Promoters Kelsey Kaufmann and Sean Heiser created Riverwest Fest, a two-day “punk crawl” across Riverwest, in 2010 as a fundraiser to save the all-ages basement music venue, The Eagle’s Nest. In that respect it didn’t

Fresh Cut Collective took their time when they began recording their new album last fall...

It's not entirely clear what the annual South By Southwest music festival accomplishes anymore. Once an industry shindig where buzz bands played in hopes of landing a record deal, the four-day event (10 days, counting the film and interactive...

Live hip-hop bands tend to fall back on bland, anonymous grooves, as the actual music takes a backseat to the raps, but Milwaukee’s Fresh Cut Collective escapes this trap, giving the six players who back rapper Adebisi plenty to do...

Live hip-hop bands tend to fall back on bland, anonymous grooves, as the actual music takes a backseat to the raps, but Milwaukee’s Fresh Cut Collective escapes this trap, giving the six players who back rapper Adebisi plenty to do...

With his 1996 debut Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite, Maxwell helped establish mellow, groove-based neo-soul as a commercially viable alternative to the more dance-based R&B of the time, but after his 2001 album, Now, he willfully retreated from the spotlight for some extended downtime. It took eight years, but he returned in top form on...

Fresh Cut Collective, comprised of seven artists with extensive histories with other Milwaukee bands, play music live that otherwise would be presented using either pre-recorded sounds or a combination of that and, say, a couple of live players. This album is live music restoration, taking music back from...

Thursday, Aug. 27, Prestige Atlantic Impulse @ Sugar Maple, 8 p.m. Affirming Victor DeLorenzo’s status as perhaps the most musically adventurous of all the Violent Femmes, the drummer’s new project, Prestige Atlantic Impulse, is an experimental jazz trio worlds removed from the Femmes’ signature folk-punk.

Although Summerfest was conceived largely as a showcase for local bands, over the decades slots for opening bands became elusive as the festival began to emphasize national headliners, explains Michael Houser, a former Summerfest board member and the current chief executive...