Enjoy a compilation of selected tracks by artists playing shows we're excited about in Madison this week. For more information on these shows, read on under the playlist or check out all this week's Isthmus Picks.
Black Violin, Friday, Oct. 25, Overture Hall, 7:30 pm: Blending hip-hop and classical music to create something altogether new, this duo’s music is as refined as it is exhilarating. Black Violin’s new album, Take The Stairs, drops in November, and the singles already released display the Florida pair’s 16 years of mastery of their instruments and genres. On “Showoff” they mix drumline percussion with complex violin melodies, and on “One Step,” they show off their vocal prowess along with instrumental skills.
Cherub, Thursday, Oct. 24, Majestic Theatre, 8:30 pm: Famous for creating a staple of house party playlists everywhere, Cherub flutters into Madison. Looking past their 2013 hit “Doses and Mimosas,” though, reveals a catalogue worth diving into. Their most recent project, Gummo Season, deals with both the highs and the lows of endless partying and forgotten nights. With Glynis, Zzisco.
Chris Stapleton, Thursday, Oct. 24, Alliant Energy Center, 7 pm: Together with his fellow Kentuckian Sturgill Simpson, Stapleton gets credit for taking country music back to the future. Everyone wants a piece of him. Kenny Chesney, Adele, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley and Dierks Bentley have all recorded Stapleton songs. He has pop song power, too. In August he co-wrote “I Just Remembered That I Didn’t Care” with John Mayer, just one day before they debuted it at a Nashville arena show. With The Brothers Osborne, Kendell Marvel.
Hamel Music Center opening ceremonies, Oct. 25-27, Hamel Music Center: The UW Mead Witter School of Music’s beautifully appointed and acoustically spectacular facility opens its doors to the general public for a full weekend of student and faculty performances in the 66,000-square-foot, $55.8 million structure. After the requisite ribbon-cutting Friday evening, student musicians take the stage at 7:30 p.m. On Saturday evening the UW-Madison Symphony, chorus and selected featured artists rip it up in an 8 p.m. concert. The Sunday concert at 1 p.m. features distinguished alumni musicians performing. All concerts are followed by receptions open to attendees, and the entire event is free, although tickets are required.
Arturo Sandoval + Jane Monheit, Friday, Oct. 25, UW Memorial Union-Shannon Hall, 8 pm: Cuban-born trumpeter Arturo Sandoval as a young man studied with Dizzy Gillespie, and has been instrumental in infusing Latin elements with American jazz ever since. The 10-time Grammy Award and Presidential Medal of Freedom winner joins forces with vocalist Jane Monheit, whom The New York Times described as having “a voice of incredible beauty,” to breathe new life into old jazz favorites.
Tiny Moving Parts, Friday, Oct. 25, High Noon Saloon, 9:30 pm: As we found out in a 2016 Isthmus interview, Tiny Moving Parts’ resident guitar wizard Dylan Mattheisen is an endlessly positive person. That’s a bit of a surprise because Tiny Moving Parts’ brand of emo punk is pretty aggressive, marked by Mattheisen’s kinetic guitar work and the unrelenting wallop of the band’s rhythm section (that happens to be made up of Mattheisen’s cousins). It’s screamo delivered with a smile. The Benson, Minnesota, trio’s latest LP, Breathe, was released in September. With fredo disco, Standards.
Freakfest, Saturday, Oct. 26, State Street, 7 pm: Local and national artists converge once again for a night of spooking and jamming. The headliner this year is Atlanta’s Lil Yachty, practically rap’s court jester. His non-serious but often extremely catchy raps, like “Minnesota” or “One Night,” are sly and funny. Also check out Madison rock staples German Art Students and the Arizonian desert folk of the Gin Blossoms.
