8/6/23 Ripon Summer Concert Features Chicken Wire Empire
6 August 2023 News
This week’s Horicon Bank Ripon Summer Concert Series (Friday, August 11) features the return of Chicken Wire Empire to the Village Green. Chicken Wire Empire will perform a free concert starting at 7:00 pm. The performance is sponsored by Butzin-Marchant Funeral Home.
Born from the Wisconsin jamband scene, Chicken Wire Empire (CWE) began as a traditional bluegrass band, honing its sound into a self-titled debut album in 2014. With half of the group rooted in bluegrass, and the other half steeped in jamband music, a change occurred when CWE performed an Old & In The Way tribute show. CWE modified its style and joined the roster of high energy jamgrass happening across the nation. This journey from traditional to progressive was documented in the film ”All It Takes,” premiering in 2016 at the Oriental Theatre in Milwaukee. The film follows CWE around Wisconsin and includes performances in Milwaukee’s historic Riverside Theatre. In 2018, the band returned to the studio, recording their sophomore album “What Moves Mountains” at Axis Recording Studios. With support from their family and friends, What Moves Mountains was released in January of 2019.
In 2020, as live shows were drying up due to the spread of the COVID pandemic, the band turned to live-streaming, and were a featured showcase artists in virtual renditions of the IBMA and Folk Alliance International conferences. The band used their time to arrange and record an album entitled “Fresh Pickles,” which was released in February 2022, and is garnering critical acclaim in the bluegrass world.
The concert series, which is organized by Ripon Main Street, Inc., takes place from 7:00 to 10:00 pm at the Village Green located at the corner of Watson and Seward Street in historic downtown Ripon. A variety of beverages are available, and participants are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets to sit on. NO CARRY-INs are allowed in the park because beverage sales help cover entertainment expenses.
Next week’s concert features Ask Your Mother.
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