On Sat, Nov 29, we've teamed up with MAMA to spotlight four emerging acts as part of the "New Artist Listening Room" at Harmony Bar & Grill. Show starts at 8 p.m., and cover is just $10! Hear on-the-rise local talents Marigold Motel, Jonathon Millionaire, The Stoplights, and @rockstarelise.com. 🎶

it’s never a bad time to start a $5/month donation to @tonemadison.bsky.social

On Sat, Nov 29, we're co-hosting a showcase of new and emerging local artists with Madison Area Music Association at Harmony Bar & Grill (2201 Atwood Ave). In this week's Microtones, Music Editor @stevenmps.bsky.social shares a few words on the announcement and our valuing of the music community.

"What does it mean to be a co-op if the Group Health Cooperative Board is now going to disregard the unanimous votes at a well-attended and well-noticed meeting of its own membership?" ask Adam Chern and Rebecca Kemble in a joint guest column.

"The sequential rhythms of INERTIA FOLLIES are intermittently anxious and contemplative but persistently thrilling. Credit that to director Chelsea Gaspard's guiding belief in the show's improvised components as 'living and breathing and shifting,'" writes @nothingunfinished.bsky.social. 🎭

"We are asking the UW Board of Regents to stand up for students' right to learn and the faculty's right to teach, both of which are intertwined with democracy itself," writes Neil Kraus, AFT-Wisconsin VP of Higher Education.

"Even as MDEV expands, making the industry accessible to newer indie developers remains a key focus of the conference." @manateemailbox.bsky.social reports from the @wigamesalliance.bsky.social MDEV conference (Nov 7-8), and talks with game developers and industry representatives alike. 🎮

"Low on prep and high on passive cooking time, roasting is a godsend." In this month's "Small Bites," @jesseraub.bsky.social gives us a low-effort guide to bringing maximum flavor to the table when seasonal produce is limited in late autumn.

Amendments to the 2026 budget the Dane County Supervisors passed—including freezing 20 unfilled positions at the Dane County Sheriff's Office—better fit the county's needs than the original budget by Dane County Executive Melissa Agard, writes @stinadale.bsky.social.

The Black Film Festival returns this year—November 12 thru 15—with screenings and discussions at Fountain of Life Covenant Church and @madisonlibrary.bsky.social locations throughout the city. Film section editor @nothingunfinished.bsky.social takes a closer look at the scope of the programming.

Join us for Office Hours next week at State Line Distillery! We'll be kicking off our year-end fundraiser and raffling off merch, copies of our body cameras zine, and tickets to "The Moth" StorySLAMs in Madison. tonemadison.com/event/tone-m...

In a story we're republishing from @wisconsinwatch.org and Wisconsin Public Radio, @addiecostello.bsky.social and Trisha Young report on Habitat for Humanity's La Crosse affiliate embracing an affordable manufactured housing project and development model.

As a number of Wisconsin basketball teams kick off their seasons, Music Editor @stevenmps.bsky.social examines the state's relationship to basketball, touching on everything from Madison's many courts to the influx of excitement surrounding the sport. tonemadison.com/articles/bas...

Join us for Office Hours next week at State Line Distillery! We'll be kicking off our year-end fundraiser and raffling off merch, copies of our body cameras zine, and tickets to "The Moth" StorySLAMs in Madison. tonemadison.com/event/tone-m...

"The women interviewed for this story all pointed out that accountability and making amends are crucial concepts in the world of recovery, and yet they’ve seen little in the way of [that]." Four years after grooming allegations, David Henzie-Skogen has reemerged. @scottgordonwi.bsky.social reports.

For 11 years, Tone Madison has made it our mission to cover the corners of culture involving the people, places, and movements that often get overlooked in our local media landscape. Help us continue to tell those stories. tonemadison.com/donate/

In today's Microtones, film section editor @nothingunfinished.bsky.social defines what Project Projection—the soon-to-be quarterly local film and video art showcase at @artlitlab.bsky.social—has meant to the culture of Madison since programmer James Kreul began hosting.

