After selling out Club Garibaldi in September of last year, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros have made the jump to bigger venues. The group will play the Pabst Theater on Monday, June 7th. Supporting them will be another MoB favorite, Dawes.

+Bookmark our upcoming shows page for all your concert announcements+

If you’ve been to the South By Southwest Music Festival in Austin before you know the drill. Sore feet, bags under the eyes, hearing slightly damaged, voice lacking from talking over loud music constantly, slight hangover, and mandatory delays on your travel home are all some of the guarantees that attendees put themselves through. What could possibly make humans put themselves through such perils? What bands would be willing to endure days worth of driving and unimaginable parking hassles for the chance of playing in front of an unknown audience that chances are doesn’t know anything about your band. Simple, a mutual love of music by both artist and attendee.

I’ve spent many a nights in Austin. Had some of the best times of my life there. I’ve discovered some of my favorite bands there out of absolute obscurity. Each time, I come home with a huge smile on my face thinking back on fresh memories and ears fresh with new favorites. This was a landmark year for the blog in that we threw ourselves in the proverbial black hole of day parties and found out what works, what doesn’t and what we’ll carry forth next year in our planning process. I can’t go any farther without thanking each and every band that performed at our Thursday showcase at Habana Calle 6. I was supremely impressed with the musical talent found both withing my hometown and Milwaukee and the rest of the bands on the bill. From there, I huge thank you to MindPool Live, MillerCoors, Koss, and Songs to Synch for helping the process. A final hat tip to my friends at Radio Milwaukee for immersing themselves into the festival for the first time and bringing back home some wonderful coverage for all of us to enjoy.

Underground:

11:00 – Peter Wolf Crier (mp3)
12:00 – Blair (mp3)
1:00 – Charlie Parr (video)
2:00 – Invade Rome (video)
3:00 – Juniper Tar (mp3)
4:00 – Roadside Graves (mp3)

Patio:

11:00 – Group of the Altos (myspace)
12:00 – Conrad Plymouth (mp3)
1:00 – Strand of Oaks (mp3)
2:00 – Common Loon (mp3)
3:00 – Pezzettino (video)
4:00 – Kings Go Forth (listen)

We have a bunch more audio, video, and photos coming for you along with our favorite performances from the festival. Stay tuned, and drop a comment letting us know what bands you enjoyed at this year’s festival.

Photos: Matt Schwenke

Here are the Wisconsin and Illinois shows we recommend you take in this week. Check them out below and let us know which ones you’ll be attending or ones you think should really make our list.

Upcoming Shows:

3/23 – Vampire Weekend – Riverside Theater (MILWAUKEE)
3/24 – Abe Vigoda – Project Lodge (MADISON)
3/24 – Black Rebel Motorcycle Club – High Saloon (MADISON)
3/24 – Air – Riviera Theatre (CHICAGO)
3/25 – Black Rebel Motorcycle Club – Metro (CHICAGO)
3/25 – Bob Schneider – Shank Hall (MILWAUKEE)
3/25 – Paul Cebar & Tomorrow Sound – High Noon Saloon (MADISON)
3/25 – Roman Candle + Locksley – Schubas (CHICAGO)
3/25 – Vampire Weekend – Chicago Theatre (CHICAGO)
3/25 – Cowboy Junkies – Turner Hall Ballroom (MILWAUKEE)
3/26 – Cowboy Junkies – Majestic Theatre (MADISON)
3/26 – Aaron Fox & the Reliable – Elbo Room (CHICAGO)
3/26 – Black Rebel Motorcycle Club – Turner Hall Ballroom (MILWAUKEE)
3/26 – Citay – Schubas (CHICAGO)
3/26 – Poi Dog Pondering + The Old Ceremony – Shank Hall (MILWAUKEE)
3/26 – Tegan and Sara – Aragon Ballroom (CHICAGO)
3/27 – Cave Singers – Empty Bottle (CHICAGO)
3/27 – Sissy Spacek + All Tiny Creatures – Borg Ward (MILWAUKEE)

Just Announced:

5/19 – Gregg Allman & Friends – Pabst Theater (MILWAUKEE)
5/21 – Gary Louris (The Jayhawks) – High Noon Saloon (MADISON)
6/18 – Aziz Ansari – Pabst Theater (MILWAUKEE)

+Bookmark our upcoming shows page for all your concert announcements+

Join us Thursday, March 18th from 11am – 5pm at Habana Calle 6 for our favorite bands across two stages. Get there early, we’ll provide free breakfast burritos at the start and will have plenty of KOSS headphones to give away too. Admission is FREE!

Underground:

11:00 – Peter Wolf Crier
12:00 – Blair
1:00 – Charlie Parr
2:00 – Invade Rome
3:00 – Juniper Tar
4:00 – Roadside Graves

Patio:

11:00 – Group of the Altos
12:00 – Conrad Plymouth
1:00 – Strand of Oaks
2:00 – Common Loon
3:00 – Pezzettino
4:00 – Kings Go Forth

Sponsored by MindPool Live, KOSS & MillerCoors

Conrad Plymouth has been recording at Howl Street Studios in Milwaukee for an upcoming release. We’ve shared the song “Fergus Falls” before in a variety of video formats. Yesterday, the band released an unmastered version of the song that has been shined up and ready for for an initial listen. The song continues to impress and can/should be downloaded here.

Conrad Plymouth play the Muzzle of Bees SXSW showcase on Thursday, March 18th. We’ll keep the RSVP open another day, make sure to get your name on the list and come early for free breakfast burritos.

Last night Strand of Oaks sat down in front of a fireplace inside a Wauwatosa home. Using a borrowed guitar he kept the attentive crowd of about 30 people in his gentle music grasp. Actually, it was more like a hug. The night was easy-going, filled with laughter, storytelling, and plenty of glasses raised in appreciation.

The set included material culled from his 2009 release, Leave Ruin, and the intimate setting provided an opportunity to reveal new material from a forthcoming new release. Over the course of the night the songs were enhanced by the vocal harmonies of Aaron and Ryan from Juniper Tar, who are accompanying Tim to Austin and acting as his backing band.

The audience also got covers of Springsteen’s “Used Cars,” Damien Jurado’s “Ohio” and a very brief cover of Temple of the Dog. It was a night I’ll carry with me for awhile.

A big thanks to everyone who came to the show and especially to CJ & Julie for opening up their home to strangers friends.

Photo: Daniel Brielmaier

Buy: Amazon Digital ($7.99)
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Myspace: Strand of Oaks
MP3: Strand Of Oaks – “End In Flames”