Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists Credit: Shawn Brackbill

Wicker Park Fest offers three stages of rock-leaning acts from all across the musical spectrum this Saturday and Sunday. On both days music begins at 2:20 PM on the North Stage, 3 PM on the Center Stage, and 2:05 PM on the South Stage. On Saturday the whimsical Man Man headline the North Stage, after the likes of Bahamas, Delicate Steve, and Kid Karate; country-fried punk legends the Meat Puppets headline the Center Stage, with support from Leagues, Young General, and the Bright White, among others; New York indie-pop band Cults headline the South Stage, sharing the bill with Tera Melos, local emo “supergroup” Their/They’re/There, the Lighthouse & the Whaler, Minor Characters, and more. On Sunday former 13th Floor Elevators front man Roky Erickson and Greg “Oblivian” Cartwright’s long-running band the Reigning Sound top off the North Stage lineup, with support from heavy-hitting locals such as Treasure Fleet, Secret Colours (see Soundboard), and Meat Wave; on the Center Stage punk-rock marching band Mucca Pazza takes the final slot, after Hey Champ, Brighton MA, Midwest Hype, and more; on the South Stage Ted Leo & the Pharmacists headline (see Soundboard), after sets from pop punkers Teenage Bottlerocket, Milwaukee rock band Trapper Schoepp & the Shades, and locals Planetsexploder and AM Taxi, among others. In addition to the standard street-fest features (a children’s area and booths from food vendors, retailers, nonprofits, craftspeople, et cetera), Wicker Park Fest hosts a Paul Preissner art installation, Gaates, and a Redmoon performance-art spectacle called The Ladder Machine—which includes an aerialist who pours champagne from an oversize chandelier adorned with bottles and glasses.