Music Editor @stevenmps.bsky.social highlights—and finds what unifies—great recent releases from Aergo, Baby Tyler Band, Calamity, Frozen Charlotte, Alex Yaco Kalfayan, and a collaboration between Slick and In Ropes in our latest. tonemadison.com/articles/mad...

This week, in our final "Oddsconsin" selection for spooky season, Howard Veregin tours the UW Zoological Museum (at 250 N Mills St). He observes the thousands of dermestid beetles that clean animal skeletons so they can be preserved for study and research.

"Keep holding us accountable. But please do so with curiosity rather than condemnation." In response to David Rivera-Kohr, Madison Common Council President Regina Vidaver offers her point of view and further clarity on the recent closure of the Dairy Drive encampment.

"No amount of scrutiny and harassment is going to force any community to hide its pride." In this week's Microtones, News and Politics Editor Juan Carlos Garcia Martinez celebrates the new Puerto Rican Studies Hub at @uwmadison.bsky.social, the first of its kind in the Midwest.

Our Managing Editor @stinadale.bsky.social examines the increased frequency of human-bat encounters during this time of year. Lieffring talks with Madison East-Sider Sara Woolery, who was awakened in the middle of the night last month to a brown bat in her bedroom. 🦇

Wisconsin has more UFO sightings per capita than any other state in the Upper Midwest with 2,544 since 1947. Howard Veregin recaps the phenomena in our "Oddsconsin" pick for this week.

"...I'll use the title as a way to get us all on the same page. I really want my audience to be engaged from the beginning, so that you can trust me, and I'll carry you through the poem." @rmbanting.bsky.social talks with poet Sasha Debevec-McKenney about her debut collection, JOY IS MY MIDDLE NAME

In this month's "Small Bites," @jesseraub.bsky.social turns to express his feelings on the inanity of ordinary life while our country descends into havoc under the current regime.

"WELCOME POETS shows the ways in which Lorine Niedecker's influence continues to ripple outward..." Ahead of @artlitlab.bsky.social's screening of the @pbswisconsin.bsky.social series this Sat, Oct 10, at 7 p.m., @mminkoff.bsky.social meditates on her connection to the 20th-century Wisconsin poet.

"...The unsentimental and raw representation of adolescence in Todd Solondz's WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE (1995) is the most poignant and personally enduring of the era." @nothingunfinished.bsky.social reviews the cringe comedy classic, screening on 35mm at UW Cinematheque this Sat, Oct 18, at 7 p.m.

Howard Veregin of "Oddsconsin" visits St. Martin's Cemetery, reminding us of child mortality rates during a traumatic period in Wisconsin's history just a century ago.

In an original comic, @racheldl.bsky.social illustrates her living experience at 540 West Washington Avenue in Madison, where she discovered a haunting part of the city's history.

"...If we're going to make it through crises (and there will be multiple crises in the upcoming years), we have to remember that there are always multiple options available." Build community, and don't give into the austerity mindset, @stinadale.bsky.social asserts in this week's Microtones.

"No other film has yet to capture the mood of the country at this moment in time as piercingly..." New contributor Lance Li untangles his thoughts on Paul Thomas Anderson's ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, which is currently screening at all Madison area theaters (AMC, Flix, Marcus).

"There really is nothing like it, either in Lynch's filmography or the entire history of cinema." Jason Fuhrman chronicles the creation and experience of discovering the seminal surrealist feature, ERASERHEAD (1977). It screens on 35mm at UW Cinematheque this Fri, Oct 10, at 7 p.m.

"[Our] housing crisis has reached a boiling point, and the Common Council's decisions over the years have not done enough to cool it down." David Rivera-Kohr advocates for redirecting money towards desperately needed housing safety nets like Dairy Drive.

Our "Oddsconsin" pick from Howard Veregin this week details the history of @uwmadison.bsky.social's first official seal, Numen Lumen, which was designed in 1854 by John Hiram Lathrop.

