The Pelican’s Perch

Where to begin? Chris had called me wondering if I wanted to fill the fourth seat in the car for their trip to Wisconsin and after all but a minute of thinking, I agreed to go. I’d yet to really get to know Chris and his roommate, so I didn’t know exactly how it would go down. Well, the trip ended up being a blast and far surpassed any of our expectations. We spent 20+ hours on the road traveling there and back, and took turns playing music throughout the trips. As with any group of people, the music tastes were going to be all over the map. They were more into the indie/emo rock stuff like Mae and Jack’s Mannequin, while I was more into the essentric/artsy indie stuff. So, the musical aspect of the trip was worth it alone as we took turns showing each other bands and most were successes for the most part.

Dear and the Headlights was the big winner for Chris. It was a band I’d found a couple days and after hearing just one song, I knew it would be a band he would enjoy. So, that album got plenty of spins during the trip. I surprisingly enjoyed most the stuff they played for me, with a few songs standing out in my guilty pleasure category for sure like Jack’s Mannequin’s “Dark Blue”, and with my iPod dying for good half way through the trip, it became their show as far as music was concerned. But I got exposed to a lot of music I wouldn’t have listened to otherwise and am happy for that.

As for the actual trip, we headed to Milwaukee to visit their friend Greg, his wife Emily, and their baby Mackenzie. I’ll admit, having an 18 month old to play with makes a trip so much better. Sweetest thing in the world. Milwaukee itself was interesting. Downtown Milwaukee is where you truly get the feeling that 1.1 million people live in the city, with people all over the place and the numerous bars full to the brim. Where Greg lived it seemed really run down and vacated. But it was right next to his work, so it worked for him. We spent three days in Milwaukee, partying, hanging out with Emily and the baby, going to lake Michigan, and eating way too much, and overall I had a blast in Milwaukee.

Up next, we drove a few hours west to LaCrosse, Wisconsin and this was where the true fun ended up being had. We stayed with Chris and Tyler’s good friend John, who played music here in Springfield before moving up there. He went by The Harp and the Lyre and it was some excellent music for sure. We got to hear his newest song and then passed the guitar around and each took turns playing one of our songs while the others accompanied them. Stuff like that tends to happen when you’ve got six guys staying in a place who all play music and write songs.

LaCrosse itself is such a great town. It’s got the small town feel, but has a lot of kids in it since it’s a college town. We went bar hopping both nights we were there and their downtown scene, I hate to say it, blew Springfield’s away. Every bar had it’s own unique feel and since it was right on the Minnesota border, the nice-nature Minnesotans are known for was in full in LaCrosse too. The accents weren’t as bad, only coming out every now and then, but I honestly was able to walk up to anyone and everyone at the bars and strike up a conversation. It was the most refreshing experience I’d had in a long time. Add to that the fact that there are never cover charges and drink deals are crazy good and you’ve got one heck of a time.

Besides partying, LaCrosse provided us with some great restaurants that you could only find in small towns, a view of the city from 500 feet up on their bluff overlook, and the chance to hang out with some of the nicest and coolest people I’ve met in a long time. We even bumped into Erin, the girl that lives above John, randomly while she came home one night and unsurprisingly enough, found us to be fun guys and hung out with us all night and the rest of the time we were there. So, in case Erin and Emily from LaCrosse are reading this, here’s hoping we hang out again in the future.

Overall, like I said before, this trip surpassed all expectations and ended up being the best experience I’ve had all year. We ate way too much at all kinds of great places, played and listened to an unhealthy amount of music throughout the trip, and met some of the most down to earth, cool people I’ve met in a long time. So, Wisconsin, here’s my apology for cracking cheese jokes and asking if LaCrosse had a good LaCrosse team, and hopefully I’ll get to visit again sometime soon. Here’s my best attempt to recapture our trip musically. A little more emo than you’re used to here at the Perch, but these were the songs that I remember distinctly from the trip for one reason or another. Enjoy and I’ll see you Monday!

Our Wisconsin Trip Through Music

• Ryan Adams – Halloweenhead
  
• Dear and the Headlights – It’s Gettin’ Easy
  
• Mae – Tisbury Lane
  
• Minus the Bear – Absinthe Party at the Fly Honey Warehouse
  
• Cake – Sheep Go to Heaven
  
• Damien Rice – Cannonball
  
• Brand New – The Archers Bows Are Broken
  
• Jack’s Mannequin – Dark Blue
  
• Radiohead – Electioneering
  
• The Rocket Summer – Brat Pack
  
• Wolftron – Ugly Bird
  
• Ben Folds – Late (Folds’ ode to Elliot Smith)