little flat.  I'm not sure if it was the lack of banter between tracks, or perhaps the fact that I had last seen McMorrow several years ago at Mad Planet opening for the Rural Alberta Advantage, and the packed Turner Hall Ballroom was too large of a space for him.  At any rate, I seemed in the minority of fans who didn't think the show was superb.  As a songwriter, McMorrow continues to branch out and expand his repertoire.  He certainly has engaged and expanded his fan base here in town.

Blitzen Trapper and Drive By Truckers- Turner Hall Ballroom, 3/26/14

Few acts that I've seen in recent years have been more consistent than Blitzen Trapper in delivering a strong live performance.  The Oregon based band has their own take on roots Americana rock and it works well. This band continues to grow as a live act and perform their jangly tunes with tight precision.  Material off of their mos recent record, VII came across great live, and might  be some of their best work since their break-through 2008 release, Furr.

Photo courtesy of Turner Hall

Drive By Truckers is one of those acts that has been on my radar for years.  While I wish to a great extent that I saw them with Jason Isabell in the band, this line-up proved to be much tighter than I expected. The Drive By Truckers were certainly a darker, more brooding act compared to Blitzen Trapper. Their southern rock sound often was coupled with darker lyrics and strong harmonies.  There is a certain amount of brute bar rock found in the Truckers that makes me liken them more to the Hold Steady than some of their southern contemporaries.  Set opener, "3 Dimes Down" from 2008's Brighter Than Creations Dark got the show off on a strong note.  Moreover, material off of their 2014 release, English Oceans played well live, as did older tracks like "Girls Who Smoke," which got the crowd more engaged.

Photo courtesy of Turner Hall

Photo courtesy of Turner Hall

• 1. 3 Dimes Down 
  2. When He's Gone 
  3. Sounds Better in the Song 
  4. Heathens 
  5. Primer Coat 
  6. The Part of Him 
  7. Til He's Dead or Rises 
  8. Pauline Hawkins 
  9. Women Without Whiskey 
  10. Feb 14 
  11. Hearing Jimmy Loud 
  12. Ronnie and Neil 
  13. 72 (This Highway's Mean) 
  14. Lookout Mountain 
  15. Made Up English Oceans 
  16. Girls Who Smoke 
  17. Birthday Boy 
  18. Hell No, I Ain't Happy 
  19. Encore:
  19. Shit Shots Count 
  20. Buttholeville 
  21. Zip City 
  22. Grand Canyon 

Ratdog- Riverside Theater, 5/8/14

Backed by as strong line-up of virtuoso musicians, Bob Weir and Ratdog returned to Milwaukee for their first show in several years. Weir has had somewhat of a revival as an artist, collaborating with all sorts of different acts recently ranging from Wilco to The National.  Ratdog's show was a night of good ol' tunes and jams.  The first set was excellent.  The second meandered a bit, but definitely left the crowd with happy with their fix of jams and Dead covers.  The line-up of musicians Weir assembled, especially the guitar work of Kimock and upright bass by Wasserman provided some new takes on older tunes.

Line up:
Bob Weir- vocals/guitar
Rob Wasserman- upright bass
Robin Sylvester- bass
Jay Lane- drums/percussion
Steve Kimock- guitars
Jeff Chimenti- keyboards

Bobby in his manpris and birks

Kimock and Bobby

photos courtesy of GigShots by Stephen Bloch

Set List:

I: Jam > Playin in the Band > Cold Rain and Snow > I Need a Miracle, Ashes and Glass, Brown-Eyed Women, My Brother Esau, Sugaree > Deal

II: Peggy-O@, Fever@, Victim or the Crime@, Cassidy > Estimated Prophet > Playin in the Band (reprise) > Stuff > Dear Prudence > One More Saturday Night

E: U.S. Blues
@= solo acoustic tune

Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings- Pabst Theater, 3/6/14

With cancer in remission, Sharon Jones brought her energetic, charismatic presence to the Pabst Theater.  Backed with a band of all-star soul musicians and back up singers, Jones engaged the crowd with a two hour performance.  Highlights included a rocking rendition of "100 Days" and a dance segment where Jones busted out moves from an earlier era with tremendous gusto.

photo courtesy of GigShots by Stephen Bloch