What Made Milwaukee Famous hails from Austin, Texas. (Insert geographical joke here.) But seriously, like fellow Austinites Spoon, WMMF’s wheelhouse is perfectly hooky indie rock. The album’s signature song, “The Right Place,” is two minutes of bliss accentuated by the steep changes in frontman Michael Kingcaid’s vocals. The band pulls off an update of Billy Joel’s “My Life” on the infectious “Sultan,” which combines that classic acoustic guitar with a horn section, some keyboard play and a few drum flourishes. Some might find “Middle of the Night” repetitive, but the chorus (or is it the verse?) – “somewhere in the middle of the night / everything’s gonna be all right” – followed by the verse (or is it the chorus?) – “what you need is love / sweet love” – is so damned basic and pretty that it’s the perfect pick-me-up after a bad day. (If this sounds good, go back and listen to “Bldg. a Boat from the Boards in Your Eye” from Trying Never to Catch Up, the band’s debut.) What Doesn’t Kill Us isn’t going to win any Grammys, but it’s a strong sophomore effort full of good, if not great, songs. (Barsuk 2008)
