Let's Go for a Ride, Fireflies

As soon as Tosa Tonight announced their 2019 schedule, I circled July 24th as a can’t miss. Starring Milwaukee’s Brett Newski and Nashville’s The Foxies, this was a going to be a night of musical performance that was right up my alley.

My alley is folk-punk and pop-rock. And glitter. I also like glitter.

First, Brett. Man, this guy is tireless. I’ve been following him on the socials and his touring schedule is exhausting. I wouldn’t doubt if he’s playing Perth, Australia in the morning and Tosa Tonight in the evening.

A stretch, you say? Not entirely. At Summerfest, Brett opened for Australia’s own folk-punk/dork rock hit-maker: Courtney Barnett.

So it could happen.

Brett, too, makes the funniest and most poignant videos. As he galavants around the globe, his dance moves on ‘Ride’ crack me up. Just be careful to not make this the last thing you watch before bed or else the next day -- all day -- your brain is going to be singing, “I wanna take you for a ride. Ah, ah, ah, ahh. I wanna take you for a ride.”

Trust me. I did this.



Plus, you’ve heard of free-range chickens, right? Brett’s been known to be a free-range Newski. Untethered form a cord, Brett often strolls, dances, cajoles and high-fives his audience. Will we see a free-range Newski on Wednesday? My Magic 8 Ball says, “Signs point to yes.”

I’ll be straight, though, I did not know of The Foxies until Tosa Tonight announced them, but after listening to their two EP’s, Battery and Oblivion, about 20 times each, I knew they were going to bring something special to the Rotary Performance Pavilion like they did at the Johnson Controls World Sound Stage at Summerfest earlier this Summer.

Listening to The Foxies, I can’t quite put my finger on who they remind me of. At times, I hear just a squeak of Gwen Stefani -- Gwen's good squeak -- and then I hear the wall-of-sound backdrop of 80's New Wave greats like Berlin and Missing Persons. Others claim a Tegan and Sara, Rilo Kiley, and The Veronicas vibe while I'll claim at least two songs remind me of Milwaukee's Reyna.

As far as I can tell, there are four members of The Foxies (their press pictures prove it). But when you look at their pics, it’s clear that one member stands out: Gary, the fiddle player.

No, no, no. There is no fiddle player in The Foxies. There is Jake, Rob, Kyle, and Julia. You guess who grabs the attention. I’ll leave the picture below as a hint.

No doubt. This is going to be one of the sparkliest, power-folk-pop-punk Tosa Tonights ever produced. Plus, the weather forecast is PERFECT. I’ll be taking pictures as always, but if you ever considered bringing your “good” camera to a Tosa Tonight, this will be the one. Put your battery in the charger in the morning.

See ya there, Fireflies!