I did not make it to the inaugural Dummerfest in 2015, but I’ve had my eye on it ever since. After skipping 2016, ‘the Milwaukee area’s leading all-ages single-day poser convention’ returned with a bang this year. On top of a bunch of the best pop-punk bands in the country was one of my all time favorite hardcore bands, Negative Approach. I took that as a sign that my attendance was mandatory. The lineup definitely justified the five hour drive. It’s been a stressful spring and early summer around the Trauma house, and I was in serious need of blowing off some steam. I’m not sure what I was looking forward to more, all the great bands or two days of responsibility free drinking. Plus, I grew up in Wisconsin and I’m always looking for an excuse to visit. Unfortunately, it was a quick trip and I didn’t have time to catch up with any old friends.

The main festival started at 1pm on Saturday, so we headed to Wisconsin on Friday afternoon. That also allowed us time to check out the Dummerfest Pre-Party with PEARS and Galactic Cannibal. The drive over was slow but uneventful, and we checked into our hotel about 4pm. By 5pm we had grabbed a cab and were enjoying happy hour at some of Milwaukee’s finest working class dives. The Pre-Party was at a DIY venue called the Triple Diamond in kind of a sketchy neighborhood not far from Miller Park. (I grew rooting for the Brewers at the nearby, but now demolished, County Stadium.) It was in an old brick factory, or maybe a warehouse. Someone had cleaned it up and divided it into smaller spaces that could be rented for various artistic endeavors. There was a lot of photography stuff, and I could hear some random band practicing upstairs. It reminded me a lot of some of the venues I went to as a kid, but most of those were BYOB. I could have used a 40 ouncer in a paper sack.

Alcohol was not allowed at the club, so that’s why we found ourselves in the area a little early. I thought I read that the music was supposed kick off at 7pm, but when we got there we were told it would be 8pm. We decided to walk back up the hill for another beer or two, and also bought some delicious Mexican ice cream from a guy with a push cart. By the time we got back we had missed the first band and Galactic Cannibal was setting up. It seemed like a lot of people were excited to see these guys, but I was only vaguely familiar with them. For those who don’t know, Galactic Cannibal was (is?) a side project of Nick Woods from Direct Hit!. The band featured Nick on guitar and his brother Peter on lead vocals. They made a one off album called We’re Fucked in 2013. That album has developed quite a cult following, but they rarely perform.

Their set was the type of energetic chaos that I enjoy. Peter, who looks very similar to Nick, spoke to the crowd like he was some sort of brain damaged misanthrope. He kept wrapping the microphone cable around himself like a baby being strangled by its own umbilical cord. At one point he lunged into the crowd like a torpedo, and people were diving out of the way to avoid his hairy, sweaty torso. Musically, I might describe it as hardcore for people who don’t like hardcore. The lyrics are shouted and sometimes absurd. The guitar, bass, and drums are fast and aggressive. They ended their spastic 20 minute set with fan favorite “Hate Everything More”. I could definitely see why they have such a loyal audience.

PEARS’ set was also kind of unusual. They played the entire Go to Prison LP. It might not seem like much of a stretch, but you have to remember that only two of the current band members played on that record. I enjoyed it immensely, as I’m not as familiar with Green Star. I noticed that Zach has started talking to the crowd (he never spoke the first two times I saw them), and has toned down his stage antics a little. This did not detract from the overall power of the performance. After Go to Prison, they played one newer song. I think it was “Breakfast”, but things were starting to get a bit hazy at this point. Sometimes it seems like PEARS have been around forever, but the truth is that they’ve come a long way in a relatively short amount of time. These hard working and hard touring guys continue to grow on me.

This show was free if you had a ticket to Dummerfest, but was not all that well attended. I would guess maybe 60 or 70 for Galactic Cannibal and closer to 50 for PEARS. I’m surprised more people didn’t take advantage of it, as it was a great way to kick off the festivities. Afterward, we headed back to a better neighborhood to continue drinking. We ended the night eating delicious Wisconsin inspired empanadas stuffed with brats and cheese curds, and washing them down with PBR. Our Dummerfest weekend was off to a great start.