Every now and again I check out the top 10 records of the week, never expecting there to be any overlap with my tastes. There are rare exceptions, however, like this week, when U2 and Neko Case had the two top-selling discs in "No Line on the Horizon" and "Middle Cyclone," respectively.
It's rare for two artists I enjoy to take up 2/5 of the top five and that's ok, since I pretty much stopped expecting the top 40 to provide me entertainment at about age 10.
Case is coming to town for a show at the Riverside on April 25 to promote her latest, "Middle Cyclone," which is really a fine effort, packed with all the raucous attitude, haunting melodies and passion we've come to expect from Case.
But, so far, none of U2's 2009 dates are in Milwaukee. I asked Kristi Secord of the Bradley Center -- where U2 has played in the past -- if there's any backstage talk there about a gig.
"At this time we do not have any dates on hold for a U2 show," she says. "We're hopeful that U2 will visit Milwaukee on the 2010 leg of the tour."
All of the U.S. dates so far are stadium gigs, so a jaunt through indoor venues would have to be added for U2 to consider the B.C.
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.
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 be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