"'We’re looking for this to be a sustainable part of our life that we can legitimately live off of,'" says The Spine Stealers' Kate Ruland, in a moment of conviction. Music Editor @stevenmps.bsky.social sits down with The Spine Stealers' Kate Ruland and Emma O'Shea. tonemadison.com/articles/the...

Support us and several local artists today! 🙏 tonemadison.bandcamp.com/album/10

"...Start by taking cues from your constituents, from people who already have experience organizing on the front lines of social movements, from people who need help right now." @scottgordonwi.bsky.social has an urgent message for Wisconsin's elected officials in this week's Microtones.

In celebration of spooky season we are republishing articles from Howard Veregin’s blog, “Oddsconsin.” tonemadison.com/articles/odd...

@hamsandwichmel.bsky.social reviews Quan Barry's hypnotic horror novel, THE UNVEILING, which explores "America's ongoing racial haunting." Its commentary is one that Madison readers will likely recognize in their own city. The book launches Tues, Oct 14, with @groveatlantic.bsky.social.

Earlier this morning, former City of Madison Common Council Alder Juliana Bennett announced she's running for the Wisconsin State Assembly in the 76th District. @stinadale.bsky.social talked with Bennett about her decision to run, her policies, and what she's learned from @francescahong.bsky.social.

"...It's more at the meta level about the way women appear in history." @mminkoff.bsky.social interviews local dramatist and director Jan Levine Thal ahead of the @broomstreettheater.bsky.social premiere of HEAD ON A SILVER PLATTER: IN DEFENSE OF SALOME, which runs Oct 10 thru 26.

"As calls for community involvement grow in the current climate, we need to be wary of actors who find opportunities to capitalize on that energy." News and Politics Editor Juan Carlos Garcia Martinez examines the scope of the recent dispute between MBC taproom and Oak Street residents in Madison.

"Few people writing songs in Madison are as adept at authoring tracks that convey both damage and optimistic romanticism in equal measure." Music Editor @stevenmps.bsky.social highlights "Walking In Circles," a new single from indie-rock songwriter Jane Hobson. tonemadison.com/articles/jan...

"They're gorgeous reminders of the value of raw technique in experimental work, which Blake Barit has in spades." Maxwell Courtright previews the versatile local artist's Mills Folly Microcinema short-film program, "Digitalog." It screens at @artlitlab.bsky.social on Wed, Sept 24, at 7 p.m.

"You can't really ignore the humanness of it, and then everything that it holds." @rmbanting.bsky.social delves into the details and creative partnerships of Madison incubator space-turned-community center, Textile Arts Center, which has recently reopened at 1702 South Park Street.

"Either way, good day or bad, I can probably make it through if I have falafel in the freezer." In this month's "Small Bites," @jesseraub.bsky.social shares how he approaches cooking while managing his MS.

News and Politics Editor Juan Carlos Garcia Martinez talks with local activists, like attorney Aissa Olivarez and professor Armando Ibarra, who are putting a renewed emphasis on legal strategy and grassroots movements to defend immigrant rights during a time of relentless fascist threats.

"Watching NO FEAR, NO DIE (1990) with several decades of Claire Denis' films as context, it's striking to realize how the director emerged on the scene almost fully formed." Sara Batkie previews the new 4K restoration, screening at the @chazenartuw.bsky.social this Sun, Sept 21, at 2 p.m.

I'll be moderating a Wisconsin Book Fest event tomorrow evening at the university, to talk with author David Levithan and songwriter Jens Lekman about their collaborative novel, 'Songs For Other People's Weddings.' We'll talk. Jens will play a few tunes. Come out! www.facebook.com/events/40773...

As the summer movie season began to wind down, our film section editor @nothingunfinished.bsky.social and contributor @drboffa.bsky.social joined OCA Media's Josiah Wampfler—host of "Two Tickets Please!"—for a collaborative discussion (to confer and commiserate).