season of songs

september is always full of live music in madison. like, more full than june, july and august. i wonder why? i'm certainly not complaining--september is one of my favorite months, full of change and new starts, sunny days and cool evenings, wedding anniversary celebration, and, apparently, tons of concerts. last weekend, we went to 3 concerts. got babysitters on 3 nights. and guess what? at least 3 of us have a cough, bags under our eyes, and need to go to bed. (it's probably all 4 of us).

but before a virus hit the house, we had fun!

march fourth is a group of crazy folks from portland, oregon, playing all sorts of happy songs in full brassy band style while wearing anything they want (with just a touch of marching band fashion). they marched and danced around stage thursday night, and i got to go see them after a particularly not-so-fun meeting that same evening, which made them an even more welcome joyful distraction.

if you're wondering if those are antlers protruding from that red marching hat, the answer is yes.

friday night brougt dr dog and cake to town, rocking in the old outdoor stadium in the heart of our 'hood. david's been waiting a long time to see dr dog, so i think that was a pretty big highlight for him. cake is an absolute trip to dance to and to be entertained by, and i'm so glad we got to go! the lead singer is my sister's neighbor, so it added a layer of fun to see this guy i know from the bus stop and from backyard BBQ get-togethers up on stage, commanding a large crowd with grace and presence.


saturday, we saw the UW marching band at the pre-game rally at union south. this counts as live music, FOR SURE. i danced as much there as i did at all those other concerts. and it was a lot.


and after all the polka dancing at the union, we went to the neighborhood backyard party where there was---yep, you guessed it--live music. a bluegrass trio played on a small amp in the backyard, and then someone paid my kids to go around and collect donations for the musicians (it wasn't me--i was surprised as anyone to approached by these two with money buckets).


also, i can't believe how kids are drawn to teenagers. like moths to flames. it is awesome at neighborhood events. they were so occupied by these two girls, and i think everyone was enjoying it. i was.

sunday night, blind pilot came to town. we've been listening to them since their first album graced our ears while we were out in santa cruz, and it turns out they are every bit as talented and engaging in person as they are on their albums. their songs can tug the heart strings, and i cried during the show in the good-music-running-through-the-veins sort of way. and then, to top it all off, they teamed up on stage with their opening act and all 11 people played a cover of paul simon's obvious child and they knocked it out of the park with all the drums. i super duper love that song, and literally just taught james the drum solo at the bridge last week.


and just in case you need a refresher course in awesomeness, here is paul simon doing his thing with a whole bunch of talented brazilian drummers.