Clockwise from left: Surround Sound, Distant Cuzins and the Violet Aversion Theory.
For some Wisconsin rock bands, playing Milwaukee’s Summerfest is the ultimate big gig — affirmation that making music is finally paying off.
A dozen bands representing students from 23 high schools and middle schools around the state were chosen from among more than 50 entrants to compete in the Rockonsin finals at Summerfest next week. They will perform 20-minute sets on the Johnson Controls Stage on June 30 and July 1 from noon to 3:30 p.m.
Among them are three Madison area local bands appearing consecutively on June 30:
• Distant Cuzins, a quartet from Oregon High School, plays a raucous fusion of rockabilly and classic rock (1:15 p.m.).
• Surround Sound, a heavy-rockin’ four-piece, is made up of students from Waunakee, Middleton and Madison Memorial high schools (1:45 p.m.).
• The Violet Aversion Theory, a trio from Madison West, submitted a dark and doomy version of the Animals’ “House of the Rising Sun” for its Rockonsin entry (2:15 p.m.).
All bands will be evaluated by a panel of judges, and the winner and runner-up each will play a 45-minute set at Summerfest’s Harley-Davidson Roadhouse on July 10, plus receive a professional recording session at Madison’s Blast House Studios. Additionally, one rock, punk or metal band will be selected to represent Rockonsin at the Milwaukee stop of the 2016 Vans Warped Tour on July 26, and another act will be chosen to perform at Waukesha BluesFest on Aug. 13.
“This provides a peek at the next generation of young garage bands and their own signature sounds and interpretation of music that will rock future music lovers in the Badger State and beyond,” says Rockonsin producer Dennis Graham. “Rockonsin gives these young bands the opportunity to display their musical chops at a festival recognized as the largest in the world. That’s pretty cool.”
This year, Rockonsin replaced Launchpad, an annual garage band competition founded by Graham that ran for 11 years but only allowed three groups total to perform at Summerfest.
Graham expects the number of bands participating in Rockonsin to increase as the competition evolves. “I want to make this a truly statewide representation of the young talent in Wisconsin."
