Ratboys in Milwaukee

About Ratboys

Ratboys are a Chicago-based indie rock band that emerged from the city's DIY scene with a knack for turning everyday anxieties into surprisingly catchy songs. The band, anchored by Julia Steiner's direct vocals and introspective lyrics, builds their sound around tight guitar work and rhythms that burrow into your head whether you want them to or not. Their music doesn't try to transcend the mundane—instead, they mine it for honesty. Songs like "Photo ID" and "Sports" deal with small moments of social friction and self-doubt, the stuff that keeps you up at night but sounds almost funny when someone else sings about it. They've built a solid following by playing in basements, DIY venues, and gradually larger stages while keeping that scrappy, unpolished energy intact. Ratboys represent a particular strain of Midwest indie rock that feels less concerned with being impressive and more interested in being real.

Their shows feel like intimate conversations happening in front of a crowd. Steiner commands attention without trying, and the band locks in tight. You get a mix of people who arrived early and people who wandered in, all paying actual attention. The energy is focused rather than raucous.

Known for Photo ID, Sports, Curse, Here Come the Tubular Bells, Mosquito Repellent

Ratboys + Milwaukee

Ratboys brought their particular brand of indie rock to BMO Pavilion in June, running through a setlist that felt less like a greatest-hits tour and more like a deep conversation with people who actually know the record. They opened with "Making Noise for the Ones You Love" and spent the evening threading between the obvious choices and the ones that probably meant more to the people who showed up. "Elvis Is in the Freezer" landed somewhere in the middle of the set, that song that works as both thesis and throwaway depending on your mood. By the time they got to "Black Earth, WI"—closing the whole thing out—it felt like the right ending, something local and specific in a show that never quite aimed for the obvious.

Ratboys in Milwaukee News

• Studio Milwaukee Session: Ratboys Radio Milwaukee · Nov 17, 2025
• Ratboys Announce 30-Date Tour Across U.S., Canada TicketNews · Sep 26, 2025
• Ratboys, Wednesday will both bring tours to Milwaukee in March Radio Milwaukee · Sep 23, 2025
• Ratboys Share ’Light Night Mountains All That’ And Announce A Tour UPROXX · Sep 23, 2025
• Today’s Summerfest schedule and picks: Saturday, June 21 Radio Milwaukee · Jun 21, 2025

Live Music in Milwaukee

Milwaukee's indie rock scene has always had a slightly different temperature than the coasts, less concerned with what's happening in Brooklyn or LA and more interested in making something that feels true locally. Ratboys fit that sensibility: they're not trying to be the coolest band in the room, just the one that sounds like they mean it. The city's been fertile ground for that kind of unadorned indie rock for years, bands that prioritize songwriting and actual playing over the performance of being a band.

Milwaukee road trip to see Ratboys?

Stay in Whitefish Bay or the East Side — quieter, tree-lined neighborhoods with actual character. Dinner at Colectivo's sister restaurant Odd Duck for inventive local cooking, or hit up Uchi if you want something more refined. Spend your day at the Harley-Davidson Museum if you're into American icons, or walk through the Milwaukee Public Market for the best cross-section of local food producers. The lakefront is worth an afternoon, and if blues is the point of the trip, catch a set at Colectivo or one of the Walnut Street venues while you're in town.