Pine Travelers, Saturday, Oct. 26, High Noon Saloon, 9 pm: The hard-touring band can bust out bluegrass and outlaw country, but core members Alex White and Nick Clutter, both fluid lead guitar players, really shine when they rock; firing up an Allman Brothers-meet-My Morning Jacket sound. The show debuts their new album of originals, Hireath. With Kind Country.
Kishi Bashi, Sunday, Oct. 27, Majestic Theatre, 8 pm: Omoiyara, the May release from violinist Kaoru Ishibashi, aka Kishi Bashi, is named for a Japanese word that loosely translates to something between compassion and empathy. Based on Ishibashi’s investigation into the wave of World War II xenophobia that led the U.S. government to put Japanese and Japanese American people in concentration camps, Omoiyara manages to be beautiful and uplifting, a testament to Kishi Bashi’s sound and spirit. It’s a delightful mix of indie pop filled out with symphonic sounds in the vein of Sufjan Stevens (minus the obvious Christian influences). Indie cred check: Ishibashi played with of Montreal and fronted the aughties Brooklyn post-rock pop band Jupiter One. With Pip the Pansy.
Peter Case, Sunday, Oct. 27, Kiki’s House of Righteous Music, 7 pm: In September, Kiki Schueler hosted her 300th house concert, a number that includes return visits by quite a few artists who have made Kiki’s House of Righteous Music a Madison home base(ment). This show will be the seventh at Kiki’s for singer-songwriter Peter Case, a legendary figure both for his early power pop bands The Nerves and The Plimsouls and for more than three decades worth of solo material ranging from folk to blues to rock. With Zack Keim.
Ryan Bingham, Tuesday, Oct. 29, Barrymore Theatre, 8 pm: Part rodeo, part haunted house, Ryan Bingham’s crunchy vocals and spooky lyrics produce Americana music as good as it gets. He struck oil when a song from his debut album, “The Weary Kind,” was selected as the lead track in the 2010 film Crazy Heart starring Jeff Bridges. The tune won a Grammy, Critics Choice, Golden Globe and an Oscar. Not bad for the then 29-year-old high school dropout from Hobbs, New Mexico. Bingham is in the midst of an absolute cattle drive of a tour: six months in support of his hefty, very countrified new album, American Love Song. The time is no doubt a nice musical break from his role as Walker in the Prime Video series Yellowstone. With Jamestown Revival.
Daniel Champagne, Wednesday, Oct. 30, Art In Gallery, 8 pm: At first, Australian native Daniel Champagne might appear to be another entrant in the sensitive-singer-songwriter sweepstakes. But those listening deeper — or seeing a video — will quickly be hooked by his singular style and dazzling technique on guitar. Now based in Nashville, he’s swinging north for a tour, including this make-up date for a snowed-out show last winter at Art In. With Christopher Gold, Paul Creswell.
The Menzingers, Wednesday, Oct. 30, Majestic Theatre, 8 pm: In recent years, Philadelphia has become an incubator for punk-flecked indie rock. It’s home to critical darlings like Hop Along and Japanese Breakfast, in addition to the city’s greatest pop punk band, The Menzingers. Over five albums (with number six, Hello Exile, set to release in October), The “Menzos” have built a template for chugging, anthemic songs that can bury themselves in your heart. Fans of The Gaslight Anthem or The Hold Steady will find common ground with the quartet. Also appearing will be another revered Philly group, Tigers Jaw, plus Bay Area punk upstarts Culture Abuse.
Maxine Gordon, Thursday, Oct. 31, Hamel Music Center-Collins Recital Hall, 7:30 pm: As a part of a four-day residency in Madison, Maxine Gordon celebrates her new book on the life of her husband and jazz great Dexter Gordon. On this evening, Gordon will read excerpts from her book, Sophisticated Giant: The Life and Legacy of Dexter Gordon. UW Department of Afro-American Studies professor Ethelene Whitmire will also conduct an interview with Gordon, and the UW Blue Note Ensemble will provide musical accompaniment.
Find the full rundown of this week's Isthmus Picks here.