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Neko Case’s early work announced to the world that the singer was part alt.country sass-master and part smoky chanteuse. But the times have changed.
But Case has long since evolved into a veteran singer and songwriter whose powerful songs – often based on her own life – defy categorization and transcend trends. You don’t find the likes of “Honky Tonk Hiccups” in her set lists anymore.
Case returned to Milwaukee’s Pabst Theater Saturday night for the first time since her performance there in 2022.
The show reminded us that, if anything, Case has become her own genre, with a sound that blends country elements – there’s always that Wanda Jackson belter – with folk and rock and roll while adding an alluring darker vibe that always makes me think of Angelo Badalamenti’s soundtrack music.
Saturday’s was also her first show in Milwaukee since she published her emotionally powerful memoir, “The Harder I Fight the More I Love You: A Memoir,” which let fans in on just how much Case has had to overcome in life, giving us a new appreciation for her drive and determination.
Case is touring this time on the heels of the release of “Neon Grey Midnight Green,” her first album of new material since 2018’s “Hell-On,” and she played nearly the entire record, including “Louise,” “Little Gears,” “Baby, I’m Not (A Werewolf),” “Rusty Mountain,” “Wreck,” “Tomboy Gold” and others.
But fans were also treated to some of the classics, too, like “Deep Red Bells,” “This Tornado Loves You,” “Bracing for Sunday,” “People Got A Lot of Nerve,” and, in the encore, “I Wish I Was the Moon.”
As always, Case backed by a rock solid band – in this case a five-piece – that deftly handled the dynamism of her arrangements, and Case was personable and chatty and witty as ever onstage. And, vocally, she hasn't lost a step, her voice soaring and powerful enough to rattle the jewels on the Pabst Theater chandelier.
Case also gave props to Boswell Books for selling copies of her memoir in the lobby, and the Pabst Theater Group team for taking such good care of its artists. She also noted that she, her band and her crew all attended Milwaukee’s No Kings rally in Cathedral Square earlier in the day.
Opening the show was Washington D.C. quartet Des Demonas, whose dense, powerful sound hits first like traditional punk with declamatory vocals from frontman Jacky Cougar that conjure legendary post-punk singers like The Fall's Mark E. Smith and Gang of Four's Jon King.
But a dash of funk, combined with socially/politically conscious lyrics, gave some songs a Gang of Four feel. The addition of some psychedelic elements – notably Paul Vivari’s organ parts – mean that Des Demonas ends up with a style of its own.
SET LIST:
Bracing for Sunday
People Got a Lotta Nerve
Louise
Deep Red Bells
This Tornado Loves You
Little Gears
Baby, I'm Not (A Werewolf)
Ragtime
Magpie to the Morning
I'm an Animal
Destination
Lady Pilot
Oh, Shadowless
That Teenage Feeling
Rusty Mountain
Match-Lit
Neon Grey Midnight Green
Tomboy Gold
Wreck
Star Witness
ENCORE:
I Wish I Was the Moon
Hold On, Hold On
At Last
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press. A fifth collects Urban Spelunking articles about breweries and maltsters.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has been heